Estonia

agricultural land:

22.2%;

• arable land 14.9%;
• permanent crops 0.1%;
• permanent pasture 7.2%

forest:

52.1%

other:

25.7% (2011 est.)

• air polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast;
• however, the amounts of pollutants emitted to the air have fallen dramatically and the pollution load of wastewater at purification plants has decreased substantially due to improved technology and environmental monitoring;
• 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

noun:

Estonian(s)

adjective:

Estonian

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.08 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1.01 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.81 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.51 male(s)/female

total population:

0.88 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

degree of risk:

intermediate

vectorborne disease:

tickborne encephalitis (2016)

conventional long form:

Republic of Estonia

conventional short form:

Estonia

local long form:

Eesti Vabariik

local short form:

Eesti

former:

Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic

etymology:

the country name may be derived from the Aesti, an ancient people who lived along the eastern Baltic Sea in the first centuries A.D.

name:

Tallinn

geographic coordinates:

59 26 N, 24 43 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

• 15 counties (maakonnad, singular - maakond);
• Harjumaa (Tallinn), Hiiumaa (Kardla), Ida-Virumaa (Johvi), Jarvamaa (Paide), Jogevamaa (Jogeva), Laanemaa (Haapsalu), Laane-Virumaa (Rakvere), Parnumaa (Parnu), Polvamaa (Polva), Raplamaa (Rapla), Saaremaa (Kuressaare), Tartumaa (Tartu), Valgamaa (Valga), Viljandimaa (Viljandi), Vorumaa (Voru)

note: counties have the administrative center name following in parentheses

• Independence Day, 24 February (1918);
• note - 24 February 1918 was the date Estonia declared its independence from Soviet Russia and established its statehood;
• 20 August 1991 was the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union

history:

several previous; latest adopted 28 June 1992

amendments:

• proposed by at least one-fifth of Parliament members or by the president of the republic;
• passage requires three readings of the proposed amendment and a simple majority vote in two successive memberships of Parliament;
• passage of amendments to the “General Provisions” and “Amendment of the Constitution” chapters requires at least three-fifths majority vote by Parliament to conduct a referendum and majority vote in a referendum;
• amended several times, last in 2015 (2016)

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a citizen of Estonia

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

5 years

• 18 years of age;
• universal;
• age 16 for local elections

chief of state:

President Kersti KALJULAID (since 10 October 2016)

head of government:

Juri RATAS (since 23 November 2016)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament

elections/appointments:

• president indirectly elected by Parliament for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term);
• if a candidate does not secure two-thirds of the votes after 3 rounds of balloting, then an electoral college consisting of Parliament members and local council members elects the president, choosing between the 2 candidates with the highest number of votes;
• election last held on 29-30 August 2016, but three rounds were inconclusive;
• two electoral college votes on 24 September 2016 were also indecisive, so the election passed back to Parliament;
• on 3 October the Parliament elected Kersti KALJULAID as president;
• prime minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament

election results:

• Kersti KALJULAID elected president;
• Parliament vote - Kersti KALJULAID (independent) 81 of 98 votes;
• note - KALJULAID is Estonia's first female president

highest court(s):

Supreme Court (consists of 19 justices including the chief justice and organized into civil, criminal, administrative, and constitutional review chambers)

judge selection and term of office:

• the chief justice is proposed by the president of the republic and appointed by the Riigikogu;
• other justices proposed by the chief justice and appointed by the Riigikogu;
• justices appointed for life

subordinate courts:

circuit (appellate) courts; administrative, county, city, and specialized courts

• Center Party of Estonia (Keskerakond) or K [Juri RATAS]
• Estonian Conservative People's Party (Konservatiivne Rahvaerakond) or EKRE [Mart HELME]
• Estonian Reform Party (Reformierakond) or RE [Hanno PEVKUR]
• Free Party or EV [Andres HERKEL]
• Social Democratic Party or SDE [Jevgeni OSSINOVSKI]
• Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica (Isamaa je Res Publica Liit) or IRL [Margus TSAHKNA]

chief of mission:

Ambassador Lauri LEPIK (since 8 September 2017)

chancery:

2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 588-0101

FAX:

[1] (202) 588-0108

consulate(s) general:

New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador James D. MELVILLE Jr. (since 8 December 2015)

embassy:

