Freedom in Central Asia
5 countries and territories, on every statistic this site carries. Each row shows the region’s best and worst on that measure and the median between them.
Countries in Central Asia
Personal
What a person may say, believe, publish, join and where they may go.
Economic
What a person may own, trade, earn and keep.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trade openness | Kyrgyzstan 92.4% | Turkmenistan 28.2% | 57.4% | 3 |
| Tax revenue as a share of GDP | Tajikistan 10.7% | Kyrgyzstan 19.6% | 15.2% | 2 |
| Government spending as a share of GDP | Tajikistan 11.0% | Kyrgyzstan 23.7% | 19.9% | 4 |
| Foreign investment inflows | Uzbekistan 3.0% | Kazakhstan -0.3% | 0.5% | 3 |
| Regulatory quality | Kazakhstan 55.6 | Turkmenistan 28.2 | 46.6 | 5 |
| GDP per capita | Kazakhstan $37.9K | Tajikistan $5,062 | $11.6K | 5 |
| GDP growth | Kyrgyzstan 11.1% | Turkmenistan 6.3% | 7.7% | 5 |
| Inflation | Kazakhstan 11.4% | Kyrgyzstan 8.2% | 8.8% | 3 |
| Unemployment | Kyrgyzstan 3.5% | Tajikistan 6.9% | 4.6% | 5 |
| Income inequality | Tajikistan 38.000 | Kyrgyzstan 27.200 | 34.500 | 3 |
| Extreme poverty | Kyrgyzstan 2.7% | Tajikistan 7.3% | 4.1% | 3 |
| Government debt | Kyrgyzstan 38.7% | Kyrgyzstan 38.7% | 38.7% | 1 |
Digital
What a person may read, send and encrypt online, and who is watching.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Internet use | Kazakhstan 93.4% | Tajikistan 55.8% | 90.8% | 4 |
| Fixed broadband subscriptions | Uzbekistan 34.7 | Kyrgyzstan 7.8 | 15.3 | 3 |
| Mobile subscriptions | Kazakhstan 127.1 | Kyrgyzstan 107.5 | 110.5 | 3 |
Government
How power is held, checked and abused.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral democracy | Kyrgyzstan 0.313 | Turkmenistan 0.148 | 0.218 | 5 |
| Liberal democracy | Kyrgyzstan 0.178 | Turkmenistan 0.034 | 0.079 | 5 |
| Rule of law | Kyrgyzstan 0.353 | Tajikistan 0.039 | 0.147 | 5 |
| Judicial checks on government | Kyrgyzstan 0.358 | Tajikistan 0.021 | 0.080 | 5 |
| Legislative checks on government | Kyrgyzstan 0.311 | Turkmenistan 0.061 | 0.148 | 5 |
| Political corruption | Kazakhstan 0.736 | Turkmenistan 0.899 | 0.823 | 5 |
| Civil society participation | Kazakhstan 0.418 | Turkmenistan 0.065 | 0.344 | 5 |
| Women’s political empowerment | Kyrgyzstan 0.733 | Tajikistan 0.431 | 0.643 | 5 |
| Voice and accountability | Kyrgyzstan 42.8 | Turkmenistan 21.1 | 38.6 | 5 |
| Control of corruption | Kazakhstan 46.5 | Turkmenistan 21.6 | 24.9 | 5 |
| Government effectiveness | Kazakhstan 54.2 | Turkmenistan 30.7 | 39.7 | 5 |
| Political stability | Turkmenistan 70.1 | Kyrgyzstan 57.3 | 61.2 | 5 |
Society
Health, schooling, safety and who takes part.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Human Development Index | Kazakhstan 0.837 | Tajikistan 0.691 | 0.740 | 5 |
| Life expectancy | Kazakhstan 74.5 | Turkmenistan 70.2 | 72.4 | 5 |
| Secondary school enrolment | Kazakhstan 97.2% | Tajikistan 86.9% | 94.6% | 5 |
| Government spending on education | Kyrgyzstan 6.8% | Turkmenistan 2.7% | 5.4% | 5 |
| Health spending | Tajikistan 7.4% | Kazakhstan 3.8% | 5.5% | 5 |
| Health costs paid out of pocket | Kazakhstan 27.6% | Turkmenistan 77.4% | 62.4% | 5 |
| Maternal mortality | Turkmenistan 5.0 | Kyrgyzstan 42.0 | 14.0 | 5 |
| Women in parliament | Uzbekistan 38.0% | Kazakhstan 18.4% | 28.6% | 5 |
| Women in the workforce | Kazakhstan 62.6% | Tajikistan 21.9% | 41.2% | 5 |
| Fertility rate | Uzbekistan 3.49 | Kyrgyzstan 2.60 | 2.98 | 5 |
| Urban population | Kazakhstan 62.4% | Tajikistan 26.2% | 47.1% | 5 |
| Refugees who left | Uzbekistan 14.2 | Kyrgyzstan 47.3 | 34.4 | 5 |
| Population | Uzbekistan 37.1M | Kyrgyzstan 7.3M | 10.8M | 5 |
Environment
Energy, emissions and access to power.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CO₂ emissions per person | Tajikistan 0.92 | Kazakhstan 12.57 | 4.09 | 5 |
| Renewable energy use | Tajikistan 34.9% | Turkmenistan 0.1% | 2.0% | 5 |
| Access to electricity | Kazakhstan 100.0% | Tajikistan 99.9% | 100.0% | 5 |
Overlapping regions
These groupings share countries with Central Asia. A country can belong to several at once — Turkey is in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, the Balkans and the Mediterranean.