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Compare Belarus (2001) - Seychelles (2005)

Compare Belarus (2001) z Seychelles (2005)

 Belarus (2001)Seychelles (2005)
 BelarusSeychelles
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
23 administrative districts; Anse aux Pins, Anse Boileau, Anse Etoile, Anse Louis, Anse Royale, Baie Lazare, Baie Sainte Anne, Beau Vallon, Bel Air, Bel Ombre, Cascade, Glacis, Grand' Anse (on Mahe), Grand' Anse (on Praslin), La Digue, La Riviere Anglaise, Mont Buxton, Mont Fleuri, Plaisance, Pointe La Rue, Port Glaud, Saint Louis, Takamaka
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: 26.4% (male 10,839/female 10,601)


15-64 years: 67.4% (male 26,709/female 28,025)


65 years and over: 6.2% (male 1,622/female 3,392) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; broiler chickens; tuna fish
Airports 136 (2000 est.) 15 (2004 est.)
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: 8


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)
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


914 to 1,523 m: 3


under 914 m: 4 (2004 est.)
Area total:
207,600 sq km

land:
207,600 sq km

water:
0 sq km
total: 455 sq km


land: 455 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Kansas 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
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. A lengthy struggle between France and Great Britain for the islands ended in 1814, when they were ceded to the latter. Independence came in 1976. Socialist rule was brought to a close with a new constitution and free elections in 1993. The most recent presidential elections were held in 2001; President RENE, who had served since 1977, was re-elected. In April 2004 RENE stepped down and Vice President James MICHEL was sworn in as president.
Birth rate 9.57 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 16.22 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget revenues:
$4 billion

expenditures:
$4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.)
revenues: $318.3 million


expenditures: $298.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Capital Minsk Victoria
Climate cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May)
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 491 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 18 June 1993
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 Seychelles


conventional short form: Seychelles
Currency Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) -
Death rate 13.97 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 6.34 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external $1 billion (2000 est.) $218.1 million (2004 est.)
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
the US does not have an embassy in Seychelles; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to the Seychelles
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 Claude Sylvestre MOREL


chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400C, New York, NY 10017


telephone: [1] (212) 972-1785


FAX: [1] (212) 972-1786
Disputes - international none together with Mauritius, Seychelles claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory)
Economic aid - recipient $194.3 million (1995) $16.4 million (1995)
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. Since independence in 1976, per capita output in this Indian Ocean archipelago has expanded to roughly seven times the old near-subsistence level. Growth has been led by the tourist sector, which employs about 30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency earnings, and by tuna fishing. In recent years the government has encouraged foreign investment in order to upgrade hotels and other services. At the same time, the government has moved to reduce the dependence on tourism by promoting the development of farming, fishing, and small-scale manufacturing. A sharp drop illustrated the vulnerability of the tourist sector in 1991-92 due largely to the Gulf war, and once again following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. Growth slowed in 1998-2002, and fell in 2003, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors, but resumed in 2004, erasing a persistent budget deficit. Tight controls on exchange rates and the scarcity of foreign exchange have impaired short-term economic prospects. The black market value of the Seychelles rupee is half the official exchange rate; without a devaluation of the currency the tourist sector may remain sluggish as vacationers seek cheaper destinations such as Comoros, Mauritius, and Madagascar.
Electricity - consumption 27.647 billion kWh (1999) 202.8 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports 2.62 billion kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports 7.1 billion kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production 24.911 billion kWh (1999) 218 million kWh (2002)
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: Indian Ocean 0 m


highest point: Morne Seychellois 905 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 water supply depends on catchments to collect rainwater
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: Biodiversity, 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: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Byelorussian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% mixed French, African, Indian, Chinese, and Arab
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 Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 5.5 (2004), 5.4007 (2003), 5.48 (2002), 5.8575 (2001), 5.7138 (2000)
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 James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 31 August-2 September 2001 (next to be held NA 2006)


election results: France Albert RENE re-elected president; percent of vote - France Albert RENE (SPPF) 54.19%, Wavel RAMKALAWAN (UO) 44.95%, Philippe BOULLE 0.86%; note - the first time that presidential elections have been held separately from legislative elections; France Albert RENE stepped down 14 April 2004 and Vice President James MICHEL was sworn in as president
Exports $7.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000) NA
Exports - commodities machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs canned tuna, frozen fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports)
Exports - partners Russia 66%, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, Lithuania (1998) UK 27.7%, France 15.8%, Spain 12.6%, Japan 8.6%, Italy 7.5%, Germany 5.6% (2004)
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 five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side
GDP purchasing power parity - $78.8 billion (2000 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
13%

