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 : 45,226 sq km
land: 43,211 sq km
water: 2,015 sq km
note: includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea

Area - comparative: slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined

Land boundaries:
total: 633 km
border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km

Coastline: 3,794 km

Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: limits to be fixed in coordination with neighboring states
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers

Terrain: marshy, lowlands

Elevation extremes:
lowest point : Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m

Natural resources: shale oil (kukersite), peat, phosphorite, amber, cambrian blue clay

Land use:
arable land : 27%
permanent crops: 0%
other : 73% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 40 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: flooding occurs frequently in the spring

Environment - current issues: air polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast; however, the amount of pollutants emitted to the air have fallen steadily, the emissions of 2000 were 4.6 times smaller than in 1980; the amount of unpurified wastewater discharged to water bodies fell 20 times in 2000 compared to 1980; in connection with the start-up of new water purification plants, the pollution load of wastewater decreased; Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas need to be monitored; coastal seawater is polluted in certain locations

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified : none of the selected agreements

Population: 1,415,681 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 16.4% (male 118,603; female 114,102)
15-64 years: 68.5% (male 466,882; female 502,343)
65 years and over: 15.1% (male 70,085; female 143,666) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate: -0.52% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 8.96 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 13.44 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 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:0.49 male(s)/female
total population:0.86 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 12.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 70.02 years
male :64.03 years
female: 76.31 years (2002 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.24 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Estonian(s)
adjective: Estonian

Ethnic groups: Estonian 65.3%, Russian 28.1%, Ukrainian 2.5%, Belarusian 1.5%, Finn 1%, other 1.6% (1998)

Religions: Evangelical Lutheran, others include Baptist, Methodist, 7th Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Word of Life, 7th Day Baptist, Judaism

Languages: Estonian (official), Latvian, Lithuanian, Russian, other

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100%
male : 100%
female: 100% (1998 est.)

Country name:
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

Government type: republic

National 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: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)

Independence: regained on 20 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday: Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 was the date of independence from Soviet Russia, 20 August 1991 was the date of reindependence from the Soviet Union

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 Arnold RUUTEL (since 8 October 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Siim KALLAS (since 28 January 2002)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament
elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; if he or she does not secure two-thirds of the votes after three rounds of balloting in the Parliament, then an electoral assembly (made up of Parliament plus members of local governments) elects the president, choosing between the two candidates with the largest percentage of votes; election last held 21 September 2001 (next to be held in the fall of 2006); prime minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament
election results: Arnold RUUTEL elected president on 21 September 2001 by a 367-member electoral assembly that convened following Parliament's failure in August to elect then-President MERI's successor; on the second ballot of voting, RUUTEL received 188 votes to Parliament Speaker Toomas SAVI's 155; the remaining 24 ballots were either left blank or invalid

Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament or Riigikogu (101 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections :last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003)
election results:percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Center Party 28, Union of Pro Patria (Fatherland League) 18, Reform Party 18, Moderates 17, Country People's Party (Agrarians) 7, Coalition Party 7, UPPE 6

Judicial branch: National Court

Political parties and leaders: Coalition Party [Mart SIIMANN, chairman]; Estonian Center Party or K [Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman]; Estonian Christian People's Party [Aldo VINKEL]; Estonian Democratic Party [Jean LAAS]; Estonian Independence Party [Vello LEITO]; Estonian People's Union [Villu REILJAN]; note - includes Estonian Country People's Party and two small parties; Estonian Reform Party [Siim KALLAS]; Estonian Social Democratic Labor Party [Tiit TOOMSALU]; Estonian United People's Party or UPPE [Viktor ANDREJEV]; Estonian Unity Party [Igor PISSAREV]; Moderates [Andres TARAND]; New Estonia Party [Ulo NUGIS]; Pro Patria Union [Mart LAAR, chairman]; Republican Party [Kristian-Olari LEPING]; Res Publica [Rein TAAGEPERA]; Russian Baltic Party [Sergei IVANOV]; Russian Party in Estonia [Nikolai MASPANOV]

International organization participation: BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC,ISO (correspondent), ITU, NACC, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNMIBH, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (applicant)

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission : Ambassador Sven JURGENSON
chancery: 2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101
FAX: [1] (202) 588-0108
consulate(s) general: New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission : Ambassador Joseph M. DeTHOMAS (designate)
embassy: Kentmanni 20, Tallinn EE 0001
mailing address: American Embassy, Tallinn; PSC 78, Box T; APO AE 09723
telephone: [372] (6) 312-021
FAX: [372] (6) 312-025

