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Compare Belarus (2003) - Tonga (2004)
Compare Belarus (2003) z Tonga (2004)
| Belarus (2003) | Tonga (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 |
3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u |
| 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: 37.1% (male 20,873; female 20,050)
15-64 years: 58.7% (male 32,018; female 32,707) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 2,005; female 2,584) (2004 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish |
| Airports | 124 (2002) | 6 (2003 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: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (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: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 748 sq km
land: 718 sq km water: 30 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | four 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. Although Belarus agreed to a framework to carry out the accord, serious implementation has yet to take place. | The archipelago of "The Friendly Islands" was united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. It became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900. Tonga acquired its independence in 1970 and became a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. It remains the only monarchy in the Pacific. |
| Birth rate | 10.18 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 24.87 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $4 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $39.9 million
expenditures: $52.4 million, including capital expenditures of $1.9 million (FY99/00 est.) |
| Capital | Minsk | Nuku'alofa |
| Climate | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December) |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 419 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 | 4 November 1875, revised 1 January 1967 |
| 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 Tonga
conventional short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands |
| Currency | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) | pa'anga (TOP) |
| Death rate | 14.05 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 5.45 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Debt - external | $851 million (2001 est.) | $63.4 million (2001) |
| 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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga |
| 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: Ambassador Sonatane T. T. TUPOU
chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025 FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024 consulate(s) general: San Francisco |
| 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 | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | $194.3 million (1995) | Australia $5.5 million, New Zealand $2.3 million (FY01/02) |
| 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. | Tonga, a small, open, South Pacific island economy, has a narrow export base in agricultural goods. Squash, coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans are the main crops, and agricultural exports make up two-thirds of total exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New Zealand. Tourism is the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector, especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonably sound basic infrastructure and well-developed social services. High unemployment among the young and the continuing upturn in inflation are major issues facing the government. |
| Electricity - consumption | 26.69 billion kWh (2001) | 25.36 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - exports | 300 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - imports | 4.3 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production | 24.4 billion kWh (2001) | 27.27 million kWh (2001) |
| 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: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 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 results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations |
| 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, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% | Polynesian, Europeans about 300 |
| Exchange rates | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - NA (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.8 (1999), 46.13 (1998) | pa'anga per US dollar - NA (2003), 2.1952 (2002), 2.1236 (2001), 1.7585 (2000), 1.5991 (1999) |
| 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 Taufa'ahau TUPOU IV (since 16 December 1965)
head of government: Prime Minister Prince Lavaka ata ULUKALALA (since NA February 2000) and Deputy Prime Minister James C. COCKER (since NA January 2001) cabinet: Cabinet, appointed by the monarch, consists of 12 members note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch, the Cabinet, and two governors elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed for life by the monarch |
| Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs | squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops |
| Exports - partners | Russia 50.8%, Latvia 7.3%, Ukraine 6.3%, Lithuania 4.1%, Germany 4.1% (2002) | US 50%, Japan 35.7%, Italy 3.6% (2003) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
| 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 | red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $90.19 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $236 million (2001 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 15%
industry: 40% services: 45% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 26%
industry: 12% services: 62% (2002 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $8,700 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,200 (2001 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4.7% (2002 est.) | 3% (2001 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 20 00 S, 175 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 | archipelago of 169 islands (36 inhabited) |
| Highways | total: 74,385 km
paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000) |
total: 680 km
paved: 184 km unpaved: 496 km (1999 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
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; lax money-laundering and banking regulations | - |
| Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals |
| Imports - partners | Russia 68.2%, Germany 9.4%, Ukraine 3.2% (2002) | New Zealand 43.4%, Fiji 22.2%, Australia 11.1%, US 6.1% (2003) |
| Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 2.5% (2002 est.) | 8.6% (FY98/99) |
| Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | tourism, fishing |
| 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: 12.99 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.36 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 42.8% (2002 est.) | 10.3% (2002 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) | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 23 (2002) | - |
| Irrigated land | 1,150 sq km (1998 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) | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal (consists of the Privy Council with the addition of the chief justice of the Supreme Court) |
| Labor force | 4.8 million (2000) | 33,910 (1996) |
| Labor force - by occupation | industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 65% (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 |
0 km |
| Land use | arable land: 29.76%
permanent crops: 0.69% other: 69.55% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 23.61%
permanent crops: 43.06% other: 33.33% (2001) |
| Languages | Belarusian, Russian, other | Tongan, English |
| Legal system | based on civil law system | based on English law |
| 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 Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (30 seats - 12 reserved for cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, nine for nobles selected by the country's 33 nobles, and nine elected by popular vote; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 7 March 2002 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote - HRDMT 70%; seats - HRDMT 7, traditionalist 2 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.43 years
male: 62.54 years female: 74.6 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 69.2 years
male: 66.74 years female: 71.79 years (2004 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.5% (2003 est.) |
definition: can read and write Tongan and/or English
total population: 98.5% male: 98.4% female: 98.7% (1996 est.) |
| Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
| Map references | Europe | Oceania |
| 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: 40 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 136,977 GRT/200,751 DWT
by type: bulk 3, cargo 21, chemical tanker 2, container 1, liquefied gas 4, petroleum tanker 5, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: Albania 1, Australia 4, Brazil 1, Cyprus 1, Egypt 1, Greece 1, Lebanon 1, Liberia 1, Marshall Islands 1, Norway 1, Panama 2, Romania 1, Russia 1, Saudi Arabia 1, Switzerland 3, Syria 1, United (2004 est.) |
| Military branches | Army, Air Force (including air defense), Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards | Tonga Defense Services: Ground Forces (Royal Marines, Royal Guard), Maritime Force (including Air Wing) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $176.1 million (FY02) | NA |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY02) | NA |
| 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 | Independence Day, 4 June (1970) |
| Nationality | noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
noun: Tongan(s)
adjective: Tongan |
| Natural hazards | NA | cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou |
| Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay | fish, fertile soil |
| Net migration rate | 2.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Pipelines | gas 4,519 km; oil 1,811 km; refined products 1,686 km (2003) | - |
| 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] | there are no political parties |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Human Rights and Democracy Movement Tonga or HRDMT [Rev. Simote VEA, chair] |
| Population | 10,322,151 (July 2003 est.) | 110,237 (July 2004 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 22% (1995 est.) | NA |
| Population growth rate | -0.12% (2003 est.) | 1.94% (2004 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Mazyr | Neiafu, Nuku'alofa, Pangai |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (2001) |
| Railways | total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2002) |
- |
| Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents) |
| 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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 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: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 676; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (1996) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 2.313 million (1997) | 11,200 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,167 (1997) | 3,400 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 2 (2001) |
| Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base |
| Total fertility rate | 1.34 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers | 13.3% (1996 est.) |
| Waterways | NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems | - |
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