Norfolk Island (2005) | Estonia (2007) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | 15 counties (maakonnad, singular - maakond): Harjumaa (Tallinn), Hiiumaa (Kardla), Ida-Virumaa (Johvi), Jarvamaa (Paide), Jogevamaa (Jogeva), Laanemaa (Haapsalu), Laane-Virumaa (Rakvere), Parnumaa (Parnu), Polvamaa (Polva), Raplamaa (Rapla), Saaremaa (Kuressaare), Tartumaa (Tartu), Valgamaa (Valga), Viljandimaa (Viljandi), Vorumaa (Voru)
note: counties have the administrative center name following in parentheses |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9% 65 years and over: 15.9% (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 15% (male 101,430/female 95,658)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 423,664/female 464,813) 65 years and over: 17.5% (male 76,344/female 154,003) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry | potatoes, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish |
Airports | 1 (2004 est.) | 19 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 12
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 7
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
Area | total: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 45,226 sq km
land: 43,211 sq km water: 2,015 sq km note: includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea |
Area - comparative | about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined |
Background | Two British attempts at establishing the island as a penal colony (1788-1814 and 1825-55) were ultimately abandoned. In 1856, the island was resettled by Pitcairn Islanders, descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. | After centuries of Danish, Swedish, German, and Russian rule, Estonia attained independence in 1918. Forcibly incorporated into the USSR in 1940 - an action never recognized by the US - it regained its freedom in 1991, with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since the last Russian troops left in 1994, Estonia has been free to promote economic and political ties with Western Europe. It joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. |
Birth rate | NA | 10.17 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $20 million
expenditures: $20 million, including capital expenditures of $2 million (FY99/00) |
revenues: $6.064 billion
expenditures: $5.445 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Kingston | name: Tallinn
geographic coordinates: 59 26 N, 24 43 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 |
Climate | subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation | maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers |
Coastline | 32 km | 3,794 km |
Constitution | Norfolk Island Act of 1979 | adopted 28 June 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island |
conventional long form: Republic of Estonia
conventional short form: Estonia local long form: Eesti Vabariik local short form: Eesti former: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic |
Death rate | NA | 13.3 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $16.16 billion (2006 est.) |
Dependency status | territory of Australia; Canberra administers Commonwealth responsibilities on Norfolk Island through the Department of Environment, Sport, and Territories | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Stanley Davis PHILLIPS
embassy: Kentmanni 20, 15099 Tallinn mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [372] 668-8100 FAX: [372] 668-8134 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Vaino REINART
chancery: 2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0108 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | Russia recalled its signature to the 1996 technical border agreement with Estonia in 2005, rather than concede to Estonia's appending prepared a unilateral declaration referencing Soviet occupation and territorial losses; Russia demands better accommodation of Russian-speaking population in Estonia; Estonian citizen groups continue to press for realignment of the boundary based on the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty that would bring the now divided ethnic Setu people and parts of the Narva region within Estonia; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Estonia must implement the strict Schengen border rules with Russia |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $135.5 million (2004) |
Economy - overview | Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily increased over the years and has brought a level of prosperity unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural sector has become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs. | Estonia has a modern market-based economy with strong ties to the West. It is a WTO and EU member and pegs its currency to the euro. The economy benefits from strong electronics and telecommunications sectors and is greatly influenced by developments in Finland, Sweden, and Germany, three major trading partners. The current account deficit remains high; however, the state budget is essentially in balance, and public debt is low. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 6.888 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | - | 1.953 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | - | 345 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | 9.599 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m |
lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | air polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast; however, the amount of pollutants emitted to the air have fallen steadily, the emissions of 2000 were 80% less than in 1980; the amount of unpurified wastewater discharged to water bodies in 2000 was one twentieth the level of 1980; in connection with the start-up of new water purification plants, the pollution load of wastewater decreased; Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas need to be monitored; coastal seawater is polluted in certain locations |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesians | Estonian 67.9%, Russian 25.6%, Ukrainian 2.1%, Belarusian 1.3%, Finn 0.9%, other 2.2% (2000 census) |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) | krooni per US dollar - 12.473 (2006), 12.584 (2005), 12.596 (2004), 13.856 (2003), 16.612 (2002)
note: the krooni is pegged to the euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and Australia are represented by Administrator Grant TAMBLING (since 1 November 2003)
head of government: Assembly President and Chief Minister Geoffrey Robert GARDNER (since 5 December 2001) cabinet: Executive Council is made up of four of the nine members of the Legislative Assembly; the council devises government policy and acts as an advisor to the administrator elections: the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia; chief minister elected by the Legislative Assembly for a term of not more than three years; election last held 20 Ocotber 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: Geoffrey Robert GARDNER elected chief minister; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - 17.2% |
chief of state: President Toomas Hendrik ILVES (since 9 October 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Andrus ANSIP (since 12 April 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); if a candidate does not secure two-thirds of the votes after three rounds of balloting in the Parliament, then an electoral assembly (made up of Parliament plus members of local governments) elects the president, choosing between the two candidates with the largest percentage of votes; election last held 23 September 2006 (next to be held in the fall of 2011); prime minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament election results: Toomas Hendrik ILVES elected president on 23 September 2006 by a 345-member electoral assembly; ILVES received 174 votes to incumbent Arnold RUUTEL's 162; remaining 9 ballots left blank or invalid |
Exports | $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY99/00) | 3,958 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados | machinery and equipment 33%, wood and paper 15%, textiles 14%, food products 8%, furniture 7%, metals, chemical products (2001) |
Exports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe | Finland 18.4%, Sweden 12.4%, Latvia 8.9%, Russia 8.1%, US 5.5%, Germany 5.1%, Lithuania 4.8%, Gibraltar 4.7% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider white band | pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 3.2%
industry: 29.1% services: 67.8% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 11.4% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 29 02 S, 167 57 E | 59 00 N, 26 00 E |
Geography - note | most of the 32-km coastline consists of almost inaccessible cliffs, but the land slopes down to the sea in one small southern area on Sydney Bay, where the capital of Kingston is situated | the mainland terrain is flat, boggy, and partly wooded; offshore lie more than 1,500 islands |
Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
Highways | total: 80 km
paved: 53 km unpaved: 27 km (2001) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 2.5%
highest 10%: 27.6% (2003) |
Illicit drugs | - | growing producer of synthetic drugs; increasingly important transshipment zone for cannabis, cocaine, opiates, and synthetic drugs since joining the European Union and the Schengen Accord; potential money laundering related to organized crime and drug trafficking is a concern, as is possible use of the gambling sector to launder funds; major use of opiates and ecstasy |
Imports | $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92) | 54,000 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | NA | machinery and equipment 33.5%, chemical products 11.6%, textiles 10.3%, foodstuffs 9.4%, transportation equipment 8.9% (2001) |
Imports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe | Finland 18.2%, Russia 13.1%, Germany 12.4%, Sweden 9%, Lithuania 6.4%, Latvia 5.7% (2006) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | 20 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 8% (2006 est.) |
Industries | tourism, light industry, ready mixed concrete | engineering, electronics, wood and wood products, textile; information technology, telecommunications |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 7.59 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.77 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 4.4% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU | Australia Group, BA, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 40 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions | National Court (chairman appointed by Parliament for life) |
Labor force | 1,345 | 687,000 (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | tourism 90%, subsistence agriculture 10% | agriculture: 11%
industry: 20% services: 69% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 633 km
border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 12.05%
permanent crops: 0.35% other: 87.6% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), Norfolk a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian | Estonian (official) 67.3%, Russian 29.7%, other 2.3%, unknown 0.7% (2000 census) |
Legal system | based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and acts; English common law applies in matters not covered by either Australian or Norfolk Island law | based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members elected by electors who have nine equal votes each but only four votes can be given to any one candidate; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 20 October 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9 (note - no political parties) |
