Kazakhstan Geography

Country Name: Republic of Kazakhstan

Capital City: Astana

Population: 15,233,244 (2006)

Population Growth: 0.33% (2006)

Currency: Tenge (KZT)

Languages: Kazakh, Russian

Area: 2,717,300 sq km

Inflation Rate: 8.6% (2006 est.)

Unemployment Rate: 8.1% (2005)

Domain extension: .kz

GEOGRAPHIC DETAILS OF KAZAKHSTAN

Location:

Central Asia, northwest of China; a small portion west of the Ural River in eastern-most Europe

Geographic Co-ordinates:

48 00 N, 68 00 E

Area - total:

2,717,300 sq km

Area - total:

2,717,300 sq km

Area - land:

2,669,800 sq km

Area - water:

47,500 sq km

Land Boundaries:

12,012 km

Border Countries:

China 1,533 km, Kyrgyzstan 1,051 km, Russia 6,846 km, Turkmenistan 379 km, Uzbekistan 2,203 km

Terrain:

extends from the Volga to the Altai Mountains and from the plains in western Siberia to oases and desert in Central Asia

Elevation - highest point:

Khan Tangiri Shyngy (Pik Khan-Tengri) 6,995 m

Elevation - lowest point:

Vpadina Kaundy -132 m

Natural Resources:

major deposits of petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, manganese, chrome ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, lead, zinc, bauxite, gold, uranium

Arable Land:

8.28%

Permanent Crops:

0.05%

Other Land Use:

91.67% (2005)

Natural Hazards:

earthquakes in the south, mudslides around Almaty