Compare Latvia (2004) - Samoa (2004)

Compare Latvia (2004) z Samoa (2004)

	Latvia (2004)	Samoa (2004)

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, Liepaja, Liepajas Rajons, Limbazu Rajons, Ludzas Rajons, Madonas Rajons, Ogres Rajons, Preilu Rajons, Rezekne, Rezeknes Rajons, Riga, Rigas Rajons, Saldus Rajons, Talsu Rajons, Tukuma Rajons, Valkas Rajons, Valmieras Rajons, Ventspils, Ventspils Rajons	11 districts; A'ana, Aiga-i-le-Tai, Atua, Fa'asaleleaga, Gaga'emauga, Gagaifomauga, Palauli, Satupa'itea, Tuamasaga, Va'a-o-Fonoti, Vaisigano
Age structure	0-14 years: 15% (male 177,223; female 169,241) 15-64 years: 69.2% (male 772,496; female 823,410) 65 years and over: 15.8% (male 118,035; female 245,901) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 28.3% (male 25,548; female 24,668) 15-64 years: 65.5% (male 72,820; female 43,563) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 5,096; female 6,019) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish	coconuts, bananas, taro, yams, coffee, cocoa
Airports	51 (2003 est.)	4 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 27 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 16 (2003 est.)	total: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 24 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 20 (2003 est.)	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 64,589 sq km land: 63,589 sq km water: 1,000 sq km	total: 2,944 sq km land: 2,934 sq km water: 10 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than West Virginia	slightly smaller than Rhode Island
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 joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004.	New Zealand occupied the German protectorate of Western Samoa at the outbreak of World War I in 1914. It continued to administer the islands as a mandate and then as a trust territory until 1962, when the islands became the first Polynesian nation to reestablish independence in the 20th century. The country dropped the "Western" from its name in 1997.
Birth rate	8.87 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	15.69 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $3.691 billion expenditures: $3.871 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)	revenues: $105 million expenditures: $119 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2001-02)
Capital	Riga	Apia
Climate	maritime; wet, moderate winters	tropical; rainy season (November to April), dry season (May to October)
Coastline	531 km	403 km
Constitution	15 February 1922; an October 1998 amendment on Fundamental Human Rights replaced the 1991 Constitutional Law, which had supplemented the constitution	1 January 1962
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: Independent State of Samoa conventional short form: Samoa former: Western Samoa
Currency	Latvian lat (LVL)	tala (SAT)
Death rate	13.73 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	6.47 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$6.793 billion (2003 est.)	$197 million (2000)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Catherine Todd-Bailey embassy: 7 Raina Boulevard, Riga LV-1510 mailing address: American Embassy Riga, PSC 78, Box Riga, APO AE 09723 telephone: [371] 703-6200 FAX: [371] 782-0047	chief of mission: the Ambassador to New Zealand, Ambassador Charles J. SWINDELLS, is accredited to Samoa embassy: Accident Compensation Board (ACB) Building, 5th Floor, Apia mailing address: P. O. Box 3430, Apia telephone: [685] 21631/22696 FAX: [685] 22030
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Maris RIEKSTINS chancery: 4325 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-8213, 8214 FAX: [1] (202) 726-6785	chief of mission: Ambassador Aliioaiga Feturi ELISAIA chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400D, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 599-6196, 6197 FAX: [1] (212) 599-0797
Disputes - international	the Russian Duma refuses to ratify boundary delimitation treaty with Latvia; the Latvian Parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights	none
Economic aid - recipient	$96.2 million (1995)	$42.9 million (1995)
Economy - overview	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. The majority of companies, banks, and real estate have been privatized, although the state still holds sizable stakes in a few large enterprises. Latvia officially joined the World Trade Organization in February 1999. Preparing for EU membership continues as a top foreign policy goal. The current account and internal government deficits remain major concerns, but the government's efforts to increase efficiency in revenue collection may lessen the budget deficit.	The economy of Samoa has traditionally been dependent on development aid, family remittances from overseas, and agriculture and fishing. The country is vulnerable to devastating storms. Agriculture employs two-thirds of the labor force, and furnishes 90% of exports, featuring coconut cream, coconut oil, and copra. The manufacturing sector mainly processes agricultural products. The decline of fish stocks in the area is a continuing problem. Tourism is an expanding sector, accounting for 25% of GDP; about 88,000 tourists visited the islands in 2001. The Samoan Government has called for deregulation of the financial sector, encouragement of investment, and continued fiscal discipline, meantime protecting the environment. Observers point to the flexibility of the labor market as a basic strength for future economic advances. Foreign reserves are in a relatively healthy state, the external debt is stable, and inflation is low.
