Latvia

noun:

Latvian(s)

adjective:

Latvian

• Latvian (official) 56.3%, Russian 33.8%, other 0.6% (includes Polish, Ukrainian, and Belarusian), unspecified 9.4%;
• note - data represent language usually spoken at home (2011 est.)

major-language sample(s):

World Factbook, neaizstājams avots pamata informāciju. (Latvian); The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

total:

45.2 years (2023 est.)

male:

41.3 years

female:

48.9 years

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.06 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.98 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.52 male(s)/female

total population:

0.87 male(s)/female (2023 est.)

total:

4.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)

male:

5.2 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

4.3 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

76.2 years (2023 est.)

male:

71.8 years

female:

80.8 years

degree of risk:

intermediate (2023)

vectorborne diseases:

tickborne encephalitis

total:

12.9 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer:

4.9 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine:

1.7 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits:

5.3 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols:

1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

total:

37% (2020 est.)

male:

50.3% (2020 est.)

female:

23.7% (2020 est.)

• while land, water, and air pollution are evident, Latvia's environment has benefited from a shift to service industries after the country regained independence;
• improvements have occurred in drinking water quality, sewage treatment, household and hazardous waste management, as well as reduction of air pollution;
• concerns include nature protection and the management of water resources and the protection of the Baltic Sea

urban population:

68.7% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization:

-0.68% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

particulate matter emissions:

12.02 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions:

7 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions:

1.85 megatons (2020 est.)

municipal solid waste generated annually:

857,000 tons (2015 est.)

municipal solid waste recycled annually:

181,941 tons (2015 est.)

percent of municipal solid waste recycled:

21.2% (2015 est.)

municipal:

90 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

industrial:

40 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

agricultural:

60 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

conventional long form:

Republic of Latvia

conventional short form:

Latvia

local long form:

Latvijas Republika

local short form:

Latvija

former:

Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic (while occupied by the USSR)

etymology:

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.)

name:

Riga

geographic coordinates:

56 57 N, 24 06 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

etymology:

• of the several theories explaining the name's origin, the one relating to the city's role in Baltic and North Sea commerce is the most probable;
• the name is likely related to the Latvian word "rija," meaning "warehouse," where the 'j' became a 'g' under the heavy German influence in the city from the late Middle Ages to the early 20th century

• 18 November 1918 (from Soviet Russia);
• 4 May 1990 (declared from the Soviet Union);
• 6 September 1991 (recognized by the Soviet Union)

• Independence Day (Republic of Latvia Proclamation Day), 18 November (1918);
• note - 18 November 1918 was the date Latvia established its statehood and its concomitant independence from Soviet Russia;
• 4 May 1990 was the date it declared the restoration of Latvian statehood and its concomitant independence from the Soviet Union

history:

• several previous (pre-1991 independence);
• note - following the restoration of independence in 1991, parts of the 1922 constitution were reintroduced 4 May 1990 and fully reintroduced 6 July 1993

amendments:

• proposed by two thirds of Parliament members or by petition of one tenth of qualified voters submitted through the president;
• passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote of Parliament in each of three readings;
• amendment of constitutional articles, including national sovereignty, language, the parliamentary electoral system, and constitutional amendment procedures, requires passage in a referendum by majority vote of at least one half of the electorate;
• amended several times, last in 2019

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a citizen of Latvia

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

5 years

chief of state:

President Edgars RINKEVICS (since 8 July 2023)

head of government:

Prime Minister Evika SILINA (since 15 September 2023)

cabinet:

Cabinet of Ministers nominated by the prime minister, appointed by Parliament

elections/appointments:

• president indirectly elected by Parliament for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term);
• election last held on 31 May 2023 (next to be held in 2027);
• prime minister appointed by the president, confirmed by Parliament

election results:

2023: Edgars RINKEVICS elected president; Parliament vote - Edgars RINKEVICS 52, Uldis Pīlēns 25 third round on 31 May 2023;

• 2019: Egils LEVITS elected president;
• Parliament vote - Egils LEVITS 61, Didzis SMITS 24, Juris JANSONS 8;
• Krisjanis KARINS confirmed prime minister 61-39

note: on 15 September 2023, Parliament voted 53-39 to approve Prime Minister Evika SILINA

description:

unicameral Parliament or Saeima (100 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)

elections:

last held on 1 October 2012 (next to be held no later than 3 October 2026)

election results:

• percent of vote by party - JV 19.2%, ZZS 12.6%, AS 11.1%, NA 9.4%, S! 6.9%, LPV 6.3%, and PRO 6.2%;
• seats by party - JV 26, ZZS 16, AS 15, NA 13, S! 11, LPV 9, and PRO 10

highest court(s):

Supreme Court (consists of the Senate with 36 judges); Constitutional Court (consists of 7 judges)

judge selection and term of office:

