Country Brief

TURKMENISTAN
November 12, 2010
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Turkmenistan has the worlds fourth largest natural gas reserves. Much of the natural gas earnings have been siphoned off by corruption, spent on subsidies, statues of ex-President Saparmurat Niyazov, marble palaces and fountains and on an extensive police and security service that is tasked with the responsibility of maintaining the regimes iron grip on power. Little has been done to diversify the economy. In 2008, the government established a Stabilization Fund where it deposits proceeds from natural gas sales. There is no publicly accessible information about the amount of money in the Fund or its exact investments.

Geography and Demographics

Turkmenistan is a country situated in Central Asia that is slightly larger than California and which shares borders with the Caspian Sea, Kazakhstan, Afghanistan, Iran, and st Uzbekistan. It is the 51 largest country in the world. The climate is subtropical desert which is characterized by very hot summers and cold winters. During the summer, it is one of the hottest places in the world with an average high daily temperature in July of 97 degrees. The coldest month is January when the average low temperature is 25 degrees. The average annual temperature is 61 degrees. Turkmenistan is one of the driest places in the world. The average annual rainfall is only 8.3 inches a year. There is little snowfall in the winter. About 80% of the country is covered by the Karakum desert. The highest point is 3,139 meters. The population is 4,997,503 (US Census Bureau estimate for 2011) and the population density is 10.6 people per sq. km. Ashgabat is the capital, the commercial center and the largest city. Its population is 637,000. The main port is at Turkmenbashi on the Caspian Sea. It is located 630 km northwest of the capital. Arable land accounts for 3.9% of the country; 49.5% of the population lives in urban areas; 8.8% of the country is covered by forests; there are 1,768 km of coastline along the Caspian Sea; 0.1% of the land is devoted to permanent crops. There are 18,000 sq. km of irrigated land, and there are 307,000 sq. km of permanent meadows and pastures. The median age is 25.3 years (24.9 for males and 25.8 for females); the birth rate is 19.5 per 1,000 people; the death rate is 6.2 per 1,000 people; the fertility rate is 2.16 children per female; 27.5% of the population is under 15; 30.0% is 25-44; 3.4% is 65-79; and 0.7% is 80 or above. The UN projects the annual population growth will be 1.25% between 2010 and 2015. The time zone is five hours ahead of Greenwich meantime. Turkmen is the official language. It is spoken by 72% of the population. Russian is spoken by 12%, and Uzbek by 9%. The population is 85% Turkmen, 5% Uzbek, and 4% Russian. Sunni Islam is the main religion with 89% of the population, followed by Eastern Orthodox at 9%. Turkmenistan is a former Republic of the Soviet Union that declared its independent on October 27, 1991.

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SECTION SUMMARY AND TREND

Political Environment - Government & Civil Liberties According to the US Department of State Travel Advisory, Most roads outside of major cities are narrow, riddled with potholes, unlit at night, and without proper road signs. The government is spending substantial sums to upgrade the road network, the railway and the ports and will be building a new airport for the capital. The water supply is threatened by chemical contaminants from farming activity. There is a lack of adequate sewage treatment facilities. Economic Overview Infrastructure According to the US Department of State Travel Advisory, Most roads outside of major cities are narrow, riddled with potholes, unlit at night, and without proper road signs. The government is spending substantial sums to upgrade the road network, the railway and the ports and will be building a new airport for the capital. The water supply is threatened by chemical contaminants from farming activity. There is a lack of adequate sewage treatment facilities. Energy Sector Turkmenistan has the fourth largest natural gas reserves in the world. Access to electricity is near universal. The electrical grid is in poor condition. External Accounts Large natural gas exports suggest the trade account will remain in surplus. External Debt The external debt is manageable but is growing. The government has borrowed $4.0 bn from the Chinese Development Bank to develop natural gas deposits and is seeking additional loans from China to further exploit its energy resources. Agriculture Sector Soil conditions are poor and as a result crops can only be grown with a great deal of irrigation. Cotton and wheat are the 2 main agricultural crops and they are controlled by the government. Informal Economy In light of the estimated 70% unemployment and underemployment rate and the high level of government regulation and red tape, it can be assumed there is a large informal economy. Business Environment Openness to Foreign Investment Turkmenistan is a difficult place to do business because of an opaque regulatory environment, a high level of corruption and the lack of an independent judiciary. Most of the foreign investment is concentrated in the energy sector where companies can only operate as joint ventures or with production sharing agreements with the state-owned oil or natural gas company. Financial Sector There is a small financial sector that is dominated by six government-owned commercial banks. The government heavily influences the allocation of credit. There is no stock exchange. Corruption Turkmenistan is ranked 172 of 178 nations in Transparency Internationals 2010 Corruption perception index. Corruption is rampant. Trend

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Human Capital Turkmenistan ranks 87 of 169 in the 2010 UNDP HDI. The infant mortality rate is 42.3 per 1,000 live births (US Census Bureau estimate for 2011); the probability of dying before the age of 40 is 13.0%; 100% of births are attended to by a skilled health care professional; the under 5 mortality rate is 48 per 1,000 people; the life expectancy is 68.5 years (US census Bureau estimate for 2011); the per capita income is $3,663 (IMF estimate for 2010); and the adult literacy rate is 99.5%. Economic Outlook The economy will perform strongly given the abundance of natural gas. Without any significant structural or political reforms however, it is highly unlikely that the standard of living of the people will see a major improvement in the near-term. Instead, the countrys resources will continue to be squandered by corruption, unnecessary, wasteful and expensive white elephant projects and subsidies.

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I. Political Environment
Index Freedom House Index 2010 Bertelsmann Transformation Index 2010 Fund for Peace - Failed State Index 2010 World Bank Gov Indicator 2009, Political Stability Rank Status: Not Free 115/128 59/177 50.9 Percentile Score Political Rights: 7.0/7.0 Civil Rights: 7.0/7.0 3.55/10.00 84.3/120.0 0.18

1. Government
The chief of state and the head of the government is President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow who has held that position since February 14, 2007. The president is elected by popular vote to a five-year term. Suffrage is 18 years. There are no term limits. The last election was held on February 11, 2007 and the next one will be conducted in February 2012. President Berdimuhamedow won the election with 89.2% of the vote. His nearest challenger, Amanyaz Atajykow, garnered just 3.2% of the vote. The balloting was not free and fair. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) noted the voting was characterized by pro-government bias in the media and a ban on all political parties except the ruling Democratic Party. President Berdimuhamedow served as the Deputy Prime Minister to President Saparmurat Niyazov, the former head of the Turkmenistan Communist Party and the president from independence until his death from a heart attack in December 2006. Niyazov ruled the country with an iron fist, suppressing dissent, censoring the media, and instituting a personality cult. His government pursued an isolationist foreign policy and severely restricted public access to economic and social data that made it difficult to assess the social and economic development of the country. After his death, the Democratic Party orchestrated Berdimuhamedow s rise to power. In doing so, it contravened the constitution which mandated the speaker of the Assembly, Mejlisspeaker Ovezgeldy Atayev, become acting president. Atayev however was arrested on trumped up criminal charges. Berdimuhamedow has removed Niyazov loyalists from the government, dismantled Niyazovs cult of personality and engaged with the world. In August 2008, the Halk Maslahaty (Peoples Council), the countrys highest representative body, voted without public debate to approve a new constitution, dissolve itself and devolve its powers to the Mejlis (the Assembly) and the president. The new constitution allows the formation of political parties. That right however is not respected as the Democratic Party is the only functioning and tolerated political party.

Following the dissolution of the 2,507-member Halk Maslahaty, which essentially acted as a rubber stamp for the government, there is now a unicameral parliament, the Mejils. It was expanded to 125 members from 65 members for the December 2008 election. As with all previous votes, all of the candidates were pre-approved by the government and belong to the Democratic Party. Members are elected by popular vote and serve a five-year term.

2. Civil Liberties
Freedom House has designated Turkmenistan as not free and has assigned it a rating of seven out of seven for political rights and seven out of seven for civil rights. The lower the rating the higher the degree of political and civil liberties. Turkmenistan is one of only nine countries that Freedom House gives a rating of seven for both political and civil rights. It is ranked 115 of 128 nations in the Bertelsmann Transformation Index, 59 of 177 in the Fund for Peace Failed State Index (the lower the ranking the higher the degree of economic and political dysfunction) and is ranked at the 50.9 Percentile in the World Banks Political Stability Governance Indicator. Turkmenistan has an oppressive authoritarian regime that severely limits basic freedoms and human rights. Freedom of speech and the press is guaranteed by the constitution but is restricted in practice. The government controls all broadcast and print media. Any opposition that is expressed against the government is defined as treason. Those convicted of treason face life imprisonment and are ineligible for amnesty or reduction of their sentence. The importation of foreign newspapers is restricted. Journalists practice self-censorship to avoid government reprisals. Visiting foreign journalists have been harassed when they have tried to report outside of official channels. All businesses involving printing and photocopying must obtain a government registration licenses for their equipment. Books, movies, plays and art and cultural events are censored. Freedom House ranks Turkmenistan 194 of 196 in its Freedom of the Press survey for 2010 and characterizes the press as "not free. Internet access has expanded since the death of President Niyazovs but still remains limited. The only internet service provider is operated by the government. It routinely blocks undesirable Web sites. The government monitors e-mail correspondences and chatrooms. There is mobile phone service but it is expensive. The government routinely opens the mail of dissidents. Freedom of assembly and association are provided for by the constitution but are restricted in practice. Permits for anti-government meetings and demonstrations are not granted. All NGOs must register with the Ministry of Justice (MOJ). Unregistered NGO activity is punishable by a fine, short-term detention and confiscation of property. The government routinely imposes arbitrary obstacles on anti-government NGOs that wish to register. The constitution provides for freedom of religion. This right, though, is restricted. All religious activities are closely monitored by the government and only approved registered religious groups can operate. The MOJ monitors financial and material assistance received by religious groups from foreign sources. The government-appointed Council on Religious Affairs (CRA) only includes representatives of Sunni Islam and the Russian Orthodox Church. It acts as an arm of the state, exercising direct control over hiring, promotion, and firing of Sunni Muslim and Russian Orthodox clergy and monitoring all religious publications and activities. The government routinely prevents religious groups from purchasing or renting land or buildings for the purpose of worship or meetings. Islamic extremist groups are banned. Extracurricular religious education is allowed only with CRA and presidential permission. The theology faculty of the history department at Turkmen State University in Ashgabat is the only academic faculty that is allowed to conduct Islamic education. Access to Korans, Bibles and other religious literature is restricted. Academic freedom is restricted. Degrees received abroad are not recognized by the government except for those obtained through government-approved education programs. Only government-selected students are allowed to study abroad. The government does not tolerate criticism by academics. Research in politically sensitive disciplines such as comparative law, history, ethnic relations, and theology is restricted. Study of the Ruhnama, the book written by former President Niyazov outlining his political philosophy, is gradually being diminished and the study of books and speeches by President 4

