Lithuania (2001) | Chad (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 44 regions (rajonai, singular - rajonas) and 11 municipalities*: Akmenes Rajonas, Alytaus Rajonas, Alytus*, Anyksciu Rajonas, Birstonas*, Birzu Rajonas, Druskininkai*, Ignalinos Rajonas, Jonavos Rajonas, Joniskio Rajonas, Jurbarko Rajonas, Kaisiadoriu Rajonas, Kaunas*, Kauno Rajonas, Kedainiu Rajonas, Kelmes Rajonas, Klaipeda*, Klaipedos Rajonas, Kretingos Rajonas, Kupiskio Rajonas, Lazdiju Rajonas, Marijampole*, Marijampoles Rajonas, Mazeikiu Rajonas, Moletu Rajonas, Neringa* Pakruojo Rajonas, Palanga*, Panevezio Rajonas, Panevezys*, Pasvalio Rajonas, Plunges Rajonas, Prienu Rajonas, Radviliskio Rajonas, Raseiniu Rajonas, Rokiskio Rajonas, Sakiu Rajonas, Salcininku Rajonas, Siauliai*, Siauliu Rajonas, Silales Rajonas, Silutes Rajonas, Sirvintu Rajonas, Skuodo Rajonas, Svencioniu Rajonas, Taurages Rajonas, Telsiu Rajonas, Traku Rajonas, Ukmerges Rajonas, Utenos Rajonas, Varenos Rajonas, Vilkaviskio Rajonas, Vilniaus Rajonas, Vilnius*, Zarasu Rajonas | 14 prefectures (prefectures, singular - prefecture); Batha, Biltine, Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti, Chari-Baguirmi, Guera, Kanem, Lac, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mayo-Kebbi, Moyen-Chari, Ouaddai, Salamat, Tandjile
note: instead of 14 prefectures, there may be a new administrative structure of 28 departments (departments, singular - department), and 1 city*; Assongha, Baguirmi, Bahr El Gazal, Bahr Koh, Batha Oriental, Batha Occidental, Biltine, Borkou, Dababa, Ennedi, Guera, Hadjer Lamis, Kabia, Kanem, Lac, Lac Iro, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mandoul, Mayo-Boneye, Mayo-Dallah, Monts de Lam, N'Djamena*, Ouaddai, Salamat, Sila, Tandjile Oriental, Tandjile Occidental, Tibesti |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
18.75% (male 345,694; female 331,125) 15-64 years: 67.69% (male 1,181,119; female 1,262,872) 65 years and over: 13.56% (male 165,732; female 323,993) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 47.9% (male 2,228,605; female 2,201,368)
15-64 years: 49.3% (male 2,171,169; female 2,393,184) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 105,686; female 153,481) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish | cotton, sorghum, millet, peanuts, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca); cattle, sheep, goats, camels |
Airports | 72 (2000 est.) | 50 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
9 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
63 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 55 (2000 est.) |
total: 43
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 10 (2002) |
Area | total:
65,200 sq km land: 65,200 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1.284 million sq km
land: 1,259,200 sq km water: 24,800 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly more than three times the size of California |
Background | Independent between the two World Wars, Lithuania was annexed by the USSR in 1940. On 11 March 1990, Lithuania became the first of the Soviet republics to declare its independence, but this proclamation was not generally recognized until September of 1991 (following the abortive coup in Moscow). The last Russian troops withdrew in 1993. Lithuania subsequently has restructured its economy for eventual integration into Western European institutions. | Chad, part of France's African holdings until 1960, endured three decades of ethnic warfare as well as invasions by Libya before a semblance of peace was finally restored in 1990. The government eventually suppressed or came to terms with most political-military groups, settled a territorial dispute with Libya on terms favorable to Chad, drafted a democratic constitution, and held multiparty presidential and National Assembly elections in 1996 and 1997, respectively. In 1998, a new rebellion broke out in northern Chad, which continued to escalate throughout 2000. A peace agreement, signed in January 2002 between the government and the rebels, provides for the demobilization of the rebels and their reintegration into the political system. Despite movement toward democratic reform, power remains in the hands of a northern ethnic oligarchy. |
Birth rate | 10 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 47.06 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1.5 billion expenditures: $1.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
revenues: $198 million
expenditures: $218 million, including capital expenditures of $146 million (1998 est.) |
Capital | Vilnius | N'Djamena |
Climate | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers | tropical in south, desert in north |
Coastline | 99 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | adopted 25 October 1992 | passed by referendum 31 March 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Lithuania conventional short form: Lithuania local long form: Lietuvos Respublika local short form: Lietuva former: Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form: Republic of Chad
conventional short form: Chad local long form: Republique du Tchad local short form: Tchad |
Currency | litas (LTL) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States |
Death rate | 12.86 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.38 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.5 billion (2000 est.) | $1.1 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador John F. TEFFT embassy: Akmenu 6, 2600 Vilnius mailing address: American Embassy, Vilnius, PSC 78, Box V, APO AE 09723 telephone: [370] (2) 223-031 FAX: [370] (2) 227-236 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Christopher E. GOLDTHWAIT
