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Compare Belarus (2002) - Guinea-Bissau (2004)

Compare Belarus (2002) z Guinea-Bissau (2004)

 Belarus (2002)Guinea-Bissau (2004)
 BelarusGuinea-Bissau
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
9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos
Age structure 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.)
0-14 years: 41.7% (male 288,760; female 289,975)


15-64 years: 55.4% (male 367,728; female 400,996)


65 years and over: 2.9% (male 17,570; female 23,334) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish
Airports 136 (2001) 28 (2003 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 (2002)
total: 3


over 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (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 (2002)
total: 25


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.)
Area total: 207,600 sq km


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 36,120 sq km


land: 28,000 sq km


water: 8,120 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Kansas slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut
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. Although Belarus agreed to a framework to carry out the accord, serious implementation has yet to take place. Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable upheaval. The founding government consisted of a single party system and command economy. In 1980, a military coup established Joao VIEIRA as president and a path to a market economy and multiparty system was implemented. A number of coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him and in 1994 he was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military coup attempt and civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIERA's ouster in 1999. In February 2000, an interim government turned over power when opposition leader Kumba YALA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. YALA was ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2003, and Henrique ROSA was sworn in as President. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by its crippled economy, devastated in the civil war.
Birth rate 9.86 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) 38.03 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget revenues: $4 billion


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


expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA
Capital Minsk Bissau
Climate cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 350 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 16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996
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 Guinea-Bissau


conventional short form: Guinea-Bissau


local long form: Republica da Guine-Bissau


local short form: Guine-Bissau


former: Portuguese Guinea
Currency Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States; previously the Guinea-Bissau peso (GWP) was used
Death rate 13.99 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) 16.57 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external $770 million (2001 est.) $941.5 million (2000 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US 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
the US Embassy suspended operations on 14 June 1998 in the midst of violent conflict between forces loyal to then President VIEIRA and military-led junta; US embassy Dakar is responsible for covering Guinea-Bissau: telephone - [221] 823-4296; FAX - [221] 822-5903
Diplomatic representation in the US 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
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Henrique Adriano DA SILVA


chancery: 1511 K Street NW, Suite 519, Washington, DC 20005


telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950


FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954
Disputes - international boundary demarcation with Latvia and Lithuania is pending European Union funding attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region
Economic aid - recipient $194.3 million (1995) (1995) $115.4 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 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. One of the 10 poorest countries in the world, Guinea-Bissau depends mainly on farming and fishing. Cashew crops have increased remarkably in recent years, and the country now ranks sixth in cashew production. Guinea-Bissau exports fish and seafood along with small amounts of peanuts, palm kernels, and timber. Rice is the major crop and staple food. However, intermittent fighting between Senegalese-backed government troops and a military junta destroyed much of the country's infrastructure and caused widespread damage to the economy in 1998; the civil war led to a 28% drop in GDP that year, with partial recovery in 1999-2002. Before the war, trade reform and price liberalization were the most successful part of the country's structural adjustment program under IMF sponsorship. The tightening of monetary policy and the development of the private sector had also begun to reinvigorate the economy. Because of high costs, the development of petroleum, phosphate, and other mineral resources is not a near-term prospect. However, unexploited offshore oil reserves could provide much-needed revenue in the long run. The inequality of income distribution is one of the most extreme in the world. The government and international donors continue to work out plans to forward economic development from a lamentably low base. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in low growth in 2002-03 and dim prospects for 2004.
Electricity - consumption 26.78 billion kWh (2000) 51.15 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 300 million kWh (2000) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 4.15 billion kWh (2000) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 24.66 billion kWh (2000) 55 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 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 deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing
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
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1%
Exchange rates 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 Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999)


note: as of 1 May 1997, Guinea-Bissau adopted the XOF franc as the national currency; since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro
Executive branch 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%
chief of state: President Henrique ROSA (interim; since 28 September 2003); note - a September 2003 coup overthrew the elected government of Kumba YALA; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 to 28 September 2003


head of government: Prime Minister Carlos GOMES Junior (since 9 May 2004)


cabinet: NA


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 28 November 1999 and 16 January 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature


election results: Kumba YALA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Kumba YALA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28%


note: a bloodless coup led to the dissolution of the elected government of Kumba YALA in September 2003; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 September 2003 until stepping aside on 28 September 2003 with the establishment of a caretaker government
Exports $7.5 billion f.o.b. (2001) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, textiles, foodstuffs, metals cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber
Exports - partners Russia 51%, Ukraine 8%, Poland 4%, Germany 3% (2000) India 76.8%, Nigeria 12.1%, Italy 5.1% (2003)
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 two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and green with a vertical red band on the hoist side; there is a black five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
GDP purchasing power parity - $84.8 billion (2001 est.) purchasing power parity - $1.063 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 13%


