##ciekawa_strona##
Compare Latvia (2001) - China (2001)
Compare Latvia (2001) z China (2001)
| Latvia (2001) | China (2001) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 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, Leipaja*, 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 | 23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions* (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities** (shi, singular and plural); Anhui, Beijing**, Chongqing**, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi*, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol*, Ningxia*, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai**, Shanxi, Sichuan, Tianjin**, Xinjiang*, Xizang* (Tibet), Yunnan, Zhejiang; note - China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entries for the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau |
| Age structure | 0-14 years:
16.55% (male 201,746; female 193,036) 15-64 years: 68.15% (male 776,509; female 848,908) 65 years and over: 15.3% (male 118,110; female 246,922) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
25.01% (male 166,754,893; female 151,598,117) 15-64 years: 67.88% (male 445,222,858; female 418,959,646) 65 years and over: 7.11% (male 42,547,296; female 48,028,480) (2001 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish | rice, wheat, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed; pork; fish |
| Airports | 25 (2000 est.) | 489 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total:
13 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total:
324 over 3,047 m: 27 2,438 to 3,047 m: 88 1,524 to 2,437 m: 147 914 to 1,523 m: 30 under 914 m: 32 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
12 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.) |
total:
165 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 29 914 to 1,523 m: 56 under 914 m: 78 (2000 est.) |
| Area | total:
64,589 sq km land: 64,589 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
9,596,960 sq km land: 9,326,410 sq km water: 270,550 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly smaller than the US |
| Background | After a brief period of independence between the two World Wars, Latvia was annexed by the USSR in 1940. It 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 continues to revamp its economy for eventual integration into various Western European political and economic institutions. | For centuries China has stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences. But in the first half of the 20th century, China was beset by major famines, civil unrest, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established a dictatorship that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping gradually introduced market-oriented reforms and decentralized economic decision making. Output quadrupled in the next 20 years and China now has the world's second largest GDP. Political controls remain tight even while economic controls continue to weaken. |
| Birth rate | 8.03 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.95 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Budget | revenues:
$1.33 billion expenditures: $1.27 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
| Capital | Riga | Beijing |
| Climate | maritime; wet, moderate winters | extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north |
| Coastline | 531 km | 14,500 km |
| Constitution | the 1991 Constitutional Law which supplements the 1922 constitution, provides for basic rights and freedoms | most recent promulgation 4 December 1982 |
| Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Latvia conventional short form: Latvia local long form: Latvijas Republika local short form: Latvija former: Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form:
People's Republic of China conventional short form: China local long form: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo local short form: Zhong Guo abbreviation: PRC |
| Currency | Latvian lat (LVL) | yuan (CNY) |
| Death rate | 14.8 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.74 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Debt - external | $800 million (2000 est.) | $162 billion (2000 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador James H. HOLMES embassy: Raina Boulevard 7, LV-1510, Riga mailing address: American Embassy Riga, PSC 78, Box Riga, APO AE 09723 telephone: [371] 721-0005 FAX: [371] 782-0047 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph W. PRUEHER embassy: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, 100600 Beijing mailing address: PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [86] (10) 6532-3431 FAX: [86] (10) 6532-6422 consulate(s) general: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Aivis RONIS chancery: 4325 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-8213, 8214 FAX: [1] (202) 726-6785 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador-designate YANG Jiechi chancery: 2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-2500 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco |
| Disputes - international | draft treaty delimiting the boundary with Russia has not been signed; has not ratified 1998 maritime boundary agreement with Lithuania (primary concern is oil exploration rights) | most of boundary with India in dispute; dispute over at least two small sections of the boundary with Russia remains to be settled, despite 1997 boundary agreement; portions of the boundary with Tajikistan are indefinite; 33-km section of boundary with North Korea in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite; involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; maritime boundary agreement with Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin awaits ratification; Paracel Islands occupied by China, but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; claims Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands/Diaoyu Tai), as does Taiwan |
