The Month of Health and Sports is under way in Turkmenistan, with thousands of people throughout the country taking long walks in parks and participating in compulsory physical fitness classes at their workplaces. The campaign is part of health-care initiatives launched by President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov. Since coming to power in 2006, Berdymukhammedov has invested tens of millions of dollars to modernize his country's health-care sector, building gleaming new medical facilities filled with state of-the-art technology. For many ordinary Turkmen, however, the reality is far less shiny.
Pictures Of Health: Real State Of Turkmen Medical Care A Far Cry From Official Images
1
An official image of a children's health-care facility in Dashoguz Province
2
A provincial hospital in Lebap Province
3
A photograph labeled by the Turkmen government website as showing specialists from the State Medical University in Ashgabat.
4
An oncology center in Turkmenabat
5
A photograph taken of an international health-care exhibition in Ashgabat, taken from an official government website
6
A provincial hospital in Lebap Province
7
A reception area inside the State Medical University in Ashgabat (official photograph)
8
The Central Military Hospital in Ashgabat
9
The State Medical University in Ashgabat
10
A provincial hospital in Lebap Province
11
A provincial hospital in Lebap Province