Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, Jan. 25 / Trend H.Hasanov /
The U.N. report "World Economic Situation and Prospects for 2011" reads that Turkmenistan will have one of the fastest growing economy in the world in 2011-2012.
The report is being prepared by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (U.N. DESA), U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and five U.N. regional commissions.
U.N. experts expect that Turkmen economic growth in 2011 will amount to at least 10 percent and maintain the same momentum as in 2012.
Local economists note that these positive figures are due to economic diversification and modernization, which have already borne fruit. In 2010, the GDP grew by 9.2 percent. Earlier, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast steady growth of the Turkmen GDP in 2011.
Turkmenistan is one of the key natural gas suppliers in the Caspian region. The country exports gas to China, Russia and Iran. Turkmen President Gurbangulu Berdimuhammedov said at a government meeting in 2011 that Turkmenistan adopted a "substantial state budget," which will increase the expenditure side by 28.3 percent, or nearly $5 billion.
The budget will be formed at the expense of industries such as petroleum, chemical, power generation, construction. In accordance with the development of the oil and gas industry, Turkmenistan plans to increase annual natural gas production in 2030 to 230 billion cubic meters. Currently, its gas production capacity is 75 billion cubic meters of gas per year.