embassy: Avenue Felix Eboue, N'Djamena mailing address: B. P. 413, N'Djamena telephone: [235] (51) 70-09 FAX: [235] (51) 56-54 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Vygaudas USACKAS chancery: 2622 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5860 FAX: [1] (202) 328-0466 consulate(s) general: Chicago and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Hassaballah Abdelhadi Ahmat SOUBIANE
chancery: 2002 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 462-4009 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1937 |
Disputes - international | Latvia has not ratified a 1998 maritime boundary agreement with Lithuania (primary concern is oil exploration rights); 1997 border agreement with Russia not yet ratified by Russia | internal political instabilities with fighting and violence overlap into Chad and Central African Republic, leaving refugees and rebel groups in both countries; Chadian Aozou rebels reside in southern Libya; Lake Chad Commission continues to urge signatories Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria to ratify delimitation treaty over lake region, which remains the site of armed clashes among local populations and militias; Chad rejects Nigerian request to redemarcate boundary, the site of continuing cross-border incidents |
Economic aid - recipient | $228.5 million (1995) | $238.3 million; note - $125 million committed by Taiwan (August 1997); $30 million committed by African Development Bank; ODA $150 million |
Economy - overview | Lithuania, the Baltic state that has conducted the most trade with Russia, has been slowly rebounding from the 1998 Russian financial crisis. High unemployment and weak consumption have held back recovery. GDP growth for 2000 - estimated at 2.9% - fell behind that of Estonia and Latvia, and unemployment is estimated at 10.8%, the country's highest since regaining independence in 1990. For 2001, Lithuanians forecast 3.2% growth, 1.8% inflation, and a fiscal deficit of 3.3%. In early 2001, the Lithuanian Government announced that it will repeg its currency, the litas, to the euro (the litas is currently pegged to the dollar) some time in 2002. Lithuania must ratify 25 agreements along with other legal documents and obligations by 1 May 2001 before gaining World Trade Organization membership. Lithuania was invited to the Helsinki summit in December 1999 and began EU accession talks in early 2000. Privatization of the large, state-owned utilities, particularly in the energy sector, remains a key challenge for 2001. | Chad's primarily agricultural economy will continue to be boosted by major oilfield and pipeline projects that began in 2000. Over 80% of Chad's population relies on subsistence farming and stock raising for its livelihood. Cotton, cattle, and gum arabic provide the bulk of Chad's export earnings, but Chad will begin to export oil in 2004. Chad's economy has long been handicapped by its landlocked position, high energy costs, and a history of instability. Chad relies on foreign assistance and foreign capital for most public and private sector investment projects. A consortium led by two US companies has been investing $3.7 billion to develop oil reserves estimated at 1 billion barrels in southern Chad. Oil production is scheduled to come on stream in late 2003. |
Electricity - consumption | 9.817 billion kWh (1999) | 87.46 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 3.2 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 400 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 13.567 billion kWh (1999) | 94.04 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
23.89% hydro: 3.43% nuclear: 72.68% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Juozapines/Kalnas 292 m |
lowest point: Djourab Depression 160 m
highest point: Emi Koussi 3,415 m |
Environment - current issues | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases | inadequate supplies of potable water; improper waste disposal in rural areas contributes to soil and water pollution; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | Lithuanian 80.6%, Russian 8.7%, Polish 7%, Byelorussian 1.6%, other 2.1% | 200 distinct groups; in the north and center: Arabs, Gorane (Toubou, Daza, Kreda), Zaghawa, Kanembou, Ouaddai, Baguirmi, Hadjerai, Fulbe, Kotoko, Hausa, Boulala, and Maba, most of whom are Muslim; in the south: Sara (Ngambaye, Mbaye, Goulaye), Moundang, Moussei, Massa, most of whom are Christian or animist; about 1,000 French citizens live in Chad |
Exchange rates | litai per US dollar - 4.000 (fixed rate since 1 May 1994); note - litai is the plural of litas | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Valdas ADAMKUS (since 26 February 1998) head of government: Premier Algirdas BRAZAUSKAS (since 3 July 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the premier elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 December 1997 and 4 January 1998 (next to be held NA 2002); premier appointed by the president on the approval of the Parliament election results: Valdas ADAMKUS elected president; percent of vote - Valdas ADAMKUS 50.4%, Arturas PAULAUSKAS 49.6% |
chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY (since 4 December 1990)
head of government: Prime Minister Moussa Faki MAHAMAT (since NA July 2003) cabinet: Council of State, members appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote to serve five-year term; if no candidate receives at least 50% of the total vote, the two candidates receiving the most votes must stand for a second round of voting; last held 20 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY reelected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY 63%, Ngarlegy YORONGAR 16%, Saleh KEBZABO 7% note: government coalition - MPS, UNDR, and URD |
