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Latvia

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Background :

The name "Latvia" originates from the ancient Latgalians, one of four eastern Baltic tribes that formed the ethnic core of the Latvian people (ca. 8th-12th centuries A.D.). The region subsequently came under the control of Germans, Poles, Swedes, and finally, Russians. A Latvian republic emerged following World War I, but it was annexed by the USSR in 1940 - an action never recognized by the US and many other countries. Latvia reestablished its independence in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union. Although the last Russian troops left in 1994, the status of the Russian minority (some 30% of the population) remains of concern to Moscow. Latvia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. 

Location :

Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania 

Geographic Coordinates Center :

57 00 N, 25 00 E  (Latitude, Longtitude)

Geographic Coordinates Rectangle :

West 20.97
North 58.08
East 28.24
South 55.67

Area :

total 64 589 square km
land 62 249 square km
water 2 340 square km

Land boundaries :

total 1 382 km
Belarus (by) 171 km
Estonia (ee) 343 km
Lithuania (lt) 576 km
Russia (ru) 292 km

Coastline :

498.00 km

Climate :

maritime; wet, moderate winters 

Terrain :

low plain 

Elevation extremes :

lowest point 0 metres
highest point 312 metres

Natural resources :

amber arable land
dolomite hydropower
limestone peat
wood

Land use :

arable land 28.19 %
permanent crops 0.45 %
other 71.36 %

Irrigated land :

200 square km

current issues :

Latvia's environment has benefited from a shift to service industries after the country regained independence; the main environmental priorities are improvement of drinking water quality and sewage system, household, and hazardous waste management, as well as reduction of air pollution; in 2001, Latvia closed the EU accession negotiation chapter on environment committing to full enforcement of EU environmental directives by 2010 

international agreements :

Air Pollution Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Biodiversity Climate Change
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification
Endangered Species Hazardous Wastes
Law of the Sea Ozone Layer Protection
Ship Pollution Wetlands

Population :

2 231 503 

Indicators :

Growth rate -0.61 %
Birth rate 9.78 births/1,000 population
Total fertility rate 1.30 children born/woman
Death rate 13.62 deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate -2.30 migrant(s)/1,000 population

Age structure :

0-14 years 13.30 %
15-64 years 69.60 %
65 years and over 17.00 %

Median age :

total 40.10 years
male 37.10 years
female 43.30 years

Sex ratio :

at birth 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over 0.49 male(s)/female
total population 0.86 male(s)/female

Health :

Infant mortality rate 8.77 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth - total population 72.15 years
Life expectancy at birth - male 66.98 years
Life expectancy at birth - female 77.59 years
HIV-AIDS adult prevalence rate 0.80 %
HIV-AIDS people living with HIV-AIDS 10 000
HIV-AIDS deaths 500

Religions :

Lutheran 19.60 %
Orthodox 15.30 %
other Christian 1.00 %
other 0.40 %
unspecified 63.70 %

Languages :

Latvian 58.20 %
Russian 37.50 %
Lithuanian  

Literacy :

total population 99.70 %
male 99.80 %
female 99.70 %

Country name :

conventional long form Republic of Latvia
conventional short form Latvia
local long form Latvijas Republika
local short form Latvija
former Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic

Country Codes :

ISO 3166 LV
ISO Numeric 428
ISO3 LVA
FIPS LG
ccTLD lv
English Latvia

Administrative divisions :

26 counties (singular - rajons) and 7 municipalities*: Aizkraukles Rajons, Aluksnes Rajons, Balvu Rajons, Bauskas Rajons, Cesu Rajons, Daugavpils*, Daugavpils Rajons, Dobeles Rajons, Gulbenes Rajons, Jekabpils Rajons, Jelgava*, Jelgavas Rajons, Jurmala*, Kraslavas Rajons, Kuldigas Rajons, Liepaja*, Liepajas Rajons, Limbazu Rajons, Ludzas Rajons, Madonas Rajons, Ogres Rajons, Preilu Rajons, Rezekne*, Rezeknes Rajons, Riga*, Rigas Rajons, Saldus Rajons, Talsu Rajons, Tukuma Rajons, Valkas Rajons, Valmieras Rajons, Ventspils*, Ventspils Rajons 