Berdimuhamedow is being introduced into the curriculum. The government requires teachers and students to participate in state-sponsored extracurricular events. About 70 to 80 academic days a year are allocated to compulsory participation in festivals and greetings for high-level visitors. Teachers who do not participate in such activities have their salaries docked. Freedom of movement and foreign travel is restricted. The law requires internal passports and residency permits. President Berdimuhamedow dismantled police checkpoints on major roads soon after his inauguration in February 2007, and in July 2007 he lifted controls requiring citizens to obtain permits for internal travel to border regions. The border permit requirement however remains in place for all foreigners. A 2005 migration law forbids travel by anyone, who has access to state secrets, has falsified personal information, has committed a serious crime, is under surveillance, might become a trafficking victim, has previously violated the law of the destination country, or whose travel contradicts the interests of national security. Some students who are barred from studying abroad have been able to do so after bribing government officials. The law provides for internal exile, requiring an individual to reside in a certain part of the country for a specified period of time. The law provides for the right to form and join trade unions. In reality all union activity is tightly controlled by the government and as a result there are no independent unions. The Center for Professional Unions is the only permitted umbrella union organization. It is led by a presidential appointee. Antiunion discrimination is not prohibited. Strikes are very rare. The law does not allow collective bargaining. The judicial system is not independent. The president has the authority to appoint and remove judges without legislative review except in the case of the chief justice of the Supreme Court who is nominally reviewed by the Assembly. The judiciary is undermined by corruption, lack of resources, and a poor infrastructure. There are prohibitions against arbitrary arrest and detention and torture but they are ignored. In October 2008, the European Court of Human Rights indicated that, "any criminal suspect held in custody ran a serious risk of being subjected to torture or inhuman or degrading treatment." The police are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs which works closely with the Ministry of National Security on matters of national security. There is widespread corruption in the police force. Detainees must be released within ten days if investigating authorities do not find proof of guilt. A bail system was introduced in April 2009, however, it has yet to be enforced. Detainees are entitled to immediate access to an attorney after a formal accusation is made. This provision though is not always adhered to. Families are supposed to be notified of the location of a detainee but this is not always done. Defendants are presumed to be innocent and have the right to a public trial, access to accusatory material, the right to call witnesses to testify on their behalf, a defense attorney or a court-appointed lawyer if the defendant cannot afford one and the right to appeal a verdict. In practice these rights are not always granted. Trials of a political nature are closed to the public. There are no jury trials. The US Department of State Human Rights report noted that, Even when the courts observed due process, the authority of the government prosecutor far exceeded that of the defense attorney, making it difficult for the defendant to receive a fair trialIn most cases courts ignored allegations of torture when defendants raised such allegations in trial. There were credible reports that judges often predetermined the outcome of the trial and sentence. There were regular reports that police would arrest an individual and request he or she pay a fine for breaking a specific law. When a citizen asked to see the law, police or other government officials refused or stated the laws were secret. Police have searched the homes of opposition leaders and some members of minority religious groups without judicial authorization. State security agents regularly monitor the activities of government critics and foreigners by using physical surveillance, telephone tapping, electronic eavesdropping, and informers. Family members of dissidents and opposition figures have been fired from their jobs, expelled from school and detained. In 2008, there were reports the government held about 360 political prisoners at the Owadan Depe prison. Jailed former high-level officials are denied medical treatment and suffer beatings and verbal intimidation in order to coerce confessions. Opposition figures have been detained under house arrest. Hazing of military conscripts is a major problem and has resulted in desertions and deaths. A 2006 report by the Institute for War and Peace Reporting noted that there was corruption within the defense ministry, 5

tribal and ethnicity-based rivalries in the armed forces and, disregard for the rights of soldiers. Military units use unpaid manual laborers in their fields, hospitals, factories, and construction sites.

II. Economic Overview

President Berdimuhamedow inherited a Soviet-style command economy and a repressive political regime from his predecessor that was also characterized by rampant corruption, international isolation and severe restrictions on foreign travel, the use of the Internet and access to basic economic and social data much of which was deemed to be state secrets. In addition, there was a bizarre cult of personality surrounding President Niyazov that included the construction of many golden statues of his likeness in the capital, the teaching of his political philosophy in schools, and the naming of months of the years after himself and his mother. President Berdimuhamedow has dismantled the cult of personality surrounding President Niyazov, eased some of the most draconian restrictions and opened up the country to the outside world. However, Turkmenistan remains a brutal dictatorship that restricts basic freedoms and severely crackdown on dissidents. With respect to the economy, he has implemented some important economic reforms including unifying the dual exchange rate, redenominating the manat, reducing some state subsidies, particularly for gasoline, and developed a special tourism zone on the Caspian Sea. He, however, has not taken any steps to privatize state enterprises which dominate the economy, encourage the private sector and streamline business regulations and make them more transparent. Turkmenistan sits on top of the worlds fourth largest natural gas reserves. The government has allowed foreign companies access to these reserves in the form of joint-ventures and production-sharing agreements. Much of the natural gas revenue has been siphoned off by corruption and spent on statues of ex-president Niyazov, marble palaces and fountains and an extensive police and security service that is tasked with the responsibility of maintaining the regimes iron grip on power. In 2008, the government established a Stabilization Fund in which it deposits proceeds from natural gas sales. There is no publicly accessible information about the amount of money in the fund or its exact investments. Before the development of the natural gas sector, cotton was the backbone of the economy. Although cotton production has declined in recent years because of poor irrigation methods it still accounts for onehalf of all irrigated land and Turkmenistan remains the second-largest cotton producer in the former Soviet Union after Uzbekistan. In 2009, the cotton harvest was 823,000 tons. Under President Niyazov, most economic statistics were classified as state secrets and as result, it was difficult to assess economic developments and to accurately verify government claims about the economy. President Berdimuhamedow has established a state Agency for Statistics, but major economic data remains unreliable, subject to wide margins of error and not released on a timely basis. Given the lack of reliable economic data, it is hard to assess the present state of the economy. According to the IMF, which relies on government statistics, the economy was able to strongly withstand the global economic downturn and rose by 10.5% in 2008, and 6.1% in 2009. This performance must be viewed suspiciously however particularly as natural gas exports to Russia via a natural gas pipeline were suspended for nine months in 2009 over a pricing dispute, a fall in global demand for natural gas and an explosion in the pipeline. Natural gas exports were reduced by about $1 billion a month because of the closing of the pipeline. In sharp contrast to the IMF growth estimate, EIU believes the economy actually retreated by 6.0% in 2009. Manufacturing accounted for 37.6% of GDP in 2008, agriculture hunting, forestry and fishing was 22.6%; and construction had a 4.3% share. The CIA Factbook estimates that in 2004, 48.2% of the workforce was in agriculture, services accounted for 37.8%, and industry had a 14% share. There are an estimated 250,000 citizens working abroad, mainly in Russia and Kazakhstan. A US Department of State Background note places the current unemployment and under-employment rate at around 70%. The economy rose at an annual average rate of 13.0% between 2001 and 2010 (IMF estimate for 2010). This compares to 4.5% for Iran, 6.9% for Uzbekistan, and 8.1% for Kazakhstan. According to the IMF, the per capita income in 2010 was $3,663. This was 149.4% above the level of 2001. Turkmenistan is ranked 100 of 180 nations and territories that the IMF compiles per capita data for. Turkmenistans GINI 6

coefficient, which measures the inequality of income distribution, is 40.8. This compares to 36.7 for Uzbekistan, 37.5 for Russia, 40.8 for the US, and 24.9 for Japan. The higher the number, the greater is the income inequality. The IMF estimates consumer prices will advance at an annual average rate of 3.9% in 2010. In 2009, they fell by 2.7% and in 2008, they climbed 14.5%. For 2011, a 4.8% rise is expected, and in 2012, a 4.5% increase is foreseen. The average annual inflation rate from 2001 to 2010 was 7.3%. The main crops and agriculture products are cotton, melons, wheat, and rice. Petroleum and natural gas are the major natural resources. Natural gas production, oil refining, textiles, and food processing are the principle industries. The minimum monthly wage in the state sector in 2009 was $116. The standard legal workweek is 40 hours. In reality, government and many private sector employees are required to work ten hours a day and very often work on Saturday without compensation. Overtime is paid at twice regular pay. There is a maximum limit for overtime in a year of 120 hours. Laws regarding overtime though are not effectively enforced. There are no health and safety regulations. The minimum age for employment is 16 and in a few of the heavy industries, it is 18. Children between the ages of 16 and 18 are prohibited from working more than six hours per day and a 15-year-old can only work four to six hours a day with parental and trade union permission. Child labor laws are not effectively enforced.

1. Infrastructure
There are 58,592 km of roads of which 81.2% are paved. According to the US Department of State Travel Advisory, Most roads outside of major cities are narrow, riddled with potholes, unlit at night, and without proper road signs. Driving at night on these roads should be avoided. City roads are better in comparison to rural routes but may be hazardous due to potholes, uncovered manholes and poor lightingRoadside assistance does not existvast stretches of highway are often unmarked. Police checkpoints (where cars are required to stop and register) are a common feature on major routes between cities. The U.S. Embassy in Ashgabat has received reports that police stationed at checkpoints may arbitrarily fine motorists. Local law requires that traffic fines be paid within 12 hours. If a fine is not paid within that period, the amount may double every 12 hours up to 72 hours, after which time the vehicle in question may be seized. Turkmenavtoyollary is that state entity responsible for repairing, building and modernizing the road system. One of its major projects is replacing the Turkmenbashi-Ashgabat-Farab highway. In 2011, it plans to complete a 152 km asphalt highway from Balkanabat to Turkmenbashi. The new road will be important in building up the tourist infrastructure of the Caspian Sea area. The government is also involved in building ring roads in the capital and constructing 200 km of eight-lane highways around the capital. About 2,500 km of roads were upgraded over the last few years. The government has extensive plans to substantially improve the road network over the next ten years. There are 22 airports of which five are paved and two are international airports. Ashgabat Airport is the main international airport. It is located 10 km northwest of the capital. It has three runways of which the largest is 12,467 feet and is made of concrete. Turkmenistan Airlines is the state owned national carrier. Among the airlines that service the airport are: China Southern Airlines; Lufthansa; Turkish Airlines; and Uzbekistan Airways. There are flights to Abu Dhabi; Bangkok; Baku; Beijing; Delhi; Dubai; Frankfurt; Istanbul; London (Heathrow); Minsk; Moscow; New Dehli; and Tashkent. The US Department of State Advisory noted that, Travelers may experience significant delays, unexpected re-routing, and sudden cancellations of flights, including those of Turkmenistan AirlinesBecause Ashgabat International Airport is not equipped with modern air traffic control technology, Turkish Airlines routinely diverts to Iran in case of inclement weatherTravelers have reported difficulties securing reservations and purchasing tickets from Turkmenistan Airlines on both domestic and international flights, which are routinely overbooked.

On September 10, 2010, the head of the French architectural firm Vinci unveiled plans for the new Ashgabat airport. It will include an aquarium and an aqua park. It has not been decided whether the construction of the new airport will result in the demolition of the present Ashgabat International Airport. No date has been sent for the start of construction. There are 2,980 km of railroads which are operated by a state-owned company. The 540 km TransKarakum Railway, which traverses the Karakum desert, was finished in February 2006 after more than five years of construction. It halved the travel time to 12 hours between Ashgabat and Dashoguz. The rail line has 17 stations and over 130 bridges. A new highway is being built along the rail line. The government is building a new North-South rail-route to link up with the Iranian rail network. According to the Asian Development Bank, The railway will serve as a key transport link for Turkmenistan because it has significant potential for transporting bulky goods such as oil and oil products, mineral resources, agricultural products, and textiles. The project is part of the 677 km North-South Transnational Corridor Railway that will connect Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran. The estimated cost is $620 million. It is being jointly financed by the governments of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran and is scheduled to be finished in 2011. The project is also being financed by a $371.2 million loan from the Islamic Development Bank and a loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). There is a rail link with Afghanistan but it is no longer used because of the poor condition of the railway in Afghanistan. The government of Afghanistan is rebuilding the rail infrastructure on the line on hopes to soon resume rail service between the two countries. The main port is at Turkmenbashi on the Caspian Sea, which is the only major port for Central Asia, and it is being renovated. The main shipping links are to Astrakhan in Russia and Baku in Azerbaijan. There is a ferry service to Baku but it is unreliable. According to the US Department of State Travel Advisory, the ferries are in fact cargo ships that take on passengers in addition to their primary cargo as space permits. Passengers are generally not provided food or water on these ships, and sleeping and sanitary facilities are quite basic. When ships arrive in Turkmenbashi, they often wait up to a week for a vacant dock. Passengers might run out of food and water, or their Turkmen visa may expire while they wait. The government has plans to expand the port of Ekarem to make it the second largest Caspian port. The main inland waterways are the Amu Darya River, which runs along the northern border, and the Karakum Canal, which runs from the east near the Afghan border to Turkmenbashi on the Caspian Sea in the western part of the country. The Karakum Canal is 1,400 km long and is used mainly for irrigation. It terminates in the Caspian Sea and is navigable for 450 km. The Amu Darya River is navigable for 250 km from the Afghan border to Turkmenabat. The nation's water supply is threatened by chemical contaminants from farming activity. There is also a lack of adequate sewage treatment facilities. A large share of the flow of the Amu Darya River's is diverted for irrigation purposes. Most of the rural population has access to water that is delivered via pipes in houses or communal street standpipes. Water however is often delivered for only three to four hours per day, at very low pressure and without any disinfection. People in rural areas sometimes have to rely on drinking water from open wells and polluted irrigation canals. In some of the main cities, water is only available for three hours a day. Tourists are advised not to drink the tap water unless it has been boiled, filtered or chemically disinfected and not to use ice cubes.

