##ciekawa_strona##
Compare Belarus (2004) - Croatia (2003)
Compare Belarus (2004) z Croatia (2003)
| Belarus (2004) | Croatia (2003) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 6 provinces (voblastsi, singular - voblasts') and 1 municipality* (horad); Brest, Homyel', Horad Minsk*, Hrodna, Mahilyow, Minsk, Vitsyebsk
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers |
20 counties (zupanije, zupanija - singular) and 1 city* (grad - singular); Bjelovarsko-Bilogorska Zupanija, Brodsko-Posavska Zupanija, Dubrovacko-Neretvanska Zupanija, Istarska Zupanija, Karlovacka Zupanija, Koprivnicko-Krizevacka Zupanija, Krapinsko-Zagorska Zupanija, Licko-Senjska Zupanija, Medimurska Zupanija, Osjecko-Baranjska Zupanija, Pozesko-Slavonska Zupanija, Primorsko-Goranska Zupanija, Sibensko-Kninska Zupanija, Sisacko-Moslavacka Zupanija, Splitsko-Dalmatinska Zupanija, Varazdinska Zupanija, Viroviticko-Podravska Zupanija, Vukovarsko-Srijemska Zupanija, Zadarska Zupanija, Zagreb*, Zagrebacka Zupanija |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 16.3% (male 859,219; female 823,839)
15-64 years: 69.2% (male 3,469,926; female 3,662,203) 65 years and over: 14.5% (male 496,204; female 999,129) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.3% (male 415,873; female 394,414)
15-64 years: 66.1% (male 1,465,488; female 1,454,778) 65 years and over: 15.6% (male 258,943; female 432,752) (2003 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, barley, alfalfa, clover, olives, citrus, grapes, soybeans, potatoes; livestock, dairy products |
| Airports | 135 (2003 est.) | 59 (2002) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 50
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 21 (2003 est.) |
total: 16
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 85
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 64 (2003 est.) |
total: 43
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 34 (2002) |
| Area | total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 56,542 sq km
land: 56,414 sq km water: 128 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | slightly smaller 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. | In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became a federal independent Communist state under the strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. Under UN supervision, the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. |
| Birth rate | 10.52 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 12.76 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $2.976 billion
expenditures: $3.211 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $8.6 billion
expenditures: $9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
| Capital | Minsk | Zagreb |
| Climate | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | Mediterranean and continental; continental climate predominant with hot summers and cold winters; mild winters, dry summers along coast |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km, islands 4,058 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; revised again 17 October 2004 removing presidential term limits | adopted on 22 December 1990 |
| 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 Croatia
conventional short form: Croatia local long form: Republika Hrvatska local short form: Hrvatska |
| Currency | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) | kuna (HRK) |
| Death rate | 14.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 11.25 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Debt - external | $851 million (2001 est.) | $16.5 billion (yearend 2002 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador George A. KROL
embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: PSC 78, Box B Minsk, APO 09723 telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83, 217-7347, 217-7348 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Ralph FRANK
embassy: Thomasa Jeffersona 2, 10010 Zagreb mailing address: use street address telephone: [385] (1) 661-2200 FAX: [385] (1) 661-2373 |
| 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 Ivan GRDESIC
chancery: 2343 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-5899 FAX: [1] (202) 588-8936 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
| Disputes - international | 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain undemarcated despite European Union financial support | discussions continue with Bosnia and Herzegovina on sections of the Una River and villages at the base of Mount Pljesevica; parliamentarians are far from ratifying the Croatia-Slovenia land and maritime boundary agreement, which would have ceded most of Pirin Bay and maritime access to Slovenia and several villages to Croatia; in late 2002, Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro adopted an interim agreement to settle the disputed Prevlaka Peninsula, allowing the withdrawal of the UN monitoring mission (UNMOP), but discussions could be complicated by the inability of Serbia and Montenegro to come to an agreement on the economic aspects of the new federal union; Croatia and Italy continue to debate bilateral property and ethnic minority rights issues stemming from border changes after the Second World War |
| Economic aid - recipient | $194.3 million (1995) | ODA $66 million (2000) |
| Economy - overview | Belarus' economy in 2003 posted 6.1 percent growth and is likely to continue expanding through 2004, albeit at a slower growth rate. The Belarusian economy in 2004 is likely to be hampered by high inflation, persistent trade deficits, and ongoing rocky relations with Russia, Belarus' largest trading partner and energy supplier. 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 enterprises. In addition, 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. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. | Before the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the Republic of Croatia, after Slovenia, was the most prosperous and industrialized area, with a per capita output perhaps one-third above the Yugoslav average. The economy emerged from its mild recession in 2000 with tourism the main factor, but massive structural unemployment remains a key negative element. The government's failure to press the economic reforms needed to spur growth is largely the result of coalition politics and public resistance, particularly from the trade unions. Opponents fear reforms would cut jobs, wages, and social benefits. The government has a heavy backload of civil cases, many involving tenure land. The country is likely to experience only moderate growth without disciplined fiscal and structural reform. |
| Electricity - consumption | 26.69 billion kWh (2001) | 14.27 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - exports | 300 million kWh (2001) | 386 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - imports | 4.3 billion kWh (2001) | 3.386 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production | 24.4 billion kWh (2001) | 12.12 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 33.6%
