Food Shortages, Rationing Spreading Across Turkmenistan

Paul Goble

            Staunton, May 6 – In recent weeks, Turkmenistan has attracted some international attention because its government insists that there are no cases of the coronavirus in what is the most closed off post-Soviet state, one whose isolation rivals that of North Korea. Soon, however, it may gain notoriety for something else: widespread food shortages, rationing and even hunger.

            The food situation in Turkmenistan has not been good for some time with the government unable even to feed its own soldiers (windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2018/06/a-very-bad-day-in-turkmenistan.html) and increasingly resorting to bans on moving foods from one region to another (windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2018/10/turkmenistan-seeks-to-limit-people-from.html).

            But in recent months, the situation has deteriorated further with even basic goods available only on the basis of ration lists becoming commonplace (stanradar.com/news/full/39457-golod-nastaet-turkmenistan-perehodit-na-prodazhu-osnovnyh-produktov-pitanija-po-propiske.html).

            Ashgabat has encouraged the notion that it has taken that step in order to prevent speculation, but even if that is true, people do not engage in speculation about things that are not now or will soon be in short supply – although it is the case in that in some parts of the country, speculation is the only way many people can earn anything.

            The food situation in Turkmenistan has been deteriorating over the last three to four years in particular, a matter of concern to many because of the country’s strategic location adjoining Afghanistan and Iran. Most analysts don’t believe that hunger will spark a revolt, but it will certainly undermine support for the regime (windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2018/06/food-situation-in-turkmenistan-not-good.html).

            What appears to have sparked the latest food crisis there is related to the coronavirus pandemic that Ashgabat says Turkmenistan has not been affected by. It closed the border with Iran, and as a result, many items have disappeared from stores or have seen their prices skyrocket in markets.