##ciekawa_strona##
Compare Belarus (2001) - Estonia (2008)
Compare Belarus (2001) z Estonia (2008)
| Belarus (2001) | Estonia (2008) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 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 |
15 counties (maakonnad, singular - maakond): Harjumaa (Tallinn), Hiiumaa (Kardla), Ida-Virumaa (Johvi), Jarvamaa (Paide), Jogevamaa (Jogeva), Laanemaa (Haapsalu), Laane-Virumaa (Rakvere), Parnumaa (Parnu), Polvamaa (Polva), Raplamaa (Rapla), Saaremaa (Kuressaare), Tartumaa (Tartu), Valgamaa (Valga), Viljandimaa (Viljandi), Vorumaa (Voru)
note: counties have the administrative center name following in parentheses |
| Age structure | 0-14 years:
17.93% (male 947,820; female 908,210) 15-64 years: 68.21% (male 3,428,920; female 3,631,290) 65 years and over: 13.86% (male 473,992; female 959,962) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 15% (male 101,430/female 95,658)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 423,664/female 464,813) 65 years and over: 17.5% (male 76,344/female 154,003) (2007 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | potatoes, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish |
| Airports | 136 (2000 est.) | 19 (2007) |
| Airports - with paved runways | 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 (2000 est.) |
total: 12
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2007) |
| 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 (2000 est.) |
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
| Area | total:
207,600 sq km land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 45,226 sq km
land: 43,211 sq km water: 2,015 sq km note: includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined |
| Background | 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 but, to date, neither side has actively sought to implement the accord. | After centuries of Danish, Swedish, German, and Russian rule, Estonia attained independence in 1918. Forcibly incorporated into the USSR in 1940 - an action never recognized by the US - it regained its freedom in 1991, with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since the last Russian troops left in 1994, Estonia has been free to promote economic and political ties with Western Europe. It joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. |
| Birth rate | 9.57 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.17 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Budget | revenues:
$4 billion expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $7.671 billion
expenditures: $7.015 billion (2007 est.) |
| Capital | Minsk | name: Tallinn
geographic coordinates: 59 26 N, 24 43 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 | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 3,794 km |
| Constitution | 30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996 | adopted 28 June 1992 |
| Country name | 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 |
conventional long form: Republic of Estonia
conventional short form: Estonia local long form: Eesti Vabariik local short form: Eesti former: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Currency | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) | - |
| Death rate | 13.97 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 13.3 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Debt - external | $1 billion (2000 est.) | $20.24 billion (30 June 2007) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael KOZAK embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Stanley Davis PHILLIPS
embassy: Kentmanni 20, 15099 Tallinn mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [372] 668-8100 FAX: [372] 668-8134 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Valeriy 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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Vaino REINART
chancery: 2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0108 consulate(s) general: New York |
| Disputes - international | none | Russia recalled its signature to the 1996 technical border agreement with Estonia in 2005, rather than concede to Estonia's appending prepared a unilateral declaration referencing Soviet occupation and territorial losses; Russia demands better accommodation of Russian-speaking population in Estonia; Estonian citizen groups continue to press for realignment of the boundary based on the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty that would bring the now divided ethnic Setu people and parts of the Narva region within Estonia; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Estonia must implement the strict Schengen border rules with Russia |
| Economic aid - recipient | $194.3 million (1995) | $135.5 million (2004) |
| Economy - overview | 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 extremely high inflation, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, and retroactive application of new business regulations prohibiting practices that had been legal. Further economic problems are two consecutive bad harvests, 1998-99, and persistent trade deficits. 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. | Estonia, a 2004 European Union entrant, has a modern market-based economy and one of the highest per capita income levels in Central Europe. The economy benefits from strong electronics and telecommunications sectors and strong trade ties with Finland, Sweden, and Germany. The current government has pursued relatively sound fiscal policies, resulting in balanced budgets and low public debt. In 2007, however, a large current account deficit and rising inflation put pressure on Estonia's currency, which is pegged to the euro, highlighting the need for growth in export-generating industries. |
| Electricity - consumption | 27.647 billion kWh (1999) | 6.888 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - exports | 2.62 billion kWh (1999) | 1.953 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - imports | 7.1 billion kWh (1999) | 345 million kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production | 24.911 billion kWh (1999) | 9.599 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
99.9% hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Nyoman River 90 m highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m |
| Environment - current issues | soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine | air polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast; however, the amount of pollutants emitted to the air have fallen steadily, the emissions of 2000 were 80% less than in 1980; the amount of unpurified wastewater discharged to water bodies in 2000 was one twentieth the level of 1980; in connection with the start-up of new water purification plants, the pollution load of wastewater decreased; Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas need to be monitored; coastal seawater is polluted in certain locations |
| Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | Byelorussian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% | Estonian 67.9%, Russian 25.6%, Ukrainian 2.1%, Belarusian 1.3%, Finn 0.9%, other 2.2% (2000 census) |
| Exchange rates | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,180 (yearend 2000), 730,000 (15 December 1999), 139,000 (25 January 1999), 46,080 (second quarter 1998), 25,964 (1997), 15,500 (yearend 1996); note - on 1 January 2000, the national currency was redenominated at one new ruble to 2,000 old rubles | krooni per US dollar - 11.535 (2007), 12.473 (2006), 12.584 (2005), 12.596 (2004), 13.856 (2003)
note: the krooni is pegged to the euro |
| Executive branch | chief of state:
President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994) head of government: Prime Minister Vladimir YERMOSHIN (since 18 February 2000); First Deputy Prime Minister Andrey KOBYAKOV (since 13 March 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Mikhail DEMCHUK (since 14 July 2000), Mikhail KHORSTOV (since 27 November 2000), Valeriy KOKOREV (since 23 August 1994), Leonid KOZIK (since 4 February 1997), Gennadiy NOVITSKIY (since 11 February 1997), Aleksandr POPKOV (since 10 November 1998) 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 (next to be held NA; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via the November 1996 referendum); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO elected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 85%, Vyacheslav KEBICH 15% |
chief of state: President Toomas Hendrik ILVES (since 9 October 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Andrus ANSIP (since 12 April 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); if a candidate does not secure two-thirds of the votes after three rounds of balloting in the Parliament, then an electoral assembly (made up of Parliament plus members of local governments) elects the president, choosing between the two candidates with the largest percentage of votes; election last held 23 September 2006 (next to be held in the fall of 2011); prime minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament election results: Toomas Hendrik ILVES elected president on 23 September 2006 by a 345-member electoral assembly; ILVES received 174 votes to incumbent Arnold RUUTEL's 162; remaining 9 ballots left blank or invalid |
| Exports | $7.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | 3,958 bbl/day (2004) |
| Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs | machinery and equipment 33%, wood and paper 15%, textiles 14%, food products 8%, furniture 7%, metals, chemical products (2001) |
| Exports - partners | Russia 66%, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, Lithuania (1998) | Finland 18.2%, Sweden 12.2%, Latvia 9.1%, Russia 7.9%, US 6.6%, Germany 5%, Lithuania 4.8%, Gibraltar 4.5% (2006) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
| Flag description | 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 | pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $78.8 billion (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
13% industry: 46% services: 41% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 2.9%
industry: 28.9% services: 68.2% (2007 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,500 (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | 7.3% (2007 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 59 00 N, 26 00 E |
| Geography - note | landlocked | the mainland terrain is flat, boggy, and partly wooded; offshore lie more than 1,500 islands |
| Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
| Highways | total:
63,355 km paved: 60,567 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather) unpaved: 2,788 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1998) |
- |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
4.9% highest 10%: 19.4% (1993) |
lowest 10%: 2.5%
highest 10%: 27.6% (2003) |
| Illicit drugs | 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 | growing producer of synthetic drugs; increasingly important transshipment zone for cannabis, cocaine, opiates, and synthetic drugs since joining the European Union and the Schengen Accord; potential money laundering related to organized crime and drug trafficking is a concern, as is possible use of the gambling sector to launder funds; major use of opiates and ecstasy |
| Imports | $8.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | 54,000 bbl/day (2004) |
| Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, foodstuffs | machinery and equipment 33.5%, chemical products 11.6%, textiles 10.3%, foodstuffs 9.4%, transportation equipment 8.9% (2001) |
| Imports - partners | Russia 54%, Ukraine, Germany, Poland, Lithuania (1998) | Finland 18.4%, Russia 12.9%, Germany 12.3%, Sweden 9.2%, Lithuania 6.4%, Latvia 5.8% (2006) |
| Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 20 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 6.1% (2007 est.) |
| Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earth movers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | engineering, electronics, wood and wood products, textile; information technology, telecommunications |
| Infant mortality rate | 14.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 7.59 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.77 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 200% (2000 est.) | 6.3% (2007 est.) |
| International organization participation | CCC, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | Australia Group, BA, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNITAR, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 4 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | 1,000 sq km (1993 est.) | 40 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | 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) | National Court (chairman appointed by Parliament for life) |
| Labor force | 4.8 million (2000) | 688,000 (2007 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% | agriculture: 11%
industry: 20% services: 69% (1999 est.) |
| Land boundaries | total:
3,098 km border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 605 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km |
total: 633 km
border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km |
| Land use | arable land:
29% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 15% forests and woodland: 34% other: 21% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 12.05%
permanent crops: 0.35% other: 87.6% (2005) |
| Languages | Byelorussian, Russian, other | Estonian (official) 67.3%, Russian 29.7%, other 2.3%, unknown 0.7% (2000 census) |
| Legal system | based on civil law system | based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
| Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Pretsaviteley (110 seats)
elections: last held October 2000 (next to be held NA) election results: party affiliation data unavailable; under present political conditions party designations are meaningless |
unicameral Parliament or Riigikogu (101 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 4 March 2007 (next to be held in March 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - Estonian Reform Party 27.8%, Center Party of Estonia 26.1%, Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica 17.9%, Social Democratic Party 10.6%, Estonian Greens 7.1%, Estonian People's Union 7.1%, other 5%; seats by party - Reform Party 31, Center Party 29, Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica 19, Social Democrats 10, Estonian Greens 6, People's Union 6 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
68.14 years male: 62.06 years female: 74.52 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 72.3 years
male: 66.87 years female: 78.07 years (2007 est.) |
| Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.8% male: 99.8% female: 99.8% (2000 census) |
| Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia |
| Map references | Commonwealth of Independent States | Europe |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: limits fixed in coordination with neighboring states |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 33 ships (1000 GRT or over) 393,655 GRT/93,245 DWT
by type: cargo 7, chemical tanker 1, passenger/cargo 23, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: 4 (Denmark 2, Norway 2) registered in other countries: 67 (Antigua and Barbuda 15, Belize 1, Cambodia 1, Cyprus 5, Dominica 8, Latvia 1, Liberia 1, Malta 7, Norway 1, Panama 3, Slovakia 2, St Kitts and Nevis 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 20, Vanuatu 1) (2007) |
| Military branches | Army, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards | Estonian Defense Forces: Land Force, Navy, Air Force (Eesti Ohuvagi), Volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit, KL) (2008) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $156 million (FY98) | - |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (FY98) | 2% (2005 est.) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,729,956 (2001 est.) |
- |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
2,138,743 (2001 est.) |
- |
| Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
86,396 (2001 est.) |
- |
| National holiday | 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 | Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 was the date Estonia declared its independence from Soviet Russia; 20 August 1991 was the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union |
| Nationality | noun:
Belarusian(s) adjective: Belarusian |
noun: Estonian(s)
adjective: Estonian |
| Natural hazards | NA | sometimes flooding occurs in the spring |
| Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas | oil shale, peat, phosphorite, clay, limestone, sand, dolomite, arable land, sea mud |
| Net migration rate | 2.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -3.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Pipelines | crude oil 1,470 km; refined products 1,100 km; natural gas 1,980 km (1992) | gas 859 km (2007) |
| Political parties and leaders | Agrarian Party or AP [Semyon SHARETSKY, chairman]; 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 or SDBP [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Socialist Party [Vyacheslav KUZNETSOV]; Civic Accord Bloc (United Civic Party) or CAB [Stanislav BOGDANKEVICH, chairman]; 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 Nadezhda [Valentina POLEVIKOVA, chairperson] | Center Party of Estonia (Keskerakond) [Edgar SAVISAAR]; Estonian Greens (Rohelised) [Marek STRANDBERG]; Estonian People's Union (Rahvaliit) [Villu REILJAN]; Estonian Reform Party (Reformierakond) [Andrus ANSIP]; Estonian United Russian People's Party or EUVRP [Yevgeniy TOMBERG]; Social Democratic Party (formerly People's Party Moodukad or Moderates) [Ivari PADAR]; Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica (Isamaa je Res Publica Liit) [Mart LAAR] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Nochnoy Dozor/Night Watch anti-fascist movement (leader Alexander KOROBOV) |
| Population | 10,350,194 (July 2001 est.) | 1,315,912 (July 2007 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 22% (1995 est.) | 5% (2003) |
| Population growth rate | -0.15% (2001 est.) | -0.635% (2007 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Mazyr | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 0, FM 98, shortwave 0 (2001) |
| Radios | 3.02 million (1997) | - |
| Railways | total:
5,523 km broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2000) |
total: 968 km
broad gauge: 968 km 1.520 m/1.524-m gauge (2006) |
| Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Evangelical Lutheran 13.6%, Orthodox 12.8%, other Christian (including Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal) 1.4%, unaffiliated 34.1%, other and unspecified 32%, none 6.1% (2000 census) |
| Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.911 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.496 male(s)/female total population: 0.842 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal for all Estonian citizens |
| Telephone system | 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 |
general assessment: foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service; substantial fiber-optic cable systems carry telephone, TV, and radio traffic in the digital mode; Internet services are widely available; schools and libraries are connected to the internet, a large percentage of the population files income-tax returns online, and online voting was used for the first time in the 2005 local elections
domestic: a wide range of high quality voice, data, and Internet services is available throughout the country international: country code - 372; fiber-optic cables to Finland, Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched service; 2 international switches are located in Tallinn (2001) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 2.313 million (1997) | 541,900 (2006) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,167 (1997) | 1.659 million (2006) |
| Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 3 (2001) |
| Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | marshy, lowlands; flat in the north, hilly in the south |
| Total fertility rate | 1.28 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.41 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers | 5.2% (2007 est.) |
| Waterways | NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems | 320 km (2006) |
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