industry: 42%


services: 45% (2000)
agriculture: 62%


industry: 12%


services: 26% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $8,200 (2001 est.) purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4.1% (2001 est.) -7% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates 53 00 N, 28 00 E 12 00 N, 15 00 W
Geography - note 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 this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland
Highways 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)
total: 4,400 km


paved: 453 km


unpaved: 3,947 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 5%


highest 10%: 20% (1998)
lowest 10%: 0.5%


highest 10%: 42.4% (1991)
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; lax money-laundering and banking regulations -
Imports $8.1 billion f.o.b. (2001) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products
Imports - partners Russia 65%, Germany 7%, Poland 3% (2000) Senegal 18.1%, India 14.6%, Portugal 14.6%, China 9.7%, Italy 9%, Spain 4.9% (2003)
Independence 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal)
Industrial production growth rate 5.4% (2001 est.) 2.6% (1997 est.)
Industries metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks
Infant mortality rate 14.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) total: 108.72 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 119.37 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 97.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 46.1% (2001 est.) 4% (2002 est.)
International organization participation 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) ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 23 (2002) -
Irrigated land 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) 170 sq km (1998 est.)
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) Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices who are appointed by the president and serve at his pleasure; final court of appeals in criminal and civil cases); Regional Courts (one in each of nine regions; first court of appeals for Sectoral Court decisions; hear all felony cases and civil cases valued at over $1,000); 24 Sectoral Courts (judges are not necessarily trained lawyers; they hear civil cases under $1,000 and misdemeanor criminal cases)
Labor force 4.8 million (2000) 480,000 (1999)
Labor force - by occupation industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% agriculture 82% (2000 est.)
Land boundaries total: 2,900 km


border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km
total: 724 km


border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km
Land use arable land: 29.76%


permanent crops: 0.69%


other: 69.55% (1998 est.)
arable land: 10.67%


permanent crops: 8.82%


other: 80.51% (2001)
Languages Belarusian, Russian, other Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages
Legal system based on civil law system NA
Legislative branch 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
unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (100 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve a maximum of four years); note - President YALA dissolved the National People's Assembly in November 2002, elections for a new legislature were scheduled to fall in February 2003 but were then postponed to April, then July, then September, and were last scheduled to occur in March 2004


elections: last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2009)


election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 31.5%, PRS 24.8%, PUSD 16.1%, UE 4.1%, APU 1.3%, 13 other parties 22.2% ; seats by party - PAIGC 45, PRS 35, PUSD 17, UE 2, APU 1
Life expectancy at birth total population: 68.28 years


male: 62.3 years


female: 74.56 years (2002 est.)
total population: 46.98 years


male: 45.09 years


female: 48.92 years (2004 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: 42.4%


male: 58.1%


female: 27.4% (2003 est.)
Location Eastern Europe, east of Poland Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal
Map references Europe Africa
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine - none
Military branches Army, Air Force (including air defense), Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force
Military expenditures - dollar figure $156 million (FY98) $8.4 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1% (FY01) 2.8% (2003)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 2,744,267 (2002 est.) males age 15-49: 326,864 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 2,149,873 (2002 est.) males age 15-49: 185,801 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age (2002 est.) -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 86,396 (2002 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 September (1973)
Nationality noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
noun: Guinean(s)


adjective: Guinean
Natural hazards NA hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires
Natural resources forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, unexploited deposits of petroleum
Net migration rate 2.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) -1.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 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 [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] African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; Front for the Liberation and Independence of Guinea or FLING [Francois MENDY]; Guinea-Bissau Resistance-Ba Fata Movement or RGB-MB [Helder Vaz LOPES]; Guinean Civic Forum or FCG [Antonieta Rosa GOMES]; International League for Ecological Protection or LIPE [Alhaje Bubacar DJALO, president]; National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Abubacer BALDE, secretary general]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Kumba YALA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Platform or UP [coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA NA
Population 10,335,382 (July 2002 est.) 1,388,363 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line 22% (1995 est.) NA
Population growth rate -0.14% (2002 est.) 1.99% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors Mazyr Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim
Radio broadcast stations AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002)
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 Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5%
Sex ratio 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.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female


total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 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: small system


domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications


international: country code - 245
Telephones - main lines in use 2.313 million (1997) 10,600 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 8,167 (1997) 1,300 (2003)
Television broadcast stations 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) NA (1997)
Terrain generally flat and contains much marshland mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east
Total fertility rate 1.31 children born/woman (2002 est.) 5 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers NA (1998)
Waterways NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems 4 largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2004)
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