Religious congregations are required to register with the government, and individual parishes must have at least 500 members to register. A Soviet-style command economy greatly limits equality of opportunity. Industry and services are almost entirely provided by government or government-owned entities, while agriculture is dominated by a state order system. Women face particularly strong discrimination in all social aspects, and their freedom is restricted due to traditional social-religious norms. All citizens are required to carry internal passports, noting place of residence, and movement into and out of the country, as well as within its borders, is difficult.
Corruption continues to be pervasive.
Little has been done to prosecute corrupt officials. Turkmenistan was an important supplier of raw materials, especially cotton, oil, and natural gas, during the Soviet era. Until 1993, Turkmenistan experienced less severe economic decline in comparison with other former Soviet states because it was able to sell its natural gas and oil at world prices. In 1994, the Russian Government refused to allow exported Turkmen gas to pass through Russian pipelines to hard currency markets. After Russia's refusal to transport Turkmenistan's gas, a difficult investment environment, high rates of inflation, and heavy government regulations made further economic progress unlikely.