Electricity - consumption	6.046 billion kWh (2001)	97.74 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	703 million kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	2.69 billion kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	4.365 billion kWh (2001)	105.1 million kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Gaizinkalns 312 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mauga Silisili (Savaii) 1,857 m
Environment - current issues	Latvia's environment has benefited from a shift to service industries after the country regained independence; the main environmental priorities are improvement of drinking water quality and sewage system, household and hazardous waste management, and reduction of air pollution; in 2001, Latvia closed the EU accession negotiation chapter on environment committing to full enforcement of EU environmental directives by 2010	soil erosion, deforestation, invasive species, overfishing
Environment - international agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Latvian 57.7%, Russian 29.6%, Belarusian 4.1%, Ukrainian 2.7%, Polish 2.5%, Lithuanian 1.4%, other 2% (2002)	Samoan 92.6%, Euronesians 7% (persons of European and Polynesian blood), Europeans 0.4%
Exchange rates	lati per US dollar - 0.5715 (2003), 0.6182 (2002), 0.6279 (2001), 0.6065 (2000), 0.5852 (1999)	tala per US dollar - 2.9732 (2003), 3.3763 (2002), 3.478 (2001), 3.2864 (2000), 3.0132 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Vaira VIKE-FREIBERGA (since 8 July 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Aigars KALVITIS (since 2 December 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and appointed by the Parliament elections: president reelected by Parliament for a four-year term; election last held 20 June 2003 (next to be held by June 2007); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Vaira VIKE-FREIBERGA reelected president; parliamentary vote - Vaira VIKE-FREIBERGA 88 of 94 votes cast	chief of state: Chief Tanumafili II MALIETOA (cochief of state from 1 January 1962 until becoming sole chief of state 5 April 1963) head of government: Prime Minister Sailele Malielegaoi TUILA'EPA (since 1996); note - TUILA'EPA served as deputy prime minister from 1992 until he assumed the prime ministership in 1996, when former Prime Minister TOFILAU Eti Alesana resigned in poor health; TUILA'EPA was confirmed as prime minister (November 1998) after TOFILAU died; the post of deputy prime minister is currently vacant cabinet: Cabinet consists of 12 members, appointed by the chief of state with the prime minister's advice elections: upon the death of Chief Tanumafili II MALIETOA, a new chief of state will be elected by the Legislative Assembly to serve a five-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually appointed prime minister by the chief of state with the approval of the Legislative Assembly
Exports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	wood and wood products, machinery and equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs	fish, coconut oil and cream, copra, taro, automotive parts, garments, beer
Exports - partners	UK 15.6%, Germany 14.8%, Sweden 10.5%, Lithuania 8.2%, Estonia 6.6%, Denmark 6%, Russia 5.4% (2003)	Australia 63.6%, Indonesia 15.2%, US 5.1% (2003)
Fiscal year	calendar year	June 1 - May 31
Flag description	three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon	red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side quadrant bearing five white five-pointed stars representing the Southern Cross constellation
GDP	purchasing power parity - $23.9 billion (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $1 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 4.5% industry: 24.5% services: 70.9% (2003)	agriculture: 14% industry: 23% services: 63% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $10,200 (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $5,600 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	7.4% (2003 est.)	5% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates	57 00 N, 25 00 E	13 35 S, 172 20 W
Geography - note	most of the country is composed of fertile, low-lying plains, with some hills in the east	occupies an almost central position within Polynesia
Highways	total: 73,202 km paved: 28,256 km unpaved: 44,946 km (2000)	total: 790 km paved: 332 km unpaved: 458 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2.9% highest 10%: 25.9% (1998)	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
