Compare Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2002) - Latvia (2007)

Compare Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2002) z Latvia (2007)

	Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2002)	Latvia (2007)

Administrative divisions	10 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and one city (ville); Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Equateur, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Katanga, Kinshasa, Maniema, Nord-Kivu, Orientale, Sud-Kivu	26 counties (singular - rajons) and 7 municipalities: Aizkraukles Rajons, Aluksnes Rajons, Balvu Rajons, Bauskas Rajons, Cesu Rajons, Daugavpils, Daugavpils Rajons, Dobeles Rajons, Gulbenes Rajons, Jekabpils Rajons, Jelgava, Jelgavas Rajons, Jurmala, Kraslavas Rajons, Kuldigas Rajons, Liepaja, Liepajas Rajons, Limbazu Rajons, Ludzas Rajons, Madonas Rajons, Ogres Rajons, Preilu Rajons, Rezekne, Rezeknes Rajons, Riga, Rigas Rajons, Saldus Rajons, Talsu Rajons, Tukuma Rajons, Valkas Rajons, Valmieras Rajons, Ventspils, Ventspils Rajons
Age structure	0-14 years: 48.2% (male 13,369,493; female 13,256,174) 15-64 years: 49.3% (male 13,343,303; female 13,860,996) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 581,568; female 813,944) (2002 est.)	0-14 years: 13.6% (male 157,451/female 150,184) 15-64 years: 69.6% (male 764,910/female 808,848) 65 years and over: 16.7% (male 123,952/female 254,465) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood products	grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish
Airports	232 (2001)	42 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 24 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002)	total: 21 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 9 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 205 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 95 under 914 m: 91 (2002)	total: 21 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 20 (2007)
Area	total: 2,345,410 sq km land: 2,267,600 sq km water: 77,810 sq km	total: 64,589 sq km land: 63,589 sq km water: 1,000 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US	slightly larger than West Virginia
Background	Since 1997 the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC; formerly called Zaire) has been rent by ethnic strife and civil war, touched off by a massive inflow in 1994 of refugees from the fighting in Rwanda and Burundi. The government of former president MOBUTU Sese Seko was toppled by a rebellion led by Laurent KABILA in May 1997; his regime was subsequently challenged by a Rwanda- and Uganda-backed rebellion in August 1998. Troops from Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Chad, and Sudan intervened to support the Kinshasa regime. A cease-fire was signed on 10 July 1999 by the DROC, Zimbabwe, Angola, Uganda, Namibia, Rwanda, and Congolese armed rebel groups, but sporadic fighting continued. KABILA was assassinated on 16 January 2001 and his son Joseph KABILA was named head of state ten days later. In October 2002, the new president was successful in getting occupying Rwandan forces to withdraw from eastern Congo; two months later, an agreement was signed by all remaining warring parties to end the fighting and set up a government of national unity.	The name "Latvia" originates from the ancient Latgalians, one of four eastern Baltic tribes that formed the ethnic core of the Latvian people (ca. 8th-12th centuries A.D.). The region subsequently came under the control of Germans, Poles, Swedes, and finally, Russians. A Latvian republic emerged following World War I, but it was annexed by the USSR in 1940 - an action never recognized by the US and many other countries. Latvia reestablished its independence in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union. Although the last Russian troops left in 1994, the status of the Russian minority (some 30% of the population) remains of concern to Moscow. Latvia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004.
Birth rate	45.55 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)	9.43 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $269 million expenditures: $244 million, including capital expenditures of $24 million	revenues: $7.198 billion expenditures: $7.255 billion (2006 est.)
