Estonia (2001) | Uganda (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 15 counties (maakonnad, singular - maakond): Harjumaa (Tallinn), Hiiumaa (Kardla), Ida-Virumaa (Johvi), Jarvamaa (Paide), Jogevamaa (Jogeva), Laanemaa (Haapsalu), Laane-Virumaa (Rakvere), Parnumaa (Parnu), Polvamaa (Polva), Raplamaa (Rapla), Saaremaa (Kuessaare), Tartumaa (Tartu), Valgamaa (Valga), Viljandimaa (Viljandi), Vorumaa (Voru)
note: counties have the administrative center name following in parentheses |
56 districts; Adjumani, Apac, Arua, Bugiri, Bundibugyo, Bushenyi, Busia, Gulu, Hoima, Iganga, Jinja, Kabale, Kabarole, Kaberamaido, Kalangala, Kampala, Kamuli, Kamwenge, Kanungu, Kapchorwa, Kasese, Katakwi, Kayunga, Kibale, Kiboga, Kisoro, Kitgum, Kotido, Kumi, Kyenjojo, Lira, Luwero, Masaka, Masindi, Mayuge, Mbale, Mbarara, Moroto, Moyo, Mpigi, Mubende, Mukono, Nakapiripirit, Nakasongola, Nebbi, Ntungamo, Pader, Pallisa, Rakai, Rukungiri, Sembabule, Sironko, Soroti, Tororo, Wakiso, Yumbe |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
17.08% (male 123,997; female 119,166) 15-64 years: 68.14% (male 466,823; female 503,032) 65 years and over: 14.78% (male 68,802; female 141,496) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 50.1% (male 6,875,663/female 6,784,378)
15-64 years: 47.7% (male 6,511,867/female 6,494,859) 65 years and over: 2.2% (male 263,790/female 338,925) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | potatoes, fruits, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish | coffee, tea, cotton, tobacco, cassava (tapioca), potatoes, corn, millet, pulses; beef, goat meat, milk, poultry, cut flowers |
Airports | 32 (2000 est.) | 29 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
24 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 6 (2000 est.) |
total: 25
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 7 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
45,226 sq km land: 43,211 sq km water: 2,015 sq km note: includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea |
total: 236,040 sq km
land: 199,710 sq km water: 36,330 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined | slightly smaller than Oregon |
Background | After centuries of Swedish and Russian rule, Estonia attained independence in 1918. Forcibly incorporated into the USSR in 1940, it regained its freedom in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since the last Russian troops left in 1994, Estonia has been free to promote economic and political ties with Western Europe. | Uganda achieved independence from the UK in 1962. The dictatorial regime of Idi AMIN (1971-79) was responsible for the deaths of some 300,000 opponents; guerrilla war and human rights abuses under Milton OBOTE (1980-85) claimed at least another 100,000 lives. During the 1990s, the government promulgated non-party presidential and legislative elections. |
Birth rate | 8.7 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 47.39 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1.37 billion expenditures: $1.37 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
revenues: $1.491 billion
expenditures: $1.727 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Tallinn | Kampala |
Climate | maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers | tropical; generally rainy with two dry seasons (December to February, June to August); semiarid in northeast |
Coastline | 3,794 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | adopted 28 June 1992 | 8 October 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Estonia conventional short form: Estonia local long form: Eesti Vabariik local short form: Eesti former: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form: Republic of Uganda
conventional short form: Uganda |
Currency | Estonian kroon (EEK) | - |
Death rate | 13.48 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.8 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.6 billion (2000 est.) | $3.865 billion (2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Melissa WELLS embassy: Kentmanni 20, 15099 Tallinn mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [372] 668-8100 FAX: [372] 668-8134 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Jimmy KOLKER
embassy: 1577 Ggaba Rd., Kampala mailing address: P. O. Box 7007, Kampala telephone: [256] (41) 234-142 FAX: [256] (41) 258-451 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Sven JURGENSON chancery: 2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0108 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Edith Grace SSEMPALA
chancery: 5911 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-7100 through 7102, 0416 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1727 |
Disputes - international | Estonian and Russian negotiators reached a technical border agreement in December 1996 which has not been signed nor ratified by Russia as of February 2001 | Uganda is subject to armed fighting among hostile ethnic groups, rebels, armed gangs, militias, and various government forces; Ugandan refugees have fled the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) into the southern Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo; LRA forces have also attacked Kenyan villages across the border |
Economic aid - recipient | $137.3 million (1995) | $1.4 billion (2000) |