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

Economy - overview: Estonia, as a new member of the World Trade Organization, is steadily moving toward a modern market economy with increasing ties to the West, including the pegging of its currency to the euro. A major goal is accession to the EU, possibly by 2004. The state of the economy is greatly influenced by developments in Finland and Sweden, two major trading partners.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $14.3 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 4.7% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $10,000 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 6%
industry: 28%
services :66% (2000)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 5.8% (2001)

Labor force:
total: 608,600 (2001 est.)
by occupation: industry 20%, agriculture 11%, services 69% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate:12.4% (2001)

Budget:
revenues:$1.89 billion
expenditures : $1.89 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2002 est.)

Industries: oil shale, shipbuilding, phosphates, electric motors, excavators, cement, furniture, clothing, textiles, paper, shoes, apparel

Industrial production growth rate: 5% (2000 est.)

Electricity - capacity: 3.29 million kW (1994)

Electricity - production: 7.056 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 5.362 billion kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: potatoes, fruits, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish

Exports:
total value:$3.4 billion (f.o.b., 2001)
commodities: textiles 16%, food products 16%, machinery and equipment 16%, metals 9% (1995)
partners: Finland 27.6%, Sweden 11%, Russia 8%, Latvia 7%, Germany 6%, US 2.0% (1999) (2001)

Imports:
total value : $4.1 billion (f.o.b., 2001)
commodities: machinery and equipment 38.5%, chemical products 11.2%, textiles 9.5%, foodstuffs 8.6%, metals 8.1% (2000)
partners:Finland 27%, Russia 10%, Germany 10%, Sweden 8% (2001)

Debt - external:$0 (2001 est.)

Economic aid:
recipient:$108 million (2000)

Currency: 1 Estonian kroon (EEK) = 100 cents (introduced in August 1992)

Exchange rates: krooni per US dollar - 17.518 (January 2002), 17.538 (2001), 16.969 (2000), 14.678 (1999), 14.075 (1998), 13.882 (1997); note - the kroon is tied to the euro at a fixed rate of 15.65 krooni per euro

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones:501,691 (2000)

Telephone system: foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service; substantial fiber-optic cable systems carry telephone, TV, and radio traffic in the digital mode; internet services are available throughout most of the country - only about 11,000 subscriber requests were unfilled by September 2000
domestic : a wide range of high quality voice, data, and internet services is available throughout the country
international:fiber-optic cables to Finland, Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched service; two international switches are located in Tallinn (2001)

Radio broadcast stations:AM 0, FM 98, shortwave 0 (2001)

Radios: 1.01 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 4 3 (2001)

Televisions: 605,000 (1997)

Railways:
total : 968 km common carrier lines only; does not include dedicated industrial lines
broad gauge: 968 km 1.520-m gauge (132 km electrified) (2001)

Highways:
total: 30,300 km
paved:29,200 km (including 75 km of expressways); note - these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather
unpaved : 1,100 km (2000)

Waterways: 320 km (perennially navigable) (2002)

Pipelines: natural gas 2,000 km (2002)

Ports and harbors: Haapsalu, Narva, Paldiski, Parnu, Tallinn

Merchant marine:
total: 37 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 245,958 GRT/193,042 DWT
ships by type :bulk 2, cargo 13, container 5, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea passenger 6.)

Airports: 32 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways:
total : 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 3 (1994 est.)
under 914 m:1 (2001)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 24
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m :7
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 6 (2001)

Military branches: Ground Forces, Navy/Coast Guard, Air and Air Defense Force (not officially sanctioned), Maritime Border Guard, Volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit), Security Forces (internal and border troops)
note: Border Guards and Ministry of Internal Affairs become part of the Estonian Defense Forces in wartime; the Coast Guard is subordinate to the Ministry of Defense in peacetime and the Estonian Navy in wartime

Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 359,902 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males :282,716 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 11,164 (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $155 million (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2% (2002 est.)

Disputes - international: Russia continues to reject signing and ratifying the joint December 1996 technical border agreement with Estonia

Illicit drugs:transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Southwest Asia and the Caucasus via Russia, cocaine from Latin America to Western Europe and Scandinavia, and synthetic drugs from Western Europe to Scandinavia; increasing domestic drug abuse problem; possible precursor manufacturing and/or trafficking