Lithuania (2006) | Nauru (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 10 counties (apskritys, singular - apskritis); Alytaus, Kauno, Klaipedos, Marijampoles, Panevezio, Siauliu, Taurages, Telsiu, Utenos, Vilniaus | 14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 15.5% (male 284,888/female 270,458)
15-64 years: 69.1% (male 1,210,557/female 1,265,542) 65 years and over: 15.5% (male 190,496/female 363,965) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 39.6% (male 2,515; female 2,366)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 3,578; female 3,656) 65 years and over: 1.7% (male 108; female 106) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish | coconuts |
Airports | 91 (2006) | 1 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 34
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 20 (2006) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 57
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 53 (2006) |
- |
Area | total: 65,200 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km |
total: 21 sq km
land: 21 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
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 Moscow did not recognize this proclamation until September of 1991 (following the abortive coup in Moscow). The last Russian troops withdrew in 1993. Lithuania subsequently restructured its economy for integration into Western European institutions; it joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. | Nauru's phosphate deposits began to be mined early in the 20th century by a German-British consortium; the island was occupied by Australian forces in World War I. Nauru achieved independence in 1968 and joined the UN in 1999. Nauru is the world's smallest independent republic. |
Birth rate | 8.75 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 26.6 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $8.429 billion
expenditures: $9.103 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $23.4 million
expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY95/96) |
Capital | name: Vilnius
geographic coordinates: 54 41 N, 25 19 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 |
no official capital; government offices in Yaren District |
Climate | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers | tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February) |
Coastline | 90 km | 30 km |
Constitution | adopted 25 October 1992 | 29 January 1968 |
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 Nauru
conventional short form: Nauru former: Pleasant Island |
Currency | - | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 10.98 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 7.06 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $11.7 billion (2 February 2006) | $33.3 million |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John A. CLOUD
embassy: Akmenu Gatve 6, Vilnius, LT-03106 mailing address: American Embassy, Almeny gatve 6, Vilnius LT-03106 telephone: [370] (5) 266 5500 FAX: [370] (5) 266 5510 |
the US does not have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Nauru |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Kornelija JURGAITIENE
chancery: 4590 MacArthur Blvd. NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5860 FAX: [1] (202) 328-0466 consulate(s) general: Chicago, New York |
Nauru does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a UN office at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400 D, New York, New York 10017; telephone: (212) 937-0074
consulate(s): Hagatna (Guam) |
Disputes - international | Lithuania and Russia committed to demarcating their boundary in 2006 in accordance with the land and maritime treaty ratified by Russia in May 2003 and by Lithuania in 1999; Lithuania operates a simplified transit regime for Russian nationals traveling from the Kaliningrad coastal exclave into Russia, while still conforming, as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, to strict Schengen border rules; the Latvian parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over potential hydrocarbons | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $1.6 billion in committed EU structural and cohesion funds (2004-06) | $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) |
Economy - overview | Lithuania, the Baltic state that has conducted the most trade with Russia, has slowly rebounded from the 1998 Russian financial crisis. Unemployment dropped from 11% in 2003 to about 8% in 2005. Growing domestic consumption and increased investment have furthered recovery. Trade has been increasingly oriented toward the West. Lithuania has gained membership in the World Trade Organization and joined the EU in May 2004. Privatization of the large, state-owned utilities, particularly in the energy sector, is nearing completion. Overall, more than 80% of enterprises have been privatized. Foreign government and business support have helped in the transition from the old command economy to a market economy. | Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are expected to be exhausted within a few years. Phosphate production has declined since 1989, as demand has fallen in traditional markets and as the marginal cost of extracting the remaining phosphate increases, making it less internationally competitive. While phosphates have given Nauruans one of the highest per capita incomes in the Third World, few other resources exist with most necessities being imported, including fresh water from Australia. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. In anticipation of the exhaustion of Nauru's phosphate deposits, substantial amounts of phosphate income have been invested in trust funds to help cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's economic future. The government has been borrowing heavily from the trusts to finance fiscal deficits. To cut costs the government has called for a freeze on wages, a reduction of over-staffed public service departments, privatization of numerous government agencies, and closure of some overseas consulates. In recent years Nauru has encouraged the registration of offshore banks and corporations. Tens of billions of dollars have been channeled through their accounts. Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of Nauru's per capita GDP varying widely. |
