Niue (2001) | Lithuania (2004) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | none; note - there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 14 villages each with its own village council whose members are elected and serve three-year terms | 10 counties (apskritys, singular - apskritis); Alytaus, Kauno, Klaipedos, Marijampoles, Panevezio, Siauliu, Taurages, Telsiu, Utenos, Vilniaus |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
0-14 years: 16.7% (male 309,736; female 294,129)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male 1,202,603; female 1,262,784) 65 years and over: 14.9% (male 184,145; female 354,502) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, passion fruit, honey, limes, taro, yams, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, poultry, beef cattle | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish |
Airports | 1 (2000 est.) | 102 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 28
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: 14 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 74
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 67 (2003 est.) |
Area | total:
260 sq km land: 260 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 65,200 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than West Virginia |
Background | Niue's remoteness, as well as cultural and linguistic differences between its Polynesian inhabitants and those of the rest of the Cook Islands, have caused it to be separately administered. The population of the island continues to drop (from a peak of 5,200 in 1966 to 2,100 in 2000) with substantial emigration to New Zealand. | 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. |
Birth rate | NA births/1,000 population | 8.49 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $5.427 billion
expenditures: $5.742 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | Alofi | Vilnius |
Climate | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers |
Coastline | 64 km | 99 km |
Constitution | 19 October 1974 (Niue Constitution Act) | adopted 25 October 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Niue former: Savage Island |
conventional long form: Republic of Lithuania
conventional short form: Lithuania local long form: Lietuvos Respublika local short form: Lietuva former: Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic |
Currency | New Zealand dollar (NZD) | litas (LTL) |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 11.03 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $7.671 billion (2003 est.) |
Dependency status | self-governing in free association with New Zealand; Niue fully responsible for internal affairs; New Zealand retains responsibility for external affairs | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand) | chief of mission: Ambassador Stephen D. MULL
embassy: 2600 Akmenu 6, Vilnius mailing address: American Embassy, Vilnius, PSC 78, Box V, APO AE 09723 telephone: [370] (5) 266 5500 FAX: [370] (5) 266 5510 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand) | 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 |
Disputes - international | none | in May 2003, the Russian Parliament ratified the 1997 land and maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, which ratified the treaty in 1999, legalizing limits of former Soviet republic borders; both states also implement a simplified transit regime for Russian nationals transiting Lithuania to and from the Russian Kaliningrad coastal enclave; the Latvian Parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights |
Economic aid - recipient | $8.3 million (1995) | $228.5 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Government expenditures regularly exceed revenues, and the shortfall is made up by critically needed grants from New Zealand that are used to pay wages to public employees. Niue has cut government expenditures by reducing the public service by almost half. The agricultural sector consists mainly of subsistence gardening, although some cash crops are grown for export. Industry consists primarily of small factories to process passion fruit, lime oil, honey, and coconut cream. The sale of postage stamps to foreign collectors is an important source of revenue. The island in recent years has suffered a serious loss of population because of migration of Niueans to New Zealand. Efforts to increase GDP include the promotion of tourism and a financial services industry. | Lithuania, the Baltic state that has conducted the most trade with Russia, has slowly rebounded from the 1998 Russian financial crisis. Unemployment remains high, still 10.7% in 2003, but is improving. 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 has moved ahead with plans to join the EU. 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.8 million kWh (1999) | 8.683 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 6.3 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 1.389 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 3 million kWh (1999) | 14.62 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location near Mutalau settlement 68 m |
lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Juozapines/Kalnas 292 m |
Environment - current issues | increasing attention to conservationist practices to counter loss of soil fertility from traditional slash and burn agriculture | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
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 |
Ethnic groups | Polynesian (with some 200 Europeans, Samoans, and Tongans) | Lithuanian 80.6%, Russian 8.7%, Polish 7%, Belarusian 1.6%, other 2.1% |
Exchange rates | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.2502 (January 2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8629 (1998), 1.5082 (1997), 1.4543 (1996) | litai per US dollar - 3.0609 (2003), 3.677 (2002), 4 (2001), 4 (2000), 4 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by New Zealand High Commissioner John BRYAN (since NA May 2000) head of government: Premier Sani LAKATANI (since 1 April 1999) cabinet: Cabinet consists of the premier and three ministers elections: the monarch is hereditary; premier elected by the Legislative Assembly for a three-year term; election last held 19 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2002) election results: Sani LAKATANI elected premier; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - NA% |
chief of state: President Valdas ADAMKUS (since 12 July 2004)
head of government: Premier Algirdas Mykolas 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 13 June 2004 and 27 June 2004; premier 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% |
Exports | $117,500 (f.o.b., 1989) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | canned coconut cream, copra, honey, passion fruit products, pawpaws, root crops, limes, footballs, stamps, handicrafts | mineral products 23%, textiles and clothing 16%, machinery and equipment 11%, chemicals 6%, wood and wood products 5%, foodstuffs 5% (2001) |
Exports - partners | NZ 89%, Fiji, Cook Islands, Australia | Switzerland 11.6%, Russia 10.1%, Germany 9.9%, Latvia 9.7%, UK 6.4%, France 5.1%, Denmark 4.7%, Estonia 4.3%, Sweden 4% (2003) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | yellow with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the flag of the UK bears five yellow five-pointed stars - a large one on a blue disk in the center and a smaller one on each arm of the bold red cross | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.5 million (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $40.88 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 6.1%
industry: 31.3% services: 62.6% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,800 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 9% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 02 S, 169 52 W | 56 00 N, 24 00 E |
