Reunion (2002) | Lithuania (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons | 10 counties (apskritys, singular - apskritis); Alytaus, Kauno, Klaipedos, Marijampoles, Panevezio, Siauliu, Taurages, Telsiu, Utenos, Vilniaus |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.7% (male 120,864; female 115,251)
15-64 years: 62.5% (male 228,864; female 235,991) 65 years and over: 5.8% (male 17,459; female 25,552) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 17.6% (male 323,776; female 310,087)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male 1,188,171; female 1,268,035) 65 years and over: 14% (male 169,513; female 332,979) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish |
Airports | 2 (2001) | 87 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 8 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 65
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 57 (2002) |
Area | total: 2,517 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total: 65,200 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Rhode Island | slightly larger than West Virginia |
Background | The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route. | 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 and was invited to join NATO and the EU in 2002. |
Birth rate | 20.7 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.48 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues: $1.59 billion
expenditures: $1.77 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Saint-Denis | Vilnius |
Climate | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers |
Coastline | 207 km | 99 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | adopted 25 October 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Department of Reunion
conventional short form: Reunion local long form: none local short form: Ile de la Reunion former: Bourbon 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 | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) | litas (LTL) |
Death rate | 5.51 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 12.89 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $5.8 billion (2002 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | 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] (5) 266 5500 FAX: [370] (5) 266 5510 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | 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 a 1997 land and maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, which had ratified the treaty in 1999, legalizing limits of former Soviet republic borders; the Latvian Parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights; discussions are still ongoing among Russia, Lithuania, and the EU concerning a simplified transit document for residents of the Kaliningrad coastal exclave to transit through Lithuania to Russia |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France | $228.5 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to more than 40% of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. | 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 | 1.014 billion kWh (2000) | 8.683 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 6.3 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 1.389 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.09 billion kWh (2000) | 14.62 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 55%
hydro: 45% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 16.5%
hydro: 5.7% nuclear: 77.7% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Juozapines/Kalnas 292 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian | Lithuanian 80.6%, Russian 8.7%, Polish 7%, Belarusian 1.6%, other 2.1% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997) | litai per US dollar - 3.68 (2002), 4 (2001), 4 (2000), 4 (1999), 4 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Gonthier FRIEDERICI (since NA)
head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
chief of state: President Rolandas PAKSAS (since 26 February 2003)
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 22 December 2002 and 5 January 2003 (next to be held in late 2007); premier appointed by the president on the approval of the Parliament election results: Rolandas PAKSAS elected president; percent of vote - Rolandas PAKSAS 54.9%, Valdas ADAMKUS 45.1% |
Exports | $214 million f.o.b. (1997) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993) | mineral products 23%, textiles and clothing 16%, machinery and equipment 11%, chemicals 6%, wood and wood products 5%, foodstuffs 5% (2001) |
Exports - partners | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (1994) | Latvia 12.8%, Germany 12%, UK 7.6%, Poland 6.3%, US 5.9%, France 5.8%, Russia 5.7%, Sweden 5%, Denmark 4.3% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of France is used | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.4 billion (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $30.08 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 31% services: 61% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,800 (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.8% (1998 est.) | 6.7% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 06 S, 55 36 E | 56 00 N, 24 00 E |
Geography - note | this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean | fertile central plains are separated by hilly uplands that are ancient glacial deposits |
Highways | total: 2,724 km
paved: 1,300 km (including 73 km of four-lane road) unpaved: 1,424 km note: 370 km of road are maintained by national authorities, 754 km by departmental authorities and 1,600 km by local authorities (1994) |
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 | $2.5 billion c.i.f. (1997) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products | mineral products 21%, machinery and equipment 17%, transport equipment 11%, chemicals 9%, textiles and clothing 9%, metals 5% (2001) |
Imports - partners | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (1994) | Russia 24.1%, Germany 20.3%, Italy 5.9%, Poland 4.3% (2002) |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 6% (2002 est.) |