Economy - overview | In 2000, Estonia rebounded from the Russian financial crisis by scaling back its budget and reorienting trade away from Russian markets into EU member states. After GDP shrank 1.1% in 1999, the economy made a strong recovery in 2000, with growth estimated at 6.4% - the highest in Central and Eastern Europe. Estonia joined the World Trade Organization in November 1999 - the second Baltic state to join - and continues its EU accession talks. For 2001, Estonians predict GDP to grow around 6%, inflation of between 4.2%-5.3%, and a balanced budget. Substantial gains were made in completing privatization of Estonia's few remaining large, state-owned companies in 2000, and this momentum is expected to continue in 2001. Estonia hopes to join the EU during the next round of enlargement tentatively set for 2004. | Uganda has substantial natural resources, including fertile soils, regular rainfall, and sizable mineral deposits of copper and cobalt. Agriculture is the most important sector of the economy, employing over 80% of the work force. Coffee accounts for the bulk of export revenues. Since 1986, the government - with the support of foreign countries and international agencies - has acted to rehabilitate and stabilize the economy by undertaking currency reform, raising producer prices on export crops, increasing prices of petroleum products, and improving civil service wages. The policy changes are especially aimed at dampening inflation and boosting production and export earnings. During 1990-2001, the economy turned in a solid performance based on continued investment in the rehabilitation of infrastructure, improved incentives for production and exports, reduced inflation, gradually improved domestic security, and the return of exiled Indian-Ugandan entrepreneurs. Corruption within the government and slippage in the government's determination to press reforms raise doubts about the continuation of strong growth. In 2000, Uganda qualified for enhanced Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt relief worth $1.3 billion and Paris Club debt relief worth $145 million. These amounts combined with the original HIPC debt relief added up to about $2 billion. Growth for 2001-02 was solid despite continued decline in the price of coffee, Uganda's principal export. Solid growth in 2003-04 reflected an upturn in Uganda's export markets. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.807 billion kWh (1999) | 1.401 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 530 million kWh (1999) | 250 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 100 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 7.782 billion kWh (1999) | 1.775 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
99.72% hydro: 0.09% nuclear: 0% other: 0.19% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m |
lowest point: Lake Albert 621 m
highest point: Margherita Peak on Mount Stanley 5,110 m |
Environment - current issues | air heavily polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast; contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products, chemicals at former Soviet military bases; Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas are heavily affected by organic waste; coastal sea water is polluted in many locations | draining of wetlands for agricultural use; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; water hyacinth infestation in Lake Victoria; poaching is widespread |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
Ethnic groups | Estonian 65.1%, Russian 28.1%, Ukrainian 2.5%, Byelorussian 1.5%, Finn 1%, other 1.8% (1998) | Baganda 17%, Ankole 8%, Basoga 8%, Iteso 8%, Bakiga 7%, Langi 6%, Rwanda 6%, Bagisu 5%, Acholi 4%, Lugbara 4%, Batoro 3%, Bunyoro 3%, Alur 2%, Bagwere 2%, Bakonjo 2%, Jopodhola 2%, Karamojong 2%, Rundi 2%, non-African (European, Asian, Arab) 1%, other 8% |
Exchange rates | krooni per US dollar - 16.663 (January 2001), 16.969 (2000), 14.678 (1999), 14.075 (1998), 13.882 (1997), 12.034 (1996); note - krooni are tied to the German deutsche mark at a fixed rate of 8 to 1 | Ugandan shillings per US dollar - 1,810.3 (2004), 1,963.7 (2003), 1,797.6 (2002), 1,755.7 (2001), 1,644.5 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Lennart MERI (since 5 October 1992) head of government: Prime Minister Mart LAAR (since 29 March 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; if he or she does not secure two-thirds of the votes after three rounds of balloting, then an electoral assembly (made up of Parliament plus members of local governments) elects the president, choosing between the two candidates with the largest percentage of votes; election last held August-September 1996 (next to be held in the fall of 2001); prime minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament election results: Lennart MERI reelected president by an electoral assembly after Parliament was unable to break a deadlock between MERI and RUUTEL; percent of electoral assembly vote - Lennart MERI 61%, Arnold RUUTEL 39% |
chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI (since seizing power 26 January 1986); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI (since seizing power 29 January 1986); Prime Minister Apollo NSIBAMBI (since 5 April 1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government; the prime minister assists the president in the supervision of the cabinet cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among elected legislators elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 12 March 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); note - first popular election for president since independence in 1962 was held in 1996; prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI elected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI 69.3%, Kizza BESIGYE 27.8% |
Exports | $3.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment 24%, wood products 20%, textiles 17%, food products 9%, metals, chemical products (1999) | coffee, fish and fish products, tea; gold, cotton, flowers, horticultural products |
Exports - partners | Finland 19.4%, Sweden 18.8%, Russia 9.2%, Latvia 8.7%, Germany 7.5%, US 2.5% (1999) | Kenya 15%, Netherlands 10.7%, Belgium 9%, France 4.4%, Germany 4.4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white | six equal horizontal bands of black (top), yellow, red, black, yellow, and red; a white disk is superimposed at the center and depicts a red-crested crane (the national symbol) facing the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $14.7 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