| Economic aid - recipient | $96.2 million (1995) | $NA |
| Economy - overview | In 2000, Latvia's transitional economy recovered from the 1998 Russian financial crisis, largely due to the SKELE government's budget stringency and a gradual reorientation of exports toward EU countries, lessening Latvia's trade dependency on Russia. Latvia officially joined the World Trade Organization in February 1999 - the first Baltic state to join - and was invited at the Helsinki EU Summit in December 1999 to begin accession talks in early 2000. Unemployment fell to 7.8% in 2000, down from 9.6% in 1999, and 9.2% in 1998. Privatization of large state-owned utilities and the shipping industry faced more delays in 2000, and political instability will continue to delay completion of the privatization process over the next year. Latvia projects 6% GDP growth, 2.5%-3.0% inflation, and a 1.7% fiscal deficit in 2001. Preparing for EU membership over the next few years remains a top foreign policy goal. | In late 1978 the Chinese leadership began moving the economy from a sluggish Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented system. Whereas the system operates within a political framework of strict Communist control, the economic influence of non-state managers and enterprises has been steadily increasing. The authorities have switched to a system of household responsibility in agriculture in place of the old collectivization, increased the authority of local officials and plant managers in industry, permitted a wide variety of small-scale enterprise in services and light manufacturing, and opened the economy to increased foreign trade and investment. The result has been a quadrupling of GDP since 1978. In 2000, with its 1.26 billion people but a GDP of just $3,600 per capita, China stood as the second largest economy in the world after the US (measured on a purchasing power parity basis). Agricultural output doubled in the 1980s, and industry also posted major gains, especially in coastal areas near Hong Kong and opposite Taiwan, where foreign investment helped spur output of both domestic and export goods. On the darker side, the leadership has often experienced in its hybrid system the worst results of socialism (bureaucracy and lassitude) and of capitalism (windfall gains and stepped-up inflation). Beijing thus has periodically backtracked, retightening central controls at intervals. The government has struggled to (a) collect revenues due from provinces, businesses, and individuals; (b) reduce corruption and other economic crimes; and (c) keep afloat the large state-owned enterprises many of which had been shielded from competition by subsides and had been losing the ability to pay full wages and pensions. From 80 to 120 million surplus rural workers are adrift between the villages and the cities, many subsisting through part-time low-paying jobs. Popular resistance, changes in central policy, and loss of authority by rural cadres have weakened China's population control program, which is essential to maintaining growth in living standards. Another long-term threat to continued rapid economic growth is the deterioration in the environment, notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water table especially in the north. China continues to lose arable land because of erosion and economic development. Weakness in the global economy in 2001 could hamper growth in exports. Beijing will intensify efforts to stimulate growth through spending on infrastructure--such as water control and power grids--and poverty relief and through rural tax reform aimed at eliminating arbitrary local levies on farmers. |
| Electricity - consumption | 4.316 billion kWh (1999) | 1.084 trillion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - exports | 400 million kWh (1999) | 7.2 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - imports | 1 billion kWh (1999) | 90 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production | 3.996 billion kWh (1999) | 1.173 trillion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
31.78% hydro: 68.22% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
79.82% hydro: 18.98% nuclear: 1.2% other: 0.01% (1999) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Gaizinkalns 312 m |
lowest point:
Turpan Pendi -154 m highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.) |
| Environment - current issues | air and water pollution because of a lack of waste conversion equipment; Gulf of Riga and Daugava River heavily polluted; contamination of soil and groundwater with chemicals and petroleum products at military bases | air pollution (greenhouse gases, sulfur dioxide particulates) from reliance on coal, produces acid rain; water shortages, particularly in the north; water pollution from untreated wastes; deforestation; estimated loss of one-fifth of agricultural land since 1949 to soil erosion and economic development; desertification; trade in endangered species |
| Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation |
| Ethnic groups | Latvian 56.5%, Russian 30.4%, Byelorussian 4.3%, Ukrainian 2.8%, Polish 2.6%, other 3.4% | Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1% |
