Compare Latvia (2008) - Ethiopia (2006)

Compare Latvia (2008) z Ethiopia (2006)

	Latvia (2008)	Ethiopia (2006)

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	9 ethnically-based states (kililoch, singular - kilil) and 2 self-governing administrations* (astedaderoch, singular - astedader); Adis Abeba* (Addis Ababa), Afar, Amara (Amhara), Binshangul Gumuz, Dire Dawa*, Gambela Hizboch (Gambela Peoples), Hareri Hizb (Harari People), Oromiya (Oromia), Sumale (Somali), Tigray, Ye Debub Biheroch Bihereseboch na Hizboch (Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples)
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: 43.7% (male 16,373,718/female 16,280,766) 15-64 years: 53.6% (male 19,999,482/female 20,077,014) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 929,349/female 1,117,652) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish	cereals, pulses, coffee, oilseed, cotton, sugarcane, potatoes, qat, cut flowers; hides, cattle, sheep, goats; fish
Airports	42 (2007)	84 (2006)
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: 14 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 21 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 20 (2007)	total: 70 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 23 (2006)
Area	total: 64,589 sq km land: 63,589 sq km water: 1,000 sq km	total: 1,127,127 sq km land: 1,119,683 sq km water: 7,444 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than West Virginia	slightly less than twice the size of Texas
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.	Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of the 1936-41 Italian occupation during World War II. In 1974, a military junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (who had ruled since 1930) and established a socialist state. Torn by bloody coups, uprisings, wide-scale drought, and massive refugee problems, the regime was finally toppled in 1991 by a coalition of rebel forces, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). A constitution was adopted in 1994, and Ethiopia's first multiparty elections were held in 1995. A border war with Eritrea late in the 1990's ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. Final demarcation of the boundary is currently on hold due to Ethiopian objections to an international commission's finding requiring it to surrender territory considered sensitive to Ethiopia.
Birth rate	9.43 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	37.98 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $8.975 billion expenditures: $8.88 billion (2007 est.)	revenues: $2.338 billion expenditures: $2.88 billion; including capital expenditures of $788 million (2005 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	name: Addis Ababa geographic coordinates: 9 02 N, 38 42 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	maritime; wet, moderate winters	tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation
Coastline	498 km	0 km (landlocked)
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	ratified December 1994, effective 22 August 1995
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: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia conventional short form: Ethiopia local long form: Ityop'iya Federalawi Demokrasiyawi Ripeblik local short form: Ityop'iya former: Abyssinia, Italian East Africa abbreviation: FDRE
Death rate	13.64 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	14.86 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$29.85 billion (30 June 2007)	$5.101 billion (2005 est.)
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	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Vicki HUDDLESTON embassy: Entoto Street, Addis Ababa mailing address: P. O. Box 1014, Addis Ababa telephone: [251] (1) 517-4000 FAX: [251] (1) 517-4888
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	chief of mission: Ambassador Samuel ASSEFA chancery: 3506 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 364-1200 FAX: [1] (202) 587-0195 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles consulate(s): New York
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	Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by the 2002 Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but mutual animosities, accusations, and armed posturing prevail, preventing demarcation despite international intervention; Ethiopia refuses to withdraw to the delimited boundary until technical errors made by the EEBC that ignored "human geography" are addressed, including the award of Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war; Eritrea insists that the EEBC decision be implemented immediately without modifications; Ethiopia has only an administrative line and no international border with the Oromo region of southern Somalia where it maintains alliances with local clans in opposition to the unrecognized Somali Interim Government in Mogadishu; "Somaliland" secessionists provide port facilities and trade ties to landlocked Ethiopia; efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Sudan have been delayed by civil war
Economic aid - recipient	$162 million (2004)	$308 million (FY00/01)
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.	Ethiopia's poverty-stricken economy is based on agriculture, accounting for half of GDP, 60% of exports, and 80% of total employment. The agricultural sector suffers from frequent drought and poor cultivation practices. Coffee is critical to the Ethiopian economy with exports of some $156 million in 2002, but historically low prices have seen many farmers switching to qat to supplement income. The war with Eritrea in 1998-2000 and recurrent drought have buffeted the economy, in particular coffee production. In November 2001, Ethiopia qualified for debt relief from the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, and in December 2005 the International Monetary Fund voted to forgive Ethiopia's debt to the body. Under Ethiopia's land tenure system, the government owns all land and provides long-term leases to the tenants; the system continues to hamper growth in the industrial sector as entrepreneurs are unable to use land as collateral for loans. Drought struck again late in 2002, leading to a 2% decline in GDP in 2003. Normal weather patterns late in 2003 helped agricultural and GDP growth recover in 2004-05.