Kentmanni 20, 15099 Tallinn

mailing address:

use embassy street address

telephone:

[372] 668-8100

FAX:

[372] 668-8265

• three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white;
• various interpretations are linked to the flag colors;
• blue represents faith, loyalty, and devotion, while also reminiscent of the sky, sea, and lakes of the country;
• black symbolizes the soil of the country and the dark past and suffering endured by the Estonian people;
• white refers to the striving towards enlightenment and virtue, and is the color of birch bark and snow, as well as summer nights illuminated by the midnight sun

name:

"Mu isamaa, mu onn ja room" (My Native Land, My Pride and Joy)

lyrics/music:

Johann Voldemar JANNSEN/Fredrik PACIUS

note: adopted 1920, though banned between 1940 and 1990 under Soviet occupation; the anthem, used in Estonia since 1869, shares the same melody as Finland's but has different lyrics

• grain, potatoes, vegetables;
• livestock and dairy products;
• fish

agriculture:

3.1%

industry:

20.2%

services:

76.7% (2016 est.)

lowest 10%:

2.3%

highest 10%:

25.6% (2015)

general assessment:

foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service with a wide range of high-quality voice, data, and Internet services available

domestic:

• substantial fiber-optic cable systems carry telephone, TV, and radio traffic in the digital mode;
• Internet services are widely available;
• schools and libraries are connected to the Internet, a large percentage of the population files income tax returns online, and online voting - in local and parliamentary elections - has climbed steadily since first introduced in 2005;
• 85% of Estonian households have broadband access

international:

• country code - 372;
• fiber-optic cables to Finland, Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched service;
• 2 international switches are located in Tallinn (2016)

• the publicly owned broadcaster, Eesti Rahvusringhaaling (ERR), operates 3 TV channels and 5 radio networks;
• growing number of private commercial radio stations broadcasting nationally, regionally, and locally;
• fully transitioned to digital television in 2010;
• national private TV channels expanding service;
• a range of channels are aimed at Russian-speaking viewers;
• in 2016, there were 42 on-demand services available in Estonia, including 19 pay TVOD and SVOD services;
• roughly 85% of households accessed digital television services (2016)

number of registered air carriers:

3; inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 14

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

512,388

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

870,362 mt-km (2015)

total:

2,146 km

broad gauge:

2,146 km 1.520-m and 1.524-m gauge (132 km electrified)

note: includes 1,510 km public and 636 km non-public railway (2016)

country comparison to the world: 86

total:

58,412 km (includes urban roads)

paved:

10,427 km (includes 115 km of expressways)

unpaved:

47,985 km (2011)

country comparison to the world: 73

• 18-27 for compulsory military or governmental service, conscript service requirement 8-11 months depending on education;
• NCOs, reserve officers, and specialists serve 11 months (2016)

• Russia and Estonia in May 2005 signed a technical border agreement, but Russia in June 2005 recalled its signature after the Estonian parliament added to its domestic ratification act a historical preamble referencing the Soviet occupation and Estonia's pre-war borders under the 1920 Treaty of Tartu;
• Russia contends that the preamble allows Estonia to make territorial claims on Russia in the future, while Estonian officials deny that the preamble has any legal impact on the treaty text;
• Russia demands better treatment of the Russian-speaking population in Estonia;
• as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Estonia implements strict Schengen border rules with Russia

stateless persons:

• 82,585 (2016);
• note - following independence in 1991, automatic citizenship was restricted to those who were Estonian citizens prior to the 1940 Soviet occupation and their descendants;
• thousands of ethnic Russians remained stateless when forced to choose between passing Estonian language and citizenship tests or applying for Russian citizenship;
• one reason for demurring on Estonian citizenship was to retain the right of visa-free travel to Russia;
• stateless residents can vote in local elections but not general elections;
• stateless parents who have been lawful residents of Estonia for at least five years can apply for citizenship for their children before they turn 15 years old

• growing producer of synthetic drugs;
• increasingly important transshipment zone for cannabis, cocaine, opiates, and synthetic drugs since joining the European Union and the Schengen Accord;
• potential money laundering related to organized crime and drug trafficking is a concern, as is possible use of the gambling sector to launder funds;
• major use of opiates and ecstasy