Capital	Kinshasa	name: Riga geographic coordinates: 56 57 N, 24 06 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Climate	tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of Equator - wet season April to October, dry season December to February; south of Equator - wet season November to March, dry season April to October	maritime; wet, moderate winters
Coastline	37 km	531 km
Constitution	24 June 1967, amended August 1974, revised 15 February 1978, amended April 1990; transitional constitution promulgated in April 1994; in November 1998, a draft constitution was approved by former President Laurent KABILA but it was not ratified by a national referendum; one outcome of the ongoing inter-Congolese dialogue is to be a new constitution	15 February 1922; restored to force by the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Latvia adopted by the Supreme Council on 21 August 1991; multiple amendments since
Country name	conventional long form: Democratic Republic of the Congo conventional short form: none local long form: Republique Democratique du Congo local short form: none former: Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville, Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire abbreviation: DROC	conventional long form: Republic of Latvia conventional short form: Latvia local long form: Latvijas Republika local short form: Latvija former: Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic
Currency	Congolese franc (CDF)	-
Death rate	14.93 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)	13.64 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$12.9 billion (2000 est.)	$22.94 billion (2006 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Aubrey HOOKS embassy: 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa mailing address: Unit 31550, APO AE 09828 telephone: [243] (88) 43608 FAX: [243] (88) 43467	chief of mission: Ambassador Catherine Todd BAILEY embassy: 7 Raina Boulevard, Riga LV-1510 mailing address: American Embassy Riga, PSC 78, Box Riga, APO AE 09723 telephone: [371] 703-6200 FAX: [371] 782-0047
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Faida MITIFU chancery: 1800 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-7690, 7691 FAX: [1] (202) 234-2609	chief of mission: Ambassador Andrejs PILDEGOVICS chancery: 2306 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-2840 FAX: [1] (202) 328-2860
Disputes - international	Democratic Republic of the Congo is in the grip of a civil war that has drawn in military forces from neighboring states, with Uganda and Rwanda supporting the rebel movements that occupy much of the eastern portion of the state; Tutsi, Hutu, and other conflicting ethnic groups, political rebels, and various government forces continue fighting in Great Lakes region, transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda; most of the Congo River boundary with the Republic of the Congo is indefinite (no agreement has been reached on the division of the river or its islands, except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area)	Russia refuses to sign the 1997 boundary treaty due to Latvian insistence on a unilateral clarificatory declaration referencing Soviet occupation of Latvia and territorial losses; Russia demands better Latvian treatment of ethnic Russians in Latvia; as of January 2007, ground demarcation of the boundary with Belarus was complete and mapped with final ratification documentation in preparation; the Latvian parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Latvia must implement the strict Schengen border rules with Russia
Economic aid - recipient	$195.3 million (1995) (1995)	$162 million (2004)
Economy - overview	The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo - a nation endowed with vast potential wealth - has declined drastically since the mid-1980s. The war, which began in August 1998, has dramatically reduced national output and government revenue and has increased external debt. Foreign businesses have curtailed operations due to uncertainty about the outcome of the conflict, lack of infrastructure, and the difficult operating environment. The war has intensified the impact of such basic problems as an uncertain legal framework, corruption, raging inflation, and lack of openness in government economic policy and financial operations. A number of IMF and World Bank missions have met with the government to help it develop a coherent economic plan, and President KABILA has begun implementing reforms.	Latvia's economy experienced average GDP growth of more than 7.0% over the past several years. In 2006 it reached 10.2% real GDP growth. The majority of companies, banks, and real estate have been privatized, although the state still holds sizable stakes in a few large enterprises. Latvia officially joined the World Trade Organization in February 1999. EU membership, a top foreign policy goal, came in May 2004. The current account deficit - more than 15% of GDP in 2006 - and inflation remain major concerns.