• Supreme Court judges nominated by chief justice and confirmed by the Saeima;
• judges serve until age 70, but term can be extended 2 years;
• Constitutional Court judges - 3 nominated by Saeima members, 2 by Cabinet ministers, and 2 by plenum of Supreme Court;
• all judges confirmed by Saeima majority vote;
• Constitutional Court president and vice president serve in their positions for 3 years;
• all judges serve 10-year terms;
• mandatory retirement at age 70

subordinate courts:

district (city) and regional courts

• Development/For! or AP! [Daniels PAVLUTS, Ivars IJABS]
• For Stability or S! [Aleksejs ROSLIKOVS]
• Latvia First [Ainars SLESERS]
• Latvian Green Party or LZP (Edgars TAVARS)
• National Alliance "All For Latvia!"-"For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK" or NA [Raivis DZINTARS]
• New Unity or JV [Arturs Krišjānis KARINS]
• Social Democratic Party "Harmony" or S [Janis URBANOVICS]
• The Progressives or PRO [Kaspars BRISKENS]
• Union of Greens and Farmers or ZZS [Aivars LEMBERGS]
• United List or AS [Uldis PILENS] (electoral coalition including the Latvian Green Party or LZP, Latvian Association of Regions or LRA, Liepaja Party)

chief of mission:

Ambassador Maris SELGA (since 16 September 2019)

chancery:

2306 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 328-2840

FAX:

[1] (202) 328-2860

email address and website:

[email protected]; https://www2.mfa.gov.lv/en/usa

chief of mission:

Ambassador Christopher ROBINSON (since 21 February 2023)

embassy:

1 Samnera Velsa Street (former Remtes), Riga LV-1510

mailing address:

4520 Riga Place, Washington DC 20521-4520

telephone:

[371] 6710-7000

FAX:

[371] 6710-7050

email address and website:

[email protected]; https://lv.usembassy.gov/

• three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon;
• the flag is one of the older banners in the world;
• a medieval chronicle mentions a red standard with a white stripe being used by Latvian tribes in about 1280

name:

"Dievs, sveti Latviju!" (God Bless Latvia)

lyrics/music:

Karlis BAUMANIS

note: adopted 1920, restored 1990; first performed in 1873 while Latvia was a part of Russia; banned during the Soviet occupation from 1940 to 1990

total World Heritage Sites:

3 (both cultural)

selected World Heritage Site locales:

• Historic Center of Riga ;
• Struve Geodetic Arc;
• Old town of Kuldiga

• high-income, EU-member Baltic economy;
• export-driven;
• Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused a temporary labor force surge and impacted growth due to Russian trade reliance;
• highly developed transit services

Fitch rating:

A- (2014)

Moody's rating:

A3 (2015)

Standard & Poors rating: A+ (2020)

note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.

total:

15.5% (2021 est.)

male:

12%

female:

19.6%

on food:

17.3% of household expenditures (2018 est.)

on alcohol and tobacco:

7.9% of household expenditures (2018 est.)

lowest 10%:

2.2%

highest 10%:

26.3% (2015)

production:

0 metric tons (2020 est.)

consumption:

39,000 metric tons (2020 est.)

exports:

3,000 metric tons (2020 est.)

imports:

40,000 metric tons (2020 est.)

proven reserves:

0 metric tons (2019 est.)

total petroleum production:

1,600 bbl/day (2021 est.)

refined petroleum consumption:

39,900 bbl/day (2019 est.)

crude oil and lease condensate exports:

0 bbl/day (2018 est.)

crude oil and lease condensate imports:

0 bbl/day (2018 est.)

crude oil estimated reserves:

0 barrels (2021 est.)

production:

0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

consumption:

1.068 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)

exports:

0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

imports:

1.068 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)

proven reserves:

0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

general assessment:

• the telecom market continues to benefit from investment and from regulatory measures aimed at developing 5G and fiber-based infrastructure;
• there is effective competition in the mobile market;
• these multi-service operators have focused investment on fiber networks and on expanding the reach of 5G (2023)

domestic:

fixed-line roughly 10 per 100 and mobile-cellular nearly 115 per 100 subscriptions (2021)

international:

country code - 371; the Latvian network is now connected via fiber-optic cable to Estonia, Finland, and Sweden

• several national and regional commercial TV stations are foreign-owned, 2 national TV stations are publicly owned;
• system supplemented by privately owned regional and local TV stations;
• cable and satellite multi-channel TV services with domestic and foreign broadcasts available;
• publicly owned broadcaster operates 4 radio networks with dozens of stations throughout the country;
• dozens of private broadcasters also operate radio stations

number of registered air carriers:

3 (2020); inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 53

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

4,058,762 (2018)

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

4.01 million (2018) mt-km

total:

70,244 km (2018)

paved:

15,158 km (2018)

unpaved:

55,086 km (2018)

• the Latvian military's inventory consists of a mixture of Soviet-era and limited amounts of more modern, Western-produced systems acquired since the country joined NATO in 2004;
• in recent years, the UK and US have been the leading suppliers of military equipment (2023)