2. Energy Sector
Turkmenistan has abundant natural gas resources. Output has risen sharply in recent years, from 1.6 trillion cubic feet (tcf) in 2000 to 2.490 tcf in 2009 of which 742 billion was consumed domestically and the th remainder was exported. Turkmenistan is the 16 largest natural gas producer in the world and the sixth largest exporter. It has the fourth largest natural gas reserves in the world behind Iran, Qatar and Russia. At the 2009 extraction rate, natural gas reserves will last for 106.4 years. Until 2009, about 90% of the natural gas exports were shipped via the Central Asia Center (CAC) pipeline to Russia where it hooked into Gazproms natural gas network and was transported to European markets (mainly by a natural gas pipeline in the Ukraine). Russia was also a heavy user of Turkmenistan natural gas, thus freeing up its own gas output for export to Western Europe. The CAC is in relatively poor condition and operates below capacity. It is being modernized. 8

Turkmenistans dependence upon the CAC pipeline for its gas exports gave Gazprom a great deal of control over its natural gas sector. Gazprom consistently paid Turkmenistan prices below the levels it sold natural gas to its European customers. For example, in the late 2000s Russia paid Turkmenistan $200 per thousand cubic meters (tcm) for its gas. Western Europe however was paying $350 per tcm to import Russian gas. Disputes over pricing, a decline in world demand for natural gas and an explosion in the CAC pipeline prompted a nine month suspension of natural gas exports to Russia in 2009. Exports did not resume till January 2010. Export revenue of about $1 billion a month was lost because of the closure of the pipeline. Gazprom agreed to pay Turkmenistan an average price of $240-$250 per tcm in 2010 which was up from $140 per tcm in 2008 (the last full year the CAC was operational) and agreed to switch to paying global market prices in the future. Gazprom has contracted to purchase up to 65 billion cubic meters (bcm) annually from Turkmenistan through 2028. The government was able to partially offset this suspension of natural gas exports to Russia by the opening of natural gas pipelines to China and Iran. The 7,000 km natural gas pipeline to China via Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan became operational in December 2009. It is expected to carry 40 bcm of natural gas when it achieves its maximum capacity in 2012. The Chinese have been very active in helping to develop the natural gas sector. In June of 2009, the Chinese Development Bank extended a $4 billion loan to develop the South Yolotan gas field, which is located near the Afghan border. The government used $1 billion of the loan to stabilize the budget and the rest was spent on Chinese goods and services to develop the South Yolotan gas field. The government is presently negotiating an additional $4.1 billion loan with China. The pipeline to Iran became operational in January 2010 and it has a capacity of 12.5 bcm. A previous pipeline was opened in 1997. it has a capacity of 8 bcm. In October, a new pipeline that hooks into the CAC was opened. On August 31, 2010, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan signed an agreement to construct a 1,043 mile natural gas pipeline from the Dauletabad gas field in Turkmenistan to Pakistan and India via Afghan territory. The project was originally conceived in 1992 but had to be postponed because of the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan. It was revived when the Taliban was ousted. The pipeline is expected to take five years to build. The estimated cost of the project is $3.3 billion. It will have an initial capacity of 33 bcm. Security concerns regarding southern Afghanistan raises doubts about whether the pipeline will actually be built. Oil production in 2009 was 197,710 barrels per day (bpd), which is little changed from the 196,650 bpd level in 2005. There are an estimated 600 million barrels of reserves which is eight-and-a-third years production at the 2009 extraction rate. Domestic consumption is 120,000 bpd. This is up from 95,591 bpd in 2009. Most of the oil that is exported is shipped via the Caspian Sea in oil tankers to the Russian Caspian port of Makhachkala. Some petroleum products are exporter to Iran. Foreign investment in the energy sector is limited to joint-ventures (JV) and production-sharing agreements (PSAs). Turkmenneft is the state-owned oil and exploration and development company and Turkmengas is the state-owned natural gas oil and exploration development company. There is 237,000 bpd of refinery capacity. The refineries at Seidi and Turkmenbashi are the main refineries. The Turkmenbashi refinery was upgraded in 2002, and in 2004, the government announced plans to upgrade the Seidi refinery. In March 2007, Dragon Oil (Dubai) constructed the first foreign-owned refinery. It has a capacity of slightly less than 50,000 bpd. Among the foreign companies that have operations in the oil sector are Burren Energy (a UK company purchased by ENI in 2007); Dragon Oil, which is the largest oil producer; Petronas (Malaysia); CNPC (China); RWE (Germany); Itera (Russia); Mitro International (Austria); and Buried Hill Energy (Canada). CNPC and PetroChina established the Sino-Turkmenistan Gas Pipe Corporation to construct the natural gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to western China. The estimated cost was $14 billion. It was financed by CNPC and construction began in 2007 and the pipeline became operational at the end of 2009. In January CNPC was part of a consortium that includes LG International (South Korea); Hyundai Heavy Industry (South Korea); Petrofac (UAE); and Gulf Oil and Gas Corp (UAE) that won the rights to a $10 billion natural gas project that will involve exploring for and processing natural gas. BP; Chevron; ConocoPhilips; Marathon; ExxonMobil; and Mubadala (UAE) have been invited to submit tenders for oil

drilling exploration in the Caspian Sea. ENI has been offered a PSA in the Nebit-dag gas and oil field and Total has also been awarded a PSA. In January 2010, a consortium led by Maersk Oil (Denmark) returned a Caspian Sea oil exploration block to the government after failing to discover commercial quantities of oil. The consortium included Wintershall (Germany) and ONGC Mittal Energy (a JV between India's national oil company and steelmaker ArcelorMittal). Turkmenergo is the state-owned electricity producer and operator of the electrical grid. There is near universal access to electricity. As a result of state subsidies, many people do not pay for their electricity. The electrical grid system is inefficient, suffers from a lack of maintenance and needs to be upgraded. In February, Schneider Electric of France and ENEX of Belgium signed a contract to upgrade the electrical system of Ashgabat. The modernization of the system will be conducted in three phases and will be completed in 2017. Virtually all of the electricity and all of the heat is generated by natural gas. Turkmenistan is a net exporter of electricity. Electricity is exported to Afghanistan, Iran, Tajikistan and Turkey. In August, President Berdimuhamedow ordered the government to work out a plan to export electricity to Pakistan via Afghanistan.

3. External Accounts
As is the case with much of Turkmenistans economic data, there is no reliable up-to-date data for the trade and current account, and very often the data provided by the major international multilateral agencies such as the ADB, the World Bank and the IMF contradict each other. For instance, the ADBs 2010 economic update predicted the current account surplus for 2010 and 2011 would be 30% of GDP. The IMF though, estimated that after registering a current account deficit of 16.1% of GDP in 2009, the shortfall was 4.7% of GDP in 2010, and for 2011, there would be a surplus of 3.4% of GDP. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) meanwhile placed the current account deficit in 2009 at 10.5% of GDP. The CIA Factbook estimated that the trade surplus dropped by 61.0% in 2009 to $2.628 billion as exports retreated by 45.4% in response to lower oil prices and the suspension of natural gas exports via the CAC pipeline and imports fell by 26.6%. In 2008, oil, natural gas and petroleum products accounted for 81.9% of exports and cotton had a 2.8% share. With respect to imports, iron and steel were responsible for 19.6%; vehicles (excluding tramway and railway equipment) were 9.5%; and electrical and electronic equipment represented 8.5%. In 2009, China provided 18.0% of all imports, Turkey and Russia each had a 16.5% share, and Germany accounted for 5.9%. Ukraine was the largest export market at 22.3%, followed by Turkey at 10.3%, and Hungary represented 6.8%. Turkmenistan is ranked 114 of 155 in the 2010 World Banks Logistic Performance Index, which measures the capacity of countries to efficiently move goods and connect manufactures and consumers with international markets. It measures six key variables; efficiency of clearance process, quality of trade and transport related infrastructure, ease of arranging competitively price shipments, competence and quality of logistics services, ability to track and trace consignments and timeliness of shipments in reach destination within the scheduled or expected delivery time. There is no accurate data for remittances but it is not believed to be a significant source of transfer income. Tourism is also not a significant source of foreign exchange. To attract tourist, the government opened the Avaza Tourism Zone (ATZ) which is an area specifically reserved for beach resorts on the Caspian Sea. It was finished in 2009 and has six completed hotels with a further 60 planned for construction including one on an artificial island. It however has not attracted many tourists. The government has forced many workers to take their holidays there in order to fill up the hotels. No international hotel chains have expressed interest in investing in the zone. 10

Foreign tourists are deterred from traveling to Turkmenistan by a cumbersome visa procedure. The Turkmenistan Embassy in Washington indicates that people wishing to obtain a visa must: fill out two visa applications forms (which can be downloaded); glue (but not staple) a recent passport size photo to each form; submit a signed passport that is valid for at least six months from the date of departure; include a copy of the first page of the passport; submit a money order of $35. Also necessary is a letter of invitation from the person or company to be visited that is certified by the State Foreign Citizens Registration Service of Turkmenistan (the invitation is valid for only three months from the date that it was confirmed); and a stamp self-addressed envelope for the return of the passport must also be included. Those tourists not visiting anyone must contact a travel agency in Turkmenistan. Tourists wishing to stay more than three months have to present a HIV certificate from a doctor. Also deterring foreign tourists is the limited tourist infrastructure and government imposed internal travel restrictions. According to the UN, there were just 8,000 non-resident inbound tourists in 2007. The CIA Factbook estimated that foreign exchange reserves in 2009 dropped by 30.8% from the levels of 2008 to $9.551 billion, and was equal to 27.9 months worth of merchandise imports (based on 2009 data).

4. External Debt and Budget Balance

As is the case with many of Turkmenistans major economic indicators, there is no reliable and accurate indication of the level of external debt. The CIA Factbook estimated the external debt was $5 billion at the end of 2009. It is not clear though if this estimate includes the $4 billion loan granted by the Chinese Development Bank in June of 2009. Chinas Ex-Im Bank has also lent the government money. About $1 billion has been borrowed from the Islamic Development Bank for infrastructure projects. The government is negotiating an additional $4.1 billion loan with China to further develop the Yolotan natural gas field. Despite the recent build-up of the foreign debt, especially to China, President Berdimuhamedow asserted in late November 2009 that, Turkmenistan is among the countries which do not have foreign state debt. Data for the budget is difficult to assess as there is much off budget spending. The ADB 2010 forecast for Turkmenistan estimated the budget surplus dropped from 11.3% of GDP in 2008 to 3.0% in 2009 as a result of reduced oil prices and the suspension of natural gas exports to Russia for nine months. The oil and the natural gas sectors are responsible for 75% of government revenue. An August 2010 Congressional Research Service Report on Turkmenistan noted that. According to the World Bank, Turkmenistans underlying fiscal position has weakened over the years as public sector deficits have ballooned (including subsidies for consumer goods and industry and agriculture).

