Latvia (2008) | Cuba (2001) | |
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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 | 14 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 special municipality* (municipio especial); Camaguey, Ciego de Avila, Cienfuegos, Ciudad de La Habana, Granma, Guantanamo, Holguin, Isla de la Juventud*, La Habana, Las Tunas, Matanzas, Pinar del Rio, Sancti Spiritus, Santiago de Cuba, Villa Clara |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 13.6% (male 157,451/female 150,184)
15-64 years: 69.6% (male 764,910/female 808,848) 65 years and over: 16.7% (male 123,952/female 254,465) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years:
20.99% (male 1,205,159; female 1,142,070) 15-64 years: 69.14% (male 3,876,432; female 3,855,878) 65 years and over: 9.87% (male 511,589; female 592,895) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish | sugar, tobacco, citrus, coffee, rice, potatoes, beans; livestock |
Airports | 42 (2007) | 171 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 21
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 9 (2007) |
total:
77 over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 35 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 21
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 20 (2007) |
total:
94 914 to 1,523 m: 31 under 914 m: 63 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 64,589 sq km
land: 63,589 sq km water: 1,000 sq km |
total:
110,860 sq km land: 110,860 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
Background | The name "Latvia" originates from the ancient Latgalians, one of four eastern Baltic tribes that formed the ethnic core of the Latvian people (ca. 8th-12th centuries A.D.). The region subsequently came under the control of Germans, Poles, Swedes, and finally, Russians. A Latvian republic emerged following World War I, but it was annexed by the USSR in 1940 - an action never recognized by the US and many other countries. Latvia 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. | Fidel CASTRO led a rebel army to victory in 1959; his iron rule has held the country together since. Cuba's communist revolution, with Soviet support, was exported throughout Latin America and Africa during the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. The country is now slowly recovering from a severe economic recession in 1990, following the withdrawal of former Soviet subsidies, worth $4 billion to $6 billion annually. Havana portrays its difficulties as the result of the US embargo in place since 1961. Illicit migration to the US - using homemade rafts, alien smugglers, or falsified visas - is a continuing problem. Some 3,000 Cubans took to the Straits of Florida in 2000; the US Coast Guard interdicted only about 35% of these. |
Birth rate | 9.43 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 12.36 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $8.975 billion
expenditures: $8.88 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues:
$13.5 billion expenditures: $14.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 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 |
Havana |
Climate | maritime; wet, moderate winters | tropical; moderated by trade winds; dry season (November to April); rainy season (May to October) |
Coastline | 498 km | 3,735 km |
Constitution | 15 February 1922; restored to force by the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Latvia adopted by the Supreme Council on 21 August 1991; multiple amendments since | 24 February 1976, amended July 1992 |
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:
Republic of Cuba conventional short form: Cuba local long form: Republica de Cuba local short form: Cuba |
Currency | - | Cuban peso (CUP) |
Death rate | 13.64 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 7.33 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $29.85 billion (30 June 2007) | $11.1 billion (convertible currency, 1999); another $15 billion -$20 billion owed to Russia (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Charles LARSON Jr.
