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Compare Barbados (2003) - Belarus (2007)

Compare Barbados (2003) z Belarus (2007)

 Barbados (2003)Belarus (2007)
 BarbadosBelarus
Administrative divisions 11 parishes; Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas; note - the city of Bridgetown may be given parish status 6 provinces (voblastsi, singular - voblasts') and 1 municipality* (horad); Brest, Homyel', Horad Minsk*, Hrodna, Mahilyow, Minsk, Vitsyebsk


note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers
Age structure 0-14 years: 21.2% (male 29,621; female 29,207)


15-64 years: 70% (male 94,840; female 99,230)


65 years and over: 8.8% (male 9,355; female 15,011) (2003 est.)
0-14 years: 14.7% (male 733,010/female 691,734)


15-64 years: 70.4% (male 3,327,119/female 3,520,690)


65 years and over: 14.9% (male 471,863/female 980,307) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products sugarcane, vegetables, cotton grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Airports 1 (2002) 67 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total: 1


over 3,047 m: 1 (2002)
total: 36


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 22


1,524 to 2,437 m: 4


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 7 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total: 31


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 27 (2007)
Area total: 431 sq km


land: 431 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 207,600 sq km


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC slightly smaller than Kansas
Background The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance. 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. Since his election in July 1994 as the country's first president, Alexandr LUKASHENKO has steadily consolidated his power through authoritarian means. Government restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, peaceful assembly, and religion continue.
Birth rate 13.15 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) 9.5 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $847 million (including grants)


expenditures: $886 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
revenues: $13.24 billion


expenditures: $13.76 billion (2006 est.)
Capital Bridgetown name: Minsk


geographic coordinates: 53 54 N, 27 34 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
Climate tropical; rainy season (June to October) cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Coastline 97 km 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution 30 November 1966 15 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996; revised again 17 October 2004 removing presidential term limits
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Barbados
conventional long form: Republic of Belarus


conventional short form: Belarus


local long form: Respublika Byelarus'


local short form: Byelarus'


former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic
Currency Barbadian dollar (BBD) -
Death rate 9.02 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) 13.98 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $692 million (2002) $5.929 billion (2006 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Earl N. PHILLIPS, Jr.


embassy: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad Street, Bridgetown; (courier) ALICO Building-Cheapside, Bridgetown


mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; FPO AA 34055


telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950


FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246, 429-3379
chief of mission: Ambassador Karen B. STEWART


embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya Street, Minsk 220002


mailing address: PSC 78, Box B Minsk, APO 09723


telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83, 217-7347, 217-7348


FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Michael Ian KING


chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 339-9201


FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467


consulate(s) general: Miami and New York


consulate(s): Los Angeles
chief of mission: Ambassador Mikhail KHVOSTOV


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 as of January 2007, ground demarcations of the boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania were complete and mapped with final ratification documentation in preparation; 1997 boundary delimitation treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security
Economic aid - recipient $9.1 million (1995) $53.76 million (2005)
Economy - overview Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into manufacturing and tourism. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners, and there is also a light-manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. The economy contracted in 2002 mainly due to a 3% decline in tourism. Growth should be positive in 2003, the precise level largely dependent on economic conditions in the US and Europe. Belarus's economy in 2006 posted more than 8% growth. Trade with Russia - by far its largest single trade partner - decreased in 2006, largely as a result of a change in the way the Value Added Tax (VAT) on trade was collected. Trade with European countries increased. 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 enterprises. Since 2005, the government has re-nationalized a number of private companies. In addition, businesses have been subject to pressure by 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. A wide range of redistributive policies has helped those at the bottom of the ladder; the Gini coefficient is among the lowest in the world. Because of these restrictive economic policies, Belarus has had trouble attracting foreign investment, which remains low. Growth has been strong in recent years, despite the roadblocks in a tough, centrally directed economy with a high, but decreasing, rate of inflation. Belarus receives heavily discounted oil and natural gas from Russia and much of Belarus' growth can be attributed to the re-export of Russian oil at market prices. This growth will be threatened in 2007, however, when Russia raises energy prices closer to world market prices for Belarus. Russia is planning to increase Belarusian gas prices from $47 per thousand cubic meters (tcm) to $100 per tcm for 2007, gradually increasing to world prices by 2011. Russia has also introduced an export duty on oil shipped to Belarus, which will increase gradually through 2009, and a requirement that Belarusian duties on re-exported Russian oil be shared with Russia - 70% will go to Russia in 2007, 80% in 2008, and 85% in 2009.
Electricity - consumption 725.4 million kWh (2001) 29.49 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2001) 5.053 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2001) 9.091 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 780 million kWh (2001) 29.08 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2001)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Environment - current issues pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers 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: Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution


signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6% Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census)
Exchange rates Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2 (2002), 2 (2001), 2 (2000), 2 (1999), 2 (1998) Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,144.6 (2006), 2,150 (2005), 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003), 1,790.92 (2002)
Executive branch chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996)


head of government: Prime Minister Owen Seymour ARTHUR (since 6 September 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Mia MOTTLEY (since 26 May 2003)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister


elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister
chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)


head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKIY (since 19 December 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir SEMASHKO (since NA December 2003)


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, Aleksandr LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via a November 1996 referendum; subsequent election held 9 September 2001; an October 2004 referendum ended presidential term limits and allowed the president to run in a third election, which was held on 19 March 2006; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president


election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 82.6%, Aleksandr MILINKEVICH 6%, Aleksandr KOZULIN 2.3%; note - election marred by electoral fraud
Exports NA (2001) 249,900 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners US 14.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 12%, UK 10.6%, Jamaica 6.2%, Saint Lucia 4.7% (2002) Russia 34.7%, Netherlands 17.7%, UK 7.5%, Ukraine 6.3%, Poland 5.2% (2006)
Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March calendar year
Flag description three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident) 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 Belarusian national ornamentation in red
GDP purchasing power parity - $4.153 billion (2002 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 6%


industry: 16%


services: 78% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 9.2%


industry: 41.7%


services: 49.1% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $15,000 (2002 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate -2.8% (2002 est.) 9.9% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates 13 10 N, 59 32 W 53 00 N, 28 00 E
Geography - note easternmost Caribbean island landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes
Heliports - 1 (2007)
Highways total: 1,793 km


paved: 1,719 km


unpaved: 74 km (1999)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: 3.4%


highest 10%: 23.5% (2002)
Illicit drugs one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center 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; a small and lightly regulated financial center; new anti-money-laundering legislation does not meet international standards; few investigations or prosecutions of money-laundering activities
Imports NA (2001) 378,200 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
Imports - partners US 41.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 17%, UK 7.3%, Japan 4.2% (2002) Russia 58.6%, Germany 7.5%, Ukraine 5.5% (2006)
Independence 30 November 1966 (from UK) 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate -3.2% (2000 est.) 15.6% (2005 est.)
Industries tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Infant mortality rate total: 12.72 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 14.39 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 11.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
total: 6.63 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 7.67 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 5.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) -0.6% (2002 est.) 7% (2006 est.)
International organization participation ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO BSEC (observer), CEI, CIS, EAEC, EAPC, EBRD, GCTU, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 19 (2000) -
Irrigated land 10 sq km (1998 est.) 1,310 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services) 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 128,500 (2001 est.) 4.3 million (31 December 2005)
Labor force - by occupation services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.) agriculture: 14%


industry: 34.7%


services: 51.3% (2003 est.)
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: 37.21%


permanent crops: 2.33%


other: 60.46% (1998 est.)
arable land: 26.77%


permanent crops: 0.6%


other: 72.63% (2005)
Languages English Belarusian, Russian, other
Legal system English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (30 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: House of Assembly - last held 21 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2008)


election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - BLP 23, DLP 7
bicameral National Assembly or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats; 56 members elected by regional councils and eight members appointed by the president, to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteley (110 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 17 and 31 October 2004; international observers widely denounced the elections as flawed and undemocratic based on massive government falsification; pro-LUKASHENKO candidates won every seat after many opposition candidates were disqualified for technical reasons


election results: Soviet Respubliki - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; Palata Predstaviteley - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA
Life expectancy at birth total population: 71.84 years


male: 69.56 years


female: 74.14 years (2003 est.)
total population: 70.05 years


male: 64.31 years


female: 76.14 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school


total population: 97.4%


male: 98%


female: 96.8% (1995 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99.6%


male: 99.8%


female: 99.4% (1999 census)
Location Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Map references Central America and the Caribbean Europe
Maritime claims exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
none (landlocked)
Merchant marine total: 34 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 284,222 GRT/439,810 DWT


ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 22, combination bulk 1, container 1, petroleum tanker 2


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, The Bahamas 1, Canada 4, Germany 1, Greece 2, Hong Kong 7, Norway 7, UK 18 (2002 est.)
-
Military branches Royal Barbados Defense Force (including Ground Forces and Coast Guard), Royal Barbados Police Force Belarus Armed Forces: Land Force, Air and Air Defense Force (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $NA -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA% 1.4% (2005 est.)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 77,862 (2003 est.) -
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 53,282 (2003 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day, 30 November (1966) 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: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial)


adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial)
noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
Natural hazards infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides NA
Natural resources petroleum, fish, natural gas forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay
Net migration rate -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) 0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines - gas 5,223 km; oil 2,321 km; refined products 1,686 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [Clyde Mascoll] pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP [Mikhail SHIMANSKY]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Nikolai ULAKHOVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Party of Labor and Justice [Viktor SOKOLOV]; Social-Sports Party [Vladimir ALEXANDROVICH]


opposition parties: 10 Plus Coalition [Aleksandr MILINKEVICH], includes: Belarusian Party of Communists or PKB [Syarhey KALYAKIN]; Belarusian Party of Labor (unregistered) [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV, Leonid LEMESHONAK]; Belarusian Popular Front or BPF [Vintsyuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Gramada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH]; Green Party [Oleg GROMYKO]; Party of Freedom and Progress (unregistered) [Vladimir NOVOSYAD]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatol LYABEDKA]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson]


other opposition includes: Belarusian Social-Democratic Party (People's Assembly) or BSDP NH [Aleksandr KOZULIN]; Christian Conservative BPF [Zyanon PAZNIAK]; Ecological Party of Greens [Mikhail KARTASH]; Party of Popular Accord [Sergei YERMAKK]; Republican Party [Vladimir BELAZOR]
Political pressure groups and leaders Barbados Workers Union [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMMISSIONG]; People's Progressive Movement [Eric SEALY]; Worker's Party of Barbados [Dr. George BELLE] Assembly of Pro-Democratic NGOs [Sergey MATSKEVICH]; Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions [Alyaksandr YAROSHUK]; Belarusian Helsinki Committee [Tatiana PROTKO]; Belarusian Organization of Working Women [Irina ZHIKHAR]; Charter 97 [Andrey SANNIKOV]; Lenin Communist Union of Youth (youth wing of the Belarusian Party of Communists or PKB); National Strike Committee of Entrepreneurs [Aleksandr VASILYEV, Valery LEVONEVSKY]; Partnership NGO [Nikolay ASTREYKA]; Perspektiva kiosk watchdog NGO [Anatol SHUMCHENKO]; Vyasna [Ales BYALATSKY]; Women's Independent Democratic Movement [Ludmila PETINA]; Youth Front (Malady Front) [Dzmitryy DASHKEVICH, Syarhey BAKHUN]; Zubr youth group [Vladimir KOBETS]
Population 277,264 (July 2003 est.) 9,724,723 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% 27.1% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate 0.38% (2003 est.) -0.41% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Bridgetown, Speightstown (Port Charles Marina) -
Radio broadcast stations AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Railways 0 km total: 5,512 km


broad gauge: 5,497 km 1.520-m gauge (874 km electrified)


standard gauge: 15 km 1.435 m (2006)
Religions Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female


total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.945 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.481 male(s)/female


total population: 0.873 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system


international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia
general assessment: Belarus lags behind its neighbors in upgrading telecommunications infrastructure; state-owned Beltelcom is the sole provider of fixed-line local and long distance service; fixed-line teledensity of 33 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of 58 per 100 persons; modernization of the network progressing with roughly two-thirds of switching equipment now digital


domestic: fixed-line penetration is improving although rural areas continue to be underserved; 4 GSM wireless networks are experiencing rapid growth; strict government controls on telecommunications technologies


international: country code - 375; 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); 3 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 (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use 108,000 (1997) 3.368 million (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 8,013 (1997) 5.96 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations 1 (plus two cable channels) (1997) 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region generally flat and contains much marshland
Total fertility rate 1.65 children born/woman (2003 est.) 1.22 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 10% (2001 est.) 1.6% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2005)
Waterways none 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)
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