"Break and splinter us, if you will,
We'll reach the distant sunrise still." Rainis, a famous Latvian poet

Area: 64,589 sq km (slightly larger than West Virginia)
Land boundaries: total: 1,368 km
Coastline: 531 km
Climate: maritime; wet, moderate winters
Terrain: low plain, most of the country is composed of fertile, low-lying plains, with some hills in the east
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Galzina Kalns 312 m
Natural resources: peat, limestone, dolomite, amber, hydropower, wood, arable land
Land use: arable land: 28.19%, permanent crops: 0.45%, other: 71.36% (2005). Irrigated land: 200 sq km. Land in Latvia is often too wet, and in need of drainage, not irrigation; approximately 16,000 sq km or 85% of agricultural land has been improved by drainage (2003)
Environment - current issues: Latvia's environment has benefited from a shift to service industries after the country regained independence; the main environmental priorities are improvement of drinking water quality and sewage system, household, and hazardous waste management, as well as reduction of air pollution; in 2001, Latvia closed the EU accession negotiation chapter on environment committing to full enforcement of EU environmental directives by 2010
Population: 2,259,810 (July 2007 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 13.6% (male 157,451/female 150,184); 15-64 years: 69.6% (male 764,910/female 808,848); 65 years and over: 16.7% (male 123,952/female 254,465) (2007 est.). Median age: total: 39.6 years, male: 36.6 years, female: 42.7 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.648% (2007 est.)
Birth rate: 9.43 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate: 13.64 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.). Infant mortality rate: total: 9.16 deaths/1,000 live births
Net migration rate: -2.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio: 0.862 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 71.6 years, male: 66.39 years, female: 77.1 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.28 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS: 0.6% or 7,600 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 500 (2003 est.)
Ethnic groups: Latvian 57.7%, Russian 29.6%, Belarusian 4.1%, Ukrainian 2.7%, Polish 2.5%, Lithuanian 1.4%, other 2% (2002)
Religions: Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox
Languages: Latvian (official) 58.2%, Russian 37.5%, Lithuanian and other 4.3% (2000 census)
Literacy: 99.7%, male: 99.8%, female: 99.7% (2000 census)
Government type: parliamentary democracy
Capital: Riga
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
Independence: 18 November 1918 (from Soviet Russia)
Constitution: 15 February 1922; restored to force by the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Latvia adopted by the Supreme Council on 21 August 1991; multiple amendments since
Legal system: based on civil law system with traces of Socialist legal traditions and practices; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal for Latvian citizens
Economy - overview: Latvia's economy experienced average GDP growth of more than 7.0% over the past several years. In 2006 it reached 10.2% real GDP growth. The majority of companies, banks, and real estate have been privatized, although the state still holds sizable stakes in a few large enterprises. Latvia officially joined the World Trade Organization in February 1999. EU membership, a top foreign policy goal, came in May 2004. The current account deficit - more than 15% of GDP in 2006 - and inflation remain major concerns.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $36.49 billion (2006 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate): $16.5 billion (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 11.9% (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 3.7%, industry: 21.5%, services: 74.8% (2006 est.)
Labor force: 1.136 million (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate: 6.5% (2006 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.5% (2006 est.)
Budget: revenues: $7.198 billion, expenditures: $7.255 billion (2006 est.)
Public debt: 9.9% of GDP (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products: grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish
Industries: buses, vans, street and railroad cars; synthetic fibers, agricultural machinery, fertilizers, washing machines, radios, electronics, pharmaceuticals, processed foods, textiles; note - dependent on imports for energy and raw materials
Industrial production growth rate: 8.5% (2006 est.)
Current account balance: $-4.279 billion (2006 est.)
Exports: $6.051 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Exports - commodities: wood and wood products, machinery and equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners: Lithuania 14.2%, Estonia 12.3%, Russia 11.5%, Germany 9.8%, UK 7.6%, Sweden 6.3%, Denmark 4.8% (2006)
Imports: $10.99 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, vehicles
Imports - partners: Germany 15.5%, Lithuania 12.9%, Russia 8%, Estonia 7.7%, Poland 7.2%, Finland 5.7%, Sweden 5%, Belarus 4.7% (2006)
Economic aid - recipient: $162 million (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $4.51 billion (2006 est.)
Debt - external: $22.94 billion (2006 est.)
Currency Exchange rate: lati (LVL) per US dollar ($) - 0.4715 (2008)
Telephone system: general assessment: recent efforts focused on bringing competition to the telecommunications sector; the number of fixed lines is decreasing as wireless telephony expands. Domestic: number of telecommunications operators has grown rapidly since the fixed-line market opened to competition in 2003; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular subscribership is roughly 125 per 100 persons. International: country code - 371; the Latvian network is now connected via fiber optic cable to Estonia, Finland, and Sweden
Internet country code: .lv
Internet hosts: 234,014 (2007)
Internet users: 1.071 million (2006)
Transportation
Airports: 42 (2007). Airports - with paved runways: 21. Airports - with unpaved runways: 21.
Railways: 2,303 km, broad gauge: 2,270 km 1.520-m gauge (257 km electrified), narrow gauge: 33 km 0.750-m gauge (2006)
Roadways: 69,532 km (all paved) (2004)
Waterways: 300 km (2006)
Merchant marine: total: 22 ships (1000 GRT or over) 201,684 GRT/221,186 DWT, by type: cargo 9, liquefied gas 2, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 5, roll on/roll off 2. Ports and terminals: Riga, Ventspils
Military branches: Latvian Republic Defense Force: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force (Latvijas Gaisa Spelki), Border Guard, Latvian Home Guard (Latvijas Zemessardze) (2007)
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service; conscription abolished January 2007; under current law, every citizen is entitled to serve in the armed forces for life (2006)
Manpower available for military service: males age 19-49: 517,713, females age 19-49: 519,631 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.2% (2005 est.)
Disputes - international: Russia refuses to sign the 1997 boundary treaty due to Latvian insistence on a unilateral clarificatory declaration referencing Soviet occupation of Latvia and territorial losses; Russia demands better Latvian treatment of ethnic Russians in Latvia; as of January 2007, ground demarcation of the boundary with Belarus was complete and mapped with final ratification documentation in preparation; the Latvian parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Latvia must implement the strict Schengen border rules with Russia
Illicit drugs: transshipment and destination point for cocaine, synthetic drugs, opiates, and cannabis from Southwest Asia, Western Europe, Latin America, and neighboring Balkan 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.

Information source: CIA: The World Fact Book. For more detailed and up-to-date information visit https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/lg.html