Lithuania (2001) | Germany (2004) | |
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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 | 13 states (Laender, singular - Land) and 3 free states* (Freistaaten, singular - Freistaat); Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern*, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen*, Sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen* |
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: 14.7% (male 6,197,490; female 5,879,052)
15-64 years: 67% (male 28,119,536; female 27,132,713) 65 years and over: 18.3% (male 6,096,106; female 8,999,712) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish | potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry |
Airports | 72 (2000 est.) | 550 (2003 est.) |
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: 331
over 3,047 m: 13 2,438 to 3,047 m: 51 1,524 to 2,437 m: 62 914 to 1,523 m: 71 under 914 m: 134 (2004 est.) |
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: 219
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 31 under 914 m: 185 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
65,200 sq km land: 65,200 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 357,021 sq km
land: 349,223 sq km water: 7,798 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly smaller than Montana |
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. | As Europe's largest economy and most populous nation, Germany remains a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed Germany in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC, which became the EU, and NATO, while the Communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then, Germany has expended considerable funds to bring Eastern productivity and wages up to Western standards. In January 1999, Germany and 10 other EU countries introduced a common European exchange currency, the euro. |
Birth rate | 10 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 8.45 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1.5 billion expenditures: $1.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
revenues: $1.079 trillion
expenditures: $1.173 trillion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | Vilnius | Berlin |
Climate | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers | temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind |
Coastline | 99 km | 2,389 km |
Constitution | adopted 25 October 1992 | 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990 |
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: Federal Republic of Germany
conventional short form: Germany local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland local short form: Deutschland former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich |
Currency | litas (LTL) | euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
Death rate | 12.86 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.44 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.5 billion (2000 est.) | NA (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 Daniel R. COATS
embassy: Neustaedtische Kirchstrasse 4-5, 10117 Berlin; note - a new embassy will be built near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin; ground was broken in October 2004 and completion is scheduled for 2008 mailing address: PSC 120, Box 1000, APO AE 09265 telephone: [49] (030) 8305-0 FAX: [49] (030) 8305-1215 consulate(s) general: Duesseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich |
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 Wolfgang Friedrich ISCHINGER
chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-8140 FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco |
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 | none |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $5.6 billion (1998) |
Economic aid - recipient | $228.5 million (1995) | - |
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. | Germany's affluent and technologically powerful economy- the fifth largest national economy in the world - has become one of the slowest growing economies in the entire euro zone, and a quick turnaround is not in the offing in the foreseeable future. Growth in 2001-03 fell short of 1%. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy continues to be a costly long-term process, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $70 billion. Germany's ageing population, combined with high unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions from workers. Structural rigidities in the labor market - including strict regulations on laying off workers and the setting of wages on a national basis - have made unemployment a chronic problem. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are setting the foundations that could allow Germany to meet the long-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization, particularly if labor market rigidities are further addressed. The government is also starting long-needed structural reforms designed to revitalize the country's economy. In the short run, however, the fall in government revenues and the rise in expenditures have raised the deficit above the EU's 3% debt limit. |
Electricity - consumption | 9.817 billion kWh (1999) | 506.8 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 3.2 billion kWh (1999) | 43.9 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 400 million kWh (1999) | 44 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 13.567 billion kWh (1999) | 544.8 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
23.89% hydro: 3.43% nuclear: 72.68% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Juozapines/Kalnas 292 m |
lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m |
Environment - current issues | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases | emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive |
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: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
Ethnic groups | Lithuanian 80.6%, Russian 8.7%, Polish 7%, Byelorussian 1.6%, other 2.1% | German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Greek, Italian, Polish, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish) |
Exchange rates | litai per US dollar - 4.000 (fixed rate since 1 May 1994); note - litai is the plural of litas | euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999) |
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 Horst KOEHLER (since 1 July 2004)
head of government: Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER (since 27 October 1998); Vice Chancellor Joschka FISCHER (since 17 October 1998) cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor elections: president elected for a five-year term by a Federal Convention including all members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the state parliaments; election last held 23 May 2004 (next to be held 23 May 2009); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; election last held 22 September 2002 (next to be held September 2006) election results: Horst KOEHLER elected president; received 604 votes of the Federal Convention against 589 for Gesine SCHWAN; Gerhard SCHROEDER elected chancellor; percent of Federal Assembly vote 50.7% |
Exports | $3.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | 404,300 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment 22%, mineral products 15%, chemicals 12%, textiles and clothing, foodstuffs (1999) | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles |
Exports - partners | Germany 15.8%, Latvia 12.6%, Russia 6.9%, Belarus 5.8%, Denmark (1999) | France 10.6%, US 9.3%, UK 8.4%, Italy 7.4%, Netherlands 6.2%, Austria 5.3%, Belgium 5.1%, Spain 4.9%, Switzerland 4% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $26.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2.271 trillion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10% industry: 33% services: 57% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 31% services: 68% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $27,600 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.9% (2000 est.) | -0.1% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 24 00 E | 51 00 N, 9 00 E |
Geography - note | - | strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea |
Heliports | - | 34 (2003 est.) |
Highways | total:
44,000 km paved: 35,500 km unpaved: 8,500 km (2000) |
