President: Maxwell Richards Prime minister: Kamla Persad-Bissessar
President: Nursultan Nazarbayev
Population
1,226,383
17,522,010
Life Expectancy
71.670 years
69.630 years
Capital City
Port-of-Spain
Astana
Largest city
Chaguanas (population: 72,159)
Almaty (population: 2,000,900)
Human Development Index
0.833
0.807
GDP per capita
$20,300 US
$13,200 US
Literacy Rate
98.6%
99.5%
Corruption Perception Index
3.6
2.2
Percentage of Women in Parliament
33.3%
12.3%
Wealthiest Citizens
NA
Alijan Ibragimov ($1.2bn US)
Unemployment Rate
6.400%
5.400%
Death Penalty
Legal
NA
Political System
parliamentary democracy
republic; authoritarian presidential rule, with little power outside the executive branch
Independence date
31 August 1962 (from UK)
16 December 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Religions
Roman Catholic 26%, Hindu 22.5%, Anglican 7.8%, Baptist 7.2%, Pentecostal 6.8%, Muslim 5.8%, Seventh Day Adventist 4%, other Christian 5.8%, other 10.8%, unspecified 1.4%, none 1.9% (2000 census)
Muslim 47%, Russian Orthodox 44%, Protestant 2%, other 7%
Languages
English (official), Caribbean Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), French, Spanish, Chinese
Kazakh (Qazaq, state language) 64.4%, Russian (official, used in everyday business, designated the "language of interethnic communication") 95% (2001 est.)
Exports
petroleum and petroleum products, liquefied natural gas (LNG), methanol, ammonia, urea, steel products, beverages, cereal and cereal products, sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus fruit, vegetables, flowers