Capital :

name Riga
geographic coordinates 56 57 N, 24 06 E
time difference 2.00
daylight saving time 1

International organization participation :

Australia Group BA
BIS CBSS
CE EAPC
EBRD EIB
EU FAO
IAEA IBRD
ICAO ICCt
ICRM IDA
IFC IFRCS
IHO ILO
IMF IMO
IMSO IOC
IOM IPU
ISO (correspondent) ITU
ITUC Interpol
MIGA NATO
NIB NSG
OAS (observer) OIF (observer)
OPCW OSCE
PCA Schengen Convention
UN UNCTAD
UNESCO UNWTO
UPU WCO
WEU (associate partner) WFTU
WHO WIPO
WMO WTO

Independence :

1918-11-18 

National holiday :

Independence Day

1918-11-18

Executive branch :

President Valdis ZATLERS Prime Minister Valdis DOMBROVSKIS

Legislative branch :

TP 19.50 %
ZZS 16.70 %
JL 16.40 %
SC 14.40 %

GDP - Gross Domestic product :

PPP - Purchasing Power Parity 32 400 000 000 $
Official Exchange Rate 24 200 000 000
RGR - Real Growth rate -17.80 %
PPP - per capita 14 500 $

GDP Composition by sector :

agriculture 3.60 %
industry 24.00 %
services 72.40 %

Labor force - by occupation :

agriculture 12.10 %
industry 25.80 %
services 61.80 %

Other Indicators :

Labor force 1 205 000 people
Unemployment rate 16.60 %
Distribution of family income - Gini index 36.00
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 3.30 %
Investment (gross fixed) 26.20 % of GDP
Current account balance 1 640 000 000 $
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 5 030 000 000 $
Debt external 38 010 000 000 $
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad 1 103 000 000 $
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home 11 460 000 000 $
Market value of publicly traded shares 1 609 000 000 $
Military expenditures 1.20 % of GDP
Public debt 32.50 % of GDP

Household income or consumption by percentage share :

lowest 10% 2.70 %
highest 10% 27.40 %

Budget :

revenues 9 501 000 000 $
expenditures 12 150 000 000 $

Agriculture - products :

beef eggs
fish grain
milk pork
potatoes sugar beets
vegetables

Industries :

agricultural machinery buses
electronics fertilizer
pharmaceuticals processed foods
radios street and railroad cars
synthetic fibers textiles
vans washing machines

Energy :

Electricity Production 4 620 000 000 kWh
Electricity Consumption 6 822 000 000 kWh
Electricity Exports 2 123 000 000 kWh
Electricity Imports 4 643 000 000 kWh
Oil Consumption 39 000 bbl/day
Oil Exports 5 873 bbl/day
Oil Imports 43 400 bbl/day
Natural gas Consumption 2 049 999 999 cubic metres
Natural gas Imports 2 049 999 999 cubic metres

Value :

6 721 000 000 $

Commodities :

foodstuffs machinery and equipment
metals textiles
wood and wood products

Value :

8 849 000 000 $

Commodities :

chemicals fuels
machinery and equipment vehicles

Communications :

Telephons Main lines in use 644 000
Telephons Mobile, Cellular 2 234 000
FM Radio broadcast stations 62
Television broadcast stations 37
Internet Country code (ccTLD) lv
Internet Hosts 257 414
Internet Users 1 254 000

Transportation :

Airports with paved runways 20
Pipelines - gas 948 km
Pipelines - refined products 415 km
Roadways - total 69 675 km
Roadways - paved 69 675 km
Railways 2 298 km
Waterways 300 km

Photos

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