Latvia (2006) | Mexico (2003) | |
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 | 31 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila de Zaragoza, Colima, Distrito Federal*, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan de Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro de Arteaga, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz-Llave, Yucatan, Zacatecas |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14% (male 162,562/female 155,091)
15-64 years: 69.6% (male 769,004/female 815,042) 65 years and over: 16.4% (male 121,646/female 251,390) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 32.3% (male 17,298,964; female 16,617,728)
15-64 years: 63.1% (male 32,217,513; female 33,932,603) 65 years and over: 4.6% (male 2,145,252; female 2,695,931) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish | corn, wheat, soybeans, rice, beans, cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; beef, poultry, dairy products; wood products |
Airports | 46 (2006) | 1,823 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 24
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 13 (2006) |
total: 231
over 3,047 m: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 28 1,524 to 2,437 m: 83 914 to 1,523 m: 82 under 914 m: 27 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 22
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 19 (2006) |
total: 1,592
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 69 914 to 1,523 m: 454 under 914 m: 1,067 (2002) |
Area | total: 64,589 sq km
land: 63,589 sq km water: 1,000 sq km |
total: 1,972,550 sq km
land: 1,923,040 sq km water: 49,510 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly less than three times the size of Texas |
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. | The site of advanced Amerindian civilizations, Mexico came under Spanish rule for three centuries before achieving independence early in the 19th century. A devaluation of the peso in late 1994 threw Mexico into economic turmoil, triggering the worst recession in over half a century. The nation continues to make an impressive recovery. Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, underemployment for a large segment of the population, inequitable income distribution, and few advancement opportunities for the largely Amerindian population in the impoverished southern states. Elections held in July 2000 marked the first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that the opposition defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) was sworn in on 1 December 2000 as the first chief executive elected in free and fair elections. |
Birth rate | 9.24 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 21.92 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $5.673 billion
expenditures: $5.889 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
revenues: $136 billion
expenditures: $140 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | name: Riga
geographic coordinates: 56 57 N, 24 06 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Mexico (Distrito Federal) |
Climate | maritime; wet, moderate winters | varies from tropical to desert |
Coastline | 531 km | 9,330 km |
Constitution | 15 February 1922; an October 1998 amendment on Fundamental Human Rights replaced the 1991 Constitutional Law, which had supplemented the constitution | 5 February 1917 |
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: United Mexican States
conventional short form: Mexico local long form: Estados Unidos Mexicanos local short form: Mexico |
Currency | - | Mexican peso (MXN) |
Death rate | 13.66 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 4.97 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $10.8 billion (1 January 2006) | $150 billion (2000 est.) |
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: Ambassador Antonio O. GARZA
embassy: Paseo de la Reforma 305, Colonia Cuauhtemoc, 06500 Mexico, Distrito Federal mailing address: P. O. Box 9000, Brownsville, TX 78520-0900 telephone: [52] (55) 5080-2000 FAX: [52] (55) 5080-2005, 5080-2834 consulate(s) general: Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Tijuana consulate(s): Hermosillo, Matamoros, Merida, Nuevo Laredo, Nogales |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Maris RIEKSTINS
chancery: 2306 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-2840 FAX: [1] (202) 328-2860 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Juan Jose BREMER Martino
chancery: 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 728-1600 FAX: [1] (202) 728-1698 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Laredo (Texas), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Nogales (Arizona), Phoenix, Sacramento, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto Rico) consulate(s): Albuquerque, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Indianapolis (Indiana), Las Vegas, McAllen (Texas), Midland (Texas), Omaha, Orlando, Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Portland (Oregon), Presidio (Texas), Raleigh, Saint Louis, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, Santa Ana (California), Seattle, Tucson, Yuma (Arizona) |
Disputes - international | Russia refuses to sign the 1997 boundary treaty due to Latvian insistence on a unilateral clarificatory declaration referencing Soviet occupation of Latvia and territorial losses; Russia demands better Latvian treatment of ethnic Russians in Latvia; the Latvian parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Latvia must implement the strict Schengen border rules | prolonged regional drought in the border region with the US has strained water-sharing arrangements |
Economic aid - recipient | $1.2 billion (2004-06) | $1.166 billion (1995) |