Electricity - consumption | 12.079 billion kWh (2004) | 27.9 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 11.7 billion kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 4.144 billion kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 19 billion kWh (2004) | 30 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Juozapines Kalnas 293.6 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m |
Environment - current issues | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases | limited natural fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater, but mostly dependent on a single, aging desalination plant; intensive phosphate mining during the past 90 years - mainly by a UK, Australia, and NZ consortium - has left the central 90% of Nauru a wasteland and threatens limited remaining land resources |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, 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: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Lithuanian 83.4%, Polish 6.7%, Russian 6.3%, other or unspecified 3.6% (2001 census) | Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% |
Exchange rates | litai per US dollar - 2.774 (2005), 2.7806 (2004), 3.0609 (2003), 3.677 (2002), 4 (2001) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.9354 (January 2002) 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Valdas ADAMKUS (since 12 July 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Gediminas KIRKILAS (since 4 July 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 13 and 27 June 2004 (next to be held June 2009); prime minister appointed by the president on the approval of the Parliament election results: Valdas ADAMKUS elected president; percent of vote - Valdas ADAMKUS 52.2%, Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE 47.8%; Gediminas KIRKILAS approved by Parliament 85-13, with 5 abstentions |
chief of state: Acting President Derog GIOURA (since 10 March 2003) following death of President Bernard DOWIYOGO note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Acting President Derog GIOURA (since 10 March 2003) following death of President Bernard DOWIYOGO note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a three-year term; election last held 8 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2004); following Rene HARRIS' resignation, Bernard DOWIYOGO was elected president election results: Rene HARRIS elected president; percent of Parliamentary vote - NA%; replaced by Bernard DOWIYOGO 9 January 2003 following a no-confidence vote; HARRIS reinstated 17 January 2003, then gives up presidency 18 January and DOWIYOGO is elected president; DOWIYOGO dies 10 March 2003; with 9 votes over 8 for Kinza CLODUMAR, Derog GIOURA was named acting president |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $25.3 million f.o.b. (1991) |
Exports - commodities | mineral products 23%, textiles and clothing 16%, machinery and equipment 11%, chemicals 6%, wood and wood products 5%, foodstuffs 5% (2001) | phosphates |
Exports - partners | Russia 10.4%, Latvia 10.2%, Germany 9.4%, France 7%, Estonia 5.9%, Poland 5.5%, Sweden 5%, US 4.7%, UK 4.7%, Denmark 4.3% (2005) | NZ, Australia, South Korea, US (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red | blue with a narrow, horizontal, yellow stripe across the center and a large white 12-pointed star below the stripe on the hoist side; the star indicates the country's location in relation to the Equator (the yellow stripe) and the 12 points symbolize the 12 original tribes of Nauru |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $60 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 5.5%
industry: 32.5% services: 62% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 7.5% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 24 00 E | 0 32 S, 166 55 E |
Geography - note | fertile central plains are separated by hilly uplands that are ancient glacial deposits | Nauru is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Makatea in French Polynesia; only 53 km south of Equator |
Highways | - | total: 30 km
paved: 24 km unpaved: 6 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 24.9% (2000) |
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; susceptible to money laundering despite changes to banking legislation | broad-based money-laundering center |
Imports | 93,000 bbl/day bbl/day (2004) | $21.1 million c.i.f. (1991) |
Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, chemicals, textiles and clothing, metals | food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery |
Imports - partners | Russia 27.9%, Germany 15.2%, Poland 8.3% (2005) | Australia, US, UK, Indonesia, India (2000) |
Independence | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) | 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.3% (2005 est.) | NA% |
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 jewelry | phosphate mining, offshore banking, coconut products |
Infant mortality rate | total: 6.78 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
10.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.7% (2005) | -3.6% (1993) (1993) |
International organization participation | ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BA, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, ICAO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 70 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for all courts appointed by the President | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 1.61 million (2005 est.) | - |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 15.8%
industry: 28.2% services: 56% (2004 est.) |
employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation |
Land boundaries | total: 1,613 km
border countries: Belarus 653.5 km, Latvia 588 km, Poland 103.7 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 267.8 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 44.81%
permanent crops: 0.9% other: 54.29% (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Lithuanian (official) 82%, Russian 8%, Polish 5.6%, other and unspecified 4.4% (2001 census) | Nauruan (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes |
Legal system | based on civil law system; legislative acts can be appealed to the constitutional court | acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law |
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 10 and 24 October 2004 (next to be held October 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - Labor 28.6%, Working for Lithuania (Social Democrats and Social Liberals) 20.7%, TS 14.6%, For Order and Justice (Liberal Democrats and Lithuanian People's Union) 11.4%, Liberal and Center Union 9.1%, Farmers and New Democracy Union 6.6%, other 9%; seats by faction - Labor 29, Homeland Union 26, Social Democrats 23, Civil Democracy (split from Labor) 11, Liberal Movement (formerly Liberal Political Group) 11, National Farmer's Union (formerly Farmers and New Democracy Union) 11, Social Liberal 10, Liberal Democrats 9, Liberal and Center Political Group 8, independents 3 (as of late-July 2006) |
unicameral Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held NA April 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 18 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.2 years
male: 69.2 years female: 79.49 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 61.57 years
male: 58.05 years female: 65.26 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands |
Map references | Europe | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm | contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 49 ships (1000 GRT or over) 353,094 GRT/352,883 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 20, chemical tanker 1, container 1, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 14, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 10 (Denmark 10) registered in other countries: 17 (Antigua and Barbuda 3, Belize 1, North Korea 1, Norway 1, Panama 5, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3, unknown 3) (2006) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia |
Military branches | Ground Forces, Naval Force, Lithuanian Military Air Forces, National Defense Volunteer Forces (2005) | no regular military forces; Nauru Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $230.8 million (FY01) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (FY01) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 3,103 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,710 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 16 February (1918); note - 16 February 1918 is the date Lithuania declared its independence from Soviet Russia and established its statehood; 11 March 1990 is the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 31 January (1968) |
Nationality | noun: Lithuanian(s)
adjective: Lithuanian |
noun: Nauruan(s)
adjective: Nauruan |
Natural hazards | NA | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | peat, arable land, amber | phosphates, fish |
Net migration rate | -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 1,696 km; oil 228 km; refined products 121 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Civil Democracy Party [Viktor MUNTIANAS, chairman]; Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles [Valdemar TOMASZEVSKI, chairman]; National Farmer's Union [Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE, chairman]; Homeland Union/Conservative Party or TS [Andrius KUBILIUS, chairman]; Labor Party; Liberal and Center Political Group [Arturas ZUOKAS, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party [Valentinas MAZURONIS, chairman]; Liberal Movement; Lithuanian Christian Democrats or LKD [Valentinas STUNDYS, chairman]; Lithuanian People's Union for a Fair Lithuania; Lithuanian Social Democratic Coalition [Algirdas BRAZAUSKAS, chairman] consists of the Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party or LDDP and the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSDP; Social Liberal/New Union [Arturas PAULAUSKAS, chairman]; Social Union of Christian Conservatives [Gediminas VAGNORIUS, chairman]; Young Lithuania and New Nationalists | loose multiparty system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal) [Bernard DOWIYOGO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 3,585,906 (July 2006 est.) | 12,329 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | Less than $2.15 per day (PPP): 4% | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.3% (2006 est.) | 1.96% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Nauru |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 29, FM 142, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 7,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 1,771 km
broad gauge: 1,749 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) standard gauge: 22 km 1.435-m gauge (2005) |
total: 5 km
note: gauge unknown; used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast (2001) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 79%, Russian Orthodox 4.1%, Protestant (including Lutheran and Evangelical Christian Baptist) 1.9%, other or unspecified 5.5%, none 9.5% (2001 census) | Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female total population: 0.89 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal and compulsory |
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: country code - 370; landline connections to Latvia and Poland; major international connections to Denmark, Sweden, and Norway by submarine cable for further transmission by satellite |
general assessment: adequate local and international radiotelephone communication provided via Australian facilities
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 801,100 (2005) | 2,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4.353 million (2005) | 450 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 27
note: Lithuania has approximately 27 broadcasting stations, but may have as many as 100 transmitters, including repeater stations (2001) |
1 (1997) |
Terrain | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil | sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center |
Total fertility rate | 1.2 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 3.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 8.2% (2005) | 0% |
Waterways | 425 km (2005) | none |