ECONOMY
Tajikistan is the poorest Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) country and one of the poorest countries in the world. Foreign revenue is precariously dependent upon exports of cotton and aluminum, and on foreign remittance flows from Tajik migrant workers abroad, mainly in Russia. The economy is highly vulnerable to external shocks.
Tajikistan has great hydropower potential, and has focused on attracting investment for projects for internal use and electricity exports. Meanwhile, the country faces severe electricity shortages, particularly during the winter, when many citizens receive two to four hours of electricity each day.
Tajikistan has followed a relatively strict fiscal and monetary policy, which has resulted in macroeconomic stability. However, government interference in the economy and massive corruption stifle economic growth and private investment. The government has attracted state-led investment for major infrastructure projects rather than implementing the necessary economic reforms to attract private investors. Two-thirds of the workforce of Tajikistan is in agriculture, most of them pressured to grow cotton. Tajikistan struggles to implement agricultural reforms that would allow this two-thirds of the population to farm the crop of their choice. Income from narcotics trafficking, while difficult to quantify, has an increasingly visible impact on the Tajik economy.
GDP nominal (2008 projected): $4.3 billion.
GDP nominal per capita (2007): U.S. $561. Purchasing power parity is about $1,500.
GDP real growth rate (2008 projected): 5%.
Inflation rate (consumer prices, 2007 est.): 20%.
Natural resources: Hydropower, some petroleum, uranium, gold, mercury, brown coal, lead, zinc, antimony, tungsten.
Official unemployment rate (2008 projected): 2.3%. The official rate is estimated based on the number of registered unemployment benefit recipients; underemployment also is very high, approximately 40% of the workforce; 53% live below the poverty line (2008).
Agriculture: Products--cotton, grain, fruits, grapes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, goats.
Industry: Types--aluminum, zinc, lead, chemicals and fertilizers, cement, vegetable oil, textiles, metal-cutting machine tools, refrigerators and freezers.
Trade: Exports (Jan.-April 2008)--$470.1 million f.o.b.: aluminum, electricity, cotton, gold, fruits, vegetable oil, textiles. Partners include--Netherlands, Turkey, China. Imports (Jan.-April 2008)--$1.27 billion f.o.b.: electricity, petroleum products, aluminum oxide, machinery and equipment, foodstuffs. Partners include--Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, China, Ukraine, Italy, Turkmenistan.
Total external debt (April 2008): $1.222 billion; total bilateral external debt (2006)--$185.3 million, of which Uzbekistan $73.1 million, U.S. $16.3 million, Turkey $10.3 million, Kazakhstan $10.9 million, Russia $30 million; total multilateral debt (April 2008)--$650.5 million, of which World Bank $349.8 million, IMF $44.4 million, ADB $139.9 million.
Debt/GDP ratio (2007 est.): 30.5%.
