Uzbekistan is the geographic and population center of Central Asia. The country has a diverse economy and a relatively young population. Russia conquered and united the disparate territories of present-day Uzbekistan in the late 19th century. Stiff resistance to the Red Army after the Bolshevik Revolution was eventually suppressed and a socialist republic established in 1924. During the Soviet era, intensive production of “white gold” (cotton) and grain led to the overuse of agrochemicals and the depletion of water supplies, leaving the land degraded and the Aral Sea and certain rivers half-dry. Independent since the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, the country has diversified agricultural production while developing its mineral and petroleum export capacity and increasing its manufacturing base, although cotton remains a major part of its economy. Uzbekistan’s first president, Islom KARIMOV, led Uzbekistan for 25 years until his death in September 2016. His successor, former Prime Minister Shavkat MIRZIYOYEV, has improved relations with Uzbekistan’s neighbors and introduced wide-ranging economic, judicial, and social reforms. MIRZIYOYEV was reelected in October 2021 with 80% of the vote.
land: 425,400 sq km
water: 22,000 sq km
border countries (5): Afghanistan 144 km; Kazakhstan 2,330 km; Kyrgyzstan 1,314 km; Tajikistan 1,312 km; Turkmenistan 1,793 km
lowest point: Sariqamish Kuli -12 m
arable land: 10.1% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 0.8% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 51.7% (2018 est.)
forest: 7.7% (2018 est.)
other: 29.7% (2018 est.)
31,360,836 (2023 est.)
noun: Uzbekistani
adjective: Uzbekistani
Uzbek 83.8%, Tajik 4.8%, Kazakh 2.5%, Russian 2.3%, Karakalpak 2.2%, Tatar 1.5%, other 2.9% (2017 est.)
Uzbek (official) 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other 7.1%
major-language sample(s):
Jahon faktlari kitobi, asosiy ma’lumotlar uchun zaruriy manba. (Uzbek)
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note: in the semi-autonomous Republic of Karakalpakstan, both the Karakalpak language and Uzbek have official status
Muslim 88% (mostly Sunni), Eastern Orthodox 9%, other 3%
0-14 years: 22.48% (male 3,612,997/female 3,437,866)
15-64 years: 70.64% (male 11,055,763/female 11,097,841)
65 years and over: 6.88% (2023 est.) (male 933,134/female 1,223,235)
total dependency ratio: 54
youth dependency ratio: 46.3
elderly dependency ratio: 7.2
potential support ratio: 13 (2021 est.)
total: 28.7 years (2023 est.)
male: 27.9 years
female: 29.5 years
1.61% (2023 est.)
22.2 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
5.2 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)
-0.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
most of the population is concentrated in the fertile Fergana Valley in the easternmost arm of the country; the south has significant clusters of people, while the central and western deserts are sparsely populated
urban population: 50.5% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 1.25% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
2.603 million TASHKENT (capital) (2023)
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2023 est.)
23.7 years (2019 est.)
30 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
total: 18.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
male: 21.9 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 15.7 deaths/1,000 live births
total population: 75.8 years (2023 est.)
male: 73.2 years
female: 78.6 years
2.92 children born/woman (2023 est.)
1.41 (2023 est.)
NA
improved: urban: 99.6% of population
rural: 96.1% of population
total: 97.8% of population
unimproved: urban: 0.4% of population
rural: 3.9% of population
total: 2.2% of population (2020 est.)
6.8% of GDP (2020)
2.37 physicians/1,000 population (2014)
4 beds/1,000 population (2014)
improved: urban: 100% of population
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
unimproved: urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
16.6% (2016)
total: 2.45 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
beer: 0.18 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 0.09 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 2.19 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total: 17.6% (2020 est.)
male: 34% (2020 est.)
female: 1.1% (2020 est.)
1.8% (2021)
68.6% (2023 est.)
women married by age 15: 0.2%
women married by age 18: 3.4% (2022 est.)
4.9% of GDP (2020 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100%
male: 100%
female: 100% (2019)
total: 12 years
male: 12 years
female: 12 years (2021)
shrinkage of the Aral Sea has resulted in growing concentrations of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then blown from the increasingly exposed lake bed and contribute to desertification and respiratory health problems; water pollution from industrial wastes and the heavy use of fertilizers and pesticides is the cause of many human health disorders; increasing soil salination; soil contamination from buried nuclear processing and agricultural chemicals, including DDT
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
mostly mid-latitude desert, long, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid grassland in east
agricultural land: 62.6% (2018 est.)
arable land: 10.1% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 0.8% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 51.7% (2018 est.)
forest: 7.7% (2018 est.)
other: 29.7% (2018 est.)
urban population: 50.5% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 1.25% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
0% of GDP (2018 est.)
0.06% of GDP (2018 est.)
particulate matter emissions: 40.98 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
carbon dioxide emissions: 91.81 megatons (2016 est.)
methane emissions: 96.16 megatons (2020 est.)
municipal solid waste generated annually: 4 million tons (2016 est.)
fresh water lake(s): Aral Sea (shared with Kazakhstan) - largely dried up
Syr Darya (shared with Kyrgyzstan [s], Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan [m]) - 3,078 km; Amu Darya river mouth (shared with Tajikistan [s], Afghanistan, and Turkmenistan) - 2,620 km
note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth
Internal (endorheic basin) drainage: (Aral Sea basin) Amu Darya (534,739 sq km), Syr Darya (782,617 sq km)
municipal: 2.41 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
industrial: 2.13 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
agricultural: 54.36 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
48.87 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
lower middle-income Central Asian economy; CIS Free Trade Area member but no intention of EAEU membership; key natural gas, cotton, and gold exporter; landlocked and environmentally fragile; positive growth through COVID-19, but poverty increasing
$270.062 billion (2021 est.)