Economy - overview | Latvia's transitional economy recovered from the 1998 Russian financial crisis, largely due to the 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. EU membership, a top foreign policy goal, came in May 2004. The current account deficit - 11.5% of GDP in 2005 - remains a major concern. A growing perception that many of Latvia's banks facilitate illicit activity could damage the country's vibrant financial sector. | Mexico has a free market economy with a mixture of modern and outmoded industry and agriculture, increasingly dominated by the private sector. Recent administrations have expanded competition in seaports, railroads, telecommunications, electricity, natural gas distribution, and airports. Income distribution remains highly unequal. Trade with the US and Canada has tripled since the implementation of NAFTA in 1994. Following 6.9% growth in 2000, real GDP fell 0.3% in 2001, recovering to only a plus 1% in 2002, with the US slowdown the principal cause. Mexico implemented free trade agreements with Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and the European Free Trade Area in 2001, putting more than 90% of trade under free trade agreements. Foreign direct investment reached $25 billion in 2001, of which $12.5 billion came from the purchase of Mexico's second-largest bank, Banamex, by Citigroup. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.839 billion kWh (2003) | 186.7 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 38 million kWh (2003) | 77 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 2.7 billion kWh (2003) | 2.068 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 3.97 billion kWh (2003) | 198.6 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 78.7%
hydro: 14.2% nuclear: 4.2% other: 2.9% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Gaizinkalns 312 m |
lowest point: Laguna Salada -10 m
highest point: Volcan Pico de Orizaba 5,700 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, as well as 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 | scarcity of hazardous waste disposal facilities; rural to urban migration; natural fresh water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; raw sewage and industrial effluents polluting rivers in urban areas; deforestation; widespread erosion; desertification; deteriorating agricultural lands; serious air and water pollution in the national capital and urban centers along US-Mexico border; land subsidence in Valley of Mexico caused by groundwater depletion
note: the government considers the lack of clean water and deforestation national security issues |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
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) | mestizo (Amerindian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%, white 9%, other 1% |
Exchange rates | lati per US dollar - 0.5647 (2005), 0.5402 (2004), 0.5715 (2003), 0.6182 (2002), 0.6279 (2001) | Mexican pesos per US dollar - 9.66 (2002), 9.34 (2001), 9.46 (2000), 9.56 (1999), 9.14 (1998) |
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 (no term limits); 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: President Vicente FOX Quesada (since 1 December 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Vicente FOX Quesada (since 1 December 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; note - appointment of attorney general requires consent of the Senate elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA July 2006) election results: Vicente FOX Quesada elected president; percent of vote - Vicente FOX Quesada (PAN) 42.52%, Francisco LABASTIDA Ochoa (PRI) 36.1%, Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano (PRD) 16.64%, other 4.74% |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | 1.881 million bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | wood and wood products, machinery and equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs | manufactured goods, oil and oil products, silver, fruits, vegetables, coffee, cotton |
Exports - partners | Lithuania 11%, Estonia 10.8%, Germany 10.2%, UK 10.2%, Russia 7.9%, Sweden 7.8%, Denmark 5.3%, Poland 5.3% (2005) | US 82.7%, Canada 5.4%, Japan 1.1% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake in its beak) is centered in the white band |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $924.4 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 4%
industry: 26.1% services: 69.9% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 26% services: 69% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $8,900 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 10.2% (2005 est.) | 0.7% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 57 00 N, 25 00 E | 23 00 N, 102 00 W |
Geography - note | most of the country is composed of fertile, low-lying plains, with some hills in the east | strategic location on southern border of US; corn (maize), one of the world's major grain crops, is thought to have originated in Mexico |
Heliports | - | 2 (2002) |
Highways | - | total: 329,532 km
paved: 108,087 km (including 6,429 km of expressways) unpaved: 221,445 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 26.1% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 41.1% (2001) |
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; despite improved legislation, vulnerable to money laundering due to nascent enforcement capabilities and comparatively weak regulation of offshore companies and the gaming industry; CIS organized crime (including counterfeiting, corruption, extortion, stolen cars, and prostitution) accounts for most laundered proceeds | illicit cultivation of opium poppy (cultivation in 2001 - 4,400 hectares; potential heroin production - 7 metric tons) and of cannabis (in 2001 - 4,100 hectares); government eradication efforts have been key in keeping illicit crop levels low; major supplier of heroin and largest foreign supplier of marijuana and methamphetamine to the US market; continues as the primary transshipment country for US-bound cocaine from South America; major drug syndicates control majority of drug trafficking throughout the country; growing producer and distributor of ecstasy; significant money-laundering center |
