Tajikistan is one of the poorest countries in the world, ranking 122nd out of 177 countries in the 2006 human development report. In 2003, 64% of the population reported living on the equivalent of US$ 2.15 or less per day.

Tajikistan is a landlocked country of 143 100 km2, with a population of 6.9 million, nearly three quarters of whom live in rural areas, mostly in valleys in the north and south-west. The country is divided by mountain ranges, with the high Pamir range in the south and lowland plains in the west. The mountain ranges make communication difficult, especially during the winter. Tajikistan shares borders with Afghanistan, China, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. Its capital is Dushanbe.

Population, government and economy

The population comprises: Tajiks (68.8%), Uzbeks (24.9 %), Russians (3%) and others (3.3%). The population has a large share of people aged under 14 years (37.9%), a high growth rate and a low proportion of people over 65 years (4.28%).

Perhaps 90% of the population is Muslim, mostly Sunnis, with some Shiites among Pamiri Tajiks. A large Ismaili Muslim minority exists in the Pamirs. There are also a smaller and shrinking Russian Orthodox minority and a small Jewish community.

The adult literacy rate is 99%, but poverty prevents many children from attending school. Secondary-school attendance decreased from 99% in 1991 to 88% in 2003 and continues to fall, particularly among urban children.

Shortly after independence in 1991 the country descended into a civil war and only after a peace accord was signed in mid-1997 was the government able to turn its attention to governing and improving the economy. The president, elected by universal suffrage every seven years, holds executive power. The government consists of the prime minister and cabinet, which can present its resignation to the president if it declares it cannot function normally. Tajikistan is divided into 5 regions, including 3 oblasts, Dushanbe City and 13 rayons (districts).

The economy depends heavily on cotton, aluminium, electricity exports and, increasingly, remittances from Tajik migrants to the Russian Federation. To achieve the long-term goals of development and poverty reduction set in its poverty reduction strategy paper, the government is aiming for average economic growth of 6% over the medium term. This requires continued policy reform and economic restructuring to foster sustained growth through private sector development and economic diversification.

Health

Life expectancy in Tajikistan is the second lowest in the WHO European Region, with the WHO estimate (61 years) differing considerably from the official national figure (72 years). Life expectancy has decreased owing to several factors, such as poor nutrition, polluted water supplies, and increased incidence of communicable (malaria, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections, typhoid and cholera) and noncommunicable diseases (especially cardiovascular diseases). Levels of respiratory and digestive-system disease are high throughout the country, and influenza and acute intestinal infections remain urgent health problems.

Maternal and infant mortality rates are high, particularly in rural areas. According to the latest estimates of child mortality for 2006, Tajikistan met and surpassed the national targets.  Nevertheless, mortality rates for infants (56 per 1000 live births) and children under 5 (68 per 1000) remain very high: more than double the averages for the eastern part of the region. (24 and 27 per 1000 live births, respectively). The maternal death rate is higher than the average for the Commonwealth of Independent States (33.2 versusus 28.2 per 100 000 live births).