Mary Region

Mary Region

Mary

Mary Region (Mary welaýaty) is one of 5 provinces in Turkmenistan. The region is located in the south-east of the country and has a border with Afghanistan.  Its area is 87 150 km2 (33 650 sq mi) and population is 1 480 400 (2005).  The administrative center of the province is the city of Mary which is located at the crossing of Murghab River with the Karakum Canal. Other major cities are Bayramali, Yoleten and Serhetabat on the border with Afghanistan.

Agriculture in the Mary region is irrigated by the Karakum Canal, which runs from east to west through the center of the region, and by the Murgab River, which flows from south to north and enters the region from Afghanistan. While the northern part of the province is in the southern desert ecoregion of Central Asia, the southern part of the province is characterized by pistachio and desert sedge savannah, classified by the World Wildlife Fund as Badkhiz-Karabil semi-desert.