$251.408 billion (2020 est.)
$246.753 billion (2019 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
7.42% (2021 est.)
1.89% (2020 est.)
5.71% (2019 est.)
$7,700 (2021 est.)
$7,300 (2020 est.)
$7,300 (2019 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
$57.789 billion (2019 est.)
10.85% (2021 est.)
12.87% (2020 est.)
14.53% (2019 est.)
note: official data; based on independent analysis of consumer prices, inflation reached 22% in 2012
Fitch rating: BB- (2018)
Moody’s rating: B1 (2019)
Standard & Poors rating: BB- (2018)
note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.
agriculture: 17.9% (2017 est.)
industry: 33.7% (2017 est.)
services: 48.5% (2017 est.)comparison rankings:
household consumption: 59.5% (2017 est.)
government consumption: 16.3% (2017 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 25.3% (2017 est.)
investment in inventories: 3% (2017 est.)
exports of goods and services: 19% (2017 est.)
imports of goods and services: -20% (2017 est.)
milk, wheat, potatoes, carrots/turnips, cotton, tomatoes, vegetables, grapes, onions, watermelons
textiles, food processing, machine building, metallurgy, mining, hydrocarbon extraction, chemicals
8.37% (2021 est.)
14.094 million (2021 est.)
7.16% (2021 est.)
7.04% (2020 est.)
5.85% (2019 est.)
note: official data; another 20% are underemployed
total: 16% (2021 est.)
male: 15.8%
female: 16.2%
14.1% (2013 est.)
36.8 (2003 est.)
on food: 30.2% of household expenditures (2018 est.)
on alcohol and tobacco: 2.5% of household expenditures (2018 est.)
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 29.6% (2003)
revenues: $16.197 billion (2019 est.)
expenditures: $16.346 billion (2019 est.)
0.3% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
24.3% of GDP (2017 est.)
10.5% of GDP (2016 est.)
14.87% (of GDP) (2020 est.)
calendar year
-$4.825 billion (2021 est.)
-$3.007 billion (2020 est.)
-$3.366 billion (2019 est.)
$16.399 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$14.532 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$16.993 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
Switzerland 19%, United Kingdom 17%, Russia 15%, China 14%, Kazakhstan 9%, Turkey 8%, Kyrgyzstan 5% (2019)
gold, natural gas, cotton fibers, copper, ethylene polymers (2019)
$27.774 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$22.56 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$26.551 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
China 23%, Russia 18%, South Korea 11%, Kazakhstan 9%, Turkey 6%, Germany 5% (2019)
cars and vehicle parts, packaged medicines, refined petroleum, aircraft, construction vehicles (2019)
$35.375 billion (31 December 2021 est.)
$34.903 billion (31 December 2020 est.)
$29.291 billion (31 December 2019 est.)
$16.9 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
$16.76 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
Uzbekistani soum (UZS) per US dollar -
Exchange rates:
10,609.464 (2021 est.)
10,054.261 (2020 est.)
8,836.788 (2019 est.)
8,069.606 (2018 est.)
5,113.879 (2017 est.)
electrification - total population: 99.9% (2020)
electrification - urban areas: 100% (2021)
electrification - rural areas: 99.7% (2021)
installed generating capacity: 16.042 million kW (2020 est.)
consumption: 57,605,687,000 kWh (2019 est.)
exports: 2.067 billion kWh (2019 est.)
imports: 3.379 billion kWh (2019 est.)
transmission/distribution losses: 3.858 billion kWh (2019 est.)comparison rankings:
fossil fuels: 88.1% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
solar: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
wind: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
hydroelectricity: 11.9% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
geothermal: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
biomass and waste: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
production: 3.98 million metric tons (2020 est.)
consumption: 5.668 million metric tons (2020 est.)
exports: 1,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
imports: 2.995 million metric tons (2020 est.)
proven reserves: 1.375 billion metric tons (2019 est.)
total petroleum production: 5,200 bbl/day (2021 est.)
refined petroleum consumption: 98,200 bbl/day (2019 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate imports: 24,000 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil estimated reserves: 594 million barrels (2021 est.)
61,740 bbl/day (2015 est.)
3,977 bbl/day (2015 est.)
0 bbl/day (2015 est.)
production: 46,968,227,000 cubic meters (2020 est.)
consumption: 43,882,007,000 cubic meters (2019 est.)
exports: 13,283,524,000 cubic meters (2019 est.)
imports: 0 cubic meters (2020 est.)
proven reserves: 1,840,592,000,000 cubic meters (2021 est.)
102.965 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from coal and metallurgical coke: 7.816 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from petroleum and other liquids: 11.53 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from consumed natural gas: 83.619 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
57.709 million Btu/person (2019 est.)
number of registered air carriers: 2 (2020)
inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 34
annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 3,056,558 (2018)
annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 89.43 million (2018) mt-km
UK
53 (2021)
33
civil airports: 9
military airports: 3
joint use (civil-military) airports: 1
other airports: 20
note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)
20
note: unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control
13,700 km gas, 944 km oil (2016)
total: 4,642 km (2018)
broad gauge: 4,642 km (2018) 1.520-m gauge (1,684 km electrified)
total: 86,496 km (2000)
paved: 75,511 km (2000)
unpaved: 10,985 km (2000)
1,100 km (2012)
river port(s): Termiz (Amu Darya)
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