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; vulnerable to money laundering despite improved legislation due to nascent enforcement capabilities and comparatively weak regulation of offshore companies, exchange firms, and the gaming industry; organized crime (including counterfeiting, corruption, extortion, stolen cars, and prostitution) accounts for most laundered proceeds	-
Imports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, vehicles	machinery and equipment, industrial supplies, foodstuffs
Imports - partners	Germany 16.1%, Lithuania 9.7%, Russia 8.7%, Finland 7.4%, Estonia 6.4%, Sweden 6.3%, Poland 5.1%, Italy 4.4% (2003)	New Zealand 19.8%, Fiji 17.8%, Australia 15.4%, Japan 11.9%, US 4.7%, Singapore 4.3% (2003)
Independence	21 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)	1 January 1962 (from New Zealand-administered UN trusteeship)
Industrial production growth rate	8% (2003 est.)	2.8% (2000)
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 and raw materials	food processing, building materials, auto parts
Infant mortality rate	total: 9.67 deaths/1,000 live births male: 11.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 28.72 deaths/1,000 live births male: 33.83 deaths/1,000 live births female: 23.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.9% (2003 est.)	4% (2001 est.)
International organization participation	Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer)
Irrigated land	200 sq km note: land in Latvia is often too wet, and in need of drainage, not irrigation; approximately 16,000 sq km or 85% of agricultural land has been improved by drainage (1998 est.)	NA sq km
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament)	Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; Land and Titles Court
Labor force	1.18 million (2003 est.)	90,000 (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 15%, industry 25%, services 60% (2000 est.)	NA
Land boundaries	total: 1,150 km border countries: Belarus 141 km, Estonia 339 km, Lithuania 453 km, Russia 217 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 29.67% permanent crops: 0.47% other: 69.86% (2001)	arable land: 21.2% permanent crops: 24.38% other: 54.42% (2001)
Languages	Latvian (official), Lithuanian, Russian, other	Samoan (Polynesian), English
Legal system	based on civil law system	based on English common law and local customs; judicial review of legislative acts with respect to fundamental rights of the citizen; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral Parliament or Saeima (100 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 5 October 2002 (next to be held NA October 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - New Era 23.9%, PCTVL 18.9%, People's Party 16.7%, ZZS 9.5%, First Party 7.6%, LNNK 5.4%; seats by party - New Era 26, PCTVL 24, People's Party 21, ZZS 12, First Party 10, LNNK 7	unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fono (49 seats - 47 elected by voters affiliated with traditional village-based electoral districts, 2 elected by independent, mostly Eurasian, voters who cannot, (or choose not to) establish a village affiliation; only chiefs (matai) may stand for election to the Fono; members serve five-year terms) elections: election last held 3 March 2001 (next election to be held not later than March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - HRPP 30, SNDP 13, independents 6
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 70.86 years male: 65.91 years female: 76.09 years (2004 est.)	total population: 70.41 years male: 67.64 years female: 73.33 years (2004 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 total population: 99.7% male: 99.6% female: 99.7% (2003 est.)
Location	Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania	Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand
Map references	Europe	Oceania
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 11 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 53,153 GRT/37,414 DWT by type: cargo 6, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea/passenger 1 foreign-owned: Germany 1, Greece 1, Ukraine 1 registered in other countries: 96 (2004 est.)	total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,091 GRT/8,127 DWT by type: cargo 1 foreign-owned: Germany 1 registered in other countries: 2 (2004 est.)