Industries | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction | 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 | 8.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 14.17 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.21 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA% | 0.8% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, InOC, WFTU | ACCT (observer), BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 32 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 120 sq km (1998 est.) | 90 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel | Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for all courts appointed by the President |
Labor force | 261,000 (1995) (1995) | 1.5 million (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 8%, industry 19%, services 73% (1990) (1990) | industry 30%, agriculture 20%, 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: 13.2%
permanent crops: 2% other: 84.8% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 45.46%
permanent crops: 0.93% other: 53.61% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Creole widely used | Lithuanian (official), Polish, Russian |
Legal system | French law | based on civil law system; legislative acts can be appealed to the constitutional court |
Legislative branch | unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004); Regional Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PCR 19, UDF 9, RPR 8, various right-wing candidates 4, various left-wing candidates 5 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 1 |
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 faction - Social Democratic Coalition 51, New Union-Social Liberals 25, United Political Group-Group of Liberals 24, Liberal Democrats 13, Conservatives 9, Farmers and New Democracy Parties 8, Mixed Group 6, independent 1 (four seats unfilled as of 1 June 2003) note: the voting results from the 2000 elections do not correspond to the make up of the Seimas, which has evolved into a number of factions, each made up of members of several parties |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.18 years
male: 69.78 years female: 76.74 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 69.6 years
male: 63.78 years female: 75.7 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 79% male: 76% female: 80% (1982 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia |
Map references | World | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 28,264 GRT/44,885 DWT
ships by type: chemical tanker 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: France 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 51 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 303,910 GRT/328,380 DWT
ships by type: cargo 23, combination bulk 8, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 11, roll on/roll off 3, short-sea passenger 4 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Denmark 13 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) | Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Force, National Volunteer Defense Forces (SKAT) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $230.8 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.9% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 194,485 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 937,055 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 99,251 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 735,536 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 6,243 (2002 est.) | males: 29,420 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | 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 |
Nationality | noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
adjective: Reunionese |
noun: Lithuanian(s)
adjective: Lithuanian |
Natural hazards | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano | NA |
Natural resources | fish, arable land, hydropower | peat, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 1,698 km; oil 331 km; refined products 109 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD] | Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles [Valdemar TOMASZEVSKI, chairman]; Homeland Union/Conservative Party or TS [Andrius KUBILIUS, chairman]; Lithuanian Center Union or LCS [Kestutis GLAVECKAS, chairman]; Lithuanian Christian Democrats or LKD [Kazys BOBELIS]; Lithuanian Farmer's Party or LUP [Ramunas KARBAUSKIS, chairman]; Lithuanian Green Party [Rimantas BRAZIULIS]; Lithuanian Liberal Youth [Neringa MOROZAITE]; Lithuanian National Democratic Party [Vygintas GONTIS]; Lithuanian Social Democratic Coalition [Algirdas BRAZAUSKAS, chairman] consists of the Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party or LDDP, the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSDP, and New Democracy; Moderate Conservative Union [Gediminas VAGNORIUS]; Modern Christian Democratic Union [Vytautas BOGUSIS, chairman]; New Democracy and Farmer's Union [Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE, chairman]; New Union-Social Liberals [Arturas PAULAUSKAS, chairman]; Young Lithuania [Arnoldas PLATELIS] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 743,981 (July 2002 est.) | 3,592,561 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.52% (2002 est.) | -0.23% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Le Port, Pointe des Galets | Butinge, Kaunas, Klaipeda |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 29, FM 142, shortwave 1 (2001) |
Radios | 173,000 (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) (2002) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) | Roman Catholic (primarily), Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical Christian Baptist, Muslim, Jewish |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
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 (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
domestic: modern open wire and microwave radio relay network international: radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 268,500 (1999) | 1.142 million (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 197,000 (September 2000) | 500,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) | 27
note: Lithuania has approximately 27 broadcasting stations, but may have as many as 100 transmitters, including repeater stations (2001) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil |
Total fertility rate | 2.55 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.43 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 42.8% (1998) (1998) | 12.5% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | none | 600 km (perennially navigable) |