Economy (Tajikistan)
====================


     Overview:
         Tajikistan has had the lowest standard of living and now faces the bleakest
         economic prospects of the 15 former Soviet republics. Agriculture is the
         main economic sector, normally accounting for 38% of employment and
         featuring cotton and fruits. Industry is sparse, bright spots including
         electric power and aluminum production based on the country's sizable
         hydropower resources and a surprising specialty in the production of
         metal-cutting machine tools. In 1991 and early 1992, disruptions in food
         supplies from the outside have severely strained the availability of food
         throughout the republic. The combination of the poor food supply, the
         general disruption of industrial links to suppliers and markets, and
         political instability have meant that the republic's leadership could make
         little progress in economic reform in 1991 and early 1992.
     GDP:
         $NA, per capita $NA; real growth rate -9% (1991 est.)
     Inflation rate (consumer prices):
         84% (1991)
     Unemployment rate:
         25% (1991 est.)
     Budget:
         $NA
     Exports:
         $706 million (1990)
       commodities:
         aluminum, cotton, fruits, vegetable oil, textiles
       partners:
         Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan
     Imports:
         $1.3 billion (1990)
       commodities:
         chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, textiles, foodstuffs
       partners:
         NA
     External debt:
         $650 million (end of 1991 est.)
     Industrial production:
         growth rate -2.0% (1991)
     Electricity:
         4,575,000 kW capacity; 17,500 million kWh produced, 3,384 kWh per capita
         (1991)
     Industries:
         aluminum, zinc, lead, chemicals and fertilizers, cement, vegetable oil,
         metal-cutting machine tools, refrigerators and freezers
     Agriculture:
         cotton, grain, fruits, grapes, vegetables; cattle, pigs, sheep and goats,
         yaks
     Illicit drugs:
         illicit producers of cannabis and opium; mostly for domestic consumption;
         status of government eradication programs unknown; used as transshipment
         points for illicit drugs to Western Europe
     Economic aid:
         NA
     Currency:
         as of May 1992, retaining ruble as currency
     Exchange rates:
         NA
     Fiscal year:
         calendar year