In terms of horse population, Uzbekistan ranks 30th in the world

In terms of horse population, Uzbekistan ranks 30th in the world

Interest in horses has risen again after the VI World Nomad Games, which took place in Kyrgyzstan from August 31 to September 6. The sports program included more than 40 sports and disciplines. A significant part of them involved the participation of horses. Athletes competed in kok-boru and kokpar, horse racing, long-distance horse marathon, and er-enish, as well as in various national types of wrestling.

The greatest results were achieved by athletes from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. According to the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of Kazakhstan, Kazakhstani athletes became the best in such disciplines as zhoryq (long-distance horse racing), tenge ilu, and others.

Achieving such success was helped, among other things, by the fact that Kazakhstan respects the traditions and culture of its nomadic ancestors and has been supporting the development of horse breeding for many years.

For several years, Kazakhstan has held fourth place in the global ranking of horse population. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), at the end of 2024, the top five countries with the largest number of these animals included Mexico (6.4 million heads), Brazil (5.7 million heads), Mongolia (4.7 million heads), Kazakhstan (4.4 million heads), and China (3.5 million heads).

According to the statistics of the international organization, the Republic of Kazakhstan is the undisputed leader in horse population in Central Asia. Other countries lag significantly behind.

Thus, Kyrgyzstan, which initiated the World Nomad Games, ranks only 17th in the world. In 2024, the horse population in Kyrgyzstan was only 553.5 thousand heads. Uzbekistan was in 30th place (283 thousand heads), Tajikistan in 51st (92 thousand heads). The weakest indicator in Central Asia is in Turkmenistan: 27.6 thousand heads.

There are many reasons for such a large difference between neighboring countries in the development of this branch of animal husbandry. One of the objective and most obvious is significant territorial differences. The total area of Kazakhstan exceeds 2.7 million sq. km.

Other reasons for Kazakhstan's leadership in Central Asia in terms of horse population growth include regular funding of this livestock sector. Such investments are important not only for increasing the population, but also for the construction, reconstruction, and modernization of facilities, as well as for the purchase of machinery, equipment, and vehicles.

In 2020, fixed capital investments in the field of horse breeding amounted to 3.5 billion tenge, and in two years they doubled. The peak was 2023, when the inflow of investments sharply rose to 49 billion tenge.