General background: Native Kazakhs, a mix of
Turkic and Mongol nomadic tribes who migrated into the
region in the 13th century, were rarely united as a
single nation. The area was conquered by Russia in the
18th century and Kazakhstan became a Soviet Republic
in 1936. During the 1950s and 1960s agricultural "Virgin
Lands" program, Soviet citizens were encouraged
to help cultivate Kazakhstan's northern pastures. This
influx of immigrants (mostly Russians, but also some
other deported nationalities) skewed the ethnic mixture
and enabled non-Kazakhs to outnumber natives. Independence
has caused many of these newcomers to emigrate. Current
issues include: developing a cohesive national identity;
expanding the development of the country's vast energy
resources and exporting them to world markets; achieving
a sustainable economic growth outside the oil, gas,
and mining sectors; and strengthening relations with
neighboring states and other foreign powers.
Area comparative: Slightly less than four times
the size of Texas.
Climate: Continental,
cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid
Terrain: Extends from the Volga to the Altai
Mountains and from the plains in western Siberia to
oases and desert in Central Asia.
Population: 16,741,519 (July 2002 est.)
Ethnic groups: Kazakh (Qazaq) 53.4%, Russian
30%, Ukrainian 3.7%, Uzbek 2.5%, German 2.4%, Uighur
1.4%, other 6.6% (1999 census)
Religions: Muslim 47%, Russian Orthodox 44%,
Protestant 2%, other 7%
Language: Kazakh (Qazaq, state language) 64.4%,
Russian (official, used in everyday business, designated
the "language of interethnic communication")
95% (2001 est.)
Government type: Republic
Capital: Astana; note - the government
moved from Almaty to Astana in December 1998
Legal system: Based on civil law system
Economic overview: Kazakhstan, the largest
of the former Soviet republics in territory, excluding
Russia, possesses enormous fossil fuel reserves as
well as plentiful supplies of other minerals and metals.
It also is a large agricultural - livestock and grain
- producer. Kazakhstan's industrial sector rests on
the extraction and processing of these natural resources
and also on a growing machine-building sector specializing
in construction equipment, tractors, agricultural
machinery, and some defence items. The break-up of
the USSR in December 1991 and the collapse in demand
for Kazakhstan's traditional heavy industry products
resulted in a short-term contraction of the economy,
with the steepest annual decline occurring in 1994.
In 1995-97, the pace of the government program of
economic reform and privatisation quickened, resulting
in a substantial shifting of assets into the private
sector. Kazakhstan has enjoyed double-digit growth
in 2000-01 thanks largely to its booming energy sector,
but also to economic reform, good harvests, and foreign
investment. The opening of the Caspian Consortium
pipeline in 2001, from western Kazakhstan's Tengiz
oilfield to the Black Sea, substantially raises export
capacity. Astana has embarked upon an industrial policy
designed to diversify the economy away from over-dependence
on the oil sector by developing light industry.
Communication/Telephone system: Service is
poor; equipment antiquated.
Places of interest: Those who enjoy remoteness,
wide open spaces, long hypnotic train rides and horse
sausage will definitely be in their element.
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