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 |
none; note - the US has an Interests Section in the Swiss Embassy, headed by Principal Officer Vicki HUDDLESTON; address: USINT, Swiss Embassy, Calzada between L and M Streets, Vedado Seccion, Havana; telephone: 33-3551 through 3559 (operator assistance required); FAX: 33-3700; protecting power in Cuba is Switzerland |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Andrejs PILDEGOVICS
chancery: 2306 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-2840 FAX: [1] (202) 328-2860 |
none; note - Cuba has an Interests Section in the Swiss Embassy, headed by Principal Officer Fernando REMIREZ DE ESTENOZ; address: Cuban Interests Section, Swiss Embassy, 2630 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009; telephone: [1] (202) 797-8518 |
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; as of January 2007, ground demarcation of the boundary with Belarus was complete and mapped with final ratification documentation in preparation; 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 has implemented the strict Schengen border rules with Russia | US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased to US and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease |
Economic aid - recipient | $162 million (2004) | $68.2 million (1997 est.) |
Economy - overview | Latvia's economy experienced GDP growth of more than 10% per year during 2006-07. 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 - more than 22% of GDP in 2007 - and inflation - at nearly 10% per year - remain major concerns. | The government, the primary player in the economy, has undertaken limited reforms in recent years to stem excess liquidity, increase enterprise efficiency, and alleviate serious shortages of food, consumer goods, and services, but prioritizing of political control makes extensive reforms unlikely. Living standards for the average Cuban, without access to dollars, remain at a depressed level compared with 1990. The liberalized farmers' markets introduced in 1994, sell above-quota production at market prices, expand legal consumption alternatives, and reduce black market prices. Income taxes and increased regulations introduced since 1996 have sharply reduced the number of legally self-employed from a high of 208,000 in January 1996. Havana announced in 1995 that GDP declined by 35% during 1989-93 as a result of lost Soviet aid and domestic inefficiencies. The slide in GDP came to a halt in 1994 when Cuba reported growth in GDP of 0.7%. Cuba reported that GDP increased by 2.5% in 1995 and 7.8% in 1996, before slowing down in 1997 and 1998 to 2.5% and 1.2% respectively. Growth recovered with a 6.2% increase in GDP in 1999 and a 5.6% increase in 2000. Much of Cuba's recovery can be attributed to tourism revenues and foreign investment. Growth in 2001 should continue at the same level as the government balances the need for economic loosening against its concern for firm political control. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.09 billion kWh (2005) | 13.353 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 707 million kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 2.855 billion kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 4.778 billion kWh (2005) | 14.358 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
94.2% hydro: 0.7% nuclear: 0% other: 5.1% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Galzina Kalns 312 m |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Pico Turquino 2,005 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 | pollution of Havana Bay; overhunting threatens wildlife populations; deforestation |
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:
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | Latvian 57.7%, Russian 29.6%, Belarusian 4.1%, Ukrainian 2.7%, Polish 2.5%, Lithuanian 1.4%, other 2% (2002) | mulatto 51%, white 37%, black 11%, Chinese 1% |
Exchange rates | lati per US dollar - 0.5162 (2007), 0.5597 (2006), 0.5647 (2005), 0.5402 (2004), 0.5715 (2003) | Cuban pesos per US dollar - 1.0000 (nonconvertible, official rate, for international transactions, pegged to the US dollar); convertible peso sold for domestic use at a rate of 1.00 US dollar per 22 pesos by the Government of Cuba (January 2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Valdis ZATLERS (since 8 July 2007)
head of government: Prime Minister Ivars GODMANIS (since 20 December 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and appointed by Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 31 May 2007 (next to be held 2011); prime minister appointed by the president, confirmed by Parliament election results: Valdis ZATLERS elected president; parliamentary vote - Valdis ZATLERS 58, Aivars ENDZINS 39 |
chief of state:
President of the Council of State and President of the Council of Ministers Fidel CASTRO Ruz (prime minister from February 1959 until 24 February 1976 when office was abolished; president since 2 December 1976); First Vice President of the Council of State and First Vice President of the Council of Ministers Gen. Raul CASTRO Ruz (since 2 December 1976); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President of the Council of State and President of the Council of Ministers Fidel CASTRO Ruz (prime minister from February 1959 until 24 February 1976 when office was abolished; president since 2 December 1976); First Vice President of the Council of State and First Vice President of the Council of Ministers Gen. Raul CASTRO Ruz (since 2 December 1976); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers proposed by the president of the Council of State, appointed by the National Assembly; note - there is also a Council of State whose members are elected by the National Assembly elections: president and vice president elected by the National Assembly; election last held 24 February 1998 (next election unscheduled) election results: Fidel CASTRO Ruz elected president; percent of legislative vote - 100%; Raul CASTRO Ruz elected vice president; percent of legislative vote - 100% |
