##ciekawa_strona##
Compare Belarus (2003) - Thailand (2005)
Compare Belarus (2003) z Thailand (2005)
| Belarus (2003) | Thailand (2005) | |
 |  | |
| 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 |
76 provinces (changwat, singular and plural); Amnat Charoen, Ang Thong, Buriram, Chachoengsao, Chai Nat, Chaiyaphum, Chanthaburi, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Chon Buri, Chumphon, Kalasin, Kamphaeng Phet, Kanchanaburi, Khon Kaen, Krabi, Krung Thep Mahanakhon (Bangkok), Lampang, Lamphun, Loei, Lop Buri, Mae Hong Son, Maha Sarakham, Mukdahan, Nakhon Nayok, Nakhon Pathom, Nakhon Phanom, Nakhon Ratchasima, Nakhon Sawan, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Nan, Narathiwat, Nong Bua Lamphu, Nong Khai, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Pattani, Phangnga, Phatthalung, Phayao, Phetchabun, Phetchaburi, Phichit, Phitsanulok, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Phrae, Phuket, Prachin Buri, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Ranong, Ratchaburi, Rayong, Roi Et, Sa Kaeo, Sakon Nakhon, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, Samut Songkhram, Sara Buri, Satun, Sing Buri, Sisaket, Songkhla, Sukhothai, Suphan Buri, Surat Thani, Surin, Tak, Trang, Trat, Ubon Ratchathani, Udon Thani, Uthai Thani, Uttaradit, Yala, Yasothon |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 16.8% (male 885,265; female 848,516)
15-64 years: 68.9% (male 3,456,769; female 3,652,766) 65 years and over: 14.3% (male 490,529; female 988,306) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 23.9% (male 7,988,529/female 7,633,405)
15-64 years: 68.6% (male 22,195,625/female 22,731,767) 65 years and over: 7.5% (male 2,251,112/female 2,643,933) (2005 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | rice, cassava (tapioca), rubber, corn, sugarcane, coconuts, soybeans |
| Airports | 124 (2002) | 109 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 28
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 65
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 19 under 914 m: 6 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 96
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 67 (2002) |
total: 44
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 28 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 514,000 sq km
land: 511,770 sq km water: 2,230 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | slightly more than twice the size of Wyoming |
| 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. | A unified Thai kingdom was established in the mid-14th century. Known as Siam until 1939, Thailand is the only Southeast Asian country never to have been taken over by a European power. A bloodless revolution in 1932 led to a constitutional monarchy. In alliance with Japan during World War II, Thailand became a US ally following the conflict. Thailand is currently facing armed violence in its three Muslim-majority southernmost provinces. |
| Birth rate | 10.18 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 15.7 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $4 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $30.86 billion
expenditures: $31.94 billion, including capital expenditures of $5 billion (2004 est.) |
| Capital | Minsk | Bangkok |
| Climate | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-May to September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March); southern isthmus always hot and humid |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 3,219 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 | new constitution signed by King PHUMIPHON on 11 October 1997 |
| 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: Kingdom of Thailand
conventional short form: Thailand former: Siam |
| Currency | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) | - |
| Death rate | 14.05 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 7.02 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Debt - external | $851 million (2001 est.) | $50.59 billion (2004 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael G. KOZAK
embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: PSC 78, Box B Minsk, APO 09723 telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Ralph L. BOYCE
embassy: 120/22 Wireless Road, Bangkok mailing address: APO AP 96546 telephone: [66] (2) 205-4000 FAX: [66] (2) 254-2990, 205-4131 consulate(s) general: Chiang Mai |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mikhail KHVOSTOV
chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604 FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: KASIT Piromya
chancery: 1024 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Suite 401, Washington, DC 20007-3681 telephone: [1] (202) 944-3600 FAX: [1] (202) 944-3611 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
| Disputes - international | 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and encouraging illegal border crossing; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain undemarcated despite European Union financial support | separatist violence in Thailand's predominantly Muslim southern provinces prompt border closures and controls with Malaysia to stem terrorist activities; southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Laos and Thailand pledge to complete demarcation of their boundary in 2005; despite continuing border committee talks, significant differences remain with Burma over boundary alignment and the handling of ethnic rebels, refugees, and illegal cross-border activities; Cambodia and Thailand dispute sections of boundary with missing boundary markers; Cambodia claims Thai encroachments into Cambodian territory and obstructing access to Preah Vihear temple ruins awarded to Cambodia by ICJ decision in 1962; ethnic Karens from Burma flee into Thailand to escape fighting between Karen rebels and Burmese troops resulting in Thailand sheltering about 118,000 Burmese refugees in 2004; Karens also protest Thai support for a Burmese hydroelectric dam construction on the Salween River near the border; environmentalists in Burma and Thailand remain concerned about China's construction of hydroelectric dams upstream on the Nujiang/Salween River in Yunnan Province |
| Economic aid - recipient | $194.3 million (1995) | $72 million (2002) |