3.6% industry: 30.7% services: 65.7% (1999) |
agriculture: 35.8%
industry: 20.8% services: 43.6% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $10,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,500 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.4% (2000 est.) | 5% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 59 00 N, 26 00 E | 1 00 N, 32 00 E |
Geography - note | - | landlocked; fertile, well-watered country with many lakes and rivers |
Highways | total:
30,300 km paved: 29,200 km (including 75 km of expressways); note - these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather unpaved: 1,100 km (2000) |
total: 27,000 km
paved: 1,809 km unpaved: 25,191 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.2% highest 10%: 28.5% (1996) |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 21% (2000) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Southwest Asia and the Caucasus via Russia, cocaine from Latin America to Western Europe and Scandinavia, and synthetic drugs from Western Europe to Scandinavia; possible precursor manufacturing and/or trafficking; synthetic drug production growing, trafficked to Russia, Baltics, Finland | - |
Imports | $4 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 31%, chemical products 13%, foodstuffs 11%, metal products 8%, textiles 8% (1999) | capital equipment, vehicles, petroleum, medical supplies; cereals |
Imports - partners | Finland 22.8%, Russia 13.5%, Sweden 9.3%, Germany 9.3%, Japan 4.7% (1999) | Kenya 32.3%, UAE 7.3%, South Africa 6.5%, India 5.8%, China 5.6%, UK 5.1%, US 4.8%, Japan 4.8% (2004) |
Independence | 6 September 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 9 October 1962 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 5.6% (2004 est.) |
Industries | oil shale, shipbuilding, phosphates, electric motors, excavators, cement, furniture, clothing, textiles, paper, shoes, apparel | sugar, brewing, tobacco, cotton textiles, cement, steel production |
Infant mortality rate | 12.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 67.83 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 71.18 deaths/1,000 live births female: 64.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.1% (1999 est.) | 3.5% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, EADB, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 28 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 110 sq km (1996 est.) | 90 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | National Court (chairman appointed by Parliament for life) | Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the president and approved by the legislature); High Court (judges are appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 785,500 (1999 est.) | 12.41 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 20%, agriculture 11%, services 69% (1999 est.) | agriculture 82%, industry 5%, services 13% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
633 km border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km |
total: 2,698 km
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 765 km, Kenya 933 km, Rwanda 169 km, Sudan 435 km, Tanzania 396 km |
Land use | arable land:
25% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 11% forests and woodland: 44% other: 20% (1996 est.) |
arable land: 25.88%
permanent crops: 10.65% other: 63.47% (2001) |
Languages | Estonian (official), Russian, Ukrainian, English, Finnish, other | English (official national language, taught in grade schools, used in courts of law and by most newspapers and some radio broadcasts), Ganda or Luganda (most widely used of the Niger-Congo languages, preferred for native language publications in the capital and may be taught in school), other Niger-Congo languages, Nilo-Saharan languages, Swahili, Arabic |
Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | in 1995, the government restored the legal system to one based on English common law and customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Riigikogu (101 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Center Party 28, Union of Pro Patria (Fatherland League) 18, Reform Party 18, Moderates 17, Country People's Party (Agrarians) 7, Coalition Party 7, UPPE 6 |
unicameral National Assembly (303 members - 214 directly elected by popular vote, 81 nominated by legally established special interest groups [women 56, army 10, disabled 5, youth 5, labor 5], 8 ex officio members; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26 June 2001 (next to be held by June 2006); election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - election campaigning by party was not permitted |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
69.73 years male: 63.72 years female: 76.05 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 51.59 years
male: 50.74 years female: 52.46 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (1998 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 69.9% male: 79.5% female: 60.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia | Eastern Africa, west of Kenya |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
limits fixed in coordination with neighboring states territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
44 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 253,460 GRT/219,727 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 19, combination bulk 1, container 5, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 10, short-sea passenger 6 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Ground Forces, Navy/Coast Guard, Air and Air Defense Force (not officially sanctioned), Maritime Border Guard, Volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit), Security Forces (internal and border troops) | Ugandan Peoples' Defense Force (UPDF): Army, Marine Unit, Air Wing |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $70 million (FY99) | $170.3 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (FY99) | 2.2% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
