The Continuing Gold Rush Problems in Krgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan looked promising as the only former Soviet state in Central Asia to rid itself of a strongman through election. Better still, there was gold in them hills. Foreign mining companies from as far flung regions as Australia and Canada came rushing in and everything pointed to a strengthening of the Krygyz economy. But, a spill of cyanide in 1998 and an incident involving a horseback mob threatening mining supporters in 2011 have left chilling vestiges lingering on this promising country. This is a bit of speculation but, Urban Outfitters has been looking to carve some of the stan territory for itself to create the United Republic of Urban Outfitters, so they cannot be ruled out as having a hand in this. God help us all if they get ahold of that copper and gold. They'll make mind control owl necklaces and turn us all into hipsters!

Seriously though there is a wealth of semi-precious and precious metal under the ground in Kyrgyzstan and if done ethically, it could really help the country. Of course there is danger in more developed countries exploiting a lesser one. John Paul Getty once said, "the meek shall inherit the earth, but not its mineral rights". This is not the positive, ethical stance Kyrgyzstan needs from corporations. But, if the country can keep corporations from acting in predatory ways the citizens of Kyrgyzstan can really benefit from the boon that this would provide.

First, copper is going to continue to be in high demand as a staple in computers and electronics. Having a capable mine available to provide for this demand would help the economy immensely. In Kazakhstan, its neighbor to the north the GDP per capita is five times higher, thanks in part to Kazakhstan's friendly stance to foreign investment to tap the oil fields. The Kumtor Gold mine in Issyk Kul Province (near the Krygyz border with China) accounts for 9.4% of the countries GDP and half of its industrial output. Since opening in 1997, the mine has produced more gold bullion than Belgium has in its reserves. Basically, there's a lot of gold in them hills.

But corruption and xenophobia has kept the needed foreign investment at bay to foster the growth of industry. If the Krygyz government and its citizens can figure out a way to work with foreign corporations their boon could be as large as Kazakhstan's. It would also be beneficial in the struggle to keep the United Republic of Urban Outfitters from carving out a piece of their territory inside of Kyrgyzstan.