On this trip, I am going to be going to five different Stan countries. Unfortunately, we only spent a couple of days in Kazakhstan. And we only went to Almaty which is just a few hundred kilometers from the Chinese border in the southeast corner of the country. Kazakhstan is the ninth largest country in the world. Almaty is a relatively new city, very cosmopolitan, very clean. The capital of Kazakhstan is Astana, which is located closer to the center of the country. The country is rich in natural resources such as oil, gas and uranium and therefore is probably the richest of the countries that I will be going to. The uranium production is controlled by the state while private companies control oil and gas. The population is over 19 million and the GDP is about $26,000. It is mostly a Muslim country with Russian Orthodox being the next most popular religion. Islam arrived in Central Asia in the early eighth century CE. Before that the area was mainly pagan or Buddhist. The largest ethnic group is Kazakh, about 70% of the population. The name probably drives from the Turkic word kaz meaning to wander, recalling the Kazakh nomadic lifestyle. The Persian suffix -stan means place of so the word Kazakhstan literally means land of the wanderers.

Control by the communist was actually a net benefit to the country. They did forcibly settle the nomads in the country. However, they did install good water supply to people, the literacy rate is close to 99% and definitely improved the way women were treated. In the Soviet era, women got paid a three year maternity leave. They still have this, but it is unpaid. Today everyone is taxed 5% of the income from medical and 5% of their income for retirement. There is a public and private medical system. You do have to pay for either one but of course the public facilities are a lot cheaper. There is a one year mandatory service in the military. There are a public and private universities with the most expensive private university costing $6000 a year in tuition. Students who score well on entrance exams get scholarships.

The country is trying to build his first nuclear power plant  first nuclear power plant and to move to a greener energy economy. Russia is the biggest trading partner. Sanctions on Russia have caused the devaluation of Kazakhstan currency. They are unable to import many international products since start of Ukrainian war. Also have a large trade with China. 

After leaving theSoviet Union, the country did develop a constitution and has a presidential republic form of government with two legislative bodies. Unfortunately, the government is not quite a strong democracy. It is controlled by one party. People are afraid to protest in public.