hydro: 66% nuclear: 0% other: 0.4% (2001) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Dinara 1,830 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 metallurgical plants) and resulting acid rain is damaging the forests; coastal pollution from industrial and domestic waste; landmine removal and reconstruction of infrastructure consequent to 1992-95 civil strife |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 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, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
| Ethnic groups | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% | Croat 89.6%, Serb 4.5%, Bosniak 0.5%, Hungarian 0.4%, Slovene 0.3%, Czech 0.2%, Roma 0.2%, Albanian 0.1%, Montenegrin 0.1%, others 4.1% (2001) |
| Exchange rates | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,790.92 (2003), 1,920 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.795 (1999) | kuna per US dollar - 7.87 (2002), 8.34 (2001), 8.28 (2000), 7.11 (1999), 6.36 (1998) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (since 19 December 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir SEMASHKO (since December 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since December 2003), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since 24 September 2001), Ivan BAMBIZA (since 25 May 2004), Anatoly TYUTYUNOV (since July 2002) 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; October 2004 referendum ended presidential term limits allowing president to run for a third term in 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 Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Ivica RACAN (since 27 January 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Goran GRANIC (since 27 January 2000), Ante SIMONIC (since 30 July 2002), Zeljka ANTUNOVI (since 27 January 2000), Slavko LINIC (since 27 January 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and approved by the House of Representatives elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 7 February 2000 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister nominated by the president in line with the balance of power in the Assembly election results: Stjepan MESIC elected president; percent of vote - Stjepan MESIC (HNS) 56%, Drazen BUDISA (HSLS) 44% note: government coalition - SDP, HSLS, HSS, LP, HNS; a sixth party, the Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS), withdrew in June 2001 |
| Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs | transport equipment, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels |
| Exports - partners | Russia 49.1%, UK 9.4%, Poland 4.4%, Germany 4.2%, Netherlands 4.2% (2003) | Italy 22.4%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 14.4%, Germany 12.5%, Slovenia 8%, Austria 7.3% (2002) |
| 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 Belarusian national ornamention in red | red, white, and blue horizontal bands with Croatian coat of arms (red and white checkered) |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $62.56 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $43.12 billion (2002 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11.1%
industry: 36.4% services: 52.5% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 9%
industry: 33% services: 58% (2002 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,100 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9,800 (2002 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 6.8% (2003 est.) | 5.2% (2002 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 45 10 N, 15 30 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 most land routes from Western Europe to Aegean Sea and Turkish Straits |
| Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | 1 (2002) |
| Highways | total: 74,385 km
paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000) |
total: 28,123 km
paved: 23,792 km (including 410 km of expressways) unpaved: 4,331 km (2000) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 3.7%
highest 10%: 23.3% (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; a small and lightly regulated financial center; new anti-money-laundering legislation does not meet international standards; few investigations or prosecutions of money-laundering activities | transit point along the Balkan route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe; has been used as a transit point for maritime shipments of South American cocaine bound for Western Europe |
| Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals | machinery, transport and electrical equipment, chemicals, fuels and lubricants, foodstuffs |
| Imports - partners | Russia 65.8%, Germany 7.1%, Ukraine 3.1% (2003) | Italy 16.8%, Germany 16.4%, Slovenia 7.8%, Russia 6.8%, Austria 6.7%, France 5.2% (2002) |
| Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2003 est.) | 2.8% (2002 est.) |
| Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | chemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages; tourism |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 13.62 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 6.92 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 28.2% (2003 est.) | 2.2% (2002 est.) |
| International organization participation | CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | BIS, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMOGIP, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 9 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) | 30 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; Constitutional Court; judges for both courts appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of the Republic, which is elected by the House of Representatives |
| Labor force | 4.8 million (2000 est.) | 1.7 million (2001) |
| Labor force - by occupation | NA | agriculture 13.2% NA, industry 25.4% NA, services 46.4% NA (2002) |
| Land boundaries | total: 2,900 km
border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km |
total: 2,197 km
border countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina 932 km, Hungary 329 km, Serbia and Montenegro (north) 241 km, Serbia and Montenegro (south) 25 km, Slovenia 670 km |
| Land use | arable land: 29.55%
permanent crops: 0.6% other: 69.85% (2001) |
arable land: 23.55%
permanent crops: 2.24% other: 74.21% (1998 est.) |
| Languages | Belarusian, Russian, other | Croatian 96%, other 4% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German) |
| Legal system | based on civil law system | based on civil law system |
| 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 Predstaviteliy (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held 18 March and 1 April 2001 and 17 and 31 October 2004 (bi-election will be held March 2005 to fill one unfilled seat in the Palata Predstaviteliy); international observers widely denounced the October 2004 elections as flawed and undemocratic, based on massive government falsification; pro-Lukashenko candidates won every seat, after many opposition candidates were disqualified for technical reasons election results: Soviet Respubliki - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Palata Pretsaviteley - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