Electricity - consumption	6.09 billion kWh (2005)	1.914 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	707 million kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	2.855 billion kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	4.778 billion kWh (2005)	2.058 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Galzina Kalns 312 m	lowest point: Denakil Depression -125 m highest point: Ras Dejen 4,620 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	deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water shortages in some areas from water-intensive farming and poor management
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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups	Latvian 57.7%, Russian 29.6%, Belarusian 4.1%, Ukrainian 2.7%, Polish 2.5%, Lithuanian 1.4%, other 2% (2002)	Oromo 40%, Amhara and Tigre 32%, Sidamo 9%, Shankella 6%, Somali 6%, Afar 4%, Gurage 2%, other 1%
Exchange rates	lati per US dollar - 0.5162 (2007), 0.5597 (2006), 0.5647 (2005), 0.5402 (2004), 0.5715 (2003)	birr per US dollar - 8.68 (2005), 8.6356 (2004), 8.5997 (2003), 8.5678 (2002), 8.4575 (2001) note: since 24 October 2001 exchange rates are determined on a daily basis via interbank transactions regulated by the Central Bank
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 GIRMA Woldegiorgis (since 8 October 2001) head of government: Prime Minister MELES Zenawi (since NA August 1995) cabinet: Council of Ministers as provided for in the December 1994 constitution; ministers are selected by the prime minister and approved by the House of People's Representatives elections: president elected by the House of People's Representatives for a six-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 8 October 2001 (next to be held October 2007); prime minister designated by the party in power following legislative elections election results: GIRMA Woldegiorgis elected president; percent of vote by the House of People's Representatives - 100%
Exports	6,765 bbl/day (2004)	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	wood and wood products, machinery and equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs	coffee, qat, gold, leather products, live animals, oilseeds
Exports - partners	Lithuania 14.2%, Estonia 12.3%, Russia 11.5%, Germany 9.8%, UK 7.6%, Sweden 6.3%, Denmark 4.8% (2006)	Saudi Arabia 6.9%, Djibouti 6.8%, Switzerland 6.4%, Italy 5.9%, US 5.5%, Netherlands 4.2% (2005)
Fiscal year	calendar year	8 July - 7 July
Flag description	three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon	three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and red with a yellow pentagram and single yellow rays emanating from the angles between the points on a light blue disk centered on the three bands; Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa, and the three main colors of her flag were so often adopted by other African countries upon independence that they became known as the pan-African colors
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 3.5% industry: 21.3% services: 75.2% (2007 est.)	agriculture: 47.5% industry: 9.9% services: 42.6% (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	10.3% (2007 est.)	8.9% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	57 00 N, 25 00 E	8 00 N, 38 00 E
Geography - note	most of the country is composed of fertile, low-lying plains, with some hills in the east	landlocked - entire coastline along the Red Sea was lost with the de jure independence of Eritrea on 24 May 1993; the Blue Nile, the chief headstream of the Nile by water volume, rises in T'ana Hayk (Lake Tana) in northwest Ethiopia; three major crops are believed to have originated in Ethiopia: coffee, grain sorghum, and castor bean
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2.5% highest 10%: 29.1% (2003)	lowest 10%: 3% highest 10%: 33.7% (1995)
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	transit hub for heroin originating in Southwest and Southeast Asia and destined for Europe and North America, as well as cocaine destined for markets in southern Africa; cultivates qat (khat) for local use and regional export, principally to Djibouti and Somalia (legal in all three countries); the lack of a well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center
Imports	39,190 bbl/day (2004)	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, vehicles	food and live animals, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles, cereals, textiles
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)	Saudi Arabia 14.7%, China 12.6%, US 12.4%, COUNTRY* 9.6%, India 6.7%, Italy 4.6% (2005)*
Independence	18 November 1918 (from Soviet Russia)	oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world - at least 2,000 years
Industrial production growth rate	5.9% (2007 est.)	6.7% (2001 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 processing, beverages, textiles, leather, chemicals, metals processing, cement
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.)	total: 93.62 deaths/1,000 live births male: 103.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 83.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	9.6% (2007 est.)	11.6% (2005 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	ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (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 (2003)	2,900 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament); Constitutional Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament)	Federal Supreme Court (the president and vice president of the Federal Supreme Court are recommended by the prime minister and appointed by the House of People's Representatives; for other federal judges, the prime minister submits to the House of People's Representatives for appointment candidates selected by the Federal Judicial Administrative Council)
Labor force	1.136 million (2006 est.)	27.27 million
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 13% industry: 19% services: 68% (2005 est.)	agriculture: 80% industry: 8% services: 12% (1985)
Land boundaries	total: 1,348 km border countries: Belarus 141 km, Estonia 343 km, Lithuania 588 km, Russia 276 km	total: 5,328 km border countries: Djibouti 349 km, Eritrea 912 km, Kenya 861 km, Somalia 1,600 km, Sudan 1,606 km
Land use	arable land: 28.19% permanent crops: 0.45% other: 71.36% (2005)	arable land: 10.01% permanent crops: 0.65% other: 89.34% (2005)
Languages	Latvian (official) 58.2%, Russian 37.5%, Lithuanian and other 4.3% (2000 census)	Amharic, Tigrinya, Oromigna, Guaragigna, Somali, Arabic, other local languages, English (major foreign language taught in schools)
Legal system	based on civil law system with traces of Socialist legal traditions and practices; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	currently transitional mix of national and regional courts
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	bicameral Parliament consists of the House of Federation or upper chamber (108 seats; members are chosen by state assemblies to serve five-year terms) and the House of People's Representatives or lower chamber (547 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote from single-member districts to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 15 May 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by party - EPRDF 327, CUD 109, UEDF 52, SPDP 23, OFDM 11, BGPDUF 8, ANDP 8, independent 1, others 6, undeclared 2 note: irregularities at some polling stations necessitated the rescheduling of voting in certain constituencies
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 71.6 years male: 66.39 years female: 77.1 years (2007 est.)	total population: 49.03 years male: 47.86 years female: 50.24 years (2006 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: 42.7% male: 50.3% female: 35.1% (2003 est.)