| 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. A wide range of redistributive policies has helped those at the bottom of the ladder. 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. | Thailand has a well developed infrastructure, a free-enterprise economy, and welcomes foreign investment. Thailand has fully recovered from the 1997-98 Asian Financial Crisis and was one of East Asia's best performers in 2002-04. Increased consumption and investment spending and strong export growth pushed GDP growth up to 6.9% in 2003 and 6.1% in 2004 despite a sluggish global economy. The highly popular government's expansionist policy, including major support of village economic development, has raised concerns about fiscal discipline and the health of financial institutions. Bangkok has pursued preferential trade agreements with a variety of partners in an effort to boost exports and maintain high growth, and in 2004 began negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement with the US. In late December 2004, a major tsunami took 8,500 lives in Thailand and caused massive destruction of property in the southern provinces of Krabi, Phangnga, and Phuket. |
| Electricity - consumption | 26.69 billion kWh (2001) | 106.1 billion kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - exports | 300 million kWh (2001) | 188 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - imports | 4.3 billion kWh (2001) | 600 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | 24.4 billion kWh (2001) | 118.9 billion kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 99.5%
hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0.4% (2001) |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
lowest point: Gulf of Thailand 0 m
highest point: Doi Inthanon 2,576 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 pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from organic and factory wastes; deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by illegal hunting |
| 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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
| Ethnic groups | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% | Thai 75%, Chinese 14%, other 11% |
| Exchange rates | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - NA (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.8 (1999), 46.13 (1998) | baht per US dollar - 40.222 (2004), 41.485 (2003), 42.96 (2002), 44.432 (2001), 40.112 (2000) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (acting; since 10 July 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since 13 March 2000), Sergei SIDORSKY (since 24 September 2001), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since 24 September 2001), Roman VNUCHKO (since 10 July 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; first election took place 23 June and 10 July 1994; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however 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: King PHUMIPHON Adunyadet (since 9 June 1946)
head of government: Prime Minister THAKSIN Chinnawat (since 9 February 2001) and Deputy Prime Ministers CHITCHAI Wannasathi (since 11 March 2005), PHINIT Charusombat (since 6 October 2004), SOMKHIT Chatusiphithak (since 11 March 2005), SURAKIAT Sathianthai (since 11 March 2005); SURIYA Chungrungruankit (since 3 August 2005), SUWAT Liptapanlop (since 3 August 2005), WISANU Kruangam (since 8 November 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers note: there is also a Privy Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister is designated from among the members of the House of Representatives; following national elections for the House of Representatives, the leader of the party that can organize a majority coalition usually is appointed prime minister by the king |
| Exports | NA (2001) | NA |
| Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs | textiles and footwear, fishery products, rice, rubber, jewelry, automobiles, computers and electrical appliances |
| Exports - partners | Russia 50.8%, Latvia 7.3%, Ukraine 6.3%, Lithuania 4.1%, Germany 4.1% (2002) | US 15.9%, Japan 13.9%, China 7.3%, Singapore 7.2%, Malaysia 5.4%, Hong Kong 5.1% (2004) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
| 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 a Belarusian national ornament in red | five horizontal bands of red (top), white, blue (double width), white, and red |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $90.19 billion (2002 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 15%
industry: 40% services: 45% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 44.3% services: 46.7% (2004 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,700 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,100 (2004 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4.7% (2002 est.) | 6.1% (2004 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 15 00 N, 100 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 | controls only land route from Asia to Malaysia and Singapore |
| Heliports | - | 3 (2004 est.) |
| Highways | total: 74,385 km
paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000) |
total: 57,403 km
paved: 56,542 km unpaved: 861 km (2000 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 32.4% (1998) |
| 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 | a minor producer of opium, heroin, and marijuana; illicit transit point for heroin en route to the international drug market from Burma and Laos; eradication efforts have reduced the area of cannabis cultivation and shifted some production to neighboring countries; opium poppy cultivation has been reduced by eradication efforts; also a drug money-laundering center; minor role in amphetamine production for regional consumption; increasing indigenous abuse of methamphetamine |
| Imports | NA (2001) | NA |
| Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals | capital goods, intermediate goods and raw materials, consumer goods, fuels |
| Imports - partners | Russia 68.2%, Germany 9.4%, Ukraine 3.2% (2002) | Japan 23.6%, China 8.6%, US 7.6%, Malaysia 5.8%, Singapore 4.4%, Taiwan 4.1% (2004) |
| Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 1238 (traditional founding date; never colonized) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 2.5% (2002 est.) | 8.5% (2004 est.) |
| Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | tourism, textiles and garments, agricultural processing, beverages, tobacco, cement, light manufacturing such as jewelry, electric appliances and components, computers and parts, integrated circuits, furniture, plastics, world's second-largest tungsten producer, and third-largest tin producer |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 13.87 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.56 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 20.48 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.83 deaths/1,000 live births female: 19.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 42.8% (2002 est.) | 2.8% (2004 est.) |