total: 230,735 km
paved: 230,735 km (including 11,515 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.1% highest 10%: 25.6% (1996) |
lowest 10%: 3.6%
highest 10%: 25.1% (1997) |
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 | source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs; major financial center |
Imports | $4.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | 3.081 million bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 18%, mineral products 16%, chemicals 10%, textiles and clothing 10%, transport equipment 7% (1999) | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals |
Imports - partners | Russia 20.4%, Germany 16.5%, Denmark 3.8%, Belarus 2.2%, Latvia 2% (1999) | France 9.2%, Netherlands 8.4%, US 7.3%, Italy 6.3%, UK 6%, Belgium 4.9%, China 4.7%, Austria 4% (2003) |
Independence | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) | 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March 1991 |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.3% (2000 est.) | 0.2% (2003 est.) |
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 | among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages; shipbuilding; textiles |
Infant mortality rate | 14.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 4.2 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2000 est.) | 1.1% (2003 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) | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 14 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 430 sq km (1993 est.) | 4,850 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts appointed by the Parliament | Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat) |
Labor force | 2 million (2000 est.) | 42.63 million (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 30%, agriculture 20%, services 50% (1997 est.) | agriculture 2.8%, industry 33.4%, services 63.8% (1999) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,273 km border countries: Belarus 502 km, Latvia 453 km, Poland 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 227 km |
total: 3,621 km
border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km |
Land use | arable land:
39% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 31% other: 15% (2001 est.) |
arable land: 33.85%
permanent crops: 0.59% other: 65.56% (2001) |
Languages | Lithuanian (official), Polish, Russian | German |
Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; 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 Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (603 seats; elected by popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain representation; members serve four-year terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments are directly represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block)
elections: Federal Assembly - last held 22 September 2002 (next to be held NA September 2006); note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election election results: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - SPD 38.5%, CDU/CSU 38.5%, Alliance '90/Greens 8.6%, FDP 7.4%, PDS 4%; seats by party - SPD 251, CDU/CSU 248, Alliance '90/Greens 55, FDP 47, PDS 2; Federal Council - current composition - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
69.25 years male: 63.3 years female: 75.5 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.54 years
male: 75.56 years female: 81.68 years (2004 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
total population: 99% (1997 est.) male: NA female: NA |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia | Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark |
Map references | Europe | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
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.) |
total: 278 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,721,495 GRT/6,810,631 DWT
by type: cargo 71, chemical tanker 14, container 169, liquefied gas 3, multi-functional large load carrier 1, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 5, rail car carrier 2, roll on/roll off 3, short-sea/passenger 7 foreign-owned: Finland 4, Iceland 1, Netherlands 3 registered in other countries: 2,295 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Force, Security Forces (internal and border troops), National Guard (Skat) | Army (Heer), Navy (Deutsche Marine; including Naval Air arm), Air Force (Luftwaffe), Joint Support Service, Central Medical Service |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $181 million (FY99) | $35.063 billion (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.66% (FY00) | 1.5% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
929,389 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 20,468,942 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
730,363 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 17,338,435 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
28,506 (2001 est.) |
males: 484,837 (2004 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 | Unity Day, 3 October (1990) |
Nationality | noun:
Lithuanian(s) adjective: Lithuanian |
noun: German(s)
adjective: German |
Natural hazards | NA | flooding |
Natural resources | peat, arable land | coal, lignite, natural gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium, potash, salt, construction materials, timber, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil, 105 km; natural gas 760 km (1992) | condensate 325 km; gas 25,293 km; oil 3,540 km; refined products 3,827 km (2004) |
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] | Alliance '90/Greens [Angelika BEER and Reinhard BUETIKOFER]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Edmund STOIBER, chairman]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE, chairman]; Party of Democratic Socialism or PDS [Lothar BISKY]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Franz MUENTEFERING] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | business associations, employers' organizations; expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups |
Population | 3,610,535 (July 2001 est.) | 82,424,609 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | -0.27% (2001 est.) | 0.02% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Butinge, Kaunas, Klaipeda | Berlin, Bonn, Brake, Bremen, Bremerhaven, Cologne, Dresden, Duisburg, Emden, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Kiel, Luebeck, Magdeburg, Mannheim, Rostock, Stuttgart |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 112, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 51, FM 787, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 1.9 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,002 km broad gauge: 2,002 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) (1994) |
total: 46,039 km (20,100 km electrified)
standard gauge: 45,801 km 1.435-m gauge (20,084 km electrified) narrow gauge: 214 km 1.000-m gauge (16 km electrified); 24 km 0.750-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | Roman Catholic (primarily), Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical Christian Baptist, Muslim, Jewish | Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or other 28.3% |
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: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 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: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part
domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign countries international: country code - 49; Germany's international service is excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the INMARSAT, INTELSAT, EUTELSAT, and INTERSPUTNIK satellite systems (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.048 million (1997) | 54.35 million (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 297,500 (November 1998) | 64.8 million (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 20 (plus 30 repeaters) (1995) | 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil | lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south |
Total fertility rate | 1.37 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.38 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.8% (2000) | 10.5% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | 600 km (perennially navigable) | 7,300 km
note: Rhine River carries most goods; Main-Danube Canal links North Sea and Black Sea (2004) |