Uzbekistan Location : Central Asia, north of Afghanistan
Capital City : Tashkent (Toshkent)
Curreny : Uzbekistani sum (UZS)
Languages Spoken : Uzbek 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other 7.1%
Climate : mostly midlatitude desert, long, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid grassland in east
National Holiday : Independence Day, 1 September (1991)
Background Information
Russia conquered Uzbekistan in the late 19th century. Stiff resistance to the Red Army after World War I was eventually suppressed and a socialist republic set up in 1924. During the Soviet era, intensive production of "white gold" (cotton) and grain led to overuse of agrochemicals and the depletion of water supplies, which have left the land poisoned and the Aral Sea and certain rivers half dry. Independent since 1991, the country seeks to gradually lessen its dependence on agriculture while developing its mineral and petroleum reserves. Current concerns include insurgency by Islamic militants based in Tajikistan and Afghanistan, a nonconvertible currency, and the curtailment of human rights and democratization.
Geographical Note
along with Liechtenstein, one of the only two doubly landlocked countries in the world
Economy
Uzbekistan is a dry, landlocked country of which 11% consists of intensely cultivated, irrigated river valleys. More than 60% of its population lives in densely populated rural communities. Uzbekistan is now the world's second largest cotton exporter, a large producer of gold and oil, and a regionally significant producer of chemicals and machinery. Following independence in December 1991, the government sought to prop up its Soviet-style command economy with subsidies and tight controls on production and prices. The state continues to be a dominating influence in the economy and has so far failed to bring about much-needed structural changes. The IMF suspended Uzbekistan's $185 million standby arrangement in late 1996 because of governmental steps that made impossible fulfillment of Fund conditions. Uzbekistan has responded to the negative external conditions generated by the Asian and Russian financial crises by emphasizing import substitute industrialization and by tightening export and currency controls within its already largely closed economy. Economic policies that have repelled foreign investment are a major factor in the economy's stagnation. A growing debt burden, persistent inflation, and a poor business climate led to disappointing growth in 2001. However, in December 2001 the government voiced a renewed interest in economic reform, seeking advice from the IMF and other financial institutions.
Religions
Muslim 88% (mostly Sunnis), Eastern Orthodox 9%, other 3%
Ports : Termiz (Amu Darya)
International Disputes - Risks to travellers
: Uzbekistan border largely delimited with Kazakhstan, but unresolved dispute remains over sovereignty of two border villages, Bagys and Turkestan, and around the Arnasay dam; dispute over access to Sokh and other Uzbek enclaves in Kyrgyzstan mars progress on international boundary delimitation; Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan wrestle with sharing limited water resources and the regional environmental degradation caused by the shrinking Aral Sea; the undemarcated northern and western border with Uzbekistan is mined in many sections
flight Nav: cheapest-flights-to.com
>
Uzbekistan
flights
|
|
|