Geography - note | one of world's largest coral islands | fertile central plains are separated by hilly uplands that are ancient glacial deposits |
Highways | total:
234 km paved: 86 km unpaved: 148 km (106 km of which is access and plantation road) (2001) |
total: 75,243 km
paved: 68,697 km (including 417 km of expressways) unpaved: 6,546 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 25.6% (1996) |
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 | $4.1 million (c.i.f., 1989) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, live animals, manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, lubricants, chemicals, drugs | mineral products 21%, machinery and equipment 17%, transport equipment 11%, chemicals 9%, textiles and clothing 9%, metals 5% (2001) |
Imports - partners | NZ 59%, Fiji 20%, Japan 13%, Samoa, Australia, US | Russia 22%, Germany 16.1%, Poland 5.2%, Italy 4.3%, France 4.2% (2003) |
Independence | on 19 October 1974, Niue became a self-governing parliamentary government in free association with New Zealand | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 16.1% (2003 est.) |
Industries | tourism, handicrafts, food processing | 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 |
Infant mortality rate | NA deaths/1,000 live births | total: 7.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (1995) | -1.2% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, ESCAP (associate), FAO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UNESCO, WHO, WMO | ACCT (observer), Australia Group, 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, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NIB, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 90 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of New Zealand; High Court of Niue | Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for all courts appointed by the President |
Labor force | 450 (1992 est.) | 1.642 million (2003 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | most work on family plantations; paid work exists only in government service, small industry, and the Niue Development Board | agriculture 20%, industry 30%, services 50% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,273 km
border countries: Belarus 502 km, Latvia 453 km, Poland 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 227 km |
Land use | arable land:
19% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 4% forests and woodland: 19% other: 50% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 45.22%
permanent crops: 0.91% other: 53.87% (2001) |
Languages | Polynesian closely related to Tongan and Samoan, English | Lithuanian (official), Polish, Russian |
Legal system | English common law | based on civil law system; legislative acts can be appealed to the constitutional court |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (20 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; six elected from a common roll and 14 are village representatives)
elections: last held 19 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 9, independents 11 |
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%, Homeland Union (Conservatives) 14.6%, For Order and Justice (Liberal Democrats and Lithuanian People's Union) 11.4%, Liberal and Center Union 9.1%, Union of Farmers and New Democracy 6.6%; seats by faction - Labor 39, Homeland Union 25, Social Democrats 20, Liberal and Center Union 18, Social Liberals 11, Union of Farmers and New Democracy Parties 10, Liberal Democrats 10, Electoral Action 2, independents 6 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
NA years male: NA years female: NA years |
total population: 73.46 years
male: 68.22 years female: 79 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: 95% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Tonga | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 296,856 GRT/317,731 DWT
by type: cargo 20, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 8, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea/passenger 4 foreign-owned: Denmark 12, Netherlands 1 registered in other countries: 11 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand | - |
Military branches | Police Force | National Defense Volunteer Forces (SKAT), Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $230.8 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.9% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 943,063 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 738,602 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 28,300 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) | 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 |
Nationality | noun:
Niuean(s) adjective: Niuean |
noun: Lithuanian(s)
adjective: Lithuanian |
Natural hazards | typhoons | NA |
Natural resources | fish, arable land | peat, arable land |
Net migration rate | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population | -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 1,696 km; oil 331 km; refined products 109 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Niue People's Action Party or NPP [Sani LAKATANI] | Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles [Valdemar TOMASZEVSKI, chairman]; Homeland Union/Conservative Party or TS [Andrius KUBILIUS, chairman]; Labor Party [Viktor USPASKICH, chairman]; Liberal and Center Union [Arturas ZUOKAS, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party [Valentinas MAZURONIS, chairman]; 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; New Democracy and Farmer's Union or VNDPS [Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE, chairman]; Social Liberals (New Union) [Arturas PAULAUSKAS, chairman]; Social Union of Christian Conservatives [Gediminas VAGNORIUS, chairman]; Young Lithuania and New Nationalists |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 2,124 (July 2001 est.) | 3,607,899 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA |
Population growth rate | 0.5% (2001 est.) | -0.33% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; offshore anchorage only | Butinge, Kaunas, Klaipeda |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 29, FM 142, shortwave 1 (2001) |
Radios | 1,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 1,998 km
broad gauge: 1,807 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) standard gauge: 22 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 169 km 0.750-m gauge (all service suspended) (2003) |
Religions | Ekalesia Niue (Niuean Church - a Protestant church closely related to the London Missionary Society) 75%, Latter-Day Saints 10%, other 15% (mostly Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventist) | Roman Catholic (primarily), Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical Christian Baptist, Muslim, Jewish |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female total population: 0.89 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
primitive system domestic: single-line telephone system connects all villages on island international: NA |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 376 (1991) | 824,200 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1991) | 2,169,900 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 27
note: Lithuania has approximately 27 broadcasting stations, but may have as many as 100 transmitters, including repeater stations (2001) |
Terrain | steep limestone cliffs along coast, central plateau | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil |
Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman | 1.17 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 10.3% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | none | 600 km (2004) |