| Exchange rates | lati per US dollar - 0.614 (January 2001), 0.607 (2000), 0.585 (1999), 0.590 (1998), 0.581 (1997), 0.551 (1996) | yuan per US dollar - 8.2776 (January 2001), 8.2785 (2000), 8.2783 (1999), 8.2790 (1998), 8.2898 (1997), 8.3142 (1996)
note: beginning 1 January 1994, the People's Bank of China quotes the midpoint rate against the US dollar based on the previous day's prevailing rate in the interbank foreign exchange market |
| Executive branch | chief of state:
President Vaira VIKE-FREIBERGA (since 8 July 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Andris BERZINS (since 5 May 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and appointed by the Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a four-year term; election last held 17 June 1999 (next to be held by NA June 2003); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Vaira VIKE-FREIBERGA elected as a compromise candidate in second phase of balloting, second round (after five rounds in first phase failed); percent of parliamentary vote - Vaira VIKE-FREIBERGA 53%, Valdis BIRKAVS 20%, Ingrida UDRE 9% |
chief of state:
President JIANG Zemin (since 27 March 1993) and Vice President HU Jintao (since 16 March 1998) head of government: Premier ZHU Rongji (since 18 March 1998); Vice Premiers QIAN Qichen (since 29 March 1993), LI Lanqing (29 March 1993), WU Bangguo (since 17 March 1995), and WEN Jiabao (since 18 March 1998) cabinet: State Council appointed by the National People's Congress (NPC) elections: president and vice president elected by the National People's Congress for five-year terms; elections last held 16-18 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2003); premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National People's Congress election results: JIANG Zemin reelected president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,882 votes (36 delegates voted against him, 29 abstained, and 32 did not vote); HU Jintao elected vice president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,841 votes (67 delegates voted against him, 39 abstained, and 32 did not vote) |
| Exports | $2.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $232 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
| Exports - commodities | wood and wood products, machinery and equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs | machinery and equipment; textiles and clothing, footwear, toys and sporting goods; mineral fuels |
| Exports - partners | Germany 16%, UK 11%, Sweden 11%, Russia 7% (1999) | US 21%, Hong Kong 18%, Japan 17%, South Korea, Germany, Netherlands, UK, Singapore, Taiwan (2000) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
| Flag description | three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon | red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward the middle of the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $17.3 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.5 trillion (2000 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
5% industry: 33% services: 62% (1999) |
agriculture:
15% industry: 50% services: 35% (2000 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,200 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,600 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2000 est.) | 8% (2000 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 57 00 N, 25 00 E | 35 00 N, 105 00 E |
| Geography - note | - | world's fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada, and US) |
| Highways | total:
59,178 km paved: 22,843 km unpaved: 36,335 km (1998 est.) |
total:
1.4 million km paved: 271,300 km (with at least 16,000 km of expressways) unpaved: 1,128,700 km (1999) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.9% highest 10%: 25.9% (1998) |
lowest 10%:
2.4% highest 10%: 30.4% (1998) |
| Illicit drugs | transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Central and Southwest Asia to Western Europe and Scandinavia and Latin American cocaine and some synthetics from Western Europe to CIS; limited production of illicit amphetamine, ephedrine, and ecstasy for export | major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle; growing domestic drug abuse problem; source country for chemical precursors and methamphetamine |
| Imports | $3.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $197 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels | machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, plastics, iron and steel, chemicals |
| Imports - partners | Russia 15%, Germany 10%, Finland 9%, Sweden 7% (1999) | Japan 18%, Taiwan 11%, US 10%, South Korea 10%, Germany, Hong Kong, Russia, Malaysia (2000) |
| Independence | 18 November 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty 221 BC; Qing or Ch'ing Dynasty replaced by the Republic on 12 February 1912; People's Republic established 1 October 1949) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 6.3% (2000 est.) | 10% (2000 est.) |
| Industries | 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, raw materials, and intermediate products | iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles and apparel, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, footwear, toys, food processing, automobiles, consumer electronics, telecommunications |
| Infant mortality rate | 15.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 28.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.7% (2000) | 0.4% (2000 est.) |