5. Agriculture Sector
Turkmenistan inherited a collectivized agricultural system when it gained its independence. It subsequently moved to dismantle that system by distributing irrigated farmland to rural families, distribute land to independent private farmers and transform collectivized farms into associations of leaseholders. The Constitution recognizes the right of private land ownership. In reality however all the land is government owned. According to the land code of 2004, citizens have the right to have three hectares of land but they cannot sell, exchange, or transfer it, except to their children. Farmers who lease land for a one year period have no guarantee that they will be able to re-lease it the following year. Although cotton production has declined since independence, it remains the dominant agricultural product and the largest agricultural exports. The US Department of Agriculture estimates that in the 2010/2011 growing season, cotton will be grown on 575,000 hectares, output will be 1.3 million bales (a bale is 480 pounds) and exports will be 1.050 million bales. In the previous growing season, cotton was grown on 550,000 hectares, production was 1.250 million bales and exports were 1.075 mn bales. Cotton prices have been very strong recently. The average price in the first ten months was 92.89 cents a pound. This compares to an average of 60.45 cents a pound in the corresponding period of 2009. The government has being encouraging farmers to diversify their output. Since independence, the area planted for grains (mainly wheat) has nearly tripled. There have also been increases in the output of citrus fruits; melons; grapes; onions; figs; olives; dates; tomatoes; and pistachio nuts, all of which are mainly grown by small farmers. Wheat, other grains and cotton production remain under the control of 11

the government. They must be sold to the state marketing board which sets prices. Wheat production has been hindered by a recent drought and insufficient wheat storage capacity. Agricultural productivity is low because of a lack of mechanization on private farms, poor road conditions in rural areas, lack of access to credit, soil salinity, inadequate investment, lack of fertilizer, inadequate marketing infrastructure and soil erosion. Most agricultural land is of relatively poor quality and requires intensive irrigation to be productive. About 88% of all cultivated land is irrigated. The Karakum Canal is the largest source of irrigation. It is in poor condition. The Canal was started in 1954 and completed in 1988. It is the largest such canal in the world, is navigable for much of its 1,375 km length and carries water from the Amu-Darya River (the longest in Central Asia) across the Karakum Desert. The canal opened up huge tracts of land for irrigation, particularly for cotton which was heavily promoted during the Soviet era. It also supplies the capital with a source of water. The Canal is in poor condition. An estimated 50% of the water escapes en route. It has been cited as a major reason for the environmental disaster of the Aral Sea, which has been steadily shrinking since the 1960s after the rivers that fed it were diverted by the Soviet Union for various irrigation projects in its Central Asian Republics. The government is building a massive lake reservoir in the Karakum desert that that will be used to recycle irrigated water and make the desert bloom. Work was begun in 2000. The Golden Age Lake (also known as the Turkmen Lake) will cover 3,460 square km. According to the government, when completed, it will help to reduce land degradation and improve the water quality of the Amu Darya River. Critics of the project claim that although the lake will improve the water quality of the Amu Darya, it will also decrease its volume, is environmentally and ecologically unsound, and much of the water in the lake will evaporate because of the dry climate. In addition, they believe the estimated cost of $20 billion makes the project uneconomical. As is the case of much of the economic data, government data on agriculture output is either sparse or not reliable. A September 16, 2008 United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Agriculture Service Report on the Middle East and Central Asia noted that, although officials maintain that wheat production for 2008/09 will meet the countrys needs, weather data and satellite imagery indicate a reduction of at least 0.4 million tons from last years USDA estimate of 1.6 million tons, due to excessive drynessofficial agricultural statistics for Turkmenistan are notoriously unreliable, and USDA wheat production estimates typically run 40 to 50 percent lower than official statistics. Wheat production in Turkmenistan has been hampered for years by a crumbling infrastructure and limited inputs. For 2010, the USDA forecasted Turkmenistans wheat harvest would be 1.4 million tons and its wheat demand would be 2.5 million tons. About half of the wheat that is imported comes from Russia and Kazakhstan. The rise in wheat global prices and the need to mitigate the rising cost of wheat imports prompted the government to reduce the monthly rationing of flour from 13.2 lbs per person per month to 8.8 lbs.

6. Informal Economy
A January 2005 UNDP Report estimated that the informal sector could account for more than 50% of GDP and employment. Extensive restrictions on imports and shortages of consumer goods have prompted the widespread practice of barter. Many entrepreneurs employ people informally in order to avoid paying their social contributions. According to the US State Departments 2010 International Narcotics Control Strategy report for 2010 (covering developments in 2009), Turkmenistan is a transshipment route for traffickers attempting to smuggle Afghan opiates to Turkish, Russian and European markets, by several different routes, including through IranPayments to lower-level officials at border crossing points to facilitate passage of smuggled goods occurs frequently. Reports persist that senior government officials are directly linked to the drug trade. On October 18, 2010, the UNDP representative for Turkmenistan indicated that the UN and the EU, will make a significant contribution to the training of local border guards for the effective protection of Turkmenistan's state borders from illegal migration, smuggling, drug and weapons trafficking, as well as protection from terrorism threats. 12

Since many goods are subsidized in Turkmenistan, there is widespread smuggling of goods into Uzbekistan.

III. Business Environment

Index Economic Freedom of the World Index 2010 Heritage Foundation Economic Freedom Index 2010 World Economic Forum Global Competitive Index 2010-2011 Milken Institute Capital Access Index 2009 UNCTAD Inward Potential Performance Index 2005-2007 World Bank Ease of Doing Business 2011 World Bank Gov Indicator 2009, Regulatory Quality World Bank Gov Indicators 2009, Rule of Law Transparency International Corruption Perception Index 2010 Rank N/A 171/179 N/A N/A N/A N/A 2.4Percentile 4.7 Percentile 172/178 Score N/A 42.5/100.0 N/A N/A N/A N/A -2.07 -1.37 1.6/10.00

1. Summary of Indices
Turkmenistan is not ranked in the 2011 World Bank Ease of Doing Business Survey. It is ranked by the World Bank at the 2.4 percentile for Regulatory Quality and at the 4.7 Percentile for Rule of Law. Turkmenistan is ranked 171 of 179 nations in the Heritage Foundation Economic Freedom Index. Turkmenistan is ranked 94 of 162 nations in the 2009 International Index of Social Progress which is compiled by the University of Pennsylvania. It measures economic development, social and political conditions, and the ability of nations to produce welfare services for their citizens. Turkmenistan is not ranked in any of the other major international economic and competitiveness indices.

2. Openness to Foreign Investment

Turkmenistan has an inhospitable climate for foreign investment. The state for instance has an iron grip on many sectors of the economy, corruption is rampant, the infrastructure is poor, most of the industrial sector is decrepit and there have been no major moves to liberalize a tightly regulated economic environment. In addition, there is a restrictive visa regime that limits the visits of foreign business people. According to the US Department of State Investment Climate Statement, All visitors are required to register upon entry, and travel to most border areas requires a special permit. Inviting foreigners is often problematic because authorities can and do deny entry visas without explanation. With these travel strictures, foreign investors trying to enter Turkmenistan for the first time have difficulty obtaining entry visas unless invited by the government. Even established investors continue to complain about bureaucratic procedures and delays in this context. The energy sector receives the bulk of the foreign investment. Foreign companies that want to invest in the sector can only do so via JVs or PSAs with the state oil or natural gas companies. According to the US Department of State Investment Climate Statement, the lack of established rule of law, inconsistent regulatory practices, and unfamiliarity with international business norms are major disincentives to foreign investmentAll investment proposals are screened for compliance with government prioritiesDecisions to allow foreign investment are politically driven; companies from friendly countries are more successful in winning tenders and signing contracts. In this environment, where the government selectively chooses its investment partners, a strong relationship with the government is essential. Often, government officials expect personal gain for allowing or helping foreign investors enter the local market. One way to penetrate the market has been to work through established foreign businessmen, who arrange deals

13

through their personal relationship with top leaders, or to secure the advocacy of high-ranking foreign government officials in a bilateral context. Bureaucratic procedures are confusing and cumbersome. There is no single body that coordinates registration and activities of domestic and foreign private companies. The government does not generally provide information support to investors, and officials use the lack of information to their personal benefit. Foreign companies may spend months conducting due diligenceGood quality English-language material on Turkmenistan legislation is scarce, and there are very few business consultants to assist investorsThere is no independent body for filing complaints. Financial disclosure requirements are neither transparent nor consistent with international norms. Government enterprises are not required to publicize financial statements, even to foreign partners. Financial audits are often conducted by local auditors, not internationally recognized firms. The government has been known to harass foreign investors via excessive tax examinations, license extension denial, and customs clearance and visa issuance obstacles. There are no performance requirements regarding technology transfer, investing in a certain area of the country or exporting a specified amount of production. The government however does mandate that 70% of the employees of a foreign company be nationals. Exceptions can be made for large scale infrastructure projects. Although there are nominally no limits on foreign ownership of domestic companies, in reality, majority ownership by foreign companies is allowed in only in a very few instances. In most cases the government insists on maintaining majority control of JVs. Foreign investors may only sell shares or divest its holdings with government permission. Government tenders are opened to foreign companies. In reality though, the tender process is nontransparent and as a result, foreign companies are at a severe disadvantage. The US Department of State Investment Climate cited a case where a US company was informed it had won a tender and therefore invested money in an initial project design. The government though then informed the company that it was considering other options. The tender was ultimately offered a second time, and the contract was awarded to another company at twice the U.S. company's tender price. Foreign investors cannot own land. They can however lease land for non-agricultural purposes, but only with the permission of the president. The government has the authority to confiscate property by an official court decision. There have been no recent examples of the expropriations of foreign property but the government has a history of expropriating the property of local businesses and individuals. The government often refuses to pay any compensation when exercising the right of eminent domain. Generally, there are no problems repatriating profits. Oil companies generally receive their profits in crude oil, which they ship by tankers via the Caspian Sea or swap in Iran or Persian Gulf countries Since the judiciary system is not independent, settling of commercial disputes can be a problem for foreign companies. The US Embassy in Turkmenistan strongly advises US companies to have an arbitration clause in their contract that specifies a venue outside of the country. The government often claims companies did not fulfill the terms of a contract in order to justify non-payment. In addition, there have been instances when the government did not pay for goods and services in hard currency even though the contract specified that it do so. The US State Department Investment Climate Statement noted that, a change in the leadership of a government agency that signed the original contract often triggers a government call to re-evaluate an entire contract, including profit distribution, management responsibilities and payment schedulesAlthough Turkmenistan has adopted a number of laws designed to regulate foreign investment, the laws have not been consistently or effectively implemented. The concentration of power in the office of the president has undermined the rule of commercial law. Legislation is regularly made -or overturned -- by presidential decree. Turkmenistan has not signed the 1958 New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards. There are laws that protect intellectual property rights (IPR) but they are either arbitrarily enforced or not enforced at all. Turkmenistan has been on the US Trade Representatives 301 Watch List since 2000. The list identifies nations that are a threat to IPR. The Law on Foreign Investment guarantees the protection 14

of intellectual property of foreign investors, including literary, artistic and scientific works, software, databases, patents and other copyrighted items, but according to the Investment Climate Statement, Turkmenistan has yet to adopt criminal penalties for Intellectual Property Rights violationsTurkmenistan has not adopted a separate Copyright Law and consequently does not provide any protection to foreign sound recordings or pre-existing worksIt is a challenge to purchase legally recorded material in Turkmenistan. Current border enforcement is weak. As a result, pirated recordings freely cross into Turkmenistan for saleThere is a Patent Department in the Ministry of Economy and Development which issues patents on intellectual property, but it does not enforce copyright law. videos, cassette tapes, and literature are freely copied and sold.

3. Taxes
The corporate tax rate is 8% for domestic companies, 8% for JVs, and 20% for wholly-owned foreign companies. The personal income tax rate is 10% and the VAT is 15%. There is a 50% excise tax on imported beer and a 100% excise tax on imported wine. Excise taxes on domestically produced beer and alcoholic beverages range from 10% to 45%. The excise tax on imported tobacco is 30% and for domestically produced gasoline it is 40%. Dividends are taxed at 15%. There are generous tax incentives to invest in the Avaza Tourist Zone including exemptions from VAT for constructing hotels and the elimination of income tax on accommodation and catering facilities for the first 15 years. The president has the authority to issue special decrees granting tax exemptions and other privileges to specific investors. Foreign oil companies operating under PSAs are subjected to a tax of 20% and royalty payments of between 1% and 15% depending on the level of output. The social welfare tax is 20% of the total staff payroll. There is a 1% property tax.

4. Foreign Investment
Data from the UNCTAD indicate that FDI in 2009 were $1.355 billion. This was above the $820 million level in 2008 and represented 71.4% of gross fixed capital formation. The total stock of FDI (book value) at the end of 2009 was $6.103 billion, which was 543.1% above the level of 2000 and equal to 18.4% of GDP. Most of the foreign investment is in the energy sector. Oil service companies such as Halliburton, National Oilwell Varco and Transocean also have a presence. Among the non-oil companies are: CocaCola; Siemens; Hertz; Calik Holdings (Turkey); Polimeks (Turkey); and Bouygues (France), which have been involved in construction and infrastructure projects. Ajanta Pharma (India) has a joint venture in the pharmaceutical sector. MTS (Russia) is one of the few foreign companies that have a 100%-owned operation. It is involved in the mobile phone sector.

5. Privatization
All the major industries are state-owned. According to estimates by the EBRD, the private sector in 2008 accounted for just 25% of GDP. Private businesses were mainly concentrated in the retail trade, services and food processing sectors. President Berdimuhamedow has made privatization a major priority. He has told the Economics and Development Ministry to prepare auctions for selling shares in the new joint stock companies that will take over the operation of state firms. The government though has not specified whether the state enterprises will be broken up before being sold, how quickly the privatization process will take, exactly which state companies will be privatized and how transparent the process will be. It will be difficult to privatize state holdings because most have antiquated technology and are not profitable.