Exports | 6,765 bbl/day (2004) | $1.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | wood and wood products, machinery and equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs | sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, coffee |
Exports - partners | Lithuania 14.2%, Estonia 12.3%, Russia 11.5%, Germany 9.8%, UK 7.6%, Sweden 6.3%, Denmark 4.8% (2006) | Russia 23%, Netherlands 23%, Canada 13% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon | five equal horizontal bands of blue (top and bottom) alternating with white; a red equilateral triangle based on the hoist side bears a white, five-pointed star in the center; design influenced by the US flag |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $19.2 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 21.3% services: 75.2% (2007 est.) |
agriculture:
7% industry: 37% services: 56% (1998 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 10.3% (2007 est.) | 5.6% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 57 00 N, 25 00 E | 21 30 N, 80 00 W |
Geography - note | most of the country is composed of fertile, low-lying plains, with some hills in the east | largest country in Caribbean |
Highways | - | total:
60,858 km paved: 29,820 km (including 638 km of expressway) unpaved: 31,038 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.5%
highest 10%: 29.1% (2003) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment and destination point for cocaine, synthetic drugs, opiates, and cannabis from Southwest Asia, Western Europe, Latin America, and neighboring Balkan countries; 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 | territorial waters and air space serve as transshipment zone for cocaine bound for the US and Europe; established the death penalty for certain drug-related crimes in 1999 |
Imports | 39,190 bbl/day (2004) | $3.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, vehicles | petroleum, food, machinery, chemicals, semifinished goods, transport equipment, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | Germany 15.5%, Lithuania 12.9%, Russia 8%, Estonia 7.7%, Poland 7.2%, Finland 5.7%, Sweden 5%, Belarus 4.7% (2006) | Spain 18%, Venezuela 13%, Canada 8% (1999) |
Independence | 18 November 1918 (from Soviet Russia) | 20 May 1902 (from US) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.9% (2007 est.) | 5% (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 and raw materials | sugar, petroleum, tobacco, chemicals, construction, services, nickel, steel, cement, agricultural machinery |
Infant mortality rate | total: 9.16 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 11.08 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.13 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
7.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 9.6% (2007 est.) | 0.3% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | Australia Group, BA, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IAEA, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS (excluded from formal participation since 1962), OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 4 (2001) |
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) |
9,100 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament); Constitutional Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament) | People's Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo Popular (president, vice president, and other judges are elected by the National Assembly) |
Labor force | 1.136 million (2006 est.) | 4.3 million (2000 est.)
note: state sector 75%, non-state sector 25% (1998) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 13%
industry: 19% services: 68% (2005 est.) |
agriculture 25%, industry 24%, services 51% (1998) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,348 km
border countries: Belarus 141 km, Estonia 343 km, Lithuania 588 km, Russia 276 km |
total:
29 km border countries: US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay 29 km note: Guantanamo Naval Base is leased by the US and thus remains part of Cuba |
Land use | arable land: 28.19%
permanent crops: 0.45% other: 71.36% (2005) |
arable land:
24% permanent crops: 7% permanent pastures: 27% forests and woodland: 24% other: 18% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Latvian (official) 58.2%, Russian 37.5%, Lithuanian and other 4.3% (2000 census) | Spanish |
Legal system | based on civil law system with traces of Socialist legal traditions and practices; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Spanish and American law, with large elements of Communist legal theory; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Saeima (100 seats; members are elected by proportional representation from party lists by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 October 2006 (next to be held in 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; note - seats by party as of February 2008 - TP 21, ZZS 17, SC 17, JL 14, LPP/LC 10, TB/LNNK 5, PCTVL 6, independents 10 |
unicameral National Assembly of People's Power or Asemblea Nacional del Poder Popular (601 seats, elected directly from slates approved by special candidacy commissions; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 11 January 1998 (next to be held in 2003) election results: percent of vote - PCC 94.39%; seats - PCC 601 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.6 years
male: 66.39 years female: 77.1 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
76.41 years male: 74.02 years female: 78.94 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.7% male: 99.8% female: 99.7% (2000 census) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95.7% male: 96.2% female: 95.3% (1995 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, south of Florida |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 22 ships (1000 GRT or over) 201,684 GRT/221,186 DWT
by type: cargo 9, liquefied gas 2, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 5, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Estonia 1) registered in other countries: 122 (Antigua and Barbuda 9, Belize 14, Cambodia 2, Cyprus 1, Dominica 2, Jamaica 2, Liberia 15, Malta 36, Marshall Islands 10, Panama 5, Russia 2, St Kitts and Nevis 4, St Vincent and The Grenadines 20) (2007) |