| International organization participation | BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | AfDB, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (observer), OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer), ZC |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 42 (2000) | 3 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | 160 sq km (1993 est.) | 498,720 sq km (1993 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament) | Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's Congress); Local Peoples Courts (comprise higher, intermediate and local courts); Special Peoples Courts (primarily military, maritime, and railway transport courts) |
| Labor force | 1.4 million (2000 est.) | 700 million (1998 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 25%, services 65% (2000 est.) | agriculture 50%, industry 24%, services 26% (1998) |
| Land boundaries | total:
1,150 km border countries: Belarus 141 km, Estonia 339 km, Lithuania 453 km, Russia 217 km |
total:
22,147.24 km border countries: Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km, Burma 2,185 km, Hong Kong 30 km, India 3,380 km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km, Macau 0.34 km, Mongolia 4,676.9 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia (northeast) 3,605 km, Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan 414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km |
| Land use | arable land:
27% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 13% forests and woodland: 46% other: 14% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
10% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 43% forests and woodland: 14% other: 33% (1993 est.) |
| Languages | Latvian or Lettish (official), Lithuanian, Russian, other | Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry) |
| Legal system | based on civil law system | a complex amalgam of custom and statute, largely criminal law; rudimentary civil code in effect since 1 January 1987; new legal codes in effect since 1 January 1980; continuing efforts are being made to improve civil, administrative, criminal, and commercial law |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Saeima (100 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held NA October 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - People's Party 21%, LC 18%, TSP 14%, TB/LNNK 14%, Social Democrats 13%, New Party 7%; seats by party - People's Party 24, LC 21, TB/LNNK 17, TSP 16, Social Democrats 14, New Party 8 |
unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,979 seats; members elected by municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held NA December 1997-NA February 1998 (next to be held late 2002-NA March 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
68.7 years male: 62.8 years female: 74.9 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
71.62 years male: 69.81 years female: 73.59 years (2001 est.) |
| Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 99% (1989 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 81.5% male: 89.9% female: 72.7% (1995 est.) |
| Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania | Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam |
| Map references | Europe | Asia |
| Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Merchant marine | total:
8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 27,984 GRT/29,978 DWT ships by type: cargo 2, petroleum tanker 3, refrigerated cargo 3 (2000 est.) |
total:
1,745 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 16,533,521 GRT/24,746,859 DWT ships by type: barge carrier 2, bulk 324, cargo 825, chemical tanker 21, combination bulk 11, combination ore/oil 1, container 132, liquefied gas 24, multi-functional large-load carrier 5, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 45, petroleum tanker 258, refrigerated cargo 22, roll on/roll off 23, short-sea passenger 41, specialized tanker 3, vehicle carrier 1 (2000 est.) |
| Military branches | Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Security Forces, Border Guard, Home Guard (Zemessardze) | People's Liberation Army (PLA) - which includes Ground Forces, Navy (includes Marines and Naval Aviation), Air Force, Second Artillery Corps (the strategic missile force), People's Armed Police (internal security troops, nominally subordinate to Ministry of Public Security, but included by the Chinese as part of the "armed forces" and considered to be an adjunct to the PLA in wartime) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $60 million (FY99) | $12.608 billion (FY99); note - China's real defense spending may be several times higher than the official figure because a number of significant items are funded elsewhere |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (FY99) | 1.2% (FY99) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
590,784 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
366,306,353 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
463,944 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
200,886,946 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 18 years of age |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
19,114 (2001 est.) |
males:
10,089,458 (2001 est.) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 18 November (1918); note - 18 November 1918 is the date of independence from Soviet Russia, 18 November 1991 is the date of independence from the Soviet Union | Founding of the People's Republic of China, 1 October (1949) |
| Nationality | noun:
Latvian(s) adjective: Latvian |
noun:
Chinese (singular and plural) adjective: Chinese |
