Cybercafés are the main Internet access
point in the country (for approximately 51 percent
of all users). Other important venues for public
access are workplaces (nearly 25 percent) and
educational institutions (24 percent). There are
approximately 150 public Internet access centers
in the country, including cybercafés and free
access centers sponsored by nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs). Development of the
Internet infrastructure targets only the two largest
cities, Bishkek and Osh. There are slightly more
female than male users, and 60 percent of all
users are aged between fifteen and twenty-five,
with an additional 20 percent aged twenty-six to
thirty-five. Russian language sites remain the
most visited among Kyrgyz Internet users (90
percent), compared with only 8 percent in Kyrgyz
and 2 percent in English.
The privatization of both telecommunications and services, driven by the foreign investment and financial assistance, has resulted in an
increasingly competitive Internet sector. This has
caused access fees to decrease to
USD0.30/hour, which in turn has made the
Internet affordable for the average Kyrgyz. In
2005 the number of ISPs increased to thirty-eight,
although only seven of these have an external
Internet connection. Two of the seven ISPs—
KygyzTelecom (KT) and SaimaTelecom—own the
infrastructure they use. The others rent lines and
cables from the state-controlled top-tier KT. The
state has a major stake (50 percent) in Elcat,
another top-tier ISP. The majority of ISPs connect
by satellite to the Russian portion of the Internet.
In addition to its major Russian connection,
KygyzTelecom has built external connection ports
to China and Kazakhstan.
The Internet Traffic Exchange Point (IXP), 6
shared by the ISPs with external Internet connection, runs the local traffic. The international
Internet bandwidth in the country is 76 Mb/s,
7
and the most popular means for Internet access
is through dialup connection. A private company,
AsiaInfo, controls the country’s top-level domain
“.kg”. 8 There are around 1,500 top-level domain
names registered in the Kyrgyz Internet zone.
Legal and regulatory frameworks
Internet and ISP activities are not directly regulated by sector-specific laws in the communications
sphere. Compared with its neighbor Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan does not compel local Internet
providers to work with the state-owned provider.
Therefore ISPs independently establish interna318
Country Summaries
KEY INDICATORS
worst
best
GDP per capita, PPP (constant 2000 international $) ........1,730 3.55
Life expectancy at birth (years)..............................................68 5.32
Literacy rate (% of people age 15+)......................................99 6.87
Human development index (out of 177) ...............................110 4.92
Rule of law (out of 208).......................................................180 2.86
Voice and accountability (out of 208)...................................161 2.94
Digital opportunity index (out of 180)...................................134 3.35
Internet users (% of population) ............................................5.3 3.56
Source (by indicator): World Bank 2005, 2006a, 2006a; UNDP 2006; World Bank 2006c, 2006c; ITU 2006, 2005
point in the country (for approximately 51 percent
of all users). Other important venues for public
access are workplaces (nearly 25 percent) and
educational institutions (24 percent). There are
approximately 150 public Internet access centers
in the country, including cybercafés and free
access centers sponsored by nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs). Development of the
Internet infrastructure targets only the two largest
cities, Bishkek and Osh. There are slightly more
female than male users, and 60 percent of all
users are aged between fifteen and twenty-five,
with an additional 20 percent aged twenty-six to
thirty-five. Russian language sites remain the
most visited among Kyrgyz Internet users (90
percent), compared with only 8 percent in Kyrgyz
and 2 percent in English.
The privatization of both telecommunications and services, driven by the foreign investment and financial assistance, has resulted in an
increasingly competitive Internet sector. This has
caused access fees to decrease to
USD0.30/hour, which in turn has made the
Internet affordable for the average Kyrgyz. In
2005 the number of ISPs increased to thirty-eight,
although only seven of these have an external
Internet connection. Two of the seven ISPs—
KygyzTelecom (KT) and SaimaTelecom—own the
infrastructure they use. The others rent lines and
cables from the state-controlled top-tier KT. The
state has a major stake (50 percent) in Elcat,
another top-tier ISP. The majority of ISPs connect
by satellite to the Russian portion of the Internet.
In addition to its major Russian connection,
KygyzTelecom has built external connection ports
to China and Kazakhstan.
The Internet Traffic Exchange Point (IXP), 6
shared by the ISPs with external Internet connection, runs the local traffic. The international
Internet bandwidth in the country is 76 Mb/s,
7
and the most popular means for Internet access
is through dialup connection. A private company,
AsiaInfo, controls the country’s top-level domain
“.kg”. 8 There are around 1,500 top-level domain
names registered in the Kyrgyz Internet zone.
Legal and regulatory frameworks
Internet and ISP activities are not directly regulated by sector-specific laws in the communications
sphere. Compared with its neighbor Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan does not compel local Internet
providers to work with the state-owned provider.
Therefore ISPs independently establish interna318
Country Summaries
KEY INDICATORS
worst
best
GDP per capita, PPP (constant 2000 international $) ........1,730 3.55
Life expectancy at birth (years)..............................................68 5.32
Literacy rate (% of people age 15+)......................................99 6.87
Human development index (out of 177) ...............................110 4.92
Rule of law (out of 208).......................................................180 2.86
Voice and accountability (out of 208)...................................161 2.94
Digital opportunity index (out of 180)...................................134 3.35
Internet users (% of population) ............................................5.3 3.56
Source (by indicator): World Bank 2005, 2006a, 2006a; UNDP 2006; World Bank 2006c, 2006c; ITU 2006, 2005