Kazakhstan is a Central Asian country. It covers an area of 2,717,300 km2. It is bordered by China to the east; Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan to the south; Turkmenistan and the Caspian Sea to the southwest; and Russia to the west and north. The capital is Astana, with 282 600 residents (2004) and the largest cities are Alma-Ata, with 1 025 700 residents (2004), Karaganda (396 800 residents) (2004), Chimkent (327 000 residents) (2004 ) and Pavlodar (299 100 residents) (2004).
The climate is continental and is marked by extremes, especially in the plains and valleys, where the summer is very hot and the winter extremely cold. Precipitation also shows marked contrasts, with lowland areas registering very low values, in contrast to mountainous areas, with greater precipitation.
Economy
Mining and agriculture are the most important sectors in the country’s economy. The main mining and energy resources are copper, lead, zinc, silver, tungsten, tin, chromium, nickel, cobalt, vanadium, gold, iron, coal, oil and natural gas. In agriculture, the products grown are cotton, seeds, wheat, corn, potatoes, beets, rye, oats, rice and grapes. Kazakhstan’s main trading partners are Russia, Ukraine, China and Germany.
Environmental indicator: the value of carbon dioxide emissions, per capita (metric tons, 1999), is 7.4.
Population
The population is 15 233 244 residents (est. 2006), which corresponds to a population density of 6 residents/km2. The birth and death rates are respectively 16% and 9.42%. Average life expectancy is 66.89 years. The value of the Human Development Index (HDI) is 0.765 and the value of the Gender-adjusted Development Index (IDG) is 0.763 (2001). The most important ethnic groups are Kazakh (46%), Russian (35%), Ukrainian (5%) and German (3%). The official language is Kazakh. The majority of the population is Sunni Muslim; there is also a small minority of Russian Orthodox Christians.
History
Kazakhstan gained independence in 1991, with the dismemberment of the Soviet Union. The Communist Party renewed itself and won the first elections. A year later, the 1978 Soviet-era constitution was revised. Kazakhstan is currently a multi-party republic, in which the prime minister rules with Parliament. For Kazakhstan democracy and rights, please check homeagerly.
Countryaah.com: Offers a full list of airports in the country of Kazakhstan, sorted by city location and acronyms.
Abbreviationfinder.org: Provides most commonly used abbreviations and initials containing the country name of Kazakhstan. Listed by popularity.
1UpTravel.com – Maps of Kazakhstan
Presents a collection of country, political, and shaded relief maps of Kazakhstan, a central Asian country, northwest of China. View the maps of major defense industries.
