Western Sahara (2005) | Lithuania (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none (under de facto control of Morocco) | 44 regions (rajonai, singular - rajonas) and 11 municipalities*: Akmenes Rajonas, Alytaus Rajonas, Alytus*, Anyksciu Rajonas, Birstonas*, Birzu Rajonas, Druskininkai*, Ignalinos Rajonas, Jonavos Rajonas, Joniskio Rajonas, Jurbarko Rajonas, Kaisiadoriu Rajonas, Kaunas*, Kauno Rajonas, Kedainiu Rajonas, Kelmes Rajonas, Klaipeda*, Klaipedos Rajonas, Kretingos Rajonas, Kupiskio Rajonas, Lazdiju Rajonas, Marijampole*, Marijampoles Rajonas, Mazeikiu Rajonas, Moletu Rajonas, Neringa* Pakruojo Rajonas, Palanga*, Panevezio Rajonas, Panevezys*, Pasvalio Rajonas, Plunges Rajonas, Prienu Rajonas, Radviliskio Rajonas, Raseiniu Rajonas, Rokiskio Rajonas, Sakiu Rajonas, Salcininku Rajonas, Siauliai*, Siauliu Rajonas, Silales Rajonas, Silutes Rajonas, Sirvintu Rajonas, Skuodo Rajonas, Svencioniu Rajonas, Taurages Rajonas, Telsiu Rajonas, Traku Rajonas, Ukmerges Rajonas, Utenos Rajonas, Varenos Rajonas, Vilkaviskio Rajonas, Vilniaus Rajonas, Vilnius*, Zarasu Rajonas |
Age structure | 0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
0-14 years:
18.75% (male 345,694; female 331,125) 15-64 years: 67.69% (male 1,181,119; female 1,262,872) 65 years and over: 13.56% (male 165,732; female 323,993) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish |
Airports | 11 (2004 est.) | 72 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total:
9 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total:
63 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 55 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
65,200 sq km land: 65,200 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about the size of Colorado | slightly larger than West Virginia |
Background | Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed. | 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. |
Birth rate | NA births/1,000 population | 10 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
revenues:
$1.5 billion expenditures: $1.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
Capital | none | Vilnius |
Climate | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers |
Coastline | 1,110 km | 99 km |
Constitution | - | adopted 25 October 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
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 | - | litas (LTL) |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 12.86 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $2.5 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none | 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] (2) 223-031 FAX: [370] (2) 227-236 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none | 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 | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved - UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991, administered by the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals | Latvia has not ratified a 1998 maritime boundary agreement with Lithuania (primary concern is oil exploration rights); 1997 border agreement with Russia not yet ratified by Russia |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $228.5 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Western Sahara depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. The territory lacks sufficient rainfall for sustainable agricultural production, and most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan Government. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. Incomes and standards of living in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level. | Lithuania, the Baltic state that has conducted the most trade with Russia, has been slowly rebounding from the 1998 Russian financial crisis. High unemployment and weak consumption have held back recovery. GDP growth for 2000 - estimated at 2.9% - fell behind that of Estonia and Latvia, and unemployment is estimated at 10.8%, the country's highest since regaining independence in 1990. For 2001, Lithuanians forecast 3.2% growth, 1.8% inflation, and a fiscal deficit of 3.3%. In early 2001, the Lithuanian Government announced that it will repeg its currency, the litas, to the euro (the litas is currently pegged to the dollar) some time in 2002. Lithuania must ratify 25 agreements along with other legal documents and obligations by 1 May 2001 before gaining World Trade Organization membership. Lithuania was invited to the Helsinki summit in December 1999 and began EU accession talks in early 2000. Privatization of the large, state-owned utilities, particularly in the energy sector, remains a key challenge for 2001. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (2002) | 9.817 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 3.2 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 400 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 90 million kWh (2002) | 13.567 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
23.89% hydro: 3.43% nuclear: 72.68% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed location 463 m |
lowest point:
Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Juozapines/Kalnas 292 m |
Environment - current issues | sparse water and lack of arable land | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases |
Environment - international agreements | party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Arab, Berber | Lithuanian 80.6%, Russian 8.7%, Polish 7%, Byelorussian 1.6%, other 2.1% |
Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 8.868 (2004), 9.5744 (2003), 11.0206 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.6256 (2000) | litai per US dollar - 4.000 (fixed rate since 1 May 1994); note - litai is the plural of litas |
Executive branch | none | chief of state:
President Valdas ADAMKUS (since 26 February 1998) head of government: Premier Algirdas 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 21 December 1997 and 4 January 1998 (next to be held NA 2002); premier appointed by the president on the approval of the Parliament election results: Valdas ADAMKUS elected president; percent of vote - Valdas ADAMKUS 50.4%, Arturas PAULAUSKAS 49.6% |
Exports | NA | $3.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | phosphates 62% | machinery and equipment 22%, mineral products 15%, chemicals 12%, textiles and clothing, foodstuffs (1999) |