6. Financial Sector
The financial system is heavily controlled by the government. It is dominated by six state-owned banks: State Bank for Foreign Economic Relations (Vnesheconombank); Dayhanbank; Turkmenbashy Bank; Turkmenistan Bank; Halk Bank; and President Bank. They account for 90% of all bank loans. Each of the six government-owned banks specializes in a specific sector: foreign trade, agriculture, industry, social infrastructure, savings and mortgages. There are also two small state banks: Senagat Bank and Garagun Bank that provide general banking services and four foreign commercial banks: a joint Turkmen-Turkish bank (with Ziraat Bank), a branch of the National Bank of Pakistan, Deutschebank and Commerzbank. 15

The two German banks provide bank guarantees for companies and for the government but they do not provide general banking services. As credit is not allocated on market terms and is largely dictated by the government, there is a large amount of non-performing loans. There is a savings deposit insurance scheme. The only insurance company is state-owned. There is no stock exchange. The US Department of State Travel Advisory noted that, Turkmenistan has a cash-only economy. However, several new hotels accept credit cards. Vnesheconombank and the National Bank of Pakistan cash travelers checks and personal checks for a fee, although cashing a personal check is a lengthy process that could require up to two months. Vnesheconombank also accepts Visa for cash advances, for a fee. Although the manat is the official currency, U.S. dollars are widely accepted and are required as payment for certain goods and services. On May 1, 2008, the government unified the exchange. Previously, there was a commercial and an official rate. The exchange rate was set at 14,250 to the dollar until January 1, 2009 when it was redenominated and fixed at 2.85 per dollar. It has remained at that level.

7. Corruption and Transparency

Turkmenistan has accepted the UN Convention Against Corruption. It is ranked 172 of 178 nations in Transparency Internationals 2010 corruption perception index. In the 2009 survey it was ranked 168 of 180. According to Transparency International, a score of less than 3.0 out of 10.0 indicates there is rampant corruption. Turkmenistans score is 1.6. The US Department of State Human Rights Report noted that, The law provides criminal penalties for official corruption; however, the government did not implement the law effectively, and officials reportedly often engaged in corrupt practices with impunity. Widespread corruption existed in all social and economic sectors. Factors included the existence of patronage networks, a lack of transparency and accountability mechanisms, and fear of government reprisalThere is no law that allows for public access to government information, and in practice the government did not provide access. Authorities denied requests for specific information on the grounds that the information was a state secret. Some statistical data were considered state secrets. There was no public disclosure of demographic data, and published economic and financial data were manipulated to justify state policies and expenditures. In conjunction with Transparency International, Revenue Watch publishes an index that assesses the available information and the transparency of the resource sector. In the 2010 index, Turkmenistan was ranked last of 41 nations reviewed.

8. Standards Compliance Assessments

IMF Dissemination Standard Special Data Dissemination Standard General Data Dissemination Standard IMF Assessment Reports on Standards and Codes (ROSCs) Financial Sector Assessment Programs (FSAPs) Standards Assessed N/A Subscription Status Not a Subscriber Not a Subscriber Dates Compliance Level

N/A

Turkmenistan has not been assessed by the IMF in any of its ROSCs.

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IV. Human Capital

Index UNDP Human Development Index 2010 Rank 87/169 Score 0.669/1.00

1. Social Indicators
Turkmenistan ranks 87 of 169 in the 2010 UNDP HDI. The infant mortality rate is 42.3 per 1,000 live births (US Census Bureau estimate for 2011), the probability of dying before the age of 40 is 13.0%; 100% of births are attended to by a skilled health care professional; the under 5 mortality rate is 48 per 1,000 people; 99% of infants 12-23 months are fully immunized against measles; the maternal mortality rate is 130 per 100,000 live births; 96% of infants 12-23 months have been immunized against diphtheria, pertussis (whopping cough) and tetanus. The life expectancy (2011 projections of the US Census Bureau) is 68.5 years (71.6 years for females and 65.0 years for males). Seventy-two percent of the rural population and 97% of the urban population have access to clean drinking water; 98% of the population have access to improved sanitation facilities; there are 19.3 births per 1,000 women between the ages of 15-19; the probability of dying between the ages of 15 and 60 is 29.6%; the neonatal mortality rate is 21 per 1,000 live births; 6% of the population is undernourished; 49.6% of the population lives on less than $2 a day; 4% of babies are born with low birth weight. Ninety-nine percent of pregnant women receive prenatal care, the immunization rate of 1-year-olds for hepatitis B is 96%; for polio, it is 96%; and for tuberculosis (BCG vaccination), it is 99.0%. Fifty-four percent of men survive to 65, and 73% of women survive to 65; 30% of pregnant women are anemic; 60.0% of females 15 and over are in the labor force; 73.0% of men 15 and over are in the labor force; 47% of the labor force is female. According to the FAO, the per capita calorie consumption in 2003/2005 was 2,784 (in the US, it was 3,825). Wheat is the main staple food, accounting for 54.3% of caloric intake, milk had an 8.4% share, and rice was responsible for 5.4%. Turkmenistan is one of the 77 Low Income Food Deficit Countries as defined by the FAO. It is rated 11 of 84 in the 2010 Global Hunger Index compiled by the International Food Policy Research Institute. There are 224 prisoners per 100,000 people, pre-trial detainees are 12.4% of the prison population; 12.3% of prisoners are women; 0.7% are under 18; 0.7% are foreigners and the prison capacity utilization rate is 85.0%. In 2006, there were 1.7 assaults per 100,000 people; 0.5 reported rapes per 100,000 people; 2.9 robberies per 100,000 people; 24.7 drug related crimes per 100,000 people; and 181 convictions for a criminal offense per 100,000 people.

2. Access to Technology
There are 95 mainline telephone lines and 225 cellular subscribers per 1,000 people. Internet use is 15 per 1,000 people. There are 72 personal computers per 1,000 people; there are 237.4 radios per 1,000 people; there are 165.6 televisions per 1,000 people; and in 2007, there were 81 cars and 106 motor vehicles per 1,000 people. Of the 651,564 motor vehicles in 2008, 62% were cars; 18% were motorized two and three wheelers; 16% were trucks and 4% were buses. The per capita consumption of electricity is 2,279.1 kilowatt hours (in the US, it is 13,652 kilowatt hours). The Internetworldstats.com Web site noted that, Communications services in Turkmenistan are the least developed of all the CIS countries. Poor growth in telecoms services, the slow progress in the development of the private sector and continuing state control over most economic activities have not been helpful in growing the countrys telecommunications marketThe Internet is controlled by the government and access is severely restricted. Unlike most of its neighboring countries, Turkmenistans

17

mobile market, served by one private and one state-owned operator, has been slow to grow. The Ministry of Communications continues to be both the regulator and policy maker for the telecom sector. A January 2009, report on Internet use for Turkmenistan on the freedomforsale.org Web site indicated that, The cost of using the Internet is falling, although access remains limited to a handful of places in urban centers and many foreign sites are blocked. On January, 26, the Turkmen media reported that internet prices had been reduced by 50 per cent to the equivalent of 40 US cents per hour. In addition, the authorities have opened a new Internet center with 18 terminals at the National Library in Ashgabat. These measures reflect a pledge to open up the internet made in 2007 by incoming president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow. His predecessor, the authoritarian Saparmurat Niazov, had made it almost impossible for people to get information from the Internet and foreign newspapers. Berdimuhamedow also gave instructions that all new institutions including schools and kindergartens must be equipped with Internet access capability. The first Internet cafes opened in March 2007, and there are now at least ten internet clubs and several public-access Internet centers sponsored by international organizations. However, there are not enough of these places to cope with the growing number of internet userssome commentators are pessimistic about the real scope of these measures. They point out that in 2008, the international watchdog group Reporters Without Borders listed Turkmenistan in the category of enemies of the Internet. Internet access remains limited, and the sole provider Turkmentelecom blocks all Web resources that the authorities disapprove of.

3. Health Indicators
There are 452 nurses and midwives per 100,000 people; 244 physicians per 100,000 people; 10 dentists per 100,000 people; 20 pharmacists per 100,000 people; and 410 hospital beds per 100,000 people. The HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in 2007 was less than 0.1% of the population between 15 and 49. This compares to an average of 0.8% for Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The prevalence of tuberculosis was 68 per 100,000 people in 2008 (in the US, it was 2.5 per 100,000 people), and the tuberculosis death rate was 8.4 per 100,000 people. The prevalence of diabetes is 4.1% of the population between 20 and 79 (the average for Europe is 8.6%). According to the International Diabetes Federation, there are 128,100 people between 20 and 79 who have diabetes and 2,389 people will die this year from complications of diabetes. The prevalence of obesity is 15% for females 15 and over, and 9.3% for males 15 and over. The per capita health expenditure in 2007 was $139 and the total expenditures on health were 2.6% of GDP. The number of road accident fatalities in 2007 was 650. There were 241 cases of the mumps in 2008. In 2004, cardiovascular diseases accounted for 47.5% of all deaths, respiratory infections had a 9.7% share; prenatal conditions represented 7.8%; and cancer accounted for 6.3% of all deaths. The mortality rate for cancer in 2004 was 60.0 per 100,000 people; for prenatal conditions, it was 75.4 per 100,000 people; for cardiovascular diseases, it was 460.9 per 100,000 people. For road traffic accidents, it was 8.5 per 100,000 people; for self-inflected injuries, it was 10.8 per 100,000 people; for diabetes, it was 11.3 per 100,000 people; for digestive diseases, it was 43.6 per 100,000 people; for diarrhea diseases, it was 59.4 per 100,000 people. For HIV/AIDS, it was 1.0 per 100,000 people, and for respiratory infections, it was 93.6 per 100,000 people. The homicide rate in 2006 was 2.9 per 100,000 people (in the US, it was 5.2 per 100,000 people in 2008). The US Department of State Travel Advisory noted that, Medical care is limited and well below North American and Western European standards. All visitors are strongly advised to purchase medical evacuation insurance to cover costs associated with transporting them to adequate medical facilities in the event of serious illness or injuryThe U.S. Embassy maintains a list of public hospitals and Englishspeaking physicians in the country, however the standard of care at these hospitals cannot be considered comparable to Western standards. Basic medical supplies, including disposable needles, anesthetics, and antibiotics are often in short supplyTravelers requiring prescription medications should bring sufficient supplies of all necessary medications and appropriate documentation to ensure no problems with customs officials upon arrival. 18

An April 2010 report by Doctors Without Borders entitled, Turkmenistans Opaque Health System, painted a devastating picture of the inadequate health care system. It said, The people of Turkmenistan are being failed by their health care systemThe system that is supposed to ensure their health is instead designed to conceal problemsIt is undeniable that communicable diseases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and sexually transmitted infections are more prevalent than reported figures would suggest. It is equally clear that public health risks are not being effectively addressed and that prevention mechanisms are not in place. Misinformation about how to avoid contracting and spreading disease is rampantTB, particularly in its multi-drug-resistant form, is perhaps the countrys most serious public health threat, and poses a high risk of creating a serious crisis. The report revealed that there was widespread and systematic manipulation of data to hide the true extent of the poor health care in the country. It said, the difficulties in obtaining data is not due to lack of capacity but rather because of a deliberate obscuring of informationIt is not that figures are adapted to present a more optimistic view of the situation, but rather, that the reality was adapted to ensure that the statistics would meet pre-determined targets.there are quotas for everything from mortality to communicable diseases. The government puts pressure on health care workers to meet these quotas, but the necessary resources are rarely provided to ensure that these targets can be met. The pressure on health care workers to meet specific targets for health indicators often results in individuals being denied carepatients are discharged early from hospital to avoid having to record a hospital deaththere are many examples of poor medical management of patients and a lack of understanding of basic principles. This is not surprising given the inadequacies of the medical education system. Reforms during Niyazovs government lead to a loss of the countries medical educators (Russian speaking) and reduced the availability of training materials, scientific publications and WHO protocols.

