Health, Mobility, Livelihood, and Social Change in the Lives of Women in Rural Uzbekistan 1

In the Republic of Uzbekistan in Central Asia, the Khorezm region is situated in the northern part of the country and borders with Karakalpakstan in the north and Turkmenistan in the south and west. This region is one of the ecologically devastated regions caused by the Aral Sea disaster and is experiencing grave social and economic problems. The territory of the Khorezm region comprises 6,100 square kilometers and a population of 1.5 million. Agriculture plays a key role in the economy. In 2007, there were more than 18,000 farms in the region. At the beginning of 2007, farms produced about 98 percent of the cotton and 65 percent of the grain grown in Khorezm (Government Uzbekistan 2012).