Estonia (2004) | Korea, North (2001) | |
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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 (Kuressaare), Tartumaa (Tartu), Valgamaa (Valga), Viljandimaa (Viljandi), Vorumaa (Voru)
note: counties have the administrative center name following in parentheses |
9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 3 special cities* (si, singular and plural); Chagang-do (Chagang Province), Hamgyong-bukto (North Hamgyong Province), Hamgyong-namdo (South Hamgyong Province), Hwanghae-bukto (North Hwanghae Province), Hwanghae-namdo (South Hwanghae Province), Kaesong-si* (Kaesong City), Kangwon-do (Kangwon Province), Namp'o-si* (Namp'o City), P'yongan-bukto (North P'yongan Province), P'yongan-namdo (South P'yongan Province), P'yongyang-si* (P'yongyang City), Yanggang-do (Yanggang Province) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 16% (male 110,452; female 104,363)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 431,493; female 474,255) 65 years and over: 16.5% (male 72,819; female 148,282) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
25.52% (male 2,873,390; female 2,733,163) 15-64 years: 67.63% (male 7,301,531; female 7,556,554) 65 years and over: 6.85% (male 486,805; female 1,016,785) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | potatoes, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish | rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs |
Airports | 29 (2003 est.) | 87 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 14
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
total:
39 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 15
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 6 (2003 est.) |
total:
48 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 8 (2000 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:
120,540 sq km land: 120,410 sq km water: 130 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined | slightly smaller than Mississippi |
Background | After centuries of Danish, Swedish, German, 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. It joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. | Following World War II, Korea was split into a northern, communist half and a southern, Western-oriented half. KIM Chong-il has ruled North Korea since his father and the country's founder, president KIM Il-song, died in 1994. After decades of mismanagement, the North relies heavily on international food aid to feed its population, while continuing to expend resources to maintain an army of about 1 million. North Korea's long-range missile development and research into nuclear and chemical weapons are of major concern to the international community. |
Birth rate | 9.79 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 19.1 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $3.806 billion
expenditures: $3.648 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | Tallinn | P'yongyang |
Climate | maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers | temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer |
Coastline | 3,794 km | 2,495 km |
Constitution | adopted 28 June 1992 | adopted 1948, completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992 and September 1998 |
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:
Democratic People's Republic of Korea conventional short form: North Korea local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk local short form: none note: the North Koreans generally use the term "Choson" to refer to their country abbreviation: DPRK |
Currency | Estonian kroon (EEK) | North Korean won (KPW) |
Death rate | 13.27 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.92 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.002 billion (2003 est.) | $12 billion (1996 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Aldona Zofia WOS
embassy: Kentmanni 20, 15099 Tallinn mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [372] 668-8100 FAX: [372] 668-8134 |
none (Swedish Embassy in P'yongyang represents the US as consular protecting power) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Juri LUIK
chancery: 2131 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0108 consulate(s) general: New York |
none; note - North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York, headed by YI Hyong-chol |
Disputes - international | Russia continues to reject signing and ratifying the joint December 1996 technical border agreement with Estonia | 33-km section of boundary with China in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite; Demarcation Line with South Korea |
Economic aid - recipient | $108 million (2000) | $NA; note - an estimated $200 million to $300 million in humanitarian aid from US, South Korea, Japan, and EU in 1997 plus much additional aid from the UN and non-governmental organizations; substantial continuing humanitarian aid, 1998-2000 |
Economy - overview | Estonia, as a new member of the World Trade Organization, is steadily moving toward a modern market economy with increasing ties to the West, including the pegging of its currency to the euro. The economy benefits from strong electronics and telecommunications sectors. Estonia has been invited to join the European Union and will do so in May 2004. The economy is greatly influenced by developments in Finland, Sweden, Russia, and Germany, four major trading partners. The high current account deficit remains a concern. However, the state budget enjoyed a surplus of $130 million in 2003. | North Korea, one of the world's most centrally planned and isolated economies, faces desperate economic conditions. Industrial capital stock is nearly beyond repair as a result of years of underinvestment and spare parts shortages. The nation faces its seventh year of food shortages because of weather-related problems, including major drought in 2000, and chronic shortages of fertilizer and fuel. Massive international food aid deliveries have allowed the regime to escape the major consequence of spreading economic failure, such as mass starvation, but the population remains vulnerable to prolonged malnutrition and deteriorating living conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources needed for expanding investment and consumption goods. In 2000, the regime placed emphasis on expanding foreign trade links, embracing modern technology, and attracting foreign investment, but in no way at the expense of relinquishing central control over key national assets or undergoing market-oriented reforms. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.192 billion kWh (2001) | 26.598 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 1.19 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 7.937 billion kWh (2001) | 28.6 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
34.62% hydro: 65.38% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m |
lowest point:
Sea of Japan 0 m highest point: Paektu-san 2,744 m |
Environment - current issues | air polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast; however, the amount of pollutants emitted to the air have fallen steadily, the emissions of 2000 were 80% less than in 1980; the amount of unpurified wastewater discharged to water bodies in 2000 was one twentieth the level of 1980; in connection with the start-up of new water purification plants, the pollution load of wastewater decreased; Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas need to be monitored; coastal seawater is polluted in certain locations | water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; water-borne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Estonian 65.3%, Russian 28.1%, Ukrainian 2.5%, Belarusian 1.5%, Finn 1%, other 1.6% (1998) | racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese |
Exchange rates | krooni per US dollar - 13.8564 (2003), 16.6118 (2002), 17.4781 (2001), 16.9686 (2000), 14.6776 (1999) | official: North Korean won per US dollar - 2.15 (May 1994), 2.13 (May 1992), 2.14 (September 1991), 2.1 (January 1990), 2.3 (December 1989); market: North Korean won per US dollar - 200 |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Arnold RUUTEL (since 8 October 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Juhan PARTS (since 10 April 2003) 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 in the Parliament, 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 21 September 2001 (next to be held in the fall of 2006); prime minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament election results: Arnold RUUTEL elected president on 21 September 2001 by a 367-member electoral assembly that convened following Parliament's failure in August to elect then-President MERI's successor; on the second ballot of voting, RUUTEL received 186 votes to Parliament Speaker Toomas SAVI's 155; the remaining 26 ballots were either left blank or invalid |
chief of state:
KIM Chong-il (since NA July 1994); note - in September 1998, KIM Chong-il was reelected Chairman of the National Defense Commission, a position accorded the nation's "highest administrative authority"; KIM Yong-nam was named President of the Supreme People's Assembly Presidium and given the responsibility of representing the state and receiving diplomatic credentials head of government: Premier HONG Song-nam (since 5 September 1998) cabinet: Cabinet (Naegak), members, except for the Minister of People's Armed Forces, are appointed by the Supreme People's Assembly elections: premier elected by the Supreme People's Assembly; election last held NA September 1998 (next to be held NA) election results: HONG Song-nam elected premier; percent of Supreme People's Assembly vote - NA% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $520 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment 33%, wood and paper 15%, textiles 14%, food products 8%, furniture 7%, metals, chemical products (2001) | minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments); agricultural and fishery products |
Exports - partners | Finland 21.9%, Sweden 12.5%, Russia 11.4%, Germany 8.4%, Latvia 7.4%, Lithuania 4% (2003) | Japan 28%, South Korea 21%, China 5%, Germany 4%, Russia 1% (1995) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $17.35 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $22 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 4.9%
industry: 30.3% services: 64.8% (2003) |
agriculture:
30% industry: 42% services: 28% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $12,300 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.7% (2003 est.) | -3% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 59 00 N, 26 00 E | 40 00 N, 127 00 E |
Geography - note | the mainland terrain is flat, boggy, and partly wooded; offshore lie more than 1,500 islands | strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated |
Highways | total: 51,411 km
paved: 10,334 km (including 94 km of expressways) unpaved: 41,077 km (2000) |
total:
31,200 km paved: 1,997 km unpaved: 29,203 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 29.8% (1998) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
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; increasing domestic drug abuse problem; possible precursor manufacturing and/or trafficking; potential money laundering related to organized crime and drug trafficking is a concern as is possible use of the gambling sector to launder funds | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | $960 million (c.i.f., 1999 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 33.5%, chemical products 11.6%, textiles 10.3%, foodstuffs 9.4%, transportation equipment 8.9% (2001) | petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment; consumer goods, grain |
Imports - partners | Finland 15.9%, Germany 11.1%, Russia 10.2%, Sweden 7.7%, Ukraine 4.3%, China 4.2%, Japan 4.1% (2003) | China 33%, Japan 17%, Russia 5%, South Korea 4%, Germany 3% (1995) |
Independence | 20 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | engineering, electronics, wood and wood products, textile; information technology, telecommunications | military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 8.08 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
23.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.3% (2003 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ARF (dialogue partner), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1998 est.) | 14,600 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | National Court (chairman appointed by Parliament for life) | Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly) |
Labor force | 654,000 (2003 est.) | 9.6 million |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 11%, industry 20%, services 69% (1999 est.) | agricultural 36%, nonagricultural 64% |
Land boundaries | total: 633 km
border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km |
total:
1,673 km border countries: China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.04%
permanent crops: 0.45% other: 83.51% (2001) |
arable land:
14% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 61% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Estonian (official), Russian, Ukrainian, Finnish, other | Korean |
Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | based on German civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Riigikogu (101 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - Center Party 25.4%, Res Publica 24.6%, Reform Party 17.7%, Estonian People's Union 13%, Pro Patria Union (Fatherland League) 7.3% People's Party Moodukad 7%; seats by party - Center Party 28, Res Publica 28, Reform Party 19, Estonian People's Union 13, Pro Patria Union 7, People's Party Moodukad 6 |
unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26 July 1998 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - the KWP approves a single list of candidates who are elected without opposition; minor parties hold a few seats |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.38 years
male: 65.78 years female: 77.33 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
71.02 years male: 68.04 years female: 74.15 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.8% male: 99.8% female: 99.8% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write Korean total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia | Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea |
Map references | Europe | Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: limits fixed in coordination with neighboring states |
territorial sea:
12 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM note: military boundary line 50 NM in the Sea of Japan and the exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow Sea where all foreign vessels and aircraft without permission are banned |
Merchant marine | total: 32 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 212,998 GRT/177,488 DWT
by type: bulk 2, cargo 12, container 4, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 7, short-sea/passenger 5 foreign-owned: Netherlands 1 registered in other countries: 45 (2004 est.) |
total:
110 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 661,792 GRT/903,367 DWT ships by type: bulk 4, cargo 94, combination bulk 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, refrigerated cargo 1, short-sea passenger 2 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Estonia Defense Forces (including Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force), Republic Security Forces (internal and border troops), Volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit), Maritime Border Guard, Coast Guard
note: Border Guards and Ministry of Internal Affairs become part of the Estonian Defense Forces in wartime; the Coast Guard is subordinate to the Ministry of Defense in peacetime and the Estonian Navy in wartime |
Korean People's Army (includes Army, Navy, Air Force), Civil Security Forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $155 million (2002 est.) | $3.7 billion to $4.9 billion (FY98 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (2002 est.) | 25% to 33% (FY98 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 326,803 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
5,943,735 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 257,386 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
3,574,050 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 10,884 (2004 est.) | males:
179,136 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 is the date Estonia declared its independence from Soviet Russia; 20 August 1991 is the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union | Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948) |
Nationality | noun: Estonian(s)
adjective: Estonian |
noun:
Korean(s) adjective: Korean |
Natural hazards | sometimes flooding occurs in the spring | late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall |
Natural resources | oil shale, peat, phosphorite, clay, limestone, sand, dolomite, arable land, sea mud | coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -3.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 859 km (2004) | crude oil 37 km; petroleum product 180 km |
Political parties and leaders | Center Party of Estonia (Keskerakond) [Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman]; Estonian People's Union (Rahvaliit) [Villu REILJAN, chairman]; Estonian Reform Party (Reformierakond) [Andrus ANSIP]; Estonian United Russian People's Party or EUVRP [Yevgeniy TOMBERG, chairman]; Pro Patria Union (Isamaaliit) [Tunne KELAM, chairman]; Res Publica [Juhan PARTS, chairman]; Social Democratic Party (formerly People's Party Moodukad or Moderates) [Ivari PADAR, chairman]; Social Liberals (group of 8 parliamentarians, former Center Party members) [Peeter Kreitzberg] | Chondoist Chongu Party [YU Mi-yong, chairwoman]; Korean Social Democratic Party [KIM Pyong-sik, chairman]; major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Chong-il, General Secretary] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 1,341,664 (July 2004 est.) | 21,968,228 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA (2000) | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.66% (2004 est.) | 1.22% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Haapsalu, Kunda, Muuga, Paldiski, Parnu, Tallinn | Ch'ongjin, Haeju, Hungnam (Hamhung), Kimch'aek, Kosong, Najin, Namp'o, Sinuiju, Songnim, Sonbong (formerly Unggi), Ungsang, Wonsan |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 98, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 16, FM 14, shortwave 12 (1999) |
Radios | - | 3.36 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 958 km
broad gauge: 958 km 1.520-m/1.524-m gauge (132 km electrified) note: gauge being increased from 1.520-m to 1.524-m to reduce wear on wheels and rail as lines are modernized (2003) |
total:
5,000 km standard gauge: 4,095 km 1.435-m gauge (3,500 km electrified; 159 km double track) narrow gauge: 665 km 0.762-m gauge dual gauge: 240 km 1.435-m and 1.600-m gauges (four rails interlaced) (1996 est.) |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Estonian Orthodox, Baptist, Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Word of Life, Jewish | traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)
note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of religious freedom |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.85 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal for all Estonian citizens | 17 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service; substantial fiber-optic cable systems carry telephone, TV, and radio traffic in the digital mode; Internet services are available throughout most of the country - only about 11,000 subscriber requests were unfilled by September 2000
domestic: a wide range of high quality voice, data, and Internet services is available throughout the country international: country code - 372; fiber-optic cables to Finland, Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched service; two international switches are located in Tallinn (2001) |
general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Russian (Indian Ocean region); other international connections through Moscow and Beijing |
Telephones - main lines in use | 475,000 (2002) | 1.1 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 881,000 (2002) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (2001) | 38 (1999) |
Terrain | marshy, lowlands; flat in the north, hilly in the south | mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.39 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.26 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.1% (2003) | NA% |
Waterways | 500 km (2003) | 2,253 km
note: mostly navigable by small craft only |