Electricity - consumption	4.55 billion kWh (1999)	6.09 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	404 million kWh (1999)	707 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	55 million kWh (1999)	2.855 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	5.268 billion kWh (1999)	4.778 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source	fossil fuel: 2% hydro: 98% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999)	-
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m	lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Galzina Kalns 312 m
Environment - current issues	poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; deforestation; refugees responsible for significant deforestation, soil erosion, and wildlife poaching; mining of minerals (coltan - a mineral used in creating capacitors, diamonds, and gold) causing environmental damage	Latvia's environment has benefited from a shift to service industries after the country regained independence; the main environmental priorities are improvement of drinking water quality and sewage system, household, and hazardous waste management, as well as reduction of air pollution; in 2001, Latvia closed the EU accession negotiation chapter on environment committing to full enforcement of EU environmental directives by 2010
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	over 200 African ethnic groups of which the majority are Bantu; the four largest tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population	Latvian 57.7%, Russian 29.6%, Belarusian 4.1%, Ukrainian 2.7%, Polish 2.5%, Lithuanian 1.4%, other 2% (2002)
Exchange rates	Congolese francs per US dollar - 305 (January 2002), 21.82 (2000), 4.02 (1999), 1.61 (1998), 1.31 (1997) note: on 30 June 1998 the Congolese franc was introduced, replacing the new zaire	lati per US dollar - 0.5597 (2006), - 0.5647 (2005), 0.5402 (2004), 0.5715 (2003), 0.6182 (2002)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: National Executive Council, appointed by the president elections: before Laurent Desire KABILA seized power on 16 May 1997, the president was elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 29 July 1984 (next was scheduled to be held in May 1997); formerly, there was also a prime minister who was elected by the High Council of the Republic; note - elections were not held in 1991 as called for by the constitution election results: results of the last election were: MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga reelected president in 1984 without opposition note: Marshal MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga was president from 24 November 1965 until forced into exile on 16 May 1997 when his government was overthrown militarily by Laurent Desire KABILA; KABILA immediately assumed governing authority and pledged to hold elections by April 1999, but, in December 1998, announced that elections would be postponed until all foreign military forces attempting to topple the government had withdrawn from the country; KABILA was assassinated in January 2001 and was succeeded by his son Joseph KABILA	chief of state: President Valdis ZATLERS (since 8 July 2007) head of government: Prime Minister Aigars KALVITIS (since 2 December 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and appointed by the Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 31 May 2007 (next to be held 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Valdis ZATLERS elected president; parliamentary vote - Valdis ZATLERS 58, Aivars ENDZINS 39
Exports	$750 million f.o.b. (2001 est.)	6,765 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	diamonds, copper, coffee, cobalt, crude oil	wood and wood products, machinery and equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners	Benelux 62%, US 18%, South Africa, Finland, Italy (1999)	Lithuania 14.2%, Estonia 12.3%, Russia 11.5%, Germany 9.8%, UK 7.6%, Sweden 6.3%, Denmark 4.8% (2006)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	light blue with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center and a columnar arrangement of six small yellow five-pointed stars along the hoist side	three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon
GDP	purchasing power parity - $32 billion (2001 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 54% industry: 9% services: 37% (1999 est.)	agriculture: 3.7% industry: 21.5% services: 74.8% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $590 (2001 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	-4% (2001 est.)	11.9% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	0 00 N, 25 00 E	57 00 N, 25 00 E
Geography - note	straddles Equator; has very narrow strip of land that controls the lower Congo River and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands	most of the country is composed of fertile, low-lying plains, with some hills in the east
Heliports	1 (2002)	-
Highways	total: 157,000 km (including 30 km of expressways)(1996) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 2.5% highest 10%: 29.1% (2003)
Illicit drugs	illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption; while rampant corruption and inadequate supervision leaves the banking system vulnerable to money laundering, the lack of a well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center	transshipment and destination point for cocaine, synthetic drugs, opiates, and cannabis from Southwest Asia, Western Europe, Latin America, and neighboring Balkan countries; despite improved legislation, vulnerable to money laundering due to nascent enforcement capabilities and comparatively weak regulation of offshore companies and the gaming industry; CIS organized crime (including counterfeiting, corruption, extortion, stolen cars, and prostitution) accounts for most laundered proceeds
Imports	$1.024 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.)	39,190 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels	machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, vehicles
Imports - partners	South Africa 28%, Benelux 14%, Nigeria 9%, Kenya 7%, China (1999)	Germany 15.5%, Lithuania 12.9%, Russia 8%, Estonia 7.7%, Poland 7.2%, Finland 5.7%, Sweden 5%, Belarus 4.7% (2006)
Independence	30 June 1960 (from Belgium)	18 November 1918 (from Soviet Russia)
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	8.5% (2006 est.)