Imports | 47,000 bbl/day (2004) | 374,700 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, vehicles | metalworking machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts |
Imports - partners | Germany 13.9%, Lithuania 13.6%, Russia 8.6%, Estonia 7.9%, Poland 6.4%, Finland 5.9%, Belarus 5.8%, Sweden 5.1% (2005) | US 70.6%, Germany 3.5%, Japan 2.7% (2002) |
Independence | 21 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 16 September 1810 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.6% (2005 est.) | 4.9% (2002 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 and raw materials | food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 9.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 11.31 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 23.68 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 20.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.8% (2005 est.) | 6.4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | Australia Group, BA, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | APEC, BCIE, BIS, Caricom (observer), CDB, CE (observer), EBRD, ECLAC, FAO, G-3, G-6, G-15, G-19, G-24, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA (observer), IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM (observer), NEA, OAS, OECD, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMOVIC, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 51 (2000) |
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 (2003) |
65,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament) | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are appointed by the president with consent of the Senate) |
Labor force | 1.11 million (2005 est.) | 39.8 million (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 15%
industry: 25% services: 60% (2000 est.) |
agriculture 20%, industry 24%, services 56% (1998) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,368 km
border countries: Belarus 167 km, Estonia 343 km, Lithuania 576 km, Russia 282 km |
total: 4,353 km
border countries: Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962 km, US 3,141 km |
Land use | arable land: 28.19%
permanent crops: 0.45% other: 71.36% (2005) |
arable land: 13.2%
permanent crops: 1.1% other: 85.7% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Latvian (official) 58.2%, Russian 37.5%, Lithuanian and other 4.3% (2000 census) | Spanish, various Mayan, Nahuatl, and other regional indigenous languages |
Legal system | based on civil law system | mixture of US constitutional theory and civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Saeima (100 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 October 2006 (next to be held October 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - TP 19.5%, ZZS 16.7%, JL 16.4%, SC 14.4%; LPP/LC 8.6%; TB/LNNK 7%; PCTVL 6%; seats by party - TP 23, ZZS 18, JL 18, SC 17, LPP/LC 10, TB/LNNK 8, PCTVL 6 |
bicameral National Congress or Congreso de la Union consists of the Senate or Camara de Senadores (128 seats; 96 are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms, and 32 are allocated on the basis of each party's popular vote) and the Federal Chamber of Deputies or Camara Federal de Diputados (500 seats; 300 members are directly elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; remaining 200 members are allocated on the basis of each party's popular vote, also for three-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 July 2000 for all of the seats (next to be held NA 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 6 July 2003 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRI 60, PAN 46, PRD 15, PVEM 5, PT 1, CD 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRI 224, PAN 153, PRD 95, other 28 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.33 years
male: 66.08 years female: 76.85 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 72.3 years
male: 69.26 years female: 75.49 years (2003 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: 92.2% male: 94% female: 90.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania | Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, between Belize and the US and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and the US |
Map references | Europe | North America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 21 ships (1000 GRT or over) 250,559 GRT/336,136 DWT
by type: cargo 7, chemical tanker 1, liquefied gas 2, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 1 registered in other countries: 105 (Antigua and Barbuda 5, Bahamas 1, Belize 6, Cambodia 2, Cyprus 4, Dominica 1, Gibraltar 2, Liberia 14, Malta 40, Marshall Islands 7, Panama 3, Russia 2, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 18) (2006) |
total: 47 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 636,271 GRT/933,686 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 1, chemical tanker 4, combination ore/oil 1, liquefied gas 3, petroleum tanker 26, roll on/roll off 8, short-sea passenger 3 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Canada 2, Denmark 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Latvian Republic Defense Force: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Border Guard, Home Guard (Zemessardze) (2005) | National Defense Secretariat (SEDENA) (including Army and Air Force), Navy Secretariat (including Naval Air and Marines) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $87 million (FY01) | $4 billion (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (FY01) | 1% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 27,751,539 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 20,123,970 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age
note: starting in 2000, females were allowed to volunteer for military service (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 1,093,752 (2003 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, 16 September (1810) |
