Lithuania (2006) | Saint Helena (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 10 counties (apskritys, singular - apskritis); Alytaus, Kauno, Klaipedos, Marijampoles, Panevezio, Siauliu, Taurages, Telsiu, Utenos, Vilniaus | 1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* |
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: 18.8% (male 715/female 691)
15-64 years: 71.3% (male 2,745/female 2,575) 65 years and over: 9.8% (male 330/female 404) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish | corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, crawfish (on Tristan da Cunha) |
Airports | 91 (2006) | 1 (2004 est.) |
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
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 57
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 53 (2006) |
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Area | total: 65,200 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km |
total: 410 sq km
land: 410 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Saint Helena Island, Ascension, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly more than twice 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. | Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Ascension Island is the site of a US Air Force auxiliary airfield; Gough Island has a meteorological station. |
Birth rate | 8.75 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 12.33 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $8.429 billion
expenditures: $9.103 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $11.2 million
expenditures: $11 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY92/93) |
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 |
Jamestown |
Climate | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers | Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
Coastline | 90 km | 60 km |
Constitution | adopted 25 October 1992 | 1 January 1989 |
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: none
conventional short form: Saint Helena |
Death rate | 10.98 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 6.43 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $11.7 billion (2 February 2006) | NA (1996) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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) | $12.6 million (1995); note - $5.3 million from UK (1997) |
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. | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1997 or almost one-half of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, raising livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | 12.079 billion kWh (2004) | 4.65 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 11.7 billion kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 4.144 billion kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 19 billion kWh (2004) | 5 million kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Juozapines Kalnas 293.6 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m |
Environment - current issues | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases | NA |
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 |
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Ethnic groups | Lithuanian 83.4%, Polish 6.7%, Russian 6.3%, other or unspecified 3.6% (2001 census) | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% |
Exchange rates | litai per US dollar - 2.774 (2005), 2.7806 (2004), 3.0609 (2003), 3.677 (2002), 4 (2001) | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003), 0.6672 (2002), 0.6947 (2001), 0.6609 (2000)
note: the Saint Helenian pound is on par with the British pound |
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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief Michael CLANCY (since 15 October 2004) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA |
Exports - commodities | mineral products 23%, textiles and clothing 16%, machinery and equipment 11%, chemicals 6%, wood and wood products 5%, foodstuffs 5% (2001) | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts |
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) | Tanzania 30.3%, US 23.8%, Japan 10.4%, UK 7.1%, Spain 6.3% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship |
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 - $2,500 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 7.5% (2005 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 24 00 E | 15 56 S, 5 42 W |
Geography - note | fertile central plains are separated by hilly uplands that are ancient glacial deposits | harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns |
Highways | - | total: 198 km (Saint Helena 138 km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 20 km)
paved: 168 km (Saint Helena 118km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) unpaved: 30 km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension 0 km, Tristan da Cunha 10 km) (2000) |
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 | - |
Imports | 93,000 bbl/day bbl/day (2004) | NA |
Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, chemicals, textiles and clothing, metals | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts |
Imports - partners | Russia 27.9%, Germany 15.2%, Poland 8.3% (2005) | UK 35.7%, US 17.6%, South Africa 17.5%, Tanzania 10.4%, Australia 5.5%, Spain 4.1% (2004) |
Independence | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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 | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing |
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.) |
total: 19 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.7% (2005) | 3.2% (1997 est.) |
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 | ICFTU, UPU |
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; Magistrate's Court; Small Debts Court; Juvenile Court |
Labor force | 1.61 million (2005 est.) | 3,500
note: 1,200 work offshore (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 15.8%
industry: 28.2% services: 56% (2004 est.) |
agriculture and fishing 6%, industry (mainly construction) 48%, services 46% (1987 est.) |
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: 12.9%
permanent crops: 0% other: 87.1% (2001) |
Languages | Lithuanian (official) 82%, Russian 8%, Polish 5.6%, other and unspecified 4.4% (2001 census) | English |
Legal system | based on civil law system; legislative acts can be appealed to the constitutional court | 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 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 Legislative Council (16 seats, including the speaker, 3 ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 June 2001 (next to be held June 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.2 years
male: 69.2 years female: 79.49 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 77.76 years
male: 74.86 years female: 80.81 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 20 and over can read and write
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 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) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Ground Forces, Naval Force, Lithuanian Military Air Forces, National Defense Volunteer Forces (2005) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $230.8 million (FY01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (FY01) | - |
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 | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | noun: Lithuanian(s)
adjective: Lithuanian |
noun: Saint Helenian(s)
adjective: Saint Helenian |
Natural hazards | NA | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha |
Natural resources | peat, arable land, amber | fish |
Net migration rate | -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 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 | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 3,585,906 (July 2006 est.) | 7,460 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | Less than $2.15 per day (PPP): 4% | NA |
Population growth rate | -0.3% (2006 est.) | 0.59% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 29, FM 142, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
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) |
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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) | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, 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: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA years of age |
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: can communicate worldwide
domestic: automatic network international: country code - 290; HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to Ascension Island, which is a major coaxial submarine cable relay point between South Africa, Portugal, and UK; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 801,100 (2005) | 2,200 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4.353 million (2005) | 0 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 27
note: Lithuania has approximately 27 broadcasting stations, but may have as many as 100 transmitters, including repeater stations (2001) |
0
note: television programs are received in Saint Helena via satellite and distributed by cable (2002) |
Terrain | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil | Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 1.2 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 1.54 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 8.2% (2005) | 14% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | 425 km (2005) | - |