Improving the well-being of the population in Central Asia: a comparative analysis

Abstract

The article deals with the topical issue of assessing the level of well-being of the population
in the countries of Central Asia. Theoretical, methodological and applied aspects of measuring the level
of well-being of the population are discussed. The evolution of the theory of the formation of the state
of mass welfare is proposed within the framework of three conceptual methods: socio-market, socially
balanced and socially liberal. Objective, subjective and mixed methodologies are described, data based on macroeconomic indicators (the World Bank, the International Labor Organization, the World Health
Organization, the Interstate Statistical Committee of the CIS countries) and indicators based on a person’s
assessment of their financial situation, social capital (the Study of World Values, the Eurasian Barometer)
are analyzed, an overview of the discussion within the category is given happiness. Thus, the conceptual
foundation of socio-economic policy in the countries under consideration is being studied. The article
analyzes the main models for evaluating the effectiveness of government agencies; on the basis of
statistical data, a comparative analysis of the main factors of the level and quality of life of Central Asian
countries is carried out. In order to describe the well-being of the population in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, criteria and indicators such as gross domestic product per capita,
poverty level, unemployment rate, average monthly nominal wages of the population, the structure of
household monetary expenditures, the level of education and health, the level of social protection, an
individual’s assessment of their own well-being are defined. The results of the study show differences
in macroeconomic indicators and the subjective assessment of the population of their socio-economic
situation. The incompleteness and unavailability of data in the course of analytical work made a detailed
comparative analysis difficult.