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Compare Aruba (2005) - Belarus (2002)
Compare Aruba (2005) z Belarus (2002)
| Aruba (2005) | Belarus (2002) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | 6 voblastsi (singular - voblasts') and one municipality* (harady, singular - horad); Brestskaya (Brest), Homyel'skaya (Homyel'), Horad Minsk*, Hrodzyenskaya (Hrodna), Mahilyowskaya (Mahilyow), Minskaya, Vitsyebskaya (Vitsyebsk); note - when using a place name with the adjectival ending 'skaya' the word voblasts' should be added to the place name
note: voblasti have the administrative center name following in parentheses |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 19.9% (male 7,308/female 6,960)
15-64 years: 68.2% (male 23,736/female 25,068) 65 years and over: 11.9% (male 3,486/female 5,008) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 17.3% (male 914,579; female 876,346)
15-64 years: 68.6% (male 3,443,859; female 3,643,628) 65 years and over: 14.1% (male 482,624; female 974,346) (2002 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | aloes; livestock; fish | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk |
| Airports | 1 (2004 est.) | 136 (2001) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 33
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 19 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 11 (2002) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 103
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 65 (2002) |
| Area | total: 193 sq km
land: 193 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Kansas |
| Background | Discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, Aruba was acquired by the Dutch in 1636. The island's economy has been dominated by three main industries. A 19th century gold rush was followed by prosperity brought on by the opening in 1924 of an oil refinery. The last decades of the 20th century saw a boom in the tourism industry. Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 and became a separate, autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Movement toward full independence was halted at Aruba's request in 1990. | After seven decades as a constituent republic of the USSR, Belarus attained its independence in 1991. It has retained closer political and economic ties to Russia than any of the other former Soviet republics. Belarus and Russia signed a treaty on a two-state union on 8 December 1999 envisioning greater political and economic integration. Although Belarus agreed to a framework to carry out the accord, serious implementation has yet to take place. |
| Birth rate | 11.26 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 9.86 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $135.8 million
expenditures: $147 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000) |
revenues: $4 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.) |
| Capital | Oranjestad | Minsk |
| Climate | tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime |
| Coastline | 68.5 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | 1 January 1986 | 30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996 |
| Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Aruba |
conventional long form: Republic of Belarus
conventional short form: Belarus local long form: Respublika Byelarus' local short form: none former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Currency | - | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) |
| Death rate | 6.57 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 13.99 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Debt - external | $285 million (1996) | $770 million (2001 est.) |
| Dependency status | part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Aruba; the Consul General to Netherlands Antilles is accredited to Aruba | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael G. KOZAK
embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands); note - Mr. Henry Baarh, Minister Plenipotentiary for Aruba at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands | chief of mission: Ambassador Valeriy V. TSEPAKLO
chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604 FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805 consulate(s) general: New York |
| Disputes - international | none | boundary demarcation with Latvia and Lithuania is pending European Union funding |
| Economic aid - recipient | $26 million (1995); note - the Netherlands provided a $127 million aid package to Aruba and Suriname in 1996 | $194.3 million (1995) (1995) |
| Economy - overview | Tourism is the mainstay of the small, open Aruban economy, with offshore banking and oil refining and storage also important. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities. Construction has boomed, with hotel capacity five times the 1985 level. In addition, the reopening of the country's oil refinery in 1993, a major source of employment and foreign exchange earnings, has further spurred growth. Aruba's small labor force and exceptionally low unemployment rate have led to a large number of unfilled job vacancies, despite sharp rises in wage rates in recent years. Tourist arrivals have declined in the aftermath of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. The government now must deal with a budget deficit and a negative trade balance. | Belarus has seen little structural reform since 1995, when President LUKASHENKO launched the country on the path of "market socialism." In keeping with this policy, LUKASHENKO reimposed administrative controls over prices and currency exchange rates and expanded the state's right to intervene in the management of private enterprise. In addition to the burdens imposed by high inflation and persistent trade deficits, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, retroactive application of new business regulations, and arrests of "disruptive" businessmen and factory owners. Close relations with Russia, possibly leading to reunion, color the pattern of economic developments. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. |
| Electricity - consumption | 751.2 million kWh (2002) | 26.78 billion kWh (2000) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 300 million kWh (2000) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 4.15 billion kWh (2000) |
| Electricity - production | 807.7 million kWh (2002) | 24.66 billion kWh (2000) |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Jamanota 188 m |