359,677 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
282,418 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
11,164 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 was the date of independence from Soviet Russia, 6 September 1991 was the date of independence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 9 October (1962) |
Nationality | noun:
Estonian(s) adjective: Estonian |
noun: Ugandan(s)
adjective: Ugandan |
Natural hazards | flooding occurs frequently in the spring | NA |
Natural resources | shale oil (kukersite), peat, phosphorite, amber, cambrian blue clay, limestone, dolomite, arable land | copper, cobalt, hydropower, limestone, salt, arable land |
Net migration rate | -0.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -1.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | natural gas 420 km (1992) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Center Party or K [Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman]; Christian People's Party [Aldo VINKEL]; Coalition Party and Rural Union or KMU [Andrus OOBEL, chairman]; Estonian Democratic Party (formerly Estonian Blue Party) [Jaan LAAS]; Estonian Independence Party [leader NA]; Estonian National Democratic Party or ENDP [leader NA]; Estonian Pensioners and Families Party [Mai TREIAL]; Estonian Progressive Party [Andra VEIDEMANN]; Estonian Republican Party [leader NA]; Estonian Social-Democratic Labor Party [Tiit TOOMSALU]; Estonian Rural People's Union (1999 merger of Estonian Country People's Party and the Estonian Rural Union) [Arvo SIRENDI]; Party of Consolidation Today [leader NA]; People's Party Moderates (1999 merger of People's Party and Moderates) [Andres TARAND]; Reform Party or RE [Siim KALLAS, chairman]; Russian Party in Estonia [Nikolai MASPANOV]; Russian Unity Party [Igor SEDASHEV]; Union of Pro Patria or Fatherland League (Isamaaliit) [Mart LAAR, chairman]; United People's Party or UPPE [Viktor ANDREJEV, chairman] | only one political organization, the Movement (formerly the NRM) [President MUSEVENI, chairman] is allowed to operate unfettered; note - the president maintains that the Movement is not a political party, but a mass organization, which claims the loyalty of all Ugandans
note: the constitution requires the suspension of political parties while the Movement organization is in governance; of the political parties that exist but are prohibited from sponsoring candidates, the most important are the Ugandan People's Congress or UPC [Milton OBOTE]; Democratic Party or DP [Paul SSEMOGERERE]; Conservative Party or CP [Ken LUKYAMUZI]; Justice Forum [Muhammad Kibirige MAYANJA]; and National Democrats Forum [Chapaa KARUHANGA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Popular Resistance Against a Life President or PRALP |
Population | 1,423,316 (July 2001 est.) | 27,269,482
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 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 8.9% (1995 est.) | 35% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.55% (2001 est.) | 3.31% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Haapsalu, Kunda, Muuga, Paldiski, Parnu, Tallinn | Entebbe, Jinja, Port Bell |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3 (all AM stations inactive since July 1998), FM 82, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 7, FM 33, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Radios | 1.01 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
1,018 km common carrier lines only; does not include dedicated industrial lines broad gauge: 1,018 km 1.520-m gauge (132 km electrified) (1995) |
total: 1,241 km
narrow gauge: 1,241 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Estonian Orthodox, Baptist, Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Word of Life, Jewish | Roman Catholic 33%, Protestant 33%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 18% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal for all Estonian citizens | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service; Internet services available throughout most of the country; about 150,000 unfilled subscriber requests domestic: local - the Ministry of Transport and Communications is expanding cellular telephone services to form rural networks; intercity - highly developed fiber-optic backbone (double loop) system presently serving at least 16 major cities (1998) international: fiber-optic cables to Finland, Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched service; two international switches are located in Tallinn |
general assessment: seriously inadequate; two cellular systems have been introduced, but a sharp increase in the number of main lines is essential; e-mail and Internet services are available
domestic: intercity traffic by wire, microwave radio relay, and radiotelephone communication stations, fixed and mobile cellular systems for short-range traffic international: country code - 256; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat; analog links to Kenya and Tanzania |
Telephones - main lines in use | 476,078 (yearend 1998) | 61,000 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 475,000 (yearend 2000) | 776,200 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 31 (plus five repeaters) (September 1995) | 8 (plus one low-power repeater) (2001) |
Terrain | marshy, lowlands | mostly plateau with rim of mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.21 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 6.74 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11.7% (1999 est.) | NA (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 320 km (perennially navigable) | 300 km (on Lake Victoria, 200 km on Lake Albert, Lake Kyoga, and parts of Albert Nile) (2004 est.) |