Kazakhstan became an independent sovereign state in 1991 as a result of the dissolution of the former Soviet Union. Since then, it has undergone significant change as it has journeyed from having a single-party political system, and a centrally controlled command economy, towards a marketoriented, more democratic approach. Between 2001 and 2007, its GDP grew cumulatively by almost 200% in real terms, according to the National Statistics Agency of Kazakhstan.