4. Education Indicators
The education system was severely undermined during former Presidents Niyazovs rule and has yet to recover. A 2000 presidential decree for example reduced the number of teachers and increased class size. Students were forced to spend long hours studying President Niyazovs philosophy and writings at the expense of other subjects. Although studying of the works of former President Niyazov is being diminished and in many cases phased out, students must now study the writings and philosophy of President Berdimuhamedow. There are no Turkmen-language textbooks in many subject areas at most grade levels. Primary education begins at seven and lasts until ten when secondary education begins. Secondary education lasts for seven years. Education is compulsory from seven to 15. President Berdimuhamedow has taken some important steps to improve the education system by ordering 23,000 teachers who were let go by President Niyazov to return to work, reestablishing the tenth year of secondary education, extending studies at universities from three to five years, reopening the Academy of Science, increasing student stipends and eliminating the requirement that university students work for two years before embarking on a degree program. The adult literacy rate is 99.5%. For females it is 99.3%. The average adult literacy rate for Central Asia is 99.4%. As with much of the economy and many social indicators, there is no reliable and credible data for education standards.

V. Economic Data, Outlook and Credit Rating

IMF Country Data Overview 2010 (Est.) GDP Growth GDP: GDP capita: per CPI: Current Account as % of GDP -4.7% Budget balance as % of GDP 2.8% FDI (UNCTAD 2009) $1.355 BN

9.4%

N/A

$3.663

3.9%

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1. Latest IMF Consultation

The IMF Article IV Consultation Report that was released on November 5, 2010 noted the economy managed to weather the global economic downturn and the reduction in natural gas prices and demand. It forecast strong economic growth over the next few years in response to rising natural gas production. The report urged the government to speed up economic reforms including enacting measures to stimulate the private sector, eliminate foreign exchange restrictions, allow more flexibility in the exchange rate over the long run, promote the development of commercially oriented banking, abolish interest rate controls and improve public financial management.

2. Economic Outlook
Turkmenistans abundant natural gas reserves have the potential to make it a very wealthy nation, particularly in light of its relatively small population. Whether the population ultimately benefits from this abundance will depend on whether the government curtails rampant corruption, avoids the resource curse that has undermined many resource rich countries. It encourages the private sector; privatizes state industries; improves the decrepit health care system; and liberalizes a stifling oppressive political system that does not tolerate dissent and censors the media. Much of the earnings from the natural gas sector has unfortunately been squandered by corruption and spent on statues of ex-president Niyazov, marble palaces, fountains and on an extensive police and security apparatus that is designed to maintain the regimes iron grip on power. In addition, a substantial potion of the budget is consumed by subsidies. Natural gas, water, salt, and electricity are provided free and bread, gasoline and housing are substantially subsidized. President Berdimuhamedow came to office vowing to institute reforms. He has in fact ended some of the most destructive polices of his predecessor especially in education. In addition, he has unified the exchange rate, has adopted an active foreign policy in contrast to President Niyazovs relative isolationist policy and ended the bizarre cult of personality surrounding President Niyazovs. He, however, has not significantly liberalized the political system which suppresses dissent, reformed the opaque regulatory system, tackled rampant corruption and diversified the economy away from its heavy dependent on the energy sector. There is no reliable and credible economic data and therefore all the glorious pronouncements by the government about the countrys wondrous achievements and the wise reign of President Berdimuhamedow who has begun to build a cult of personality around himself must be taken with an extreme measure of skepticism. There is no doubt though that the economy will perform strongly over the next few years given the abundance of natural gas resources and the eagerness of foreign energy companies to exploit these resources. On October 27, for example, ExxonMobil announced that it was reopening its office in Turkmenistan and said it was keen to develop the countrys natural gas deposits. ExxonMobil had closed its office in 2002 because of economic reasons. On September 20, Chevron Vice President Jay Pryormet met in New York with President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammadow and offered Turkmenistan "services and experience in almost all matters, including oil and gas exploration, production, processing and transportation, petrochemical production, and operations on the sea shelf." Without any significant structural or political reforms however, it is highly unlikely that the standard of living of the people will see a major improvement. Instead, the countrys resources will continue to be squandered by corruption and unnecessary, wasteful and expensive white elephant projects like the Golden Age Lake and an estimated $5.0 billion Olympic city that will be built in the capital. It will have 31 sports facilities that will meet International Olympic Committee standards including a 60,000 seat soccer stadium, a 10,000 seat skating venue, several swimming pools, tennis courts, and cycling racetracks.

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3. Country Credit Ratings

Credit Rating (as of date of publication) Standard & Poors N/A Moodys N/A Fitch Ratings N/A

Turkmenistan is not rated by any of the major credit rating agencies.

VI. Membership in international organizations

Financial Action Task Force (FATF) International Center for Settlements of Investment Disputes (ICSID) International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) Multinational Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) United Nations Convention Against Corruption World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) World Trade Organization (WTO) Not a member Entry into Convention on October 26, 1992 Not a member Yes, a member Accepted on March 28, 2005 Yes, a member Not a member

VII. Sources for Turkmenistan

Geography and Demographics Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook - Country Report for Turkmenistan https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tx.html Climatetemp.info, Turkmenistan http://www.climatetemp.info/turkmenistan/ Library of Congress - Federal Research Division, Country Profile: Turkmenistan, February 2007 http://memory.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Turkmenistan.pdf Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Turkmenistan's Niyazov Orders A Forest Of Trees Planted, March 14, 2006 http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1066699.html Southtravels.com, Weather and Climate in Turkmenistan http://www.southtravels.com/asia/turkmenistan/weather.html Turkmenistan-Business.com, Transport and IT http://www.turkmenistan-business.com/en/tminfo_p3.8.html UN Data on Land and Agriculture http://unstats.un.org/unsd/environment/agriculturalland.htm 21

UN, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, Population Estimates and Projections Section, World Urbanization Prospects, The 2009 Revision, Population of Capital Cities http://esa.un.org/unpd/wup/index.htm UN World Population Prospects: The 2008 Revision Population Data Base http://esa.un.org/unpp/index.asp?panel=2 US Census Bureau: International Data Base http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/region.php US Department of State Background Note for Turkmenistan, April 19, 2010 http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/35884.htm Weatheronline.com, Turkmenistan http://www.weatheronline.co.uk/reports/climate/Turkmenistan.htm World Bank 2009 World Development Indicators http://data.worldbank.org/indicator Political Environment Table Bertelsmann Transformation Index http://www.bertelsmann-transformationindex.de/fileadmin/pdf/Anlagen_BTI_2010/BTI_2010__Ranking_Table_E_web.pdf Freedom House Freedom in the World 2010: Table of Independent Countries http://www.freedomhouse.org/uploads/fiw10/FIW_2010_Tables_and_Graphs.pdf Fund for Peace, Failed State Index 2010 http://www.fundforpeace.org/web/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=99&Itemid=140 World Bank, World Governance Indicators, 2009 http://info.worldbank.org/governance/wgi/index.asp Government Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook - Country Report for Turkmenistan https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tx.html Congressional Research Service, Turkmenistan: Recent Developments and US Interests, August 13, 2010 http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/97-1055.pdf Freedom House 2010 Country Report for Turkmenistan http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=22&year=2010&country=7938 US Department of State Background Note for Turkmenistan, April 19, 2010 http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/35884.htm US Department of State, "Human Rights Report for Turkmenistan," March 11, 2010 http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/sca/136095.htm Civil Liberties Freedom House 2010 Country Report for Turkmenistan http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=22&year=2010&country=7938 Freedom House, Freedom of the Press 2010 http://freedomhouse.org/images/File/fop/2010/2010global_regional_ranking_tables.pdf 22

Freedom House 2010 Global State of Workers Rights http://freedomhouse.org/uploads/specialreports/workers_rights/2010/WorkerRightsCountryReportsFINAL.pdf The Economist, Burning Sands and Pipe-Dreams, December 10, 2009 http://www.economist.com/node/15065905/print?story_id=15065905 The Economist, Elsewhere in Turkestan, July 9, 2009 http://www.economist.com/node/14009121/print US Department of State, "Human Rights Report for Turkmenistan," March 11, 2010 http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/sca/136095.htm Economic Overview Central Asia Institute Caucus Analyst, Shrinking Remittances Increase Labor Migration from Central Asia, February 11, 2009 http://www.cacianalyst.org/?q=node/5035 Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook - Country Report for Turkmenistan https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tx.html Congressional Research Service, Turkmenistan: Recent Developments and US Interests, August 13, 2010 http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/97-1055.pdf International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database for October 2010 http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2010/02/weodata/weoselgr.aspx The Economist, Burning sands and Pipe-Dreams, December 10, 2009 http://www.economist.com/node/15065905/print?story_id=15065905 The Economist, Elsewhere in Turkestan, July 9, 2009 http://www.economist.com/node/14009121/print Turkmenistan.ru, Turkmenistan to Establish Stabilization Fund, October 22, http://www.turkmenistan.ru/?page_id=3&lang_id=en&elem_id=13829&type=event&sort=date_desc UN National Accounts Data http://unstats.un.org/unsd/snaama/selCountry.asp UNDP, "2009 Human Development Report for Turkmenistan http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/data_sheets/cty_ds_TKM.html US Department of State Background Note for Turkmenistan, April 19, 2010 http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/35884.htm US Department of State, "Human Rights Report for Turkmenistan," March 11, 2010 http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/sca/136095.htm Infrastructure Afghanistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan Agree on Extensive Cooperation, July 6, 2007 http://www.mfa.gov.af/rrcn-turk-afg-agree.asp Asia.com, Airports in Turkmenistan http://www.asia.com/airports-country-info/turkmenistan Asian Development Bank, North-South Railway Project: Turkmenistan, Rep of http://pid.adb.org/pid/TaView.htm?projNo=43441&seqNo=01&typeCd=2 23

Caspian Studies.com, Iran's New Asian Identity http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:1BovCqBCiysJ:www.caspianstudies.com/Forei gnpolicy/my%2520new%2520article/Iran%2520New%2520Asian%2520Identity.doc+Tejen%E2%80%93 Sarakhs%E2%80%93Mashhad+railroad&cd=5&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us Central Asia newswire.com, French Firm Unveils Plans for New Ashgabat Airport, September 9, 2010 http://centralasianewswire.com/Tourism/French-firm-unveils-plans-for-new-Ashgabatairport/viewstory.aspx?id=1652 Central Asia newswire.com, Water Shortages Create Instability Risk in Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, July 15, 2010 http://centralasianewswire.com/Water-shortages-create-instability-risk-in-UzbekistanTurkmenistan/viewstory.aspx?id=1112 Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook - Country Report for Turkmenistan https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tx.html Embassy of Turkmenistan in Washington, Flying to Turkmenistan http://www.turkmenistanembassy.org/turkmen/travel/airline.html Encyclopedia of the Earth, Water Profile of Turkmenistan http://www.eoearth.org/article/Water_profile_of_Turkmenistan Encyclopedia of Nations, Turkmenistan Environment http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Asia-and-Oceania/Turkmenistan-ENVIRONMENT.html Flightstatus.com, Ashgabat International Airport http://www.flightstats.com/go/FlightStatus/flightStatusByAirport.do;jsessionid=B992D21E3C310E99D380 ABD6DEADF1A0.web2:8009?airport=%28ASB%29+Ashgabat+Airport%2C+TM&airportQueryDate=2010 -10-15&airportQueryTime=-1&airlineToFilter=&airportQueryType=0&x=37&y=11 Library of Congress - Federal Research Division, Country Profile: Turkmenistan, February 2007 http://memory.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Turkmenistan.pdf MDTravelhealth.com, Turkmenistan http://www.mdtravelhealth.com/destinations/asia/turkmenistan.php#6 RailwayTechnology.com, North-South Transnational Corridor, KazakhstanTurkmenistanIran http://www.railway-technology.com/projects/northsouthtransnatio/ Turkmenavtoyollary http://turkmenawtoyollary.gov.tm/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=49&Itemid=27 Turkmenistan-Business.com, Turkmenbashi-Ashgabat-Farab Highway Modern Embodiment of the Great Silk Road, January 8, 2010 http://www.turkmenistan-business.com/en/politics/513-turkmenbashi-ashgabat-farab-highway.html Turkmenistan-Business.com, Transport and IT http://www.turkmenistan-business.com/en/tminfo_p3.8.html Turmenistan-ru, Turkmenistan Invites St. Petersburg To Set Out On The Road, June 17, 2008 http://www.turkmenistan.ru/en/?q=node/7109 Turmenistan-ru,Construction of Trans-Karakum Railway Nears Completion in Turkmenistan, February 7, 2006 http://turkmenistan.ru/index.php?page_id=3&lang_id=en&elem_id=7712&type=event&sort=date_desc Turmenistan-ru, Northern and Southern Stretches of Trans Karakum Railway Connected in Turkmenistan, February 8, 2006 http://turkmenistan.ru/index.php?page_id=3&lang_id=en&elem_id=7717&type=event&sort=date_desc 24