Exports | $3.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment 22%, mineral products 15%, chemicals 12%, textiles and clothing, foodstuffs (1999) | cotton, cattle, gum arabic |
Exports - partners | Germany 15.8%, Latvia 12.6%, Russia 6.9%, Belarus 5.8%, Denmark (1999) | Portugal 28.3%, Germany 13.6%, US 7.8%, Czech Republic 6.5%, France 5.8%, Nigeria 5.8%, Poland 5.5%, Spain 5.2%, Morocco 4.5% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; similar to the flag of Romania; also similar to the flags of Andorra and Moldova, both of which have a national coat of arms centered in the yellow band; design was based on the flag of France |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $26.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9.297 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10% industry: 33% services: 57% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 38%
industry: 13% services: 49% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.9% (2000 est.) | 7.4% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 24 00 E | 15 00 N, 19 00 E |
Geography - note | - | landlocked; Lake Chad is the most significant water body in the Sahel |
Highways | total:
44,000 km paved: 35,500 km unpaved: 8,500 km (2000) |
total: 33,400 km
paved: 267 km unpaved: 33,133 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.1% highest 10%: 25.6% (1996) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Southwest Asia, Latin America, and Western Europe to Western Europe and Scandinavia; limited production of methamphetamine and ecstasy | - |
Imports | $4.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 18%, mineral products 16%, chemicals 10%, textiles and clothing 10%, transport equipment 7% (1999) | machinery and transportation equipment, industrial goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs, textiles |
Imports - partners | Russia 20.4%, Germany 16.5%, Denmark 3.8%, Belarus 2.2%, Latvia 2% (1999) | France 31.5%, US 31.4%, Germany 5.5%, Nigeria 4.6% (2002) |
Independence | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) | 11 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.3% (2000 est.) | 5% (1995) |
Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, electric motors, television sets, refrigerators and freezers, petroleum refining, shipbuilding (small ships), furniture making, textiles, food processing, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, optical equipment, electronic components, computers, amber | oil, cotton textiles, meatpacking, beer brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials |
Infant mortality rate | 14.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 95.74 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 105 deaths/1,000 live births female: 86.11 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2000 est.) | 6% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT (observer), BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 14 (2000) | 1 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 430 sq km (1993 est.) | 200 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts appointed by the Parliament | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; Magistrate Courts |
Labor force | 2 million (2000 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 30%, agriculture 20%, services 50% (1997 est.) | agriculture more than 80% (subsistence farming, herding, and fishing) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,273 km border countries: Belarus 502 km, Latvia 453 km, Poland 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 227 km |
total: 5,968 km
border countries: Cameroon 1,094 km, Central African Republic 1,197 km, Libya 1,055 km, Niger 1,175 km, Nigeria 87 km, Sudan 1,360 km |
Land use | arable land:
39% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 31% other: 15% (2001 est.) |
arable land: 2.78%
permanent crops: 0.02% other: 97.2% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Lithuanian (official), Polish, Russian | French (official), Arabic (official), Sara (in south), more than 120 different languages and dialects |
Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | based on French civil law system and Chadian customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Seimas (141 seats, 71 members are directly elected by popular vote, 70 are elected by proportional representation; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 October 2000 (next to be held NA October 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - Social Democratic Coalition 31.1%, New Union/Social Liberals 19.6%, Liberal Union 17.2%, TS 8.6%, remaining parties all less than 5%; seats by party - Social Democratic Coalition 52, Liberal Union 34, New Union/Social Liberals 29, TS 9, Farmer's Party 4, Center Union 2, Poles' Electoral Action 2, Modern Christian Democratic Union 1, independents 3, others 5 |
bicameral according to constitution, consists of a National Assembly (155 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and a Senate (not yet created and size unspecified, members to serve six-year terms, one-third of membership renewable every two years)
elections: National Assembly - last held 21 April 2002 (next to be held in NA April 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MPS 110, RDP 12, FAR 9, RNDP 5, URD 5, UNDR 3, others 11 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
69.25 years male: 63.3 years female: 75.5 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 48.51 years