unicameral Parliament or Riigikogu (101 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 4 March 2007 (next to be held in March 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - Estonian Reform Party 27.8%, Center Party of Estonia 26.1%, Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica 17.9%, Social Democratic Party 10.6%, Estonian Greens 7.1%, Estonian People's Union 7.1%, other 5%; seats by party - Reform Party 31, Center Party 29, Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica 19, Social Democrats 10, Estonian Greens 6, People's Union 6 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population: 72.3 years
male: 66.87 years female: 78.07 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.8% male: 99.8% female: 99.8% (2000 census) |
Location | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: limits fixed in coordination with neighboring states |
Merchant marine | - | total: 33 ships (1000 GRT or over) 393,655 GRT/93,245 DWT
by type: cargo 7, chemical tanker 1, passenger/cargo 23, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 4 (Denmark 2, Norway 2) registered in other countries: 67 (Antigua and Barbuda 15, Belize 1, Cambodia 1, Cyprus 5, Dominica 8, Latvia 1, Liberia 1, Malta 7, Norway 1, Panama 3, Slovakia 2, St Kitts and Nevis 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 20, Vanuatu 1) (2007) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia | - |
Military branches | - | Estonian Defense Forces: Land Force, Navy, Air Force, Volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit, KL) (2006) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June (1856) | Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 was the date Estonia declared its independence from Soviet Russia; 20 August 1991 was the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union |
Nationality | noun: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s) |
noun: Estonian(s)
adjective: Estonian |
Natural hazards | typhoons (especially May to July) | sometimes flooding occurs in the spring |
Natural resources | fish | oil shale, peat, phosphorite, clay, limestone, sand, dolomite, arable land, sea mud |
Net migration rate | NA | -3.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 859 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Center Party of Estonia (Keskerakond) [Edgar SAVISAAR]; Estonian Greens; Estonian People's Union (Rahvaliit) [Villu REILJAN]; Estonian Reform Party (Reformierakond) [Andrus ANSIP]; Estonian United Russian People's Party or EUVRP [Yevgeniy TOMBERG]; Social Democratic Party (formerly People's Party Moodukad or Moderates) [Ivari PADAR]; Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica (Isamaa je Res Publica Liit) [Tonis LUKAS and Taavi VESKIMAGI] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 1,828 (July 2005 est.) | 1,315,912 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 5% (2003) |
Population growth rate | -0.01% (2005 est.) | -0.635% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; loading jetties at Kingston and Cascade | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005) | AM 0, FM 98, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 968 km
broad gauge: 968 km 1.520 m/1.524-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Anglican 34.9%, Roman Catholic 11.7%, Uniting Church in Australia 11.2%, Seventh-Day Adventist 2.8%, Australian Christian 2.4%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, other 2.7%, unspecified 15.3%, none 18.1% (2001 census) | Evangelical Lutheran 13.6%, Orthodox 12.8%, other Christian (including Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal) 1.4%, unaffiliated 34.1%, other and unspecified 32%, none 6.1% (2000 census) |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.911 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.496 male(s)/female total population: 0.842 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal for all Estonian citizens |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate
domestic: free local calls international: country code - 672; undersea coaxial cable links with Australia, New Zealand, and Canada; satellite earth station |
general assessment: foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service; substantial fiber-optic cable systems carry telephone, TV, and radio traffic in the digital mode; Internet services are widely available; schools and libraries are connected to the internet, a large percentage of the population files income-tax returns online, and online voting was used for the first time in the 2005 local elections
domestic: a wide range of high quality voice, data, and Internet services is available throughout the country international: country code - 372; fiber-optic cables to Finland, Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched service; 2 international switches are located in Tallinn (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,532; note - a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits (2004) | 541,900 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island referendum) (2002) | 1.659 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (local programming station plus two repeaters that bring in Australian programs by satellite) (2005) | 3 (2001) |
Terrain | volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains | marshy, lowlands; flat in the north, hilly in the south |
Total fertility rate | NA | 1.41 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0% | 4.5% (2006 est.) |
Waterways | - | 320 km (2006) |