##ciekawa_strona##
Compare Belarus (2002) - Lithuania (2004)
Compare Belarus (2002) z Lithuania (2004)
| Belarus (2002) | Lithuania (2004) | |
 |  | |
| 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 |
10 counties (apskritys, singular - apskritis); Alytaus, Kauno, Klaipedos, Marijampoles, Panevezio, Siauliu, Taurages, Telsiu, Utenos, Vilniaus |
| 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: 16.7% (male 309,736; female 294,129)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male 1,202,603; female 1,262,784) 65 years and over: 14.9% (male 184,145; female 354,502) (2004 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish |
| Airports | 136 (2001) | 102 (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: 28
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 14 (2003 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: 74
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 67 (2003 est.) |
| Area | total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 65,200 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | slightly larger than West Virginia |
| 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. | Independent between the two World Wars, Lithuania was annexed by the USSR in 1940. On 11 March 1990, Lithuania became the first of the Soviet republics to declare its independence, but Moscow did not recognize this proclamation until September of 1991 (following the abortive coup in Moscow). The last Russian troops withdrew in 1993. Lithuania subsequently restructured its economy for integration into Western European institutions; it joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. |
| Birth rate | 9.86 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 8.49 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $4 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $5.427 billion
expenditures: $5.742 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
| Capital | Minsk | Vilnius |
| Climate | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 99 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 25 October 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 Lithuania
conventional short form: Lithuania local long form: Lietuvos Respublika local short form: Lietuva former: Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Currency | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) | litas (LTL) |
| Death rate | 13.99 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 11.03 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Debt - external | $770 million (2001 est.) | $7.671 billion (2003 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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Stephen D. MULL
embassy: 2600 Akmenu 6, Vilnius mailing address: American Embassy, Vilnius, PSC 78, Box V, APO AE 09723 telephone: [370] (5) 266 5500 FAX: [370] (5) 266 5510 |
| 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 Vygaudas USACKAS
chancery: 2622 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5860 FAX: [1] (202) 328-0466 consulate(s) general: Chicago and New York |
| Disputes - international | boundary demarcation with Latvia and Lithuania is pending European Union funding | in May 2003, the Russian Parliament ratified the 1997 land and maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, which ratified the treaty in 1999, legalizing limits of former Soviet republic borders; both states also implement a simplified transit regime for Russian nationals transiting Lithuania to and from the Russian Kaliningrad coastal enclave; the Latvian Parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights |
| Economic aid - recipient | $194.3 million (1995) (1995) | $228.5 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. | Lithuania, the Baltic state that has conducted the most trade with Russia, has slowly rebounded from the 1998 Russian financial crisis. Unemployment remains high, still 10.7% in 2003, but is improving. Growing domestic consumption and increased investment have furthered recovery. Trade has been increasingly oriented toward the West. Lithuania has gained membership in the World Trade Organization and has moved ahead with plans to join the EU. Privatization of the large, state-owned utilities, particularly in the energy sector, is nearing completion. Overall, more than 80% of enterprises have been privatized. Foreign government and business support have helped in the transition from the old command economy to a market economy. |
| Electricity - consumption | 26.78 billion kWh (2000) | 8.683 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - exports | 300 million kWh (2000) | 6.3 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - imports | 4.15 billion kWh (2000) | 1.389 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production | 24.66 billion kWh (2000) | 14.62 billion 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: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Juozapines/Kalnas 292 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 | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases |
| 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: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
| Ethnic groups | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% | Lithuanian 80.6%, Russian 8.7%, Polish 7%, Belarusian 1.6%, other 2.1% |
| 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 | litai per US dollar - 3.0609 (2003), 3.677 (2002), 4 (2001), 4 (2000), 4 (1999) |
| 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 Valdas ADAMKUS (since 12 July 2004)
head of government: Premier Algirdas Mykolas BRAZAUSKAS (since 3 July 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the premier elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 13 June 2004 and 27 June 2004; premier appointed by the president on the approval of the Parliament election results: Valdas ADAMKUS elected president; percent of vote - Valdas ADAMKUS 52.2%, Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE 47.8% |
| Exports | $7.5 billion f.o.b. (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, textiles, foodstuffs, metals | mineral products 23%, textiles and clothing 16%, machinery and equipment 11%, chemicals 6%, wood and wood products 5%, foodstuffs 5% (2001) |
| Exports - partners | Russia 51%, Ukraine 8%, Poland 4%, Germany 3% (2000) | Switzerland 11.6%, Russia 10.1%, Germany 9.9%, Latvia 9.7%, UK 6.4%, France 5.1%, Denmark 4.7%, Estonia 4.3%, Sweden 4% (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 | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $84.8 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $40.88 billion (2003 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 13%
industry: 42% services: 45% (2000) |
agriculture: 6.1%
industry: 31.3% services: 62.6% (2003 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,200 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2003 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4.1% (2001 est.) | 9% (2003 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 56 00 N, 24 00 E |
| 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 | fertile central plains are separated by hilly uplands that are ancient glacial deposits |
| 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: 75,243 km
paved: 68,697 km (including 417 km of expressways) unpaved: 6,546 km (2000) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 5%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 25.6% (1996) |
| 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 | transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Southwest Asia, Latin America, and Western Europe to Western Europe and Scandinavia; limited production of methamphetamine and ecstasy; susceptible to money laundering despite changes to banking legislation |
| Imports | $8.1 billion f.o.b. (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals | mineral products 21%, machinery and equipment 17%, transport equipment 11%, chemicals 9%, textiles and clothing 9%, metals 5% (2001) |
| Imports - partners | Russia 65%, Germany 7%, Poland 3% (2000) | Russia 22%, Germany 16.1%, Poland 5.2%, Italy 4.3%, France 4.2% (2003) |
| Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 5.4% (2001 est.) | 16.1% (2003 est.) |
| Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | metal-cutting machine tools, electric motors, television sets, refrigerators and freezers, petroleum refining, shipbuilding (small ships), furniture making, textiles, food processing, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, optical equipment, electronic components, computers, amber |
| Infant mortality rate | 14.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 7.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 46.1% (2001 est.) | -1.2% (2003 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 (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NIB, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 23 (2002) | - |
| Irrigated land | 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) | 90 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) | Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for all courts appointed by the President |
| Labor force | 4.8 million (2000) | 1.642 million (2003 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 20%, industry 30%, services 50% (1997 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: 1,273 km
border countries: Belarus 502 km, Latvia 453 km, Poland 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 227 km |
| Land use | arable land: 29.76%
permanent crops: 0.69% other: 69.55% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 45.22%
permanent crops: 0.91% other: 53.87% (2001) |
| Languages | Belarusian, Russian, other | Lithuanian (official), Polish, Russian |
| Legal system | based on civil law system | based on civil law system; legislative acts can be appealed to the constitutional court |
| 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 Parliament or Seimas (141 seats, 71 members are directly elected by popular vote, 70 are elected by proportional representation; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 and 24 October 2004 (next to be held October 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - Labor 28.6%, Working for Lithuania (Social Democrats and Social Liberals) 20.7%, Homeland Union (Conservatives) 14.6%, For Order and Justice (Liberal Democrats and Lithuanian People's Union) 11.4%, Liberal and Center Union 9.1%, Union of Farmers and New Democracy 6.6%; seats by faction - Labor 39, Homeland Union 25, Social Democrats 20, Liberal and Center Union 18, Social Liberals 11, Union of Farmers and New Democracy Parties 10, Liberal Democrats 10, Electoral Action 2, independents 6 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.28 years
male: 62.3 years female: 74.56 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 73.46 years
male: 68.22 years female: 79 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: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia |
| Map references | Europe | Europe |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 296,856 GRT/317,731 DWT
by type: cargo 20, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 8, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea/passenger 4 foreign-owned: Denmark 12, Netherlands 1 registered in other countries: 11 (2004 est.) |
| Military branches | Army, Air Force (including air defense), Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards | National Defense Volunteer Forces (SKAT), Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $156 million (FY98) | $230.8 million (FY01) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1% (FY01) | 1.9% (FY01) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,744,267 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 943,063 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,149,873 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 738,602 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 86,396 (2002 est.) | males: 28,300 (2004 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, 16 February (1918); note - 16 February 1918 is the date Lithuania declared its independence from Soviet Russia and established its statehood; 11 March 1990 is the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union |
| Nationality | noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
noun: Lithuanian(s)
adjective: Lithuanian |
| Natural hazards | NA | NA |
| Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay | peat, arable land |
| Net migration rate | 2.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Pipelines | crude oil 1,470 km; refined products 1,100 km; natural gas 1,980 km (1992) | gas 1,696 km; oil 331 km; refined products 109 km (2004) |
| 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] | Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles [Valdemar TOMASZEVSKI, chairman]; Homeland Union/Conservative Party or TS [Andrius KUBILIUS, chairman]; Labor Party [Viktor USPASKICH, chairman]; Liberal and Center Union [Arturas ZUOKAS, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party [Valentinas MAZURONIS, chairman]; Lithuanian Christian Democrats or LKD [Valentinas STUNDYS, chairman]; Lithuanian People's Union for a Fair Lithuania; Lithuanian Social Democratic Coalition [Algirdas BRAZAUSKAS, chairman] consists of the Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party or LDDP and the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSDP; New Democracy and Farmer's Union or VNDPS [Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE, chairman]; Social Liberals (New Union) [Arturas PAULAUSKAS, chairman]; Social Union of Christian Conservatives [Gediminas VAGNORIUS, chairman]; Young Lithuania and New Nationalists |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
| Population | 10,335,382 (July 2002 est.) | 3,607,899 (July 2004 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 22% (1995 est.) | NA |
| Population growth rate | -0.14% (2002 est.) | -0.33% (2004 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Mazyr | Butinge, Kaunas, Klaipeda |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 29, FM 142, shortwave 1 (2001) |
| Radios | 3.02 million (1997) | - |
| Railways | total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2000 est.) |
total: 1,998 km
broad gauge: 1,807 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) standard gauge: 22 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 169 km 0.750-m gauge (all service suspended) (2003) |
| Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Roman Catholic (primarily), Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical Christian Baptist, Muslim, Jewish |
| 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: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female total population: 0.89 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: inadequate, but is being modernized to provide an improved international capability and better residential access
domestic: a national, fiber-optic cable, interurban, trunk system is nearing completion; rural exchanges are being improved and expanded; mobile cellular systems are being installed; access to the Internet is available; still many unsatisfied telephone subscriber applications international: country code - 370; landline connections to Latvia and Poland; major international connections to Denmark, Sweden, and Norway by submarine cable for further transmission by satellite |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 2.313 million (1997) | 824,200 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,167 (1997) | 2,169,900 (2003) |
| Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 27
note: Lithuania has approximately 27 broadcasting stations, but may have as many as 100 transmitters, including repeater stations (2001) |
| Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil |
| Total fertility rate | 1.31 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.17 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers | 10.3% (2003 est.) |
| Waterways | NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems | 600 km (2004) |
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