unicameral Assembly or Sabor (152 seats; note - one seat was added in the November Parliamentary elections; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - House of Counties was abolished in March 2001
elections: Assembly - last held 23 November 2003 (next to be held in 2007) election results: Assembly (then referred to as the House of Representatives) - percent of vote by party - HDZ 43.4%, SDP 23%, HNS 7.4%, HSS 6.57%, HSP 6%; seats by party - HDZ 66, SDP 34, HNS 10, HSS 9, HSP 7; note - these are preliminary results |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.57 years
male: 62.79 years female: 74.65 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 74.37 years
male: 70.76 years female: 78.2 years (2003 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: 98.5% male: 99.4% female: 97.8% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia |
| Map references | Europe | Europe |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 56 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 765,830 GRT/1,188,948 DWT
ships by type: bulk 14, cargo 16, chemical tanker 4, combination bulk 5, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 6, short-sea passenger 3 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Hong Kong 1 (2002 est.) |
| Military branches | Army, Air and Air Defense Force | Ground Forces (Hrvatska Vojska, HV), Naval Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $176.1 million (FY02) | $520 million (2002 est.) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY02) | 2.39% (2002 est.) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,764,856 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,081,135 (2003 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,164,923 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 856,946 (2003 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age (2003 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 86,716 (2004 est.) | males: 30,096 (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 | Statehood Day, 25 June (1991) |
| Nationality | noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
noun: Croat(s), Croatian(s)
adjective: Croatian |
| Natural hazards | NA | destructive earthquakes |
| Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay | oil, some coal, bauxite, low-grade iron ore, calcium, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt, hydropower |
| Net migration rate | 2.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 1.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Pipelines | gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004) | gas 1,374 km; oil 583 km (2003) |
| Political parties and leaders | Pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Social-Sports Party; Opposition parties: Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat Party Narodnaya Gromada or BSDP NG [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatol LEBEDKO]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson]
note: the opposition Belarusian Party of Labor [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV] was liquidated in August 2004, but remains active |
Croatian Bloc or HB [Ivic PASALIC]; Croatian Christian Democratic Union or HKDU [Anto KOVACEVIC]; Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ [Ivo SANADER]; Croatian Party of Rights or HSP [Anto DJAPIC]; Croatian Peasant Party or HSS [Zlatko TOMCIC]; Croatian People's Party or HNS [Vesna PUSIC]; Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Drazen BUDISA]; Croatian True Revival Party or HIP [Miroslav TUDJMAN]; Democratic Centre or DC [Mate GRANIC]; Istrian Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC]; Liberal Party or LS [Ivo BANAC]; Party of Liberal Democrats or LIBRA [Goran GRANIC]; Social Democratic Party of Croatia or SDP [Ivica RACAN]
note: the Social Democratic Party or SDP and the Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS formed a coalition as did the HSS, HNS, LP, and IDS, which together defeated the Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ in the 2000 lower house parliamentary election; the IDS subsequently left the governing coalition in June 2001 over its inability to win greater autonomy for Istria |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
| Population | 10,310,520 (July 2004 est.) | 4,422,248 (July 2003 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 22% (1995 est.) | NA% |
| Population growth rate | -0.11% (2004 est.) | 0.31% (2003 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Mazyr | Dubrovnik, Dugi Rat, Omisalj, Ploce, Pula, Rijeka, Sibenik, Split, Vukovar (inland waterway port on Danube), Zadar |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 16, FM 98, shortwave 5 (1999) |
| Railways | total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2003) |
total: 2,296 km
standard gauge: 2,296 km 1.435-m gauge (983 km electrified) (2002) |
| Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Roman Catholic 87.8%, Orthodox 4.4%, Muslim 1.3%, Protestant 0.3%, others and unknown 6.2% (2001) |
| 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 (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal (16 years of age, if employed) |
| 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' fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational international: country code - 375; 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: reconstruction plan calls for replacement of all analog circuits with digital and enlarging the network; a backup will be included in the plan for the main trunk international: digital international service is provided through the main switch in Zagreb; Croatia participates in the Trans-Asia-Europe (TEL) fiber-optic project, which consists of two fiber-optic trunk connections with Slovenia and a fiber-optic trunk line from Rijeka to Split and Dubrovnik; Croatia is also investing in ADRIA 1, a joint fiber-optic project with Germany, Albania, and Greece (2000) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 3,071,300 (2003) | 1,721,139 (2000) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.118 million (2003) | 1.3 million (2001) |
| Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 36 (plus 321 repeaters) (September 1995) |
| Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | geographically diverse; flat plains along Hungarian border, low mountains and highlands near Adriatic coastline and islands |
| Total fertility rate | 1.36 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.93 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers (2003 est.) | 21.7% (2002 est.) |
| Waterways | 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003) | 785 km
note: (perennially navigable; large sections of Sava blocked by downed bridges, silt, and debris) |
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