Location	Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania	Eastern Africa, west of Somalia
Map references	Europe	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation	none (landlocked)
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: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 79,441 GRT/97,669 DWT by type: cargo 6, roll on/roll off 2 (2006)
Military branches	Latvian Republic Defense Force: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force (Latvijas Gaisa Spelki), Border Guard, Latvian Home Guard (Latvijas Zemessardze) (2007)	Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF): Ground Forces, Ethiopian Air Force note: Ethiopia is landlocked and has no navy; following the secession of Eritrea, Ethiopian naval facilities remained in Eritrean possession
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$295.9 million (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.2% (2005 est.)	3.4% (2005 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	National Day (defeat of MENGISTU regime), 28 May (1991)
Nationality	noun: Latvian(s) adjective: Latvian	noun: Ethiopian(s) adjective: Ethiopian
Natural hazards	NA	geologically active Great Rift Valley susceptible to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions; frequent droughts
Natural resources	peat, limestone, dolomite, amber, hydropower, wood, arable land	small reserves of gold, platinum, copper, potash, natural gas, hydropower
Net migration rate	-2.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: repatriation of Ethiopian refugees residing in Sudan is expected to continue for several years; some Sudanese, Somali, and Eritrean refugees, who fled to Ethiopia from the fighting or famine in their own countries, continue to return to their homes (2006 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]	Afar National Democratic Party or ANDP; Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Front or BGPDUF [Mulualem BESSE]; Coalition for Unity and Democracy or CUD [HAILU Shawel]; Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front or EPRDF [MELES Zenawi] (an alliance of Amhara National Democratic Movement or ANDM, Oromo People's Democratic Organization or OPDO, the South Ethiopean People's Democratic Front or SEPDF, and TigrAyan Peoples' Liberation Front or TPLF); Gurage Nationalities' Democratic Movement or GNDM; Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement or OFDM [BULCHA Demeksa]; Somali People's Democratic Party or SPDP; United Ethopian Democratic Forces or UEDF [BEYENE Petros]; dozens of small parties
Political pressure groups and leaders	Headquarters for the Protection of Russian Schools (SHTAB) [Aleksandr KAZAKOV]	Afar Revolutionary Democratic Union Front or ARDUF; Oromo Liberation Front or OLF [DAOUD Ibsa]; Oromo National Liberation Front or ONLF
Population	2,259,810 (July 2007 est.)	74,777,981 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	50% (2004 est.)
Population growth rate	-0.648% (2007 est.)	2.31% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 8, FM 56, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 8, FM 0, shortwave 1 (2001)
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: 681 km (Ethiopian segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad) narrow gauge: 681 km 1.000-m gauge note: railway under joint control of Djibouti and Ethiopia (2005)
Religions	Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox	Muslim 45%-50%, Ethiopian Orthodox 35%-40%, animist 12%, other 3%-8%
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: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal for Latvian citizens	18 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: adequate for government use domestic: open-wire; microwave radio relay; radio communication in the HF, VHF, and UHF frequencies; two domestic satellites provide the national trunk service international: country code - 251; open-wire to Sudan and Djibouti; microwave radio relay to Kenya and Djibouti; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Pacific Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	657,400 (2006)	610,300 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	2.184 million (2006)	410,600 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	44 (plus 31 repeaters) (1995)	1 plus 24 repeaters (2002)
Terrain	low plain	high plateau with central mountain range divided by Great Rift Valley
Total fertility rate	1.28 children born/woman (2007 est.)	5.22 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	5.9% (2007 est.)	NA%
Waterways	300 km (2006)	-

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