Match 76 DB Rec# - 7,528 Dataset-WOFACT
Title :Estonia
Text :
Estonia
Geography
Location:
Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia
and Russia
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total area:
45,100 sq km
land area:
43,200 sq km
comparative area:
slightly larger than New Hampshire and Vermont combined
note:
includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea
Land boundaries:
total 557 km, Latvia 267 km, Russia 290 km
Coastline:
1,393 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone:
limits to be fixed in coordination with neighboring states
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
claims over 2,000 sq km of Russian territory in the Narva and Pechora
regions - based on boundary established under the 1921 Peace Treaty of Tartu
Climate:
maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers
Terrain:
marshy, lowlands
Natural resources:
shale oil, peat, phosphorite, amber
Land use:
arable land:
22%
permanent crops:
0%
meadows and pastures:
11%
forest and woodland:
31%
other:
36%
Irrigated land:
110 sq km (1990)
Environment:
current issues:
air heavily polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants
in northeast; contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products,
chemicals at military bases
natural hazards:
flooding occurs frequently in the spring
international agreements:
party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous
Wastes, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
People
Population:
1,625,399 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years:
22% (female 174,304; male 181,101)
15-64 years:
65% (female 549,473; male 515,426)
65 years and over:
13% (female 139,722; male 65,373) (July 1995 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.53% (1995 est.)
Birth rate:
13.9 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate:
11.93 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net migration rate:
3.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
18.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
70.17 years
male:
65.2 years
female:
75.39 years (1995 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.98 children born/woman (1995 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Estonian(s)
adjective:
Estonian
Ethnic divisions:
Estonian 61.5%, Russian 30.3%, Ukrainian 3.17%, Byelorussian 1.8%, Finn
1.1%, other 2.13% (1989)
Religions:
Lutheran
Languages:
Estonian (official), Latvian, Lithuanian, Russian, other
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1989)
total population:
100%
male:
100%
female:
100%
Labor force:
750,000 (1992)
by occupation:
industry and construction 42%, agriculture and forestry 20%, other 38%
(1990)
Government
Names:
conventional long form:
Republic of Estonia
conventional short form:
Estonia
local long form:
Eesti Vabariik
local short form:
Eesti
former:
Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic
Digraph:
EN
Type:
republic
Capital:
Tallinn
Administrative divisions:
15 counties (maakonnad, singular - maakond): Harju maakond (Tallinn), Hiiu
maakond (Kardla), Ida-Viru maakond (Johvi), Jarva maakond (Paide), Jogeva
maakond (Jogeva), Laane maakond (Haapsalu), Laane-Viru maakond (Rakvere),
Parnu maakond (Parnu), Polva maakond (Polva), Rapla maakond (Rapla), Saare
maakond (Kuessaare), Tartu maakond (Tartu), Valga maakond (Valga), Viljandi
maakond (Viljandi), Voru maakond (Voru)
note:
county centers are in parentheses
Independence:
6 September 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 24 February (1918)
Constitution:
adopted 28 June 1992
Legal system:
based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Lennart MERI (since 21 October 1992); election last held 20
September 1992; (next to be held fall 1996); results - no candidate received
majority; newly elected Parliament elected Lennart MERI (21 October 1992)
head of government:
Prime Minister Andres TARAND (since NA October 1994)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the prime minister, authorized by the
legislature
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Parliament (Riigikogu):
elections last held 5 March 1995 (next to be held NA 1998); results - KMU
32.22%, RE 16.18%, K 14.17%, Pro Patria and ERSP 7.85%, M 5.98%, Our Home is
Estonia and Right-Wingers 5.0%; seats - (101 total) KMU 41, RE 19, K 16, Pro
Patria 8, Our Home is Estonia 6, M 6, Right-Wingers 5
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Government
Political parties and leaders:
Coalition Party and Rural Union (KMU) made up of 4 parties: Coalition Party,
Country People's Party, Farmer's Assembly, and Pensioners' and Families'
League; Coalition Party, Tiit VAHI, chairman; Country People's Party, Arnold
RUUTEL, chairman; Farmer's Assembly, Jaak-Hans KUKS, chairman; Pensioners'
and Families' League; Reform Party-Liberals (RE), Siim KALLAS, chairman;
Center Party (K), Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman; Union of Pro Patria (Isaama of
Fatherland), Mart LAAR, chairman; National Independence Party (ERSP), Kelam
TUNNE, chairman; Our Home is Estonia made up of 2 parties: United Peoples
Party and the Russian Party in Estonia; United Peoples Party, Viktor
ANDREJEV, chairman; Russian Party in Estonia, Sergei KUZNETSOV, chairman;
Moderates (M) made up of 2 parties: Social Democratic Party and Rural Center
Party; Social Democratic Party, Eiki NESTOR, chairman; Rural Center Party,
Vambo KAAL, chairman; Right-Wingers, Ulo NUGIS, chairman
Member of:
BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, ILO,
IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NACC, OSCE, PFP, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador Toomas Hendrik ILVES
chancery:
1030 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005, Suite 1000
telephone:
[1] (202) 789-0320
FAX:
[1] (202) 789-0471
consulate(s) general:
New York
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
(vacant); Charge d'Affaires Keith SMITH
embassy:
Kentmanni 20, Tallinn EE 0001
mailing address:
use embassy street address
telephone:
[372] (2) 312-021 through 024
FAX:
[372] (2) 312-025
Flag:
pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal
horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white
Economy
Overview:
Bolstered by a widespread national desire to reintegrate into Western
Europe, the Estonian government has pursued an ambitious program of market
reforms and stabilization measures, which is rapidly transforming the
economy. Three years after independence - and two years after the
introduction of the kroon - Estonians are beginning to reap tangible
benefits; inflation, though still high, was brought down to about 2% per
month in second half 1994; production declines have bottomed out with
estimated growth of 4% in 1994; and living standards are rising. Economic
restructuring has been dramatic. By 1994 the service sector accounted for
over 55% of GDP, while the once-dominant heavy industrial sector continues
to shrink. The private sector is growing rapidly; the share of the state
enterprises in the economy has steadily declined and by late 1994 accounted
for only about 40% of GDP. Estonia's foreign trade has shifted rapidly from
East to West; the Western industrialized countries now account for
two-thirds of foreign trade.