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
| Environment - current issues | NA | soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine |
| Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
| Ethnic groups | mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80% | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% |
| Exchange rates | Aruban guilders/florins per US dollar - 1.79 (2004), 1.79 (2003), 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001), 1.79 (2000) | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,590 (yearend 2001), 1,531.000 (November 2001), 876.750 (2000), 248.795 (1999), 46.127 (1998), 26.020 (1997); note - on 1 January 2000, the national currency was redenominated at one new ruble to 2,000 old rubles |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Fredis REFUNJOL (since 11 May 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Nelson O. ODUBER (since 30 October 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers (elected by the Staten) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed for a six-year term by the monarch; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by the Staten for four-year terms; election last held 28 September 2001 (next to be held by December 2005) election results: Nelson O. ODUBER elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA |
chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Gennadiy NOVITSKIY (since 1 October 2001); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since 13 March 2000), Aleksandr POPKOV (since 10 November 1998), Sergei SIDORSKY (since NA September 2001), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since NA September 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; first election took place 23 June and 10 July 1994; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via a November 1996 referendum; new election held 9 September 2001 (next election to be held by September 2006); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 75.6%, Vladimir GONCHARIK 15.4% |
| Exports | NA | $7.5 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | live animals and animal products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment, transport equipment | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, textiles, foodstuffs, metals |
| Exports - partners | Netherlands 28.5%, Panama 17.5%, Venezuela 14.7%, Netherlands Antilles 11.2%, Colombia 10.7%, US 10.4% (2004) | Russia 51%, Ukraine 8%, Poland 4%, Germany 3% (2000) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
| Flag description | blue, with two narrow, horizontal, yellow stripes across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper hoist-side corner | red horizontal band (top) and green horizontal band one-half the width of the red band; a white vertical stripe on the hoist side bears the Belarusian national ornament in red |
| GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $84.8 billion (2001 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 13%
industry: 42% services: 45% (2000) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $28,000 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,200 (2001 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | -1.5% (2002 est.) | 4.1% (2001 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 12 30 N, 69 58 W | 53 00 N, 28 00 E |
| Geography - note | a flat, riverless island renowned for its white sand beaches; its tropical climate is moderated by constant trade winds from the Atlantic Ocean; the temperature is almost constant at about 27 degrees Celsius (81 degrees Fahrenheit) | landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes; the country is geologically well endowed with extensive deposits of granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, and clay |
| Highways | total: 800 km
paved: 513 km unpaved: 287 km note: most coastal roads are paved, while unpaved roads serve large tracts of the interior (1995) |
total: 98,200 km
paved: 66,100 km (includes some all-weather gravel-surfaced roads) unpaved: 32,100 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1990) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 5%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
| Illicit drugs | transit point for US- and Europe-bound narcotics with some accompanying money-laundering activity | limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for the domestic market; transshipment point for illicit drugs to and via Russia, and to the Baltics and Western Europe; lax money-laundering and banking regulations |
| Imports | NA | $8.1 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and electrical equipment, crude oil for refining and reexport, chemicals; foodstuffs | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals |
| Imports - partners | US 55.5%, Netherlands 14.1%, Venezuela 3.3% (2004) | Russia 65%, Germany 7%, Poland 3% (2000) |
| Independence | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 5.4% (2001 est.) |
| Industries | tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 5.89 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
14.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.2% (2002 est.) | 46.1% (2001 est.) |
| International organization participation | ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCL, WToO (associate) | CCC, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 23 (2002) |
| Irrigated land | 0.01 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Common Court of Justice of Aruba (judges are appointed by the monarch) | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Constitutional Court (half of the judges appointed by the president and half appointed by the Chamber of Representatives) |
| Labor force | 41,500 (1997 est.) | 4.8 million (2000) |
| Labor force - by occupation | most employment is in wholesale and retail trade and repair, followed by hotels and restaurants; oil refining | industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 2,900 km
border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km |
| Land use | arable land: 10.53% (including aloe 0.01%)
permanent crops: 0% other: 89.47% (2001) |
arable land: 29.76%
permanent crops: 0.69% other: 69.55% (1998 est.) |
| Languages | Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish | Belarusian, Russian, other |
