est.)

Irrigated land: 13,000 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: NA

Environment - current issues: contamination of soil and groundwater
with agricultural chemicals, pesticides; salinization, water-logging
of soil due to poor irrigation methods; Caspian Sea pollution;
diversion of a large share of the flow of the Amu Darya into
irrigation contributes to that river's inability to replenish the Aral
Sea; desertification

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous
Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note: landlocked

@Turkmenistan:People

Population: 4,229,249 (July 1997 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 39% (male 840,168; female 812,573)
15-64 years : 57% (male 1,182,706; female 1,217,484)
65 years and over: 4% (male 66,451; female 109,867) (July 1997 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.61% (1997 est.)

Birth rate: 26.61 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Death rate: 8.65 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Net migration rate: -1.82 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth : 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (1997 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 72.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 61.51 years
male: 57.88 years
female: 65.31 years (1997 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.31 children born/woman (1997 est.)

Nationality:
noun : Turkmen(s)
adjective: Turkmen

Ethnic groups: Turkmen 77%, Uzbek 9.2%, Russian 6.7%, Kazak 2%, other
5.1% (1995)

Religions: Muslim 89%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, unknown 2%

Languages: Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98%
male: 99%
female: 97% (1989 est.)

@Turkmenistan:Government

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Turkmenistan
local long form: none
local short form: Turkmenistan
former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic

Data code: TX

Government type: republic

National capital: Ashgabat

Administrative divisions: 5 welayatlar (singular - welayat): Ahal
Welayaty (Ashgabat), Balkan Welayaty (Nebitdag), Dashhowuz Welayaty
(formerly Tashauz), Lebap Welayaty (Charjew), Mary Welayaty
note : administrative divisions h