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Tajikistan
Economy
Gross National Product (GNP): Estimated in 1993
at US$2.7 billion, or US$470 per capita. Average growth rate 1985-92
was -7.8 percent per year. Beginning 1992, economic growth in
all sectors crippled by transformation from Soviet system and
by effects of civil war.
Agriculture: Largest sector of economy, dominated
by cotton, grain, vegetables; food production insufficient for
domestic consumption. Nearly all agricultural labor unmechanized,
and output declined sharply in mid-1990s. Commitment to cotton
as primary crop continues in post-Soviet era, although production
has decreased.
Industry and Mining: Advancement and diversification
slow in 1990s after specialized roles in Soviet period emphasized
aluminum processing and chemicals. Contributed about 30 percent
of net material product (NMP--see Glossary) in 1991. Productivity
of nearly all industries declined in mid-1990s. Several minerals,
including gold, mined on a small scale.
Energy: Hydroelectric power only major source,
providing 75 percent of electricity; must import petroleum fuels
and coal, only minor exploitation of domestic deposits. Power
imports from neighboring countries problematic in 1990s because
of insufficient funds.
Exports: In 1995, worth about US$720 million.
Principal items electric power, cotton, fertilizers, nonferrous
metals (especially aluminum), silk, fruits, and vegetables. Postcommunist
export markets outside Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)
very slow to form, and traditional barter ties remain strong;
principal customers within CIS Russia, Kazakstan, Ukraine, and
Uzbekistan; outside CIS Poland, Sweden, Afghanistan, Austria,
Norway, and Hungary.
Imports: In 1995, worth about US$1.2 billion.
Principal items fuels, grains, iron and steel, consumer goods,
and finished industrial products. Principal suppliers in CIS Russia,
Turkmenistan, Kazakstan, Uzbekistan, and Ukraine; outside CIS
Poland, Austria, France, Britain, and Turkey. Total non-CIS imports
in 1995 US$265 million.
Balance of Payments: Estimated 1994 budget deficit
US$54.7 million.
Exchange Rate: Tajikistani ruble introduced
in May 1995 after using Soviet ruble (withdrawn elsewhere in the
CIS in late 1993) until January 1994, then joining Russian ruble
zone and adopting new Russian rubles then in use. January 1996
value of Tajikistani ruble 284 per US$1.
Inflation: Consumer price index rose 416 percent
1993-94, 120 percent 1994-95; controlled in 1995 by antiinflationary
gov-ernment program.
Fiscal Year: Calendar year.
Fiscal Policy: Highly centralized government
system, with little regional authority. Initial price decontrol
in 1992 caused extensive hardship, led to retrenchment and resumption
of strong government control of prices and wages. In 1993, major
sources of national income value-added tax (30 percent), enterprise
profits tax (26 percent), and excise tax (13 percent).
Data as of March 1996
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