The 1996 CIA World Factbook page on Estonia

From: The CIA'sTHE WORLD FACTBOOK 1996

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Estonia

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Map

Location: 59 00 N, 26 00 E -- Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia

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Flag

Description: pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white

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Geography

Location: Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia
Geographic coordinates: 59 00 N, 26 00 E
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
border countries: 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; disputes maritime border with Latvia - primary concern is fishing rights around Ruhne Island in the Gulf of Riga
Climate: maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers
Terrain: marshy, lowlands
lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m
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 former Soviet 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: 1,459,428 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 20% (male 148,683; female 143,563)
15-64 years: 66% (male 467,759; female 501,519)
65 years and over: 14% (male 63,976; female 133,928) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: -1.13% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 10.74 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 14.12 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: -7.96 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.87 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 17.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 68.13 years
male: 62.5 years
female: 74.05 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.55 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Estonian(s)
adjective: Estonian
Ethnic divisions: Estonian 61.5%, Russian 30.3%, Ukrainian 3.2%, Byelorussian 1.8%, Finn 1.1%, other 2.1% (1989)
Religions: Lutheran, Orthodox Christian
Languages: Estonian (official), Latvian, Lithuanian, Russian, other
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1989 est.)
total population: 100%
male: 100%
female: 100%

Government

Name of country:
conventional long form: Republic of Estonia
conventional short form: Estonia
local long form: Eesti Vabariik
local short form: Eesti
former: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic
Data code: EN
Type of government: 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) was elected for a five-year term by Parliament; election last held 20 September 1992 (next to be held fall 1996); results - no candidate received majority; Parliament elected Lennart MERI
head of government: Acting Prime Minister Tiit VAHI (since NA March 1995); the president nominated and Parliament authorized the candidate for prime minister
cabinet: Council of Ministers was appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament
Legislative branch: unicameral
Parliament (Riigikogu): elections last held 5 March 1995 (next to be held NA 1999); 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: National Court
Political parties and leaders: Coalition Party and Rural Union (KMU), Tiit VAHI, chairman, made up of 4 parties: Coalition Party, Country People's Party, Farmer's Assembly, and Pensioners' and Families' League; Reform Party-Liberals (RE), Siim KALLAS, chairman; Center Party (K), Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman; Union of Pro Patria or Fatherland Alliance (Isamaa of Fatherland), Toivo JURGENSON, chairman; National Independence Party (ERSP), Kelam TUNNE, chairman, note - may have disappeared since the last election; Our Home is Estonia made up of 2 parties: United Peoples Party and the Russian People's Party of Estonia; United Peoples Party, Viktor ANDREJEV, chairman; Russian People's Party of 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
International organization participation: BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NACC, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCRO, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (applicant)
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Toomas Hendrik ILVES
chancery: 2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101
FAX: [1] (202) 789-0471
consulate(s) general: New York
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Lawrence P. TAYLOR
embassy: Kentmanni 20, Tallinn EE 0001
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [372] (6) 312-021
FAX: [372] (6) 312-025
Flag: pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white

Economy

Economic overview: Estonia continues to experience strong economic growth after its economy bottomed out in 1993. Bolstered by a widespread national desire to reintegrate into Western Europe, Estonia has adhered to disciplined fiscal and financial policies and has led the FSU countries in pursuing economic reform. Monthly inflation has been held to under 5% since the beginning of 1992, with monthly inflation in 1995 at 2%. Following four years of decline, Estonia's GDP grew 5% in 1994 and 6% in 1995 - among the highest rates in Europe, according to estimates of the IMF and Estonia's own Economic Ministry. Despite these positive economic indicators, unemployment - 8% in 1994 - is on the rise, and wages - especially for teachers and law enforcement personnel - have not kept pace with inflation. Small- and medium-scale privatization is essentially complete, and large-scale privatization is progressing, but slowly. Estonia has successfully reoriented it trade toward the West, two-thirds of exports now going to Western markets. Estonia's free trade policies were the cornerstone of its negotiations with the European Union, and led to the signing of an association agreement in June 1995. Estonia was the only Baltic state not to have a transition period imposed by the EU prior to its implementation of a free trade agreement.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $12.3 billion (1995 estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1994)
GDP real growth rate: 6% (1995 est.)
GDP per capita: $7,600 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector:
agriculture: 10%
industry: 37%
services: 53% (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 29% (1995 est.)
Labor force: 750,000 (1992)
by occupation: industry and construction 42%, agriculture and forestry 20%, other 38% (1990)
Unemployment rate: 8% (1994 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $620 million
expenditures: $582 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (January-October 1995)
Industries: oil shale, shipbuilding, phosphates, electric motors, excavators, cement, furniture, clothing, textiles, paper, shoes, apparel
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity:
capacity: 3,420,000 kW
production: 11.3 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 6,528 kWh (1993)
Agriculture: potatoes, fruits, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish
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
Exports: $1.8 billion (f.o.b., 1995)
commodities: textile 14%, food products 11%, vehicles 11%, metals 11% (1993)
partners: Russia, Finland, Sweden, Germany
Imports: $2.5 billion (c.i.f., 1995)
commodities: machinery 18%, fuels 15%, vehicles 14%, textiles 10% (1993)
partners: Finland, Russia, Germany, Sweden
External debt: $270 million (January 1996)
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $147 million (1993)
note: Western commitments $285 million (including international financial institutions)
Currency: 1 Estonian kroon (EEK) = 100 cents (introduced in August 1992)
Exchange rates: krooni (EEK) per US$1 - 11.523 (December 1995), 11.465 (1995), 12.991 (1994), 13.223 (1993); note - krooni are tied to the German deutsche mark at a fixed rate of 8 to 1
Fiscal year: calendar year

Transportation

Railways:
total: 1,018 km common carrier lines only; does not include dedicated industrial lines
broad gauge: 1,018 km 1.520-m gauge (132 km electrified) (1995)
Highways:
total: 14,771 km
paved: 8,124 km (including 62 km of expressways)
unpaved: 6,647 km (1993)
Waterways: 500 km perennially navigable
Pipelines: natural gas 420 km (1992)
Ports: Haapsalu, Narva, Paldiski, Parnu, Tallinn
Merchant marine:
total: 52 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 353,140 GRT/467,086 DWT
ships by type: bulk 6, cargo 33, oil tanker 3, roll-on/roll-off cargo 6, short-sea passenger 4 (1995 est.)
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 2 437 m: 2
with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 4
with unpaved runways under 914 m: 5 (1994 est.)

Communications

Telephones: 400,000
Telephone system: 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 subscriber service
domestic: substantial investment has been made in cellular systems which are operational throughout Estonia
international: international traffic is carried to the other former Soviet republics by landline or microwave radio relay 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; access to the international packet-switched digital network via Helsinki
Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave 0
Radios: 710,000 (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 3
note: provide Estonian programs as well as Moscow Ostenkino's first and second programs
Televisions: 600,000 (1993 est.)

Defense

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: 357,835
males fit for military service: 280,757
males reach military age (18) annually: 10,525 (1996 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $35 million, 1.5% of GDP (1995)

Estonia

Original publicaton at http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/nsolo/wfb-all.htm (June 17, 1997).