Water Wars: Ethiopia and Kenya
Notable Entry, Interactive Narratives. 2008 Knight-Batten Awards for Innovations in Journalism.
Pulitzer Gateway: Water Wars
Visit the interactive Water Wars Web Portal, sponsored by the Pulitzer Center On Crisis Reporting.
Kibera: Not a Drop to Drink
The long rainy season in Kenya has begun and sudden storms regularly burst over Nairobi. Many welcome the downpours, which signal the end of another dry summer and wash the steamy crowded capital clean each morning.
As featured in Women's eNews, 1h2o.org, and Living on Earth. Produced in association with the Pulitzer Center On Crisis Reporting.
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Country Fact Sheets from the CLP
Because we believe that good journalism must be contextualized, we've decided to share with our readers some of the more interesting and lesser known facts about the countries we've reported on. While these are in no way comprehensive descriptions of these complex places, this is the information that we've found most helpful in placing these countries in a global framework and underscoring the broader implications of the issues we've covered. In developing these Fact Sheets, we've worked to incorporate both the official facts and statistics reported by government sources as well as our own observations through reporting in each country. If you have any suggestions or requests for information you'd like to see included, write to us at info@clpmag.org
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan is a small, mostly mountainous, naturally beautiful post-Soviet country whose ethnic diversity reflects its position at the crossroads of Central Asia. It is geographically, culturally and economically divided between its northern and southern regions and the 2005 Tulip Revolution was largely fueled by southern populations frustrated by perceived inequalities with their northern neighbors. Traditional pastoral and nomadic culture is strong in Kyrgyzstan.
Size: About the size of South Dakota.
Population: About 5 million, expected to grow to 6.5 million within 20 years.
Languages Spoken:Kyrgyz and Russian. Many Kyrgyzstanis also speak Uzbek, Turkish or Tajik.
Type of Government:Kyrgyzstan's Tulip Revolution occurred on March 24, 2005, ousting then-president Askar Akayev in favor of opposition leader Kurmanbek Bakiyev. Many citizens say that they are disappointed with the failure of the new government to implement democratic reforms, increase economic opportunity, and improve transparency following the revolution. Kyrgyzstan ranks only 130th out of 158 on the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions index, along with Burundi, Republic of Congo, Cambodia, Georgia, Papua New Guinea, and Venezuela.
Religion: Kyrgyzstan is 75% Muslim and 20% Russian Orthodox, but the population is largely nonreligious. Younger people are becoming increasingly interested in the Muslim faith, especially in the south.
Gender and Health Issues:Though Kyrgyzstan is a far poorer country than neighboring Kazakhstan, many of its quality of life indicators, such as life expectancy (68 and 66, respectively) and maternal mortality (110 and 210 per 100,000) are higher. Female and male literacy both rank at over 98%. Abortion is fully legalized, and 49% of women of childbearing age use a modern form of contraception. HIV/AIDS prevalence among the adult population is 0.1%, only one-sixth that of the United States.
Environment and Resources:Kyrgyzstan is trying to supplement a lack of significant natural resources and industry by developing an eco-friendly and culturally sensitive tourist industry, and is currently considered a world leader in ecotourism. Access to clean water is the biggest environmental problem facing Kyrgyzstanis.
GDP: $10.65 billion
International Aid Received:$50 million
Receives US Counterterrorism Assistance: Yes
Death Penalty: In use for ordinary crimes
Top Five Industries: Small machinery, textiles, food processing, cement, shoes
Poverty Rate: 40% of Kyrgyzstanis live below the official poverty line, defined at $13.40 per month.
McDonald's Restaurants: None
Currency: Som - about 40 to the dollar
Media: Kyrgyzstan ranks 111th out of 167 on the Reporters without Borders Press Freedom Index. Many Kyrgyzstanis that we spoke to said that media coverage is typically dominated by whoever is in power. 5.26% of the population are internet users.
Posted: 2006
Country Fact Sheet Sources
- General Statistics - CIA World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/
- Abortion Legal Status, Maternal Mortality, Infant Mortality, Contraception: http://www.medicationabortion.com
- Abortion Legal Status: http://www.crlp.org/pub_fac_abortion_laws.htm
- Contraceptive Use: http://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/contraceptive2005/WCU2005.htm
- Maternal Mortality: http://www.childinfo.org/areas/maternalmortality/countrydata.php
- McDonald’s Country List: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_with_McDonald%27s_franchises
- Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=19388
- The Economist Intelligence Unit Quality of Life Index: http://www.economist.com/media/pdf/QUALITY_OF_LIFE.pdf
- Human Development Index: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index
- 2005 Environmental Sustainability Index: www.yale.edu/esi/
- General Statistics - World Atlas: http://www.geographyiq.com
- Counterterrorism Funding Information - State Dept. Country Reports: http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/crt
- Death Penalty Status: http://web.amnesty.org/pages/deathpenalty-countries-eng
- Human Trafficking information: http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2006/
- BBC Country Profiles: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/country_profiles/default.stm
- Department For International Development: http://www.dfid.gov.uk/countries/allcountries.asp?view=region
- United Nations Development Programme: http://www.undp.org/
- The World Bank: http://www.worldbank.org/
Note: Population growth projections are often controversial. To calculate them for these fact sheets, we simply used the current population and population growth rate provided by the CIA World Factbook.