Exports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | Germany 15.8%, Latvia 12.6%, Russia 6.9%, Belarus 5.8%, Denmark (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | - | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $26.4 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: 40% (1996 est.) |
agriculture:
10% industry: 33% services: 57% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | purchasing power parity - $7,300 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 2.9% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 24 30 N, 13 00 W | 56 00 N, 24 00 E |
Geography - note | the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas | - |
Highways | total: 6,200 km
paved: 1,350 km unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est) |
total:
44,000 km paved: 35,500 km unpaved: 8,500 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 |
Imports | NA | $4.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs | machinery and equipment 18%, mineral products 16%, chemicals 10%, textiles and clothing 10%, transport equipment 7% (1999) |
Imports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | Russia 20.4%, Germany 16.5%, Denmark 3.8%, Belarus 2.2%, Latvia 2% (1999) |
Independence | - | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 2.3% (2000 est.) |
Industries | phosphate mining, handicrafts | 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 | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
14.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 1% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | none | ACCT (observer), BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 14 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 430 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts appointed by the Parliament |
Labor force | 12,000 | 2 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% | industry 30%, agriculture 20%, services 50% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km |
total:
1,273 km border countries: Belarus 502 km, Latvia 453 km, Poland 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 227 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2001) |
arable land:
39% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 31% other: 15% (2001 est.) |
Languages | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic | Lithuanian (official), Polish, Russian |
Legal system | - | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts |
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 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 party - Social Democratic Coalition 52, Liberal Union 34, New Union/Social Liberals 29, TS 9, Farmer's Party 4, Center Union 2, Poles' Electoral Action 2, Modern Christian Democratic Union 1, independents 3, others 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
total population:
69.25 years male: 63.3 years female: 75.5 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 98% (1989 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue | territorial sea:
12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
50 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 293,168 GRT/327,827 DWT ships by type: cargo 26, combination bulk 10, petroleum tanker 2, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 7, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea passenger 3 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | - | Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Force, Security Forces (internal and border troops), National Guard (Skat) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $181 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.66% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
929,389 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
730,363 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
28,506 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | - | 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: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi, Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
noun:
Lithuanian(s) adjective: Lithuanian |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility | NA |
Natural resources | phosphates, iron ore | peat, arable land |
Net migration rate | - | 0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil, 105 km; natural gas 760 km (1992) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Christian Democratic Party or LKDP [Zigmas ZINKEVICIUS, chairman]; Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles [Valdemar TOMASZEVSKI, chairman]; Homeland Union/Conservative Party or TS [Vytautas LANDSBERGIS, chairman]; Lithuanian Center Union or LCS [Kestutis GLAVECKAS, chairman]; Lithuanian Farmer's Party or LUP [Ramunas KARBAUSKIS, chairman]; Lithuanian Liberal Union [Rolandas PAKSAS, chairman]; Lithuanian Social Democratic Coalition [Algirdas BRAZAUSKAS, chairman] consists of the Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party or LDDP, the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSPD, and New Democracy; Modern Christian Democratic Union [Vytautas BOGUSIS, chairman]; New Union-Social Liberals [Arturas PAULAUSKAS, chairman] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 273,008 (July 2005 est.) | 3,610,535 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | NA | -0.27% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) | Butinge, Kaunas, Klaipeda |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 112, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 1.9 million (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
2,002 km broad gauge: 2,002 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) (1994) |
Religions | Muslim | Roman Catholic (primarily), Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical Christian Baptist, Muslim, Jewish |
Sex ratio | NA | 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 (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: sparse and limited system
domestic: NA international: country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco |
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 | about 2,000 (1999 est.) | 1.048 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1999) | 297,500 (November 1998) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 20 (plus 30 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil |
Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman | 1.37 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 10.8% (2000) |
Waterways | - | 600 km (perennially navigable) |