| International organization participation | CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, NAM (observer), NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, BIS, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC (observer), OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 23 (2002) | - |
| Irrigated land | 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) | 47,490 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 Sandika (judges appointed by the monarch) |
| Labor force | 4.8 million (2000) | 36.43 million (November 2004 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 49%, industry 14%, services 37% (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: 4,863 km
border countries: Burma 1,800 km, Cambodia 803 km, Laos 1,754 km, Malaysia 506 km |
| Land use | arable land: 29.76%
permanent crops: 0.69% other: 69.55% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 29.36%
permanent crops: 6.46% other: 64.18% (2001) |
| Languages | Belarusian, Russian, other | Thai, English (secondary language of the elite), ethnic and regional dialects |
| Legal system | based on civil law system | based on civil law system, with influences of common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| 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 |
bicameral National Assembly or Rathasapha consists of the Senate or Wuthisapha (200 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Sapha Phuthaen Ratsadon (500 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 4 March, 29 April, 4 June, 9 July, and 22 July 2000 (next to be held by March 2006); House of Representatives - last held 6 February 2005 (next to be held in February 2009) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - TRT 376, DP 97, TNP 25, PP 2 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.43 years
male: 62.54 years female: 74.6 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 71.95 years
male: 69.65 years female: 74.37 years (2005 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.5% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.6% male: 94.9% female: 90.5% (2002) |
| Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Burma |
| Map references | Europe | Southeast Asia |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 386 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,038,597 GRT/3,104,712 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 57, cargo 142, chemical tanker 12, combination ore/oil 1, container 21, liquefied gas 25, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 89, refrigerated cargo 30, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 55 (Indonesia 1, Japan 3, Norway 45, Singapore 6) registered in other countries: 35 (2005) |
| Military branches | Army, Air Force (including air defense), Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards | Royal Thai Army, Royal Thai Navy (includes Royal Thai Marine Corps), Royal Thai Air Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $176.1 million (FY02) | $1.775 billion (FY00) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY02) | 1.8% (2003) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,756,572 (2003 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,158,875 (2003 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 86,654 (2003 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 | Birthday of King PHUMIPHON, 5 December (1927) |
| Nationality | noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
noun: Thai (singular and plural)
adjective: Thai |
| Natural hazards | NA | land subsidence in Bangkok area resulting from the depletion of the water table; droughts |
| Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay | tin, rubber, natural gas, tungsten, tantalum, timber, lead, fish, gypsum, lignite, fluorite, arable land |
| Net migration rate | 2.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Pipelines | gas 4,519 km; oil 1,811 km; refined products 1,686 km (2003) | gas 3,112 km; refined products 265 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] | Democrat Party or DP (Prachathipat Party) [ABHISIT Wetchachiwa]; People's Party or PP (Mahachon Party) [ANEK Laothamatas]; Thai Nation Party or TNP (Chat Thai Party) [BARNHARN SILPA-ARCHA]; Thai Rak Thai Party or TRT [THAKSIN Chinnawat] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
| Population | 10,322,151 (July 2003 est.) | 65,444,371
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 22% (1995 est.) | 10% (2004 est.) |
| Population growth rate | -0.12% (2003 est.) | 0.87% (2005 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Mazyr | Bangkok, Laem Chabang, Prachuap Port, Si Racha |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 204, FM 334, shortwave 6 (1999) |
| Railways | total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2002) |
total: 4,071 km
narrow gauge: 4,071 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
| Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Buddhist 94.6%, Muslim 4.6%, Christian 0.7%, other 0.1% (2000 census) |
| 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 (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
| 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: high quality system, especially in urban areas like Bangkok; WTO requirement for privatization of telecom sector is planned to be complete by 2006
domestic: fixed line system provided by both a government owned and commercial provider; wireless service expanding rapidly and outpacing fixed lines international: country code - 66; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean); landing country for APCN submarine cable |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 2.313 million (1997) | 6,617,400 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,167 (1997) | 26.5 million (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 5 (all in Bangkok; plus 131 repeaters) (1997) |
| Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | central plain; Khorat Plateau in the east; mountains elsewhere |
| Total fertility rate | 1.34 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.88 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers | 1.5% (November 2004 est.) |
| Waterways | NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems | 4,000 km
note: 3,701 km navigable by boats with drafts up to 0.9 m (2003) |
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