Lithuania (2001) | Guinea-Bissau (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 | 9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos |
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: 41.7% (male 288,760; female 289,975)
15-64 years: 55.4% (male 367,728; female 400,996) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 17,570; female 23,334) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish |
Airports | 72 (2000 est.) | 28 (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: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (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: 25
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
65,200 sq km land: 65,200 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 36,120 sq km
land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut |
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. | Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable upheaval. The founding government consisted of a single party system and command economy. In 1980, a military coup established Joao VIEIRA as president and a path to a market economy and multiparty system was implemented. A number of coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him and in 1994 he was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military coup attempt and civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIERA's ouster in 1999. In February 2000, an interim government turned over power when opposition leader Kumba YALA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. YALA was ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2003, and Henrique ROSA was sworn in as President. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by its crippled economy, devastated in the civil war. |
Birth rate | 10 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 38.03 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1.5 billion expenditures: $1.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
Capital | Vilnius | Bissau |
Climate | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers | tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds |
Coastline | 99 km | 350 km |
Constitution | adopted 25 October 1992 | 16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 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 Guinea-Bissau
conventional short form: Guinea-Bissau local long form: Republica da Guine-Bissau local short form: Guine-Bissau former: Portuguese Guinea |
Currency | litas (LTL) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States; previously the Guinea-Bissau peso (GWP) was used |
Death rate | 12.86 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.57 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.5 billion (2000 est.) | $941.5 million (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 |
the US Embassy suspended operations on 14 June 1998 in the midst of violent conflict between forces loyal to then President VIEIRA and military-led junta; US embassy Dakar is responsible for covering Guinea-Bissau: telephone - [221] 823-4296; FAX - [221] 822-5903 |
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 (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Henrique Adriano DA SILVA
chancery: 1511 K Street NW, Suite 519, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950 FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954 |
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 | attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region |
Economic aid - recipient | $228.5 million (1995) | $115.4 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. | One of the 10 poorest countries in the world, Guinea-Bissau depends mainly on farming and fishing. Cashew crops have increased remarkably in recent years, and the country now ranks sixth in cashew production. Guinea-Bissau exports fish and seafood along with small amounts of peanuts, palm kernels, and timber. Rice is the major crop and staple food. However, intermittent fighting between Senegalese-backed government troops and a military junta destroyed much of the country's infrastructure and caused widespread damage to the economy in 1998; the civil war led to a 28% drop in GDP that year, with partial recovery in 1999-2002. Before the war, trade reform and price liberalization were the most successful part of the country's structural adjustment program under IMF sponsorship. The tightening of monetary policy and the development of the private sector had also begun to reinvigorate the economy. Because of high costs, the development of petroleum, phosphate, and other mineral resources is not a near-term prospect. However, unexploited offshore oil reserves could provide much-needed revenue in the long run. The inequality of income distribution is one of the most extreme in the world. The government and international donors continue to work out plans to forward economic development from a lamentably low base. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in low growth in 2002-03 and dim prospects for 2004. |
Electricity - consumption | 9.817 billion kWh (1999) | 51.15 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) | 55 million 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: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
Environment - current issues | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing |
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, Law of the Sea, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Lithuanian 80.6%, Russian 8.7%, Polish 7%, Byelorussian 1.6%, other 2.1% | African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% |
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 (XOF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999)
note: as of 1 May 1997, Guinea-Bissau adopted the XOF franc as the national currency; since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro |
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 Henrique ROSA (interim; since 28 September 2003); note - a September 2003 coup overthrew the elected government of Kumba YALA; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 to 28 September 2003
head of government: Prime Minister Carlos GOMES Junior (since 9 May 2004) cabinet: NA elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 28 November 1999 and 16 January 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature election results: Kumba YALA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Kumba YALA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28% note: a bloodless coup led to the dissolution of the elected government of Kumba YALA in September 2003; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 September 2003 until stepping aside on 28 September 2003 with the establishment of a caretaker government |
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) | cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber |
Exports - partners | Germany 15.8%, Latvia 12.6%, Russia 6.9%, Belarus 5.8%, Denmark (1999) | India 76.8%, Nigeria 12.1%, Italy 5.1% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and green with a vertical red band on the hoist side; there is a black five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $26.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.063 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10% industry: 33% services: 57% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 62%
industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.9% (2000 est.) | -7% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 24 00 E | 12 00 N, 15 00 W |
Geography - note | - | this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland |
Highways | total:
44,000 km paved: 35,500 km unpaved: 8,500 km (2000) |
total: 4,400 km
paved: 453 km unpaved: 3,947 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.1% highest 10%: 25.6% (1996) |
lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
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) | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Russia 20.4%, Germany 16.5%, Denmark 3.8%, Belarus 2.2%, Latvia 2% (1999) | Senegal 18.1%, India 14.6%, Portugal 14.6%, China 9.7%, Italy 9%, Spain 4.9% (2003) |
Independence | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.3% (2000 est.) | 2.6% (1997 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 | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
Infant mortality rate | 14.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 108.72 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 119.37 deaths/1,000 live births female: 97.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2000 est.) | 4% (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, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 14 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 430 sq km (1993 est.) | 170 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts appointed by the Parliament | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices who are appointed by the president and serve at his pleasure; final court of appeals in criminal and civil cases); Regional Courts (one in each of nine regions; first court of appeals for Sectoral Court decisions; hear all felony cases and civil cases valued at over $1,000); 24 Sectoral Courts (judges are not necessarily trained lawyers; they hear civil cases under $1,000 and misdemeanor criminal cases) |
Labor force | 2 million (2000 est.) | 480,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 30%, agriculture 20%, services 50% (1997 est.) | agriculture 82% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,273 km border countries: Belarus 502 km, Latvia 453 km, Poland 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 227 km |
total: 724 km
border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
Land use | arable land:
39% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 31% other: 15% (2001 est.) |
arable land: 10.67%
permanent crops: 8.82% other: 80.51% (2001) |
Languages | Lithuanian (official), Polish, Russian | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | NA |
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 |
unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (100 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve a maximum of four years); note - President YALA dissolved the National People's Assembly in November 2002, elections for a new legislature were scheduled to fall in February 2003 but were then postponed to April, then July, then September, and were last scheduled to occur in March 2004
elections: last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 31.5%, PRS 24.8%, PUSD 16.1%, UE 4.1%, APU 1.3%, 13 other parties 22.2% ; seats by party - PAIGC 45, PRS 35, PUSD 17, UE 2, APU 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
69.25 years male: 63.3 years female: 75.5 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 46.98 years
male: 45.09 years female: 48.92 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: 42.4% male: 58.1% female: 27.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
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.) |
none |
Military branches | Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Force, Security Forces (internal and border troops), National Guard (Skat) | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $181 million (FY99) | $8.4 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.66% (FY00) | 2.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
929,389 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 326,864 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
730,363 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 185,801 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
28,506 (2001 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, 24 September (1973) |
Nationality | noun:
Lithuanian(s) adjective: Lithuanian |
noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | NA | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires |
Natural resources | peat, arable land | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, unexploited deposits of petroleum |
Net migration rate | 0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -1.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil, 105 km; natural gas 760 km (1992) | - |
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] | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; Front for the Liberation and Independence of Guinea or FLING [Francois MENDY]; Guinea-Bissau Resistance-Ba Fata Movement or RGB-MB [Helder Vaz LOPES]; Guinean Civic Forum or FCG [Antonieta Rosa GOMES]; International League for Ecological Protection or LIPE [Alhaje Bubacar DJALO, president]; National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Abubacer BALDE, secretary general]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Kumba YALA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Platform or UP [coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 3,610,535 (July 2001 est.) | 1,388,363 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | -0.27% (2001 est.) | 1.99% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Butinge, Kaunas, Klaipeda | Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 112, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002) |
Radios | 1.9 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,002 km broad gauge: 2,002 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) (1994) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic (primarily), Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical Christian Baptist, Muslim, Jewish | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
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: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 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: small system
domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications international: country code - 245 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.048 million (1997) | 10,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 297,500 (November 1998) | 1,300 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 20 (plus 30 repeaters) (1995) | NA (1997) |
Terrain | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.37 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.8% (2000) | NA (1998) |
Waterways | 600 km (perennially navigable) | 4 largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2004) |