Estonia (2005) | Saint Helena (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 |
1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 15.5% (male 106,300/female 100,446)
15-64 years: 67.7% (male 429,843/female 472,034) 65 years and over: 16.8% (male 74,037/female 150,233) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years:
19.08% (male 699; female 687) 15-64 years: 71.72% (male 2,711; female 2,500) 65 years and over: 9.2% (male 286; female 383) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | potatoes, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish | corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, crawfish (on Tristan da Cunha) |
Airports | 29 (2004 est.) | 1 (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 (2004 est.) |
total:
1 over 3,047 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 (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:
410 sq km land: 410 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes St. Helena Island, Ascension, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined | slightly more than two times the size of Washington, DC |
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. | Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, St. Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Ascension Island is the site of a US Air Force auxiliary airfield; Gough Island has a meteorological station. |
Birth rate | 9.91 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 13.49 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $4.622 billion
expenditures: $4.601 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues:
$11.2 million expenditures: $11 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY92) |
Capital | Tallinn | Jamestown |
Climate | maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers | Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
Coastline | 3,794 km | 60 km |
Constitution | adopted 28 June 1992 | 1 January 1989 |
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:
none conventional short form: Saint Helena |
Currency | - | Saint Helenian pound (SHP) |
Death rate | 13.21 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 6.33 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $8.373 billion (2004 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
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 (overseas territory of the UK) |
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 (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | in 1996, the Estonia-Russia technical border agreement was initialed but both states have been hesitant to sign and ratify it, with Russia asserting that Estonia needs to better assimilate Russian-speakers and Estonian groups pressing for realignment of the boundary based more closely on the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty that would bring the now divided ethnic Setu people and parts of the Narva region within Estonia; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Estonia must implement the strict Schengen border rules | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $108 million (2000) | $12.6 million (1995); note - $5.3 million from UK (1997) |
Economy - overview | Estonia, as a new member of the World Trade Organization and the European Union, has transitioned effectively to a modern market economy with strong ties to the West, including the pegging of its currency to the euro. The economy benefits from strong electronics and telecommunications sectors and is greatly influenced by developments in Finland, Sweden, and Germany, three major trading partners. The current account deficit remains high; however, the state budget enjoyed a surplus of $130 million in 2003. | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1997 or almost one-half of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, the raising of livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.358 billion kWh (2002) | 5.6 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 1.562 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 200 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 8.301 billion kWh (2002) | 6 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 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 | NA |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | Estonian 67.9%, Russian 25.6%, Ukrainian 2.1%, Belarusian 1.3%, Finn 0.9%, other 2.2% (2000 census) | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% |
Exchange rates | krooni per US dollar - 12.596 (2004), 13.856 (2003), 16.612 (2002), 17.478 (2001), 16.969 (2000) | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.6764 (January 2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6047 (1997), 0.6403 (1996); note - the Saint Helenian pound is at par with the British pound |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Arnold RUUTEL (since 8 October 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Andrus ANSIP (since 12 April 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; if a candidate 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:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief David HOLLAMBY (since NA June 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
Exports | NA | $704,000 (f.o.b., 1995) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment 33%, wood and paper 15%, textiles 14%, food products 8%, furniture 7%, metals, chemical products (2001) | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | Finland 23.1%, Sweden 15.3%, Germany 8.4%, Latvia 7.9%, Russia 5.7%, Lithuania 4.4% (2004) | South Africa, UK |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $18 million (1998 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 4.1%
industry: 28.9% services: 67% (2004 est.) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $14,300 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 59 00 N, 26 00 E | 15 56 S, 5 42 W |
Geography - note | the mainland terrain is flat, boggy, and partly wooded; offshore lie more than 1,500 islands | harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns |
Highways | total: 55,944 km
paved: 13,874 km (including 99 km of expressways) unpaved: 42,070 km (2002) |
total:
158 km (Saint Helena 118 km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 0 km) paved: 138 km (Saint Helena 98km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 0 km) unpaved: NA km 20 km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension 0 km, Tristan da Cunha 0 km) |
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 | $14.434 million (c.i.f., 1995) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 33.5%, chemical products 11.6%, textiles 10.3%, foodstuffs 9.4%, transportation equipment 8.9% (2001) | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts |
Imports - partners | Finland 22.1%, Germany 12.9%, Sweden 9.7%, Russia 9.2%, Lithuania 5.3%, Latvia 4.7% (2004) | UK, South Africa |
Independence | 20 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | engineering, electronics, wood and wood products, textile; information technology, telecommunications | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.87 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.06 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
22.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2004 est.) | 3.2% (1997 est.) |
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, NATO, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ICFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | National Court (chairman appointed by Parliament for life) | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court; Small Debts Court; Juvenile Court |
Labor force | 660,000 (2004 est.) | 3,500 (1998 est.)
note: 1,200 of whom are working offshore |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 11%, industry 20%, services 69% (1999 est.) | agriculture and fishing 6%, industry (mainly construction) 48%, services 46% (1987 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 633 km
border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.04%
permanent crops: 0.45% other: 83.51% (2001) |
arable land:
6% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 6% other: 82% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Estonian (official) 67.3%, Russian 29.7%, other 2.3%, unknown 0.7% (2000 census) | English |
Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | NA |
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 Legislative Council (15 seats, including the speaker, 3 ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 9 July 1997 (next to be held NA August 2001) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.77 years
male: 66.28 years female: 77.6 years (2005 est.) |
total population:
77.01 years male: 74.13 years female: 80.04 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 20 and over can read and write total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about mid-way between South America and Africa |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: limits fixed in coordination with neighboring states |
exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 43 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 212,998 GRT/177,488 DWT
by type: cargo 17, passenger/cargo 20, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 4 foreign-owned: 6 (Norway 6) registered in other countries: 51 (2005) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Estonian Defense Forces: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force and Air Defense Staff, 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 |
- |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $155 million (2002 est.) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (2002 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 | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | noun: Estonian(s)
adjective: Estonian |
noun:
Saint Helenian(s) adjective: Saint Helenian |
Natural hazards | sometimes flooding occurs in the spring | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha |
Natural resources | oil shale, peat, phosphorite, clay, limestone, sand, dolomite, arable land, sea mud | fish |
Net migration rate | -3.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 859 km (2004) | - |
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] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 1,332,893 (July 2005 est.) | 7,266 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA (2000) | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.65% (2005 est.) | 0.72% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Kopli, Kuivastu, Muuga, Tallinn, Virtsu | Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 98, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 3,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 958 km
broad gauge: 958 km 1.520-m/1.524-m gauge (132 km electrified) (2004) |
0 km |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran 13.6%, Orthodox 12.8%, other Christian (including Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal) 1.4%, unaffiliated 34.1%, other and unspecified 32%, none 6.1% (2000 census) | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic |
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: 0.84 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal for all Estonian citizens | NA years of age |
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:
can communicate with any place in the world domestic: automatic network international: HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to Ascension which is a major coaxial submarine cable relay point between South Africa, Portugal, and UK ; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 475,000 (2002) | 2,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 881,000 (2002) | 0 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (2001) | 0 (1997) |
Terrain | marshy, lowlands; flat in the north, hilly in the south | Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 1.39 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 1.53 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.6% (2004 est.) | 14% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | 500 km (2003) | none |