| Natural hazards | NA | frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and eastern coasts); damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes; droughts |
| Natural resources | minimal; amber, peat, limestone, dolomite, hydropower, arable land | coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world's largest) |
| Net migration rate | -1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Pipelines | crude oil 750 km; refined products 780 km; natural gas 560 km (1992) | crude oil 9,070 km; petroleum products 560 km; natural gas 9,383 km (1998) |
| Political parties and leaders | Anticommunist Union or PA [P. MUCENIEKS]; Christian Democrat Union or LKDS [Talavs JUNDZIS]; Christian People's Party or KTP [Uldis AUGSTKALNS]; Democratic Party "Saimnieks" or DPS [Ziedonis CEVERS, chairman]; For Fatherland and Freedom or TB [Maris GRINBLATS], merged with LNNK; For Human Rights in a United Latvia [Janis JURKANS], a coalition of the People's Harmony Party or TSP, the Latvian Socialist Party or LSP, and the Equal Rights Movement; Green Party or LZP [Olegs BATAREVSKI]; Latvian Liberal Party or LLP [J. DANOSS]; Latvian National Conservative Party or LNNK [Andrejs KRASTINS]; Latvian National Democratic Party or LNDP [A. MALINS]; Latvian Social-Democratic Workers Party (Social Democrats) or LSDWU [Juris BOJARS and Janis ADAMSONS, leaders]; Latvian Unity Party or LVP [Alberis KAULS]; Latvia's Way or LC [Andrei PANTELEJEVS]; New Christian Party [Ainars SLESERS]; New Faction [Ingrida UDRE]; "Our Land" or MZ [M. DAMBEKALNE]; Party of Russian Citizens or LKPP [V. SOROCHIN, V. IVANOV]; People's Party [Andris SKELE]; Political Union of Economists or TPA [Edvins KIDE] | Chinese Communist Party or CCP [JIANG Zemin, General Secretary of the Central Committee]; eight registered small parties controlled by CCP |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | no substantial political opposition groups exist, although the government has identified the Falungong sect and the China Democracy Party as potential rivals |
| Population | 2,385,231 (July 2001 est.) | 1,273,111,290 (July 2001 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 10% (1999 est.) |
| Population growth rate | -0.81% (2001 est.) | 0.88% (2001 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Daugavpils, Liepaja, Riga, Ventspils | Dalian, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Haikou, Huangpu, Lianyungang, Nanjing, Nantong, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Shantou, Tianjin, Xiamen, Xingang, Yantai, Zhanjiang |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 8, FM 56, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998) |
| Radios | 1.76 million (1997) | 417 million (1997) |
| Railways | total:
2,412 km broad gauge: 2,379 km 1.520-m gauge (271 km electrified) (1992) narrow gauge: 33 km 0.750-m gauge (1994) |
total:
67,524 km (including 5,400 km of provincial "local" rails) standard gauge: 63,924 km 1.435-m gauge (13,362 km electrified; 20,250 km double track) narrow gauge: 3,600 km 0.750-m and 1.000-m gauge local industrial lines (1998 est.) note: a new total of 68,000 km was estimated for early 1999 to take new construction programs into account (1999) |
| Religions | Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox | Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 2%-3%, Christian 1% (est.)
note: officially atheist |
| Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female total population: 0.85 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.09 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal for Latvian citizens | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment:
inadequate, but is being modernized to provide an international capability independent of the Moscow international switch; more facilities are being installed for individual use domestic: expansion underway in intercity trunk line connections, rural exchanges, and mobile systems; still many unsatisfied subscriber applications international: international connections are now available via cable and a satellite earth station at Riga, enabling direct connections for most calls (1998) |
general assessment:
domestic and international services are increasingly available for private use; unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal cities, industrial centers, and many towns domestic: interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and cellular telephone systems have been installed; a domestic satellite system with 55 earth stations is in place international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); several international fiber-optic links to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Russia, and Germany (2000) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 748,000 (1997) | 135 million (2000) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 77,100 (1997) | 65 million (January 2001) |
| Television broadcast stations | 44 (plus 31 repeaters) (1995) | 3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central Television, 31 are provincial TV stations and nearly 3,000 are local city stations) (1997) |
| Terrain | low plain | mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains, deltas, and hills in east |
| Total fertility rate | 1.15 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.82 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 7.8% (2000 est.) | urban unemployment roughly 10%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas (2000 est.) |
| Waterways | 300 km (perennially navigable) | 110,000 km (1999) |
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