Latvia

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1. Introduction 1.1 Geography and sociodemography The Republic of Latvia is located on the eastern Baltic coast, in the western part of the eastern Europe plain. It borders Estonia to the north, the Russian Federation to the East, Belarus to the south-east and Lithuania to the south. To the West lie the Baltic Sea and the Riga Gulf. Latvia’s border length is 1862 km, of which the land border is 1368 km. Latvia’s territory is 64 589 km 2 , with a flat landscape and extensive forests covering 44% of the land area and forming Latvia’s most important natural resource. The highest point in Latvia, 311.6 m above sea level, is Gaizinkalns in the Madonas district. The average elevation of Latvia is 87 m above the sea level. Figure 1.1 shows a map of Latvia. Fig. 1.1 Map of Latvia Irbe Strait ESTONIA Lake Pakov Ventspils Gulf of Riga Valmiera Aluksno Baltic Sea Liepaja Jurmala Jelgava RIGA Salaspils Ogre Galzina Kalns Jekabpils Rezekne RUSSIA LITHUANIA Daugavpils BELARUS Source: CIA 2007.
Health systems in transition Latvia Table 1.1 Population/Demographic indicators, 1995–2004 1970 1980 1990 2000 2004 Total population (mid-year) 2351903 2511701 2663 151 2372 984 2312 819 Population, female (% of total) 54.4 54.0 53.5 53.9 53.9 Population aged 0–14 (% of total) n/a 20.5 21.4 17.7 15.1 Population aged 65 and above (% of n/a 12.9 11.8 15.0 16.4 total) Population aged 80 and above (% of n/a n/a n/a 2.6 3.0 total)* Population growth (annual %)** n/a n/a -0.6 -0.7 -0.6 Average population density (per km 2 ) n/a n/a 41.2 36.7 35.8 Fertility rate, total (births per woman) 1.9 2.0 2.0 1.2 1.2 Birth rate, crude (per 1000 people) n/a 14.2 14.2 8.5 8.8 Death rate, crude (per 1000 people) n/a 12.8 13.1 13.6 13.9 Age–dependency ratio (population n/a 1/1.9 1/2.0 1/2.1 1/2.2 0–14 and 65+/population 15–64 years) % of urban population 62.5 68.0 n/a 60.4 ***60.0 Literacy rate (%) in population aged 15+ 99.8 99.8 99.8 99.8 ***99.7 Source: WHO Regional Office for Europe 2006. Notes: n/a: not available; * Demographic yearbooks; ** http://publications.worldbank.org/WDI/ indicators; *** Figures as of 2003. The Atlantic Ocean, Baltic Sea, and Riga Gulf are the main factors that influence the regional characteristics of the climate, which is temperate, with average temperatures of 20° in summer and -5° in winter. During winter the air temperature changes in direction from west to east. Due to geographical proximity to the Atlantic Ocean and the Baltic Sea, the air temperature is warmer in the coastal region than in the eastern part of the country. In the coastal region winters are milder, summers are cooler and autumn is colder than spring. The capital of Latvia is Riga, and the official language is Latvian. In 2004, the population of Latvia was 2.3 million. It has been declining since independence, having fallen by approximately 13% in the period from 1990 to 2004, as a result of emigration and a combination of low birth rates and high death rates. As Table 1.1 indicates, the fertility rate has fallen from 2.0 in 1990 to 1.2 in 2004, and the birth rate dropped from 14.2 in 1990 to 8.8 in 2004. The death rate, in the meantime, has been steadily rising, climbing from 12.8 in 1980 to 13.9 in 2004. This natural increase has been negative in Latvia since 1991. Due mainly to the low birth rate, but also because of emigration of the population to other countries, Latvia’s population is ageing very rapidly, with the proportion of children aged 1–14 falling, and the share of the elderly aged 65 and above increasing. In view of the rapid growth of the share of the
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5. Physical and human resources 5.1
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6. Provision of services 6.1 Public
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9. Conclusions In the early years o
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10. Appendices 10.1 References Apin
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Latvia

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