National product:
GDP - purchasing power parity - $10.4 billion (1994 estimate as extrapolated
from World Bank estimate for 1992)
National product real growth rate:
4% (1994 est.)
National product per capita:
$6,460 (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
3.3% per month (1994 average)
Unemployment rate:
about 2% in 1994 (official estimate but large number of underemployed
workers)
Budget:
revenues:
$643 million
expenditures:
$639 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1993 est.)
Exports:
$1.65 billion (f.o.b., 1994)
commodities:
textile 14%, food products 11%, vehicles 11%, metals 11% (1993)
partners:
Russia, Finland, Sweden, Germany
Imports:
$1 billion (c.i.f., 1994)
commodities:
machinery 18%, fuels 15%, vehicles 14%, textiles 10% (1993)
partners:
Finland, Russia, Germany, Sweden
External debt:
$650 million (end of 1991)
Industrial production:
growth rate -27% (1993)
Electricity:
capacity:
3,420,000 kW
production:
11.3 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
6,528 kWh (1993)
Industries:
oil shale, shipbuilding, phosphates, electric motors, excavators, cement,
furniture, clothing, textiles, paper, shoes, apparel
Economy
Agriculture:
accounts for 10% of GDP; employs 20% of work force; very efficient by Soviet
standards; net exports of meat, fish, dairy products, and potatoes; imports
of feedgrains for livestock; fruits and vegetables
Illicit drugs:
transshipment point for illicit drugs from Central and Southwest Asia and
Latin America to Western Europe; very limited illicit opium producer; mostly
for domestic consumption
Economic aid:
recipient:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (1992), $10 million
Currency:
1 Estonian kroon (EEK) = 100 cents (introduced in August 1992)
Exchange rates:
kroons (EEK) per US$1 - 12.25 (January 1995); note - kroons are tied to the
German Deutschmark at a fixed rate of 8 to 1
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Transportation
Railroads:
total:
1,030 km common carrier lines only; does not include dedicated industrial
lines
broad gauge:
1,030 km 1.520-m gauge (1990)
Highways:
total:
30,300 km
paved or graveled:
29,200 km
unpaved:
earth 1,100 km (1990)
Inland waterways:
500 km perennially navigable
Pipelines:
natural gas 420 km (1992)
Ports:
Haapsalu, Narva, Novotallin, Paldiski, Parnu, Tallinn
Merchant marine:
total:
65 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 415,332 GRT/532,749 DWT
ships by type:
bulk 6, cargo 44, container 2, oil tanker 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 7,
short-sea passenger 4
Airports:
total:
22
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m:
7
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m:
3
with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m:
1
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m:
2
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m:
4
with unpaved runways under 914 m:
5
Communications
Telephone system:
about 400,000 telephones; 246 telephones/1,000 persons; telephone system is
antiquated; improvements are being made piecemeal, with emphasis on business
needs and international connections; there are still about 150,000
unfulfilled requests for telephone service
local:
NA
intercity:
NA
international:
international traffic is carried to the other former USSR republics by land
line or microwave and to other countries partly by leased connection to the
Moscow international gateway switch, and partly by a new Tallinn-Helsinki
fiber optic submarine cable which gives Estonia access to international
circuits everywhere; substantial investment has been made in cellular
systems which are operational throughout Estonia and also Latvia and which
have access to the international packet switched digital network via
Helsinki
Radio:
broadcast stations:
AM NA, FM NA, shortwave 0
radios:
NA
Television:
broadcast stations:
3; note - provide Estonian programs as well as Moscow Ostenkino's first and
second programs
televisions:
NA
Defense Forces
Branches:
Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Force (not officially sanctioned),
Maritime Border Guard, Volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit), Security
Forces (internal and border troops), Coast Guard
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 396,588; males fit for military service 311,838; males reach
military age (18) annually 11,915 (1995 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $34.1 million, almost 5% of the overall State
budget and 1.5% of GDP (1995)
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The World Factbook 1995,
SuDoc No: PREX 3.15:995
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