total:
15 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 54,821 GRT/78,062 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 7, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 5 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | Moscow, for decades the key military supporter and supplier of Cuba, cut off almost all military aid by 1993 |
Military branches | Latvian Republic Defense Force: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force (Latvijas Gaisa Spelki), Border Guard, Latvian Home Guard (Latvijas Zemessardze) (2007) | Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) includes ground forces, Revolutionary Navy (MGR), Air and Air Defense Force (DAAFAR), Territorial Troops Militia (MTT), and Youth Labor Army (EJT); the Border Guard (TGF) is controlled by the Interior Ministry |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (2005 est.) | roughly 4% (FY95 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
3,090,633 females age 15-49: 3,029,274 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
1,911,160 females age 15-49: 1,867,958 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 17 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
79,562 females: 85,650 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 18 November (1918); note - 18 November 1918 was the date Latvia declared itself independent from Soviet Russia; 4 May 1990 is when it declared the renewal of independence; 21 August 1991 was the date of de facto independence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 10 October (1868); note - 10 October 1868 is the date of independence from Spain, 20 May 1902 is the date of independence from US administration |
Nationality | noun: Latvian(s)
adjective: Latvian |
noun:
Cuban(s) adjective: Cuban |
Natural hazards | NA | the east coast is subject to hurricanes from August to October (in general, the country averages about one hurricane every other year); droughts are common |
Natural resources | peat, limestone, dolomite, amber, hydropower, wood, arable land | cobalt, nickel, iron ore, copper, manganese, salt, timber, silica, petroleum, arable land |
Net migration rate | -2.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -1.36 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 948 km; oil 82 km; refined products 415 km (2007) | - |
Political parties and leaders | First Party of Latvia/Latvia's Way or LPP/LC [Ainars SLESERS, Ivars GODMANIS]; For Human Rights in a United Latvia or PCTVL [Jakovs PLINERS]; For the Fatherland and Freedom/Latvian National Independence Movement or TB/LNNK [Roberts ZILE, Maris GRINBLATS]; Harmony Center or SC [Janis URBANOVICS, Nils USAKOVS]; Latvian Social Democratic Workers Party (Social Democrats) or LSDSP [Juris BOJARS]; Latvian Socialist Party or LSP [Alfreds RUBIKS]; New Democrats or JD [Maris GULBIS]; New Era Party or JL [Einars REPSE, Krisjanis KARINS]; People's Party or TP [Aigars KALVITIS]; The Union of Latvian Greens and Farmers Party or ZZS [Augusts BRIGMANIS] | only party - Cuban Communist Party or PCC [Fidel CASTRO Ruz, first secretary] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Headquarters for the Protection of Russian Schools (SHTAB) [Aleksandr KAZAKOV] | NA |
Population | 2,259,810 (July 2007 est.) | 11,184,023 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.648% (2007 est.) | 0.37% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Cienfuegos, Havana, Manzanillo, Mariel, Matanzas, Nuevitas, Santiago de Cuba |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 8, FM 56, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 169, FM 55, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 3.9 million (1997) |
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 (2006) |
total:
11,969 km standard gauge: 4,807 km 1.435-m gauge (147 km electrified) note: in addition to the 4,807 km of standard gauge track in public use, 7,162 km of track is in private use by sugar plantations; about 90% of the private use track is standard gauge and the rest is narrow gauge (2000) |
Religions | Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox | nominally 85% Roman Catholic prior to CASTRO assuming power; Protestants, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jews, and Santeria are also represented |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.048 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.946 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.487 male(s)/female total population: 0.862 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal for Latvian citizens | 16 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: recent efforts focused on bringing competition to the telecommunications sector; the number of fixed lines is decreasing as wireless telephony expands
domestic: number of telecommunications operators has grown rapidly since the fixed-line market opened to competition in 2003; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular subscribership is roughly 125 per 100 persons international: country code - 371; the Latvian network is now connected via fiber optic cable to Estonia, Finland, and Sweden |
general assessment:
NA domestic: principal trunk system, end to end of country, is coaxial cable; fiber-optic distribution in Havana and on Isla de la Juventud; 2 microwave radio relay installations (one is old, US-built; the other newer, Soviet-built); both analog and digital mobile cellular service established international: satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 657,400 (2006) | 473,031 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2.184 million (2006) | 2,994 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 44 (plus 31 repeaters) (1995) | 58 (1997) |
Terrain | low plain | mostly flat to rolling plains, with rugged hills and mountains in the southeast |
Total fertility rate | 1.28 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.6 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 5.9% (2007 est.) | 5.5% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 300 km (2006) | 240 km |