male: 46.97 years female: 50.1 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 98% (1989 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write French or Arabic
total population: 47.5% male: 56% female: 39.3% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia | Central Africa, south of Libya |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
50 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 293,168 GRT/327,827 DWT ships by type: cargo 26, combination bulk 10, petroleum tanker 2, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 7, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 3 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Force, Security Forces (internal and border troops), National Guard (Skat) | Armed Forces (including National Army, Air Force, and Gendarmerie), Rapid Intervention Force, National and Nomadic Guard (GNNT), Presidential Security Guard, Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $181 million (FY99) | $40.74 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.66% (FY00) | 1.9% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
929,389 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,940,328 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
730,363 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,015,982 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 20 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
28,506 (2001 est.) |
males: 86,953 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 16 February (1918); note - 16 February 1918 is the date of independence from German, Austrian, Prussian, and Russian occupation, 11 March 1990 is the date of independence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 11 August (1960) |
Nationality | noun:
Lithuanian(s) adjective: Lithuanian |
noun: Chadian(s)
adjective: Chadian |
Natural hazards | NA | hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds occur in north; periodic droughts; locust plagues |
Natural resources | peat, arable land | petroleum (unexploited but exploration under way), uranium, natron, kaolin, fish (Lake Chad) |
Net migration rate | 0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil, 105 km; natural gas 760 km (1992) | oil 205 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or LKDP [Zigmas ZINKEVICIUS, chairman]; Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles [Valdemar TOMASZEVSKI, chairman]; Homeland Union/Conservative Party or TS [Vytautas LANDSBERGIS, chairman]; Lithuanian Center Union or LCS [Kestutis GLAVECKAS, chairman]; Lithuanian Farmer's Party or LUP [Ramunas KARBAUSKIS, chairman]; Lithuanian Liberal Union [Rolandas PAKSAS, chairman]; Lithuanian Social Democratic Coalition [Algirdas BRAZAUSKAS, chairman] consists of the Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party or LDDP, the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSPD, and New Democracy; Modern Christian Democratic Union [Vytautas BOGUSIS, chairman]; New Union-Social Liberals [Arturas PAULAUSKAS, chairman] | Federation Action for the Republic or FAR [Ngarlejy YORONGAR]; National Rally for Development and Progress or RNDP [Mamadou BISSO]; National Union for Democracy and Renewal or UNDR [Saleh KEBZABO]; Patriotic Salvation Movement or MPS [Mahamat Saleh AHMAT, chairman] (originally in opposition but now the party in power and the party of the president); Union for Renewal and Democracy or URD [Gen. Wadal Abdelkader KAMOUGUE]; Viva Rally for Development and Progress or Viva RNDP [Delwa Kassire COUMAKOYE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 3,610,535 (July 2001 est.) | 9,253,493 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 80% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.27% (2001 est.) | 3.07% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Butinge, Kaunas, Klaipeda | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 112, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 5 (2002) |
Radios | 1.9 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,002 km broad gauge: 2,002 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) (1994) |
0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic (primarily), Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical Christian Baptist, Muslim, Jewish | Muslim 51%, Christian 35%, animist 7%, other 7% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.51 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
inadequate, but is being modernized to provide an improved international capability and better residential access domestic: a national, fiber-optic cable, interurban, trunk system is nearing completion; rural exchanges are being improved and expanded; mobile cellular systems are being installed; access to the Internet is available; still many unsatisfied telephone subscriber applications international: landline connections to Latvia and Poland; major international connections to Denmark, Sweden, and Norway by submarine cable for further transmission by satellite |
general assessment: primitive system
domestic: fair system of radiotelephone communication stations international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.048 million (1997) | 9,700 (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 297,500 (November 1998) | 5,500 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 20 (plus 30 repeaters) (1995) | 1 (2002) |
Terrain | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil | broad, arid plains in center, desert in north, mountains in northwest, lowlands in south |
Total fertility rate | 1.37 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 6.44 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.8% (2000) | NA% |
Waterways | 600 km (perennially navigable) | 2,000 km |