Nationality | noun: Latvian(s)
adjective: Latvian |
noun: Mexican(s)
adjective: Mexican |
Natural hazards | NA | tsunamis along the Pacific coast, volcanoes and destructive earthquakes in the center and south, and hurricanes on the Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean coasts |
Natural resources | peat, limestone, dolomite, amber, hydropower, wood, arable land | petroleum, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber |
Net migration rate | -2.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | -2.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 1,097 km; oil 82 km; refined products 415 km (2006) | crude oil 28,200 km; petroleum products 10,150 km; natural gas 13,254 km; petrochemical 1,400 km |
Political parties and leaders | First Party of Latvia or LPP [Juris LUJANS]; For Human Rights in a United Latvia or PCTVL [Tatjana ZDANOKA, Jakovs PLINERS]; For the Fatherland and Freedom/Latvian National Independence Movement or TB/LNNK [Janis STRAUME]; Harmony Center or SC [Sergejs DOLGOPOLOVS]; Latvian Green Party or ZZS [Indulis EMSIS, Viesturs SILENIEKS, Raimonds VEJONIS]; Latvian Farmer's Union or LZS [Augusts BRIGMANIS]; Latvian Social Democratic Workers Party (Social Democrats) or LSDSP [Juris BOJARS]; Latvian Socialist Party or LSP [Alfreds RUBIKS]; Latvia's Way or LC [Ivars GODMANIS]; New Democrats or JD [Maris GULBIS]; New Era Party or JL [Einars REPSE]; People's Harmony Party or TSP [Aivars DATAVS]; People's Party or TP [Atis SLAKTERIS]; Social Democratic Union or SDS [Egils BALDZENS] | Convergence for Democracy or CD [Dante DELGADO Ranauro]; Institutional Revolutionary Party or PRI [Dulce Maria SAURI Riancho]; Mexican Green Ecological Party or PVEM [Jorge Emilio GONZALEZ Martinez]; National Action Party or PAN [Luis Felipe BRAVO Mena]; Party of the Democratic Revolution or PRD [Amalia GARCIA Medina]; Party of the Nationalist Society or PSN [Gustavo RIOJAS Santana]; Social Alliance Party or PAS [Guillermo CALDERON Dominguez]; Workers Party or PT [Alberto ANAYA Gutierrez] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Headquarters for the Protection of Russian Schools (SHTAB) [Aleksandr KAZAKOV] | Confederation of Employers of the Mexican Republic or COPARMEX; Confederation of Industrial Chambers or CONCAMIN; Confederation of Mexican Workers or CTM; Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce or CONCANACO; Coordinator for Foreign Trade Business Organizations or COECE; Federation of Unions Providing Goods and Services or FESEBES; National Chamber of Transformation Industries or CANACINTRA; National Peasant Confederation or CNC; National Union of Workers or UNT; Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers or CROM; Revolutionary Confederation of Workers and Peasants or CROC; Roman Catholic Church |
Population | 2,274,735 (July 2006 est.) | 104,907,991 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | Below $2.15 per day (PPP): 3% | 40% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.67% (2006 est.) | 1.43% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Acapulco, Altamira, Coatzacoalcos, Ensenada, Guaymas, La Paz, Lazaro Cardenas, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Progreso, Salina Cruz, Tampico, Topolobampo, Tuxpan, Veracruz |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 8, FM 56, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 851, FM 598, shortwave 16 (2000) |
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 (2005) |
total: 19,510 km
standard gauge: 19,510 km 1.435-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox | nominally Roman Catholic 89%, Protestant 6%, other 5% |
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 (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal for Latvian citizens | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory (but not enforced) |
Telephone system | general assessment: recent efforts focused on bringing competition to the telecommunications sector, beginning in 2003; the number of fixed lines is decreasing as wireless telephony expands
domestic: two wireless service providers in addition to Lattelekom, the incumbent monopoly international: country code - 371; the Latvian network is now connected via fiber optic cable to Estonia, Finland, and Sweden |
general assessment: low telephone density with about 12 main lines per 100 persons; privatized in December 1990; the opening to competition in January 1997 improved prospects for development
domestic: adequate telephone service for business and government, but the population is poorly served; domestic satellite system with 120 earth stations; extensive microwave radio relay network; considerable use of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, and mobile cellular service international: satellite earth stations - 32 Intelsat, 2 Solidaridad (giving Mexico improved access to South America, Central America, and much of the US as well as enhancing domestic communications), numerous Inmarsat mobile earth stations; linked to Central American Microwave System of trunk connections; high capacity Columbus-2 fiber-optic submarine cable with access to the US, Virgin Islands, Canary Islands, Morocco, Spain, and Italy (1997) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 731,000 (2005) | 12.332 million (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.872 million (2005) | 2.02 million (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 44 (plus 31 repeaters) (1995) | 236 (plus repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | low plain | high, rugged mountains; low coastal plains; high plateaus; desert |
Total fertility rate | 1.27 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 2.53 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 7.5% (2005 est.) | urban - 3% plus considerable underemployment (2002) |
Waterways | 300 km (2005) | 2,900 km
note: navigable rivers and coastal canals |