| Legal system | based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence | based on civil law system |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats; members elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 23 September 2005 (next to be held by NA 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - MEP 43%, AVP 32%, MPA 7%, RED 7%, PDR 6%, OLA 4%, PPA 2%; seats by party - MEP 11, AVP 8, MPA 1, RED 1 |
bicameral Parliament or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats; 56 members elected by regional councils and 8 members appointed by the president, all for 4-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Pretsaviteley (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held October 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: party affiliation data unavailable; under present political conditions party designations are meaningless |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.14 years
male: 75.8 years female: 82.65 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 68.28 years
male: 62.3 years female: 74.56 years (2002 est.) |
| Literacy | definition:
total population: 97% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
| Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela | Eastern Europe, east of Poland |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm | none (landlocked) |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands | - |
| Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Dutch Navy and Marines, Coast Guard | Army, Air Force (including air defense), Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $156 million (FY98) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1% (FY01) |
| Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 2,744,267 (2002 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 2,149,873 (2002 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 86,396 (2002 est.) |
| National holiday | Flag Day, 18 March | Independence Day, 3 July (1944); note - 3 July 1944 was the date Minsk was liberated from German troops, 25 August 1991 was the date of independence from the Soviet Union |
| Nationality | noun: Aruban(s)
adjective: Aruban; Dutch |
noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
| Natural hazards | lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt | NA |
| Natural resources | NEGL; white sandy beaches | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 2.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | crude oil 1,470 km; refined products 1,100 km; natural gas 1,980 km (1992) |
| Political parties and leaders | Aliansa/Aruban Social Movement or MSA [Robert WEVER]; Aruban Liberal Organization or OLA [Glenbert CROES]; Aruban Patriotic Movement or MPA [Monica ARENDS-KOCK]; Aruban Patriotic Party or PPA [Benny NISBET]; Aruban People's Party or AVP [Mike EMAN]; People's Electoral Movement Party or MEP [Nelson O. ODUBER]; Real Democracy or PDR [Andin BIKKER]; RED [Rudy LAMPE]; Workers Political Platform or PTT [Gregorio WOLFF] | Agrarian Party or AP [Mikhail SHIMANSKY]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [Viktor CHIKIN, chairman]; Belarusian Ecological Green Party (merger of Belarusian Ecological Party and Green Party of Belarus) [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat Party or SDBP [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party or Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Socialist Party [Vyacheslav KUZNETSOV]; Civic Accord Bloc (United Civic Party) or CAB [Anatol LIABEDZKA]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDPB [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH, chairman]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Republican Party of Labor and Justice or RPPS [Anatoliy NETYLKIN, chairman]; Social-Democrat Party of Popular Accord or PPA [Leanid SECHKA]; Women's Party or "Nadezhda" [Valentina POLEVIKOVA, chairperson] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
| Population | 71,566 (July 2005 est.) | 10,335,382 (July 2002 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA | 22% (1995 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.47% (2005 est.) | -0.14% (2002 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Barcadera, Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas | Mazyr |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 16, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) |
| Radios | - | 3.02 million (1997) |
| Railways | - | total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2000 est.) |
| Religions | Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: modern fully automatic telecommunications system
domestic: increased competition through privatization; 3 wireless service providers are now licensed international: country code - 297; 1 submarine cable to Sint Maarten (Netherlands Antilles); extensive interisland microwave radio relay links |
general assessment: the Ministry of Telecommunications controls all telecommunications through its carrier (a joint stock company) Beltelcom which is a monopoly
domestic: local - Minsk has a digital metropolitan network and a cellular NMT-450 network; waiting lists for telephones are long; local service outside Minsk is neglected and poor; intercity - Belarus has a partly developed fiber-optic backbone system presently serving at least 13 major cities (1998); Belarus's fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational international: Belarus is a member of the Trans-European Line (TEL), Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line, and has access to the Trans-Siberia Line (TSL); three fiber-optic segments provide connectivity to Latvia, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine; worldwide service is available to Belarus through this infrastructure; additional analog lines to Russia; Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik earth stations |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 37,100 (2002) | 2.313 million (1997) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 53,000 (2001) | 8,167 (1997) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) |
| Terrain | flat with a few hills; scant vegetation | generally flat and contains much marshland |
| Total fertility rate | 1.79 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 1.31 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 0.6% (2003 est.) | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers |
| Waterways | - | NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems |
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