Industries	mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages), cement	buses, vans, street and railroad cars; synthetic fibers, agricultural machinery, fertilizers, washing machines, radios, electronics, pharmaceuticals, processed foods, textiles; note - dependent on imports for energy and raw materials
Infant mortality rate	98.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)	total: 9.16 deaths/1,000 live births male: 11.08 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.13 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	358% (2001 est.)	6.5% (2006 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW (signatory), PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO	Australia Group, BA, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	1 (2001)	-
Irrigated land	110 sq km (1998 est.)	200 sq km note: land in Latvia is often too wet, and in need of drainage, not irrigation; approximately 16,000 sq km or 85% of agricultural land has been improved by drainage (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Cour Supreme	Supreme Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament); Constitutional Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament)
Labor force	14.51 million (1993 est.)	1.136 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 65%, industry 16%, services 19% (1991 est.)	agriculture: 13% industry: 19% services: 68% (2005 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 10,730 km border countries: Angola 2,511 km (of which 225 km is the boundary of Angola's discontiguous Cabinda Province), Burundi 233 km, Central African Republic 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Tanzania 459 km, Uganda 765 km, Zambia 1,930 km	total: 1,368 km border countries: Belarus 167 km, Estonia 343 km, Lithuania 576 km, Russia 282 km
Land use	arable land: 2.96% permanent crops: 0.52% other: 96.52% (1998 est.)	arable land: 28.19% permanent crops: 0.45% other: 71.36% (2005)
Languages	French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba	Latvian (official) 58.2%, Russian 37.5%, Lithuanian and other 4.3% (2000 census)
Legal system	based on Belgian civil law system and tribal law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on civil law system with traces of Socialist legal traditions and practices; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	a 300-member Transitional Constituent Assembly established in August 2000 elections: NA; members of the Transitional Constituent Assembly were appointed by former President Laurent Desire KABILA	unicameral Parliament or Saeima (100 seats; members are elected by proportional representation from party lists by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 7 October 2006 (next to be held in October 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - TP 19.5%, ZZS 16.7%, JL 16.4%, SC 14.4%; LPP/LC 8.6%; TB/LNNK 7%; PCTVL 6%; seats by party - TP 23, ZZS 18, JL 18, SC 17, LPP/LC 10, TB/LNNK 8, PCTVL 6
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 49.13 years male: 47.19 years female: 51.13 years (2002 est.)	total population: 71.6 years male: 66.39 years female: 77.1 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write French, Lingala, Kingwana, or Tshiluba total population: 77.3% male: 86.6% female: 67.7% (1995 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.7% male: 99.8% female: 99.7% (2000 census)
Location	Central Africa, northeast of Angola	Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania
Map references	Africa	Europe
Maritime claims	exclusive economic zone: boundaries with neighbors territorial sea: 12 NM	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Merchant marine	none (2002 est.)	total: 22 ships (1000 GRT or over) 201,684 GRT/221,186 DWT by type: cargo 9, liquefied gas 2, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 5, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Estonia 1) registered in other countries: 122 (Antigua and Barbuda 9, Belize 14, Cambodia 2, Cyprus 1, Dominica 2, Jamaica 2, Liberia 15, Malta 36, Marshall Islands 10, Panama 5, Russia 2, St Kitts and Nevis 4, St Vincent and The Grenadines 20) (2007)
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force, Special Security Battalion	Latvian Republic Defense Force: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force (Latvijas Gaisa Spelki), Border Guard, Latvian Home Guard (Latvijas Zemessardze) (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$250 million (FY97)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	4.6% (FY97)	1.2% (2005 est.)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 11,996,175 (2002 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 6,110,595 (2002 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 30 June (1960)	Independence Day, 18 November (1918); note - 18 November 1918 was the date Latvia declared itself independent from Soviet Russia; 4 May 1990 is when it declared the renewal of independence; 21 August 1991 was the date of de facto independence from the Soviet Union
Nationality	noun: Congolese (singular and plural) adjective: Congolese or Congo	noun: Latvian(s) adjective: Latvian