industry:
46%

services:
41% (1999 est.)
agriculture: 2.8%


industry: 28.7%


services: 68.9% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $7,500 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $7,800 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4% (2000 est.) 1.5% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates 53 00 N, 28 00 E 4 35 S, 55 40 E
Geography - note landlocked 41 granitic and about 75 coralline islands
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)
total: 373 km


paved: 315 km


unpaved: 58 km (1997 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
4.9%

highest 10%:
19.4% (1993)
lowest 10%: NA


highest 10%: NA
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 -
Imports $8.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000) NA
Imports - commodities mineral products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, foodstuffs machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals
Imports - partners Russia 54%, Ukraine, Germany, Poland, Lithuania (1998) Saudi Arabia 15.5%, Spain 13.3%, France 10.3%, Singapore 7%, South Africa 6.8%, Italy 6.7%, UK 4.7% (2004)
Independence 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) 29 June 1976 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate 5% (2000 est.) NA
Industries metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earth movers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators fishing; tourism; processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages
Infant mortality rate 14.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 15.53 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 19.65 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 11.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 200% (2000 est.) 5% (2004 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) ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 4 (2000) -
Irrigated land 1,000 sq km (1993 est.) NA sq km
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) Court of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president
Labor force 4.8 million (2000) 30,900 (1996)
Labor force - by occupation industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% agriculture 10%, industry 19%, services 71% (1989)
Land boundaries total:
3,098 km

border countries:
Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 605 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km
0 km
Land use arable land:
29%

permanent crops:
1%

permanent pastures:
15%

forests and woodland:
34%

other:
21% (1993 est.)
arable land: 2.22%


permanent crops: 13.33%


other: 84.45% (2001)
Languages Byelorussian, Russian, other Creole 91.8%, English 4.9% (official), other 3.1%, unspecified 0.2% (2002 census)
Legal system based on civil law system based on English common law, French civil law, and customary law
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 National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (34 seats - 25 elected by popular vote, 9 allocated on a proportional basis to parties winning at least 10% of the vote; members serve five-year terms)


elections: last held 4-6 December 2002 (next to be held by 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - SPPF 54.3%, SNP 42.6%, DP 3.1%; seats by party - SPPF 23, SNP 11


note: the 9 awarded seats are apportioned according to the percentage that each party won of the total vote
Life expectancy at birth total population:
68.14 years

male:
62.06 years

female:
74.52 years (2001 est.)
total population: 71.82 years


male: 66.41 years


female: 77.4 years (2005 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: 91.9%


male: 91.4%


female: 92.3% (2003 est.)
Location Eastern Europe, east of Poland archipelago in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar
Map references Commonwealth of Independent States Africa
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine - total: 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 42,223 GRT/63,538 DWT


by type: cargo 1, chemical tanker 3, refrigerated cargo 1


foreign-owned: 1 (Nigeria 1) (2005)
Military branches Army, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards Seychelles Defense Force: Army, Coast Guard (includes Navy Wing, Air Wing), National Guard (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $156 million (FY98) $12.3 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.2% (FY98) 1.8% (2004)
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 Constitution Day (National Day), 18 June (1993)
Nationality noun:
Belarusian(s)

adjective:
Belarusian
noun: Seychellois (singular and plural)


adjective: Seychellois
Natural hazards NA lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible
Natural resources forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas fish, copra, cinnamon trees
Net migration rate 2.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) -5.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines crude oil 1,470 km; refined products 1,100 km; natural gas 1,980 km (1992) -
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] Democratic Party or DP [James MANCHAM, Daniel BELLE]; Mouvement Seychellois pour la Democratie [Jacques HODOUL]; Seychelles National Party or SNP (formerly the United Opposition or UO) [Wavel RAMKALAWAN]; Seychelles People's Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE, James MICHEL] - the governing party
Political pressure groups and leaders NA Roman Catholic Church; trade unions
Population 10,350,194 (July 2001 est.) 81,188 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line 22% (1995 est.) NA
Population growth rate -0.15% (2001 est.) 0.43% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors Mazyr Victoria
Radio broadcast stations AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios 3.02 million (1997) -
Railways total:
5,523 km

broad gauge:
5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2000)
-
Religions Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) Roman Catholic 82.3%, Anglican 6.4%, Seventh Day Adventist 1.1%, other Christian 3.4%, Hindu 2.1%, Muslim 1.1%, other non-Christian 1.5%, unspecified 1.5%, none 0.6% (2002 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: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female


total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 17 years of age; universal
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: effective system


domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago


international: country code - 248; direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 2.313 million (1997) 21,700 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular 8,167 (1997) 54,500 (2003)
Television broadcast stations 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997)
Terrain generally flat and contains much marshland Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs
Total fertility rate 1.28 children born/woman (2001 est.) 1.75 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers NA
Waterways NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems -
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