Since joining the international financial institutions (IFIs) in the mid-90s, the Kyrgyz Republic has received nearly $2 billion from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB), European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), International Monetary Fund (IMF), and International Finance Corporation (IFC). It is the ADB’s 20th largest borrower.
Sizeable gold deposits in the country have geared IFI investments toward the mining sector. The Kumtor gold mine in the Tien Shan Mountains is the largest western-managed gold mine in Central Asia and the largest contributor to the Kyrgyz Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Production from the Kumtor mine alone accounted for 6.2% of GDP in 2005, although an accident in 2006 and additional problems in 2007 have slowed operations. Precious metals have steadily declined as a percentage of total exports from 45.1% in 2003 to 19% in 2007, while mineral products have increased from 12.8% of total exports in 2003 to 30.2% in 2007.
The growth of the Kyrgyz economy, despite problems at Kumtor, has given reason for optimism. However, the country is vulnerable to economic fluctuations in nearby Kazakhstan and Russia and has suffered from rising food and commodity prices. It remains one of the poorest countries in the world with a per capita Gross National Income (GNI) of $600.