Turmenistan-ru, ADB to Finance Construction of Turkmen Section of Railway Corridor North-South, February 19, 2010 http://www.turkmenistan.ru/?page_id=3&lang_id=en&elem_id=16400&type=event&sort=date_desc UNESCAP.org, Turkmenistan http://www.unescap.org/ttdw/publications/tis_pubs/pub_2303/turkmenistanb5.pdf US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan," March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm US State Department, Travel Advisory for Turkmenistan, August 12, 2010 http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1047.html World Bank, Turkmenistan Country Brief for 2003 http://lnweb90.worldbank.org/eca/eca.nsf/2656afe00bc5f02185256d5d005dae97/448d2726890d48cc852 56d5d006884c3?OpenDocument Zawya.com, Iran-Turkmen-Kazakh Railroad to Open in 2011, April 24, 2010 http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm/sidZAWYA20100424060019/Iran-TurkmenKazakh%20Railroad%20to%20Open%20in%202011 Energy Sector Alexanders Gas and Oil Connection, FSU Refineries: Turkmenistan's Refineries, June 13, 2000 http://www.gasandoil.com/goc/company/cnc02746.htm All Business .com, OMV Strives to Implement Oil and Gas Projects in Turkmenistan, February 16, 2010 http://www.allbusiness.com/construction/heavy-civil-construction-energy-utility-oil/13932062-1.html Asian Development Bank 2010 Economic Forecast for Turkmenistan http://www.adb.org/Documents/books/ADO/2010/TKM.pdf Azerbaijani Trend, Schneider Electric and Turkmenistan Signs Agreement to Improve Ashgabat's Power Grid, February 4, 2010 http://en.trend.az/capital/pengineering/1632615.html BBC Monitoring, Turkmenistan to Export Electricity to Pakistan, August 24, 2010 http://www.geni.org/globalenergy/library/technical-articles/generation/energycentral.com/turkmenistan-toexport-electricity-to-pakistan/index.shtml BBC News,ENI Seals Burren Takeover, November 30, 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7121144.stm Businessweek.com, Turkmens Open Russia-Bound Gas Route, October 16, 2010 http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9ISMCCO0.htm Business Monitor International, Maersk Oil Consortium Surrenders Caspian Block, January 21, 2010 http://store.businessmonitor.com/article/322310 CNPC in Turkmenistan http://www.cnpc.com.cn/eng/cnpcworldwide/euro-asia/Turkmenistan/ Central Asia newswire.com, Turkmenistan Increases Power Exports, Improves Electricity Grid, September 13, 2010 http://centralasianewswire.com/International/Upcoming-SCO-militaryexercisesnbspmustnbspdemonstrate-organization39s-relevance/Upcoming-SCO-militaryexercisesnbspmustnbspdemonstrate-organization39s-relevance/Turkmenistan-increases-power-exportsimprovesnbspelectricity-grid/viewstory.aspx?id=1674 Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook - Country Report for Turkmenistan https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tx.html 25

ChinaDaily.com, CNPC Kicks Off Joint Gas Project with Turkmenistan, August 14, 2007 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2007-08/14/content_6026598.htm Crude Accoutnability.org, Mitro International Limited (Austria)/Turkmennebit Consortium (The Khazar Consortium) http://www.crudeaccountability.org/en/index.php?page=mitro Daily Times of Pakistan, Pakistan Pushes to Get Turkmenistan Pipeline Moving, September 22, 2010 http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\09\22\story_22-9-2010_pg7_31 Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Tecnische, Renewable Energy in Turkmenistan http://www.gtz.de/de/dokumente/gtz2009-en-regionalreport-turkmenistan.pdf Encyclopedia of the Earth, Energy Profile of Central Asia, September 4, 2008 http://www.eoearth.org/article/Energy_profile_of_Central_Asia Energy-pedia.com, Turkmenistan: CNPC and Petrofac Win Gas Field Contract, January 3, 2010 http://www.energy-pedia.com/article.aspx?articleid=138419 Entrepeneur.com, Oil Refining in Turkmenistan http://www.entrepreneur.com/tradejournals/article/185436431.html EurAsianet.org, Lukoil Left Out in Turkmenistan, August 24, 2010 http://www.eurasianet.org/node/61790 Interfax.com, Sino-Turkmen Gas Pipeline Annual Capacity Hits 9 Bln Cubic Meters, September 16, 2010 http://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?id=189440 International Energy Agency, Turkmenistan Energy Data for 2007 http://www.iea.org/country/n_country.asp?COUNTRY_CODE=TM&Submit=Submit Journal of Energy Security, Afghanistan, the TAPI Pipeline, and Energy Geopolitics, March 23, 2010 http://www.ensec.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=233:afghanistan-the-tapi-pipelineand-energy-geopolitics&catid=103:energysecurityissuecontent&Itemid=358 Pomfret, Richard, Turkmenistans Relations With Russia, January 29, 2010 http://www.zimbio.com/President+Saparmurat+Niyazov/articles/zY2iSlBADyJ/Turkmenistan+Relations+R ussia Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Turkmenistan To Restore Gas Supplies To Russia, December 22, 2009 http://www.rferl.org/content/Turkmenistan_To_Restore_Gas_Supplies_To_Russia/1910511.html Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Turkmenistan-China Gas Pipeline To Open In 2009 August 21, 2006 http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1070724.html Tehran Times, Turkmen Natural Gas Supplies to Russia Resumed, January 11, 2010 http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=211913 The Economist, Riches in the Near Abroad, January 28, 2010 http://www.economist.com/research/articlesbysubject/displaystory.cfm?subjectid=1065809&story_id=153 93705 Trading Markets.com, French Total Company Negotiates in Turkmenistan On Oil and Gas Contract in Caspian, October 16, 2010 http://www.tradingmarkets.com/news/stock-alert/hocb_french-total-company-negotiates-in-turkmenistanon-oil-and-gas-contract-in-caspian-1234642.html

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Turkmenistaninfo.ur: Turkmenneft" http://www.turkmenistaninfo.ru/?page_id=6&type=article&elem_id=page_6/magazine_35/276&lang_id=en UPI, Ashgabat, Kabul Sign TAPI Agreement, August 31, 2010 http://www.defence.pk/forums/economy-development/71077-turkmenistan-afghanistan-pakistan-gaspipeline.html US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan," March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm US Department of State Background Note for Turkmenistan, April 19, 2010 http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/35884.htm US Energy Information Administration, Turkmenistan Energy Profile, August 1, 2010 http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/country/country_energy_data.cfm?fips=TX US Energy Information Administration, Energy Production, Consumption and Electricity Data by Country http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/international/contents.html External Accounts Asian Development Bank 2010 Economic Update for Turkmenistan http://www.adb.org/Documents/Books/ADO/2010/Update/ado2010-update-part3.pdf#page=9 Central Asia Institute Caucus Analyst, Shrinking Remittances Increase Labor Migration from Central Asia, February 11, 2009 http://www.cacianalyst.org/?q=node/5035 Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook - Country Report for Turkmenistan https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tx.html Euromonitor Travel and Tourism for Turkmenistan, June 2010 http://www.euromonitor.com/Travel_And_Tourism_in_Turkmenistan European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Central Asia Regional Economic Prospects, July 2010 Update http://www.ebrd.com/downloads/research/REP/Regional_Economic_Prospects_July_2010.pdf International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database for October 2010 http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2010/02/weodata/weoselgr.aspx Turkish Weekly, Avaza to Become Turkmenistans International Tourism Center, May 29, 2009 http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/78702/-quot-avaza-quot-to-become-turkmenistan-s-int-l-tourismcentre.html US State Department, Travel Advisory for Turkmenistan, August 12, 2010 http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1047.html United Nations International Trade Center http://www.intracen.org/menus/countries.htm United Nations Tourist Data http://data.un.org/DocumentData.aspx?q=tourism&id=208 World Bank 2010 Logistics Performance Index http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTTRANSPORT/EXTTLF/0,,contentMDK:2151 4122~menuPK:3875957~pagePK:210058~piPK:210062~theSitePK:515434,00.html External Debt and Budget Balance Asian Development Bank 2010 Economic Forecast for Turkmenistan http://www.adb.org/Documents/books/ADO/2010/TKM.pdf 27

AzeriNews.az: Turkmenistan Seeks $4.1BN Loan From China for South Yolotan Field, August 14, 2010 http://www.azernews.az/en/Oil_and_Gas/23530Turkmenistan_seeks_$4.1bn_loan_from_China_for_South_Yolotan_field Azeri Trend.az: Turkmenistan Has No Foreign Debt: Turkmen President, November 28, 2009 http://en.trend.az/capital/macro/1589476.html Congressional Research Service, Turkmenistan: Recent Developments and US Interests, August 13, 2010 http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/97-1055.pdf Reuters, China's Thirst For Energy Fuels Westward Expansion, March 11, 2010 http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE62A2ED20100311 US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan," March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm Agriculture AsiaWaterwire.net, Giant Turkmen Lake Sets Off Environmental Alarms http://www.asiawaterwire.net/node/329 BBC News.com, Turkmenistan to Create Desert Sea, July 16, 2009 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8154467.stm Central Asia newswire.com, Turkmenistan Prepares for Next Bumper Crop, September 1, 2010 http://centralasianewswire.com/Business/Chinanbspdesignates-Kazakh-prefecture-as-Special-EconomicZone/Turkmenistan-prepares-for-next-bumper-crop/viewstory.aspx?id=1574 Colombia Encyclopedia, Kara Kum Canal http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Kara_Kum.aspx Food and Agriculture Organization, Turkmenistan http://www.fao.org/docrep/w4356e/w4356e0x.htm Library of Congress - Federal Research Division, Country Profile: Turkmenistan, February 2007 http://memory.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Turkmenistan.pdf Mongaybay.com, Country Profile of Turkmenistan http://www.mongabay.com/reference/country_profiles/2004-2005/Turkmenistan.html National Cotton Council of America, Average Cotton Prices http://www.cotton.org/econ/prices/monthly.cfm Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Turkmen Farmers Caught Between Collectivization, Privatization, March 27, 2010 http://www.rferl.org/content/Turkmen_Farmers_Caught_Between_Collectivization_Privatization/1995317. html US Department of Agriculture , Foreign Agriculture Service Middle East and Central Asia: Continued Drought in 2009/10 Threatens Greater Food Grain Shortages, September 16, 2008 http://www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/highlights/2008/09/mideast_cenasia_drought/ US Department of Agriculture, Cotton World Markets and Trade, September, 2010 http://www.scribd.com/doc/37322414/COTTON-WORLD-MARKET-AND-TRADE-REPORT-MONTHSEPTEMBER-2010 US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan," March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm

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Informal Economy AzeriTrend.az: UN to Assist Turkmenistan in Protection of State Borders From Illegal Immigration and Terrorism Threats, October 8, 2010 http://en.trend.az/news/politics/foreign/1763264.html UNDP, Options for UNDP Support to Private Sector Development in Turkmenistan, January 2005 http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:Qh0iLPIzGp4J:europeandcis.undp.org/home/sh ow/4D6D5159-F203-1EE9B687D3A4571E8763+informal+economy+of+turkmensitan&cd=5&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us US Department of State International Narcotics Control Strategy Report for 2010 http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/137411.pdf uzland.info: Leaders of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan Press Ahead With Bilateral Thaw http://uzland.info/print/271/6/ Business Environment Table 2010 Fraser Institute Economic Freedom of the World Index http://www.freetheworld.com/2010/reports/world/EFW2010-ch1-ch2.pdf Globalideasbank.org, The International Index of Social Progress http://www.globalideasbank.org/site/bank/idea.php?ideaId=2101 Heritage Foundation Economic Freedom Index http://www.heritage.org/index/Ranking.aspx Milken Institute Capital Access Index http://www.milkeninstitute.org/pdf/CAI2009.pdf Transparency International Corruption Perception Index http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2010/in_detail UNCTAD Inward Potential Performance Index http://www.unctad.org/templates/WebFlyer.asp?intItemID=2471&lang=1 World Bank Ease of Doing Business http://www.doingbusiness.org/EconomyRankings/ World Bank Governance Indicators http://info.worldbank.org/governance/wgi/index.asp World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Index http://www.weforum.org/documents/GCR10/Full%20rankings.pdf World Social Progress Report by the University of Pennsylvania http://www.sp2.upenn.edu/restes/WSS2009/Table%206a.pdf Openness to Foreign Investment Signatories of the 1958 New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards http://www.uncitral.org/uncitral/en/uncitral_texts/arbitration/NYConvention_status.html US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan," March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm

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Taxes Cabc-global.com, Legal and Tax Aspects of Doing Business in Turkmenistan in 2009 http://www.cabc-global.com/uploads/turkmenistan_tax_and_legal_overview_2009.pdf US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan," March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm Foreign Investment Ajanta Pharma Ltd. http://myiris.com/shares/company/writeDet.php?icode=ajapharm British American Tobacco, Company Profile, August 2005 http://213.194.86.162/Webtools/Basvurular/!webpubpic/file/BritishAmericanTobacco.pdf Calik Holding, Energy http://www.calikholding.com/sectors.aspx?id=34 Central Asia Newswire.com, Turkmenistan to Build Olympic-Standard Sports Complex, September 06, 2010 http://centralasianewswire.com/Business/Turkmenistan-to-build-Olympic-standard-sportscomplex/viewstory.aspx?id=1610 Siemens in Turkmenistan http://www.siemens.com/about/en/worldwide/turkmenistan_1154688.htm Turkmenistan-Business.com, MTS Turkmenistan: Over A 1,000,000 Subscribers http://www.turkmenistan-business.com/en/ecoandbus/343-mts-turkmenistan-over-a-1.000.000-of.html UNCTAD, "World Investment Report 2009 - Country Fact Sheet: Turkmenistan, July 22, 2010 http://www.unctad.org/Templates/Page.asp?intItemID=3198&lang=1 UPS in Turkmenistan http://www.ups.com/content/corp/worldwide/europe/turkmenistan.html US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan," March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm US Embassy in Turkmenistan, American Businesses Represented and/or Operating in Turkmenistan, http://turkmenistan.usembassy.gov/american_businesses.html#gen Wall Street Journal.com, Turkmen Dictator Is Gone, But Hes Still in the Process of Being Forgotten, December 8, 2008 http://www.studentnewsdaily.com/daily-news-article/turkmen-dictator-is-gone-but-hes-still-in-the-processof-being-forgotten/ Privatization Central Asian Newswire.com Turkmenistan Continues Major Privatization Program, August 19, 2010 http://centralasianewswire.com/International/China-will-be-involved-in-50-percent-of-Kazakhstanrsquos2010-oil-output/Turkmenistannbspcontinues-major-privatization-program/viewstory.aspx?id=1467 US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan," March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm Financial Sector Banks in Turkmenistan http://www.offshorewave.com/Banks_Listed_by_Country/Banks_in_Turkmenistan.html 30

Heritage Foundation Country Report for Turkmenistan http://www.heritage.org/index/Country/Turkmenistan#financial-freedom Oanda.com, Historical Exchange Rates http://www.oanda.com/currency/historical-rates US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan," March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm US State Department, Travel Advisory for Turkmenistan, August 12, 2010 http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1047.html Corruption and Transparency Freedom House 2010 Country Report for Turkmenistan http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=22&year=2010&country=7938 Revenue Watch 2010 Index http://www.revenuewatch.org/rwindex2010/data.html Transparency International Corruption Perception Index http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2010/in_detail United Nations Convention Against Corruption http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/treaties/CAC/signatories.html US Department of State, "Human Rights Report for Turkmenistan," March 11, 2010 http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/sca/136095.htm US Department of State, "Investment Climate Statement for Turkmenistan", March, 2010 http://www.state.gov/e/eeb/rls/othr/ics/2010/138160.htm Standards and Compliance International Monetary Fund list of GDDS nations http://dsbb.imf.org/Applications/web/gdds/gddscountrylist/ International Monetary Fund list of SDDS nations http://dsbb.imf.org/Applications/web/sddscountrylist/ International Monetary Fund, Report on Observance of Standards and Codes http://www.imf.org/external/np/rosc/rosc.asp International Monetary Fund Financial Sector Assessment Programs http://www.imf.org/external/np/fsap/fsap.asp World Bank, Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes http://www.worldbank.org/ifa/rosc.html Social Indicators Congressional Research Service, Turkmenistan: Recent Developments and US Interests, August 13, 2010 http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/97-1055.pdf European Institute for Crime Prevention and Control, Affiliated with the United Nations, International Statistics on Crime and Justice http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Crimestatistics/International_Statistics_on_Crime_and_Justice.pdf

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Food and Agriculture Organization Yearbook for 2007-2008 http://www.fao.org/economic/ess/publications-studies/statistical-yearbook/fao-statistical-yearbook-20072008/d-consumption/en/ Food and Agriculture Organization, List of Low Income Food Deficit Countries http://www.fao.org/countryprofiles/lifdc.asp?lang=en International Food Policy Research Institute, 2010 Global Hunger Index http://www.ifpri.org/sites/default/files/publications/ghi10.pdf Kaiser Family Foundation, "Global Health Facts Health Indicators" http://www.globalhealthfacts.org/factsheets_custom.jsp# Kings College London, Prison Brief for Turkmenistan http://www.kcl.ac.uk/depsta/law/research/icps/worldbrief/wpb_country.php?country=115 UN data for under 5 mortality rate per 1,000 births http://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=MDG&f=seriesRowID%3A561 UN data for neonatal mortality rate http://data.un.org/Data.aspx?q=united+states+of+america&d=SOWC&f=inID%3A145%3BcrID%3A186 UN data for low birth weight babies http://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=SOWC&f=inID%3A115 UNDP, "2010 Human Development Report for Turkmenistan http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/TKM.html US Census Bureau: International Data Base http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/region.php World Bank, 2009 World Development Indicators http://data.worldbank.org/indicator and http://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog World Health Organization, Turkmenistan Health Profile http://www.who.int/gho/countries/tkm.pdf World Health Organization Statistics for 2010 http://www.who.int/whosis/whostat/2010/en/index.html and http://www.who.int/whosis/whostat/EN_WHS10_Part2.pdf Access to Technology Freedom for sale.org, Turkmen Internet Prices Down, but Access Limited, January 30, 2009 http://www.freedomforsale.org/index.php?req=article00203 Internetworldstats.com, Turkmenistan http://www.internetworldstats.com/asia/tm.htm Nationmaster, Radio ownership per 1,000 people http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/med_rad_percap-media-radios-per-capita Nationmaster, Televisions per 1,000 people http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/med_tel_percap-media-televisions-per-capita Reuters Alertnet Standard of Living for Turkmenistan http://www.alertnet.org/db/cp/turkmenistan.htm World Bank, "Information and Communications for Development 2009," May 2009 http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/DATASTATISTICS/0,,contentMDK:20459133~isCURL:Y~ menuPK:1192714~pagePK:64133150~piPK:64133175~theSitePK:239419,00.html 32

World Bank, 2009 World Development Indicators http://data.worldbank.org/indicator World Health Organization Road Safety Status Report, Turkmenistan http://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/road_safety_status/country_profiles/turkmenistan.pdf Health Indicators Doctors Without Borders, Turkmenistans Opaque Health System, April 2010 http://www.msf.org/source/countries/asia/turkmenistan/2010/turkmenistan_health_system.pdf European Center on Health of Societies in Transition , London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Health in Turkmenistan After Niyazov, 2009 http://www.lshtm.ac.uk/centres/ecohost/public_health/niyazov/health_in_turkmenistan_after_niyazov.pdf HIV In site, Turkmenistan, October 2006 http://hivinsite.ucsf.edu/global?page=cr-01-00&post=2&cid=WZ&submit=Create+Report International Diabetes Federation Country Summary Table for 2010 http://www.diabetesatlas.org/map Kaiser Family Foundation, "Global Health Facts Health Indicators" http://www.globalhealthfacts.org/factsheets_custom.jsp# United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime, Homicide Statistics http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/data-and-analysis/homicide.html US State Department, Travel Advisory for Turkmenistan, August 12, 2010 http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1047.html World Bank, 2009 World Development Indicators http://data.worldbank.org/indicator and http://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog World Health Organization Death Statistics http://www.who.int/healthinfo/global_burden_disease/estimates_country/en/index.html World Health Organization Statistics for 2010 http://www.who.int/whosis/whostat/2010/en/index.html and http://www.who.int/whosis/whostat/EN_WHS10_Part2.pdf World Health Organization Road Safety Status Report, Turkmenistan http://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/road_safety_status/country_profiles/turkmenistan.pdf Education Indicators 2009 Edition of UNESCO Global Education Digest http://www.uis.unesco.org/template/pdf/ged/2009/GED_2009_EN.pdf Bertelsmann Transformation Index Country report for Turkmenistan http://www.bertelsmann-transformation-index.de/en/bti/country-reports/laendergutachten/cis-andmongolia/turkmenistan/ Education International, "Education Report for Turkmenistan, June 13, 2007 http://www.ei-ie.org/barometer/en/profiles_detail.php?country=turkmenistan UNESCO Education Database http://stats.uis.unesco.org/unesco/TableViewer/document.aspx?ReportId=198&IF_Language=enEcong US Department of State, "Human Rights Report for Turkmenistan," March 11, 2010 http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/sca/136095.htm 33

World Bank, 2009 World Development Indicators http://data.worldbank.org/indicator and http://data.worldbank.org/data-catalog Economic Indicators International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database for October 2010 http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2010/02/weodata/weoselgr.aspx UNCTAD, "World Investment Report 2009 - Country Fact Sheet: Turkmenistan, July 22, 2010 http://www.unctad.org/Templates/Page.asp?intItemID=3198&lang=1 Latest IMF Consultation International Monetary Fund, IMF Executive Board Concludes 2010 Article IV Consultation with Turkmenistan, Public Information Notice (PIN) No. 10/146, November 5, 2010 http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pn/2010/pn10146.htm Economic Outlook Bertelsmann Transformation Index Country Report for Turkmenistan http://www.bertelsmann-transformation-index.de/en/bti/country-reports/laendergutachten/cis-andmongolia/turkmenistan/ Central Asia Newswire.com, Turkmenistan to Build Olympic-Standard Sports Complex, September 06, 2010 http://centralasianewswire.com/Business/Turkmenistan-to-build-Olympic-standard-sportscomplex/viewstory.aspx?id=1610 Congressional Research Service, Turkmenistan: Recent Developments and US Interests, August 13, 2010 http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/97-1055.pdf En.trend.az, Chevron Offers Turkmenistan Its Share in Oil and Gas Exploration, Production, Processing and Transportation, September 20, 2010 http://en.trend.az/capital/pengineering/1753461.html Hurriyet Daily News and Economic Review, Turkish Contractor Builds Giant Sports Facility in Turkmenistan, November 8, 2010 http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=turkish-contractor-builds-giant-sports-facility-in-turkmenistan2010-11-08 International Monetary Fund, IMF Executive Board Concludes 2010 Article IV Consultation with Turkmenistan, Public Information Notice (PIN) No. 10/146, November 5, 2010 http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pn/2010/pn10146.htm Reuters, ExxonMobil Reopens Turkmen Office, Given Warm Welcome, October 27, 2010 http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSLDE69Q03L20101027 Credit Rating Fitch http://www.fitchratings.com/corporate/sectors/issuers_list_corp.cfm?sector_flag=5&marketsector=1&detail =&body_content=issr_list Moodys http://www.moodys.com/moodys/cust/content/loadcontent.aspx?source=StaticContent/BusinessLines/Sov ereign-SubSovereign/RatingsListGBR.htm&Param=ALL Standard and Poors http://www.standardandpoors.com/ratings/sovereigns/ratingslist/en/us/?sectorName=Governments&subSectorCode=39&subSectorName=Sovereigns 34

Memberships Financial Action Task Force http://www.fatf-gafi.org/pages/0,3417,en_32250379_32236869_1_1_1_1_1,00.html International Center for Settlements of investment Disputes http://icsid.worldbank.org/ICSID/FrontServlet?requestType=ICSIDDataRH&reqFrom=Main&actionVal=Vie wContractingStates&range=A~B~C~D~E International Federation of Accountants http://web.ifac.org/about/member-bodies Multinational Investment Guarantee Agency http://www.miga.org/quickref/index_sv.cfm?stid=1577 United Nations Convention Against Corruption http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/treaties/CAC/signatories.html World Intellectual Property Organization http://www.wipo.int/members/en/ World Trade Organization Members http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/tif_e/org6_e.htm

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