Natural hazards	periodic droughts in south; Congo River floods (seasonal); in the east, in the Great Rift Valley, there are active volcanoes	NA
Natural resources	cobalt, copper, cadmium, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, germanium, uranium, radium, bauxite, iron ore, coal, hydropower, timber	peat, limestone, dolomite, amber, hydropower, wood, arable land
Net migration rate	-2.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: one million refugees fled into Zaire (now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo or DROC) in 1994 as a result of the ethnic fighting in Rwanda; fighting in the DROC between rebels and government forces in October 1996 caused 875,000 refugees to return to Rwanda in late 1996 and early 1997 and additional refugees have returned in subsequent years; fighting between the Congolese government and Uganda- and Rwanda-backed Congolese rebels spawned a regional war in DROC in August 1998, which left 1.8 million Congolese displaced in DROC and caused 300,000 Congolese refugees to flee to surrounding countries (2002 est.)	-2.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	petroleum products 390 km	gas 1,097 km; oil 82 km; refined products 415 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	Democratic Social Christian Party or PDSC [Andre BO-BOLIKO]; Forces for Renovation for Union and Solidarity or FONUS [Joseph OLENGHANKOY]; National Congolese Lumumbist Movement or MNC [Francois LUMUMBA]; Popular Movement of the Revolution or MPR [three factions: MPR-Fait Prive (Catherine NZUZI wa Mbombo); MPR/Vunduawe (Felix VUNDUAWE); MPR/Mananga (MANANGA Dintoka Mpholo)]; Unified Lumumbast Party or PALU [Antoine GIZENGA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Etienne TSHISEKEDI wa Mulumba]; Union of Federalists and Independent Republicans or UFERI [two factions: UFERI (Lokambo OMOKOKO); UFERI/OR (Adolph Kishwe MAYA)]	First Party of Latvia or LPP [Ainars SLESERS]; For Human Rights in a United Latvia or PCTVL [Jakovs PLINERS]; For the Fatherland and Freedom/Latvian National Independence Movement or TB/LNNK [Roberts ZILE, Maris GRINBLATS]; Harmony Center or SC [Janis URBANOVICS, Nils USAKOVS]; Latvian Farmer's Union or LZS [Augusts BRIGMANIS]; Latvian Social Democratic Workers Party (Social Democrats) or LSDSP [Juris BOJARS]; Latvian Socialist Party or LSP [Alfreds RUBIKS]; Latvia's Way or LC [Ivars GODMANIS, Ainars BERZINS]; New Democrats or JD [Maris GULBIS]; New Era Party or JL [Einars REPSE, Krisjanis KARINS]; People's Party or TP [Aigars KALVITIS]; The Union of Latvian Greens and Farmers Party or ZZS [Indulis EMSIS]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Headquarters for the Protection of Russian Schools (SHTAB) [Aleksandr KAZAKOV]
Population	55,225,478 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.)	2,259,810 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	NA%
Population growth rate	2.79% (2002 est.)	-0.648% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors	Banana, Boma, Bukavu, Bumba, Goma, Kalemie, Kindu, Kinshasa, Kisangani, Matadi, Mbandaka	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2001)	AM 8, FM 56, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios	18.03 million (1997)	-
Railways	total: 5,138 km narrow gauge: 3,987 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); 125 km 1.000-m gauge; 1,026 km 0.600-m gauge note: severely reduced route-distance in use because of damage to facilities by civil strife (2000 est.)	total: 2,303 km broad gauge: 2,270 km 1.520-m gauge (257 km electrified) narrow gauge: 33 km 0.750-m gauge (2006)
Religions	Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs 10%	Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.048 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.946 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.487 male(s)/female total population: 0.862 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal and compulsory	18 years of age; universal for Latvian citizens
Telephone system	general assessment: poor domestic: barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: recent efforts focused on bringing competition to the telecommunications sector; the number of fixed lines is decreasing as wireless telephony expands domestic: number of telecommunications operators has grown rapidly since the fixed-line market opened to competition in 2003; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular subscribership is roughly 125 per 100 persons international: country code - 371; the Latvian network is now connected via fiber optic cable to Estonia, Finland, and Sweden
Telephones - main lines in use	20,000 (2000)	657,400 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	15,000 (2000)	2.184 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations	4 (2001)	44 (plus 31 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain	vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east	low plain
Total fertility rate	6.77 children born/woman (2002 est.)	1.28 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	NA%	6.5% (2006 est.)
Waterways	15,000 km (including the Congo and its tributaries, and unconnected lakes)	300 km (2006)

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