KYRGYZSTAN

Kyrgyzstan is a landlocked, largely mountainous country in Central Asia bounded on the east by China, on the north by Kazakstan, on the west by Uzbekistan and on the southwest and south by Tajikistan. From north to south, Kyrgyzstan measures 425 kilometers; from west to east, it measures 900 kilometers.
Kyrgyzstan shares borders with Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, China, Tajikistan. Its northern latitude is 43016' close to Rome's; its southern latitude is 39011', near Sicily's in Italy.

The main religion in Kyrgyzstan is Islam. Capital of Kyrgyzstan is Bishkek. Bishkek is the biggest city and alone represent about 20% of the total population of the country. About 90% of Kyrgyzstan is 1000 meters above sea level. The highest point in the country is Pobeda Peak (meaning Victory Peak in Russian) at 7439 meters. The lowest point is at the western end of Naryn River, about 500 meters. Lying close to the middle of the country is the Fergana Valley a fertile breadbasket area whose boundaries, set by preceding Soviet authorities, are a source of incessant conflict between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.

Kyrgyzstan has sharply continental climate, with hot summers and moderately cold winters. In summer, areas from 800 to 1700 meters see average temperatures of 26v30 0C, winter temperatures in the lowlands average (-)5 0C. The country has 1,923 mountain lakes and about 40,000 streams and rivers. However, only 7% of the land is arable, of which 68% is irrigated. Kyrgyzstan's three major rivers are the Naryn (also the longest at 535 kilometers), Chu (221 kilometers) and Chatkal (205 kilometers).
Issyk-Kul v the largest (6332km2) and deepest (702m) lake in the country, never freezes due to its sufficiently saline content. Two other major lakes are Song-Kul (area: 275km2, depth: 13.2m) and Chatyr-Kul (area: 153.5km2, depth: 16.5m), both in Naryn Oblast. Sary-CheIek, whose pretty water and surroundings are depicted in many tourist posters, is nestled in the mountains of the northwestern part of Dzhalal-Abad Oblast.

The industrial sector is dominated by mining and metallurgy, which are two of the main contributors to GDP. Gold mining and refining is by far the most important activity in the mining sector. Kyrgyzstan has more than 400 deposits of precious and semi-precious stones. In addition 44 kinds of gem quality stones have been recently identified. These deposits include diamonds, sapphires, rubies, emeralds and topaz as well as aquamarine, amethyst, turquoise, rock crystal, nephrite, malachite, jasper and agate. Reserves of coal are estimated at 2.9 billion tonnes in four major coal basins. There are ideal conditions in Kyrgyzstan for the manufacture of polycrystalline silicon. The wool, cotton and silk industries are dominated by a number of large enterprises in the industrial centres, typically employing thousands of workers each.