Latvia

noun:

Latvian(s)

adjective:

Latvian

total:

45.5 years (2024 est.)

male:

41.6 years

female:

49.2 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 (2024 est.)

total:

4.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)

male:

5.1 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

4.3 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

76.4 years (2024 est.)

male:

72 years

female:

81 years

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 in the third round;
• Parliament vote - Edgars RINKEVICS (Unity Party) 52, Uldis Pīlēns (independent) 25;
• Evika SILINA confirmed as prime minister 53-39

;

• 2019: Egils LEVITS elected president;
• Parliament vote - Egils LEVITS (independent) 61, Didzis SMITS (KPV LV) 24, Juris JANSONS (independent) 8;
• Krisjanis KARINS confirmed as 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 2022 (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%, PRO 6.2%;
• seats by party - JV 26, ZZS 16, AS 15, NA 13, S! 11, LPV 9, PRO 10;
• composition- men 68, women 32, percentage women 32%

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!
• For Stability or S!
• For Latvia's Development LA
• Harmony or S
• Honor to Serve Riga! or GKR
• Latvia First LPV
• Latvian Green Party or LZP
• National Alliance or NA
• New Unity or JV
• People, Land, Statehood TZV
• Social Democratic Party "Harmony" or S
• The Progressives or PRO
• Union of Greens and Farmers or ZZS
• United List or AS
• We for Talsi and Municipality or MTuN

chief of mission:

Ambassador Elita KUZMA (since 18 September 2024)

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 (all cultural)

selected World Heritage Site locales:

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

• high-income EU and eurozone member;
• economic contraction triggered by export decline and energy shocks;
• recovery driven by easing inflation, wage growth, and investments supported by EU funds;
• challenges from skilled labor shortages, capital market access, large informal sector, and green and digital transitions

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.

agriculture:

4.2% (2023 est.)

industry:

20.9% (2023 est.)

services:

63.1% (2023 est.)

note: figures may not total 100% due to non-allocated consumption not captured in sector-reported data

total:

12.5% (2023 est.)

male:

14.2% (2023 est.)

female:

10.3% (2023 est.)

note: % of labor force ages 15-24 seeking employment

on food:

19.1% of household expenditures (2022 est.)

on alcohol and tobacco:

7.4% of household expenditures (2022 est.)

lowest 10%:

2.6% (2021 est.)

highest 10%:

26.2% (2021 est.)

note: % share of income accruing to lowest and highest 10% of population

consumption:

20,000 metric tons (2022 est.)

exports:

55,000 metric tons (2022 est.)

imports:

146,000 metric tons (2022 est.)

total petroleum production:

2,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

refined petroleum consumption:

35,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

consumption:

828.214 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

imports:

801.356 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

general assessment:

• the telecom market continues to benefit from investment and from regulatory measures aimed at developing 5G and fiber-based infrastructure;
• the mobile market is dominated by three operators and there is effective competition between them, with the smallest among them having almost a quarter of the market by subscribers;
• these multi-service operators have focused investment on fiber networks and on expanding the reach of 5G;
• mobile network capacity has been improved since 2022 following the auction of spectrum in the 700MHz and 1.5GHz bands;
• operators have entered into agreements with neighboring Estonia and Lithuania to coordinate the use of spectrum for 5G in border areas, improving coverage to end-users without interference;
• in the fixed-line broadband sector, the country is ranked among the highest in Europe for fiber coverage;
• it has the second highest rural FttP coverage after Denmark;
• with this infrastructure in place, the country has also developed a sophisticated digital economy, with e-commerce and e-government services widely available (2024)

domestic:

fixed-line 9 per 100 and mobile-cellular nearly 117 per 100 subscriptions (2022)

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 ports:

5 (2024)

large:

1

medium:

2

small:

0

very small:

2

ports with oil terminals:

3

key ports:

Lielupe, Liepaja, Riga, Salacgriva, Ventspils

refugees (country of origin):

47,615 (Ukraine) (as of 6 March 2024)

stateless persons:

• 195,354 (2022);
• note - individuals who were Latvian citizens prior to the 1940 Soviet occupation and their descendants were recognized as Latvian citizens when the country's independence was restored in 1991;
• citizens of the former Soviet Union residing in Latvia who have neither Latvian nor other citizenship are considered non-citizens (officially there is no statelessness in Latvia) and are entitled to non-citizen passports;
• children born after Latvian independence to stateless parents are entitled to Latvian citizenship upon their parents' request;
• non-citizens cannot vote or hold certain government jobs and are exempt from military service but can travel visa-free in the EU under the Schengen accord like Latvian citizens;
• non-citizens can obtain naturalization if they have been permanent residents of Latvia for at least five years, pass tests in Latvian language and history, and know the words of the Latvian national anthem

• transshipment and destination point for cocaine, synthetic drugs, opiates, and cannabis from Southwest Asia, Western Europe, Latin America, and neighboring Baltic countries;
• despite improved legislation, vulnerable to money laundering due to nascent enforcement capabilities and comparatively weak regulation of offshore companies and the gaming industry;
• CIS organized crime (including counterfeiting, corruption, extortion, stolen cars, and prostitution) accounts for most laundered proceeds