Geography
Area: 447,400 sq. km., slightly larger than California.
Major cities: Capital--Tashkent (pop. 2.5 million); Samarkand (600,000); Bukhara (350,000).
Terrain: Flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes; broad, flat, intensely irrigated river valleys along Amu Darya, Syr Darya; shrinking Aral Sea; semiarid grasslands surrounded by mountainous Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan in east.
Climate: Mid-latitude desert; long, hot summers, mild winters.
Current weather in major Uzbek cities
People
Nationality: Uzbekistani.
Population (July 2005 est.): 26,851,195.
Ethnic groups: Uzbek 80%, Russian 5.5%, Tajik 5%, Kazakh 3%, Karakalpak 2.5%, Tatar 1.5%, other 2.5%.
Religions: Muslim 88% (Sunni), Eastern Orthodox 9%, other 3%.
Languages: Uzbek 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other 7.1%.
Education: Literacy--97% (total population).
Health (2005 est.): Life expectancy--60.82 years men; 67.73 years women.
Work force (11.9 million): Agricultural and forestry--44%, industry--20%; services--36%.
Government
Type: Republic.
Branches: Executive--president, prime minister, cabinet. Legislative--bicameral Parliament including Senate (upper chamber) and 250-seat Supreme Assembly (Oliy Majlis). Judiciary--Supreme Court, constitutional court, economic court.
Administrative subdivisions (viloyatlar/provinces): 12, plus autonomous Republic of Karakalpakstan and city of Tashkent.
Economy
GDP: Real GDP growth in 2004 was estimated at 4.4%.
Inflation: Approximately 50% in 2002, with a 150% average increase in prices of imported goods and a slight depreciation in domestically priced goods. In 2003, inflation was roughly 21.9%. In 2004, inflation of consumer prices dropped to 8%.
Per capita GDP: about $350 per capita in 2001, $310 in 2002, and $350 in 2003. In 2004, GDP rose to $1,800 (purchasing power parity).
Natural resources: Natural gas, petroleum, gold, coal, uranium, silver, copper, lead, zinc, tungsten, molybdenum. Natural gas production for 2003 was 58.1 billion cubic meters (bcm); 53 bcm was consumed in Uzbekistan and 5.9 bcm was exported. Oil production in 2003 was 145,320 barrels/day and consumption was 151,720 barrels/day.
Agriculture: Products--Cotton, fourth-largest producer worldwide; vegetables, fruits, grain, livestock.
Industry: Types--textiles, food processing, machine building, metallurgy, natural gas. The industrial production growth rate was estimated at 6.2% in 2003; electricity production was 48.6 billion kilowatt hours.
Budget: (2004 est.): Revenues--$2.46 billion; expenditures--$2.48 billion.
Trade: Total exports--(2004 est. $3.7 billion): largest contribution from cotton, gold, natural gas, mineral fertilizers, ferrous metals, textiles, food products, automobiles. Major export markets--Russia 22%, China 9.2%, Ukraine 7.4%, Tajikistan 6.1%, Bangladesh 4.7%, Turkey 4.6%, Japan 4.3%, Kazakhstan 4.1%. Total imports--(2004 est. $2.58 billion): machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, foodstuffs. Primary import partners--Russia 22.3%, United States 11.4%, South Korea 10.9%, Germany 9.5%, China 6.5%, Turkey 6.1%.