Military - note	-	Samoa has no formal defense structure or regular armed forces; informal defense ties exist with NZ, which is required to consider any Samoan request for assistance under the 1962 Treaty of Friendship
Military branches	Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Border Guard, Home Guard (Zemessardze)	no regular armed services; Samoa Police Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$87 million (FY01)	NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.2% (FY01)	NA
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 594,596 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 466,659 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 19,209 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 18 November (1918); note - 18 November 1918 is the date Latvia declared itself independent from Soviet Russia; 4 May 1990 is when it declared the renewal of independence; 21 August 1991 is the date of de facto independence from the Soviet Union	Independence Day Celebration, 1 June (1962); note - 1 January 1962 is the date of independence from the New Zealand-administered UN trusteeship, 1 June 1962 is the date that independence is celebrated
Nationality	noun: Latvian(s) adjective: Latvian	noun: Samoan(s) adjective: Samoan
Natural hazards	NA	occasional typhoons; active volcanism
Natural resources	peat, limestone, dolomite, amber, hydropower, wood, arable land	hardwood forests, fish, hydropower
Net migration rate	-2.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-11.7 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines	gas 1,097 km; oil 409 km; refined products 415 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	Alliance of the Greens and Farmers Union or ZZS [Augusts BRIGMANIS (Farmer's Union); Indulis EMSIS (Green Party)]; First Party of Latvia [Ainars SLESERS]; For Human Rights in a United Latvia or PCTVL [Jakovs PLINERS]; For Our Latvia or ML [Rihards Jablokovs]; Latvian National Democratic Party or LNDP [Jevgenijs Osiopovs]; Latvian National Front [Aivars GARDA]; Latvian Social-Democratic Workers Party (Social Democrats) or LSDSP [Alfred RUBIKS]; Latvia's Way Union or LC; Light of Latgale or LG; New Era Party or JL [Einars REPSE]; New Politics Party or JP [Sergejs DOLGOPOLOVS]; People's Harmony Party or TSP [Janis JURKANS]; People's Party or TP [Atis SLAKTERIS]; Social Democratic Union or SDS [Egils BALDZENS]; Union for the Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK or TB/LNNK [Janis STRAUME]; United Social Democratic Welfare Party or SLP [Juris ZURAVLOVS]; United Republican Party of Latvia or LARP	Christian Democratic Party [leader NA]; Human Rights Protection Party or HRPP [Sailele Malielegaoi TUILA'EPA, chairman]; Samoa All People's Party or SAPP [Matatumua MAIMOANA]; Samoan National Development Party or SNDP [LE MAMEA Ropati, chairman] (opposition); Samoa National Party [FETU Tiatia, party secretary]; Samoan Progressive Conservative Party [LEOTA Ituau Ale]; Samoan United Independents Party or SUIP [Dr. Saleimoa VAAI]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Headquarters for the Protection of Russian Schools (SHTAB) [Aleksandr KAZAKOV]	NA
Population	2,306,306 (July 2004 est.)	177,714 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA	NA
Population growth rate	-0.71% (2004 est.)	-0.25% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	Liepaja, Riga, Ventspils	Apia, Asau, Mulifanua, Salelologa
Radio broadcast stations	AM 8, FM 56, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998)
Railways	total: 2,303 km broad gauge: 2,270 km 1.520-m gauge (257 km electrified) narrow gauge: 33 km 0.750-m gauge (2003)	-
Religions	Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox	Christian 99.7% (about one-half of population associated with the London Missionary Society; includes Congregational, Roman Catholic, Methodist, Latter-Day Saints, Seventh-Day Adventist)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.67 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.39 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal for Latvian citizens	21 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: country code - 371; international connections are now available via cable and a satellite earth station at Riga, enabling direct connections for most calls (1998)	general assessment: adequate domestic: NA international: country code - 685; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	653,900 (2003)	11,800 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	1,219,600 (2003)	2,700 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	44 (plus 31 repeaters) (1995)	2 (2002)
Terrain	low plain	two main islands (Savaii, Upolu) and several smaller islands and uninhabited islets; narrow coastal plain with volcanic, rocky, rugged mountains in interior
Total fertility rate	1.25 children born/woman (2004 est.)	3.11 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	8.6% (2003 est.)	NA%; note - substantial underemployment
Waterways	300 km (2004)	-

Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.