Kyrgyzstan¹ (population 5.31 million people)² is a country in Central Asia that occupies 198,500 sq km.³ The Kyrgyz Republic gained its independence from the former USSR in August 1991. The country is bordered in the north by Kazakhstan, on the east by China, on the south by Tajikistan and on the west by Uzbekistan. The country lies between the Tien Shan Mountains to the north-east and the Pamir-Alai mountains to the south-west. It is a small, mountainous and land-locked country. The majority of the population lives in the fertile highland valleys. The capital Bishkek (population 800,000), is a separate administrative region surrounded by high mountains. The Kyrgyz Republic is divided into seven oblasts (regions). There were 16 political parties in 1999.⁴

According to the United Nations human development index (HDI), Kyrgyzstan is ranked 109/177 countries worldwide (value 0.702).⁵ This places Kyrgyzstan in the group of countries with medium human development.