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Compare Belarus (2004) - South Africa (2003)
Compare Belarus (2004) z South Africa (2003)
| Belarus (2004) | South Africa (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 |
9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North-West, Northern Cape, Western Cape |
| 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: 30% (male 6,460,273; female 6,377,090)
15-64 years: 65% (male 13,807,922; female 13,970,088) 65 years and over: 5% (male 864,441; female 1,288,864) (2003 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables; beef, poultry, mutton, wool, dairy products |
| Airports | 135 (2003 est.) | 727 (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: 143
over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 50 914 to 1,523 m: 67 under 914 m: 11 (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: 584
1,524 to 2,437 m: 34 914 to 1,523 m: 298 under 914 m: 252 (2002) |
| Area | total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1,219,912 sq km
land: 1,219,912 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince Edward Island) |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
| 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. | After the British seized the Cape of Good Hope area in 1806, many of the Dutch settlers (the Boers) trekked north to found their own republics. The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886) spurred wealth and immigration and intensified the subjugation of the native inhabitants. The Boers resisted British encroachments, but were defeated in the Boer War (1899-1902). The resulting Union of South Africa operated under a policy of apartheid - the separate development of the races. The 1990s brought an end to apartheid politically and ushered in black majority rule. |
| Birth rate | 10.52 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 18.87 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $2.976 billion
expenditures: $3.211 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $22.6 billion
expenditures: $24.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA billion (FY 02/03) |
| Capital | Minsk | Pretoria; note - Cape Town is the legislative center and Bloemfontein the judicial center |
| Climate | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 2,798 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 | 10 December 1996; this new constitution was certified by the Constitutional Court on 4 December 1996, was signed by then President MANDELA on 10 December 1996, and entered into effect on 3 February 1997; it is being implemented in phases |
| 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 South Africa
conventional short form: South Africa former: Union of South Africa abbreviation: RSA |
| Currency | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) | rand (ZAR) |
| Death rate | 14.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 18.42 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Debt - external | $851 million (2001 est.) | $24.7 billion (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 Cameron H. HUME
embassy: 877 Pretorius Street, Pretoria mailing address: P. O. Box 9536, Pretoria 0001 telephone: [27] (12) 342-1048 FAX: [27] (12) 342-2244 consulate(s) general: Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg |
| 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 Barbara Joyce Mosima MASEKELA
chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-4400 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1607 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 diminishing border security; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain undemarcated despite European Union financial support | managed dispute with Namibia over the location of the boundary in the Orange River |
| Economic aid - recipient | $194.3 million (1995) | $487.5 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. | South Africa is a middle-income, emerging market with an abundant supply of natural resources; well-developed financial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors; a stock exchange that ranks among the 10 largest in the world; and a modern infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers throughout the region. However, growth has not been strong enough to lower South Africa's high unemployment rate; and daunting economic problems remain from the apartheid era, especially poverty and lack of economic empowerment among the disadvantaged groups. High crime and HIV/AIDS infection rates also deter investment. South African economic policy is fiscally conservative, but pragmatic, focusing on targeting inflation and liberalizing trade as means to increase job growth and household income. |
| Electricity - consumption | 26.69 billion kWh (2001) | 181.2 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - exports | 300 million kWh (2001) | 6.91 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - imports | 4.3 billion kWh (2001) | 6.2 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production | 24.4 billion kWh (2001) | 195.6 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 93.5%
hydro: 1.1% nuclear: 5.5% other: 0% (2001) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Njesuthi 3,408 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 | lack of important arterial rivers or lakes requires extensive water conservation and control measures; growth in water usage outpacing supply; pollution of rivers from agricultural runoff and urban discharge; air pollution resulting in acid rain; soil erosion; desertification |
| 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: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% | black 75.2%, white 13.6%, Colored 8.6%, Indian 2.6% |
| Exchange rates | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,790.92 (2003), 1,920 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.795 (1999) | rand per US dollar - 10.54 (2002), 8.61 (2001), 6.94 (2000), 6.11 (1999), 5.53 (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 Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999); Executive Deputy President Jacob ZUMA (since 17 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Thabo MBEKI (since 16 June 1999); Executive Deputy President Jacob ZUMA (since 17 June 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 2 June 1999 (next scheduled for sometime between May and July 2004) election results: Thabo MBEKI elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100% (by acclamation) note: ANC-IFP is the governing coalition |
| Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs | gold, diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and equipment (1998 est.) |
| Exports - partners | Russia 49.1%, UK 9.4%, Poland 4.4%, Germany 4.2%, Netherlands 4.2% (2003) | UK 12.8%, US 12.7%, Germany 9%, Japan 8.8%, Italy 5.8% (2002) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
| 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 | two equal width horizontal bands of red (top) and blue separated by a central green band which splits into a horizontal Y, the arms of which end at the corners of the hoist side; the Y embraces a black isosceles triangle from which the arms are separated by narrow yellow bands; the red and blue bands are separated from the green band and its arms by narrow white stripes |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $62.56 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $427.7 billion (2002 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11.1%
industry: 36.4% services: 52.5% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 4.4%
industry: 28.9% services: 66.7% (2001) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,100 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10,000 (2002 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 6.8% (2003 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 29 00 S, 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 | South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Swaziland |
| Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | - |
| Highways | total: 74,385 km
paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000) |
total: 362,099 km
paved: 73,506 km (including 2,032 km of expressways) unpaved: 288,593 km (2000) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 1.1%
highest 10%: 45.9% (1994) |
| 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 | transshipment center for heroin, hashish, marijuana, and possibly cocaine; cocaine consumption on the rise; world's largest market for illicit methaqualone, usually imported illegally from India through various east African countries; illicit cultivation of marijuana; attractive venue for money launderers given the increasing level of organized criminal and narcotics activity in the region |
| Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals | machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific instruments, foodstuffs (2000 est.) |
| Imports - partners | Russia 65.8%, Germany 7.1%, Ukraine 3.1% (2003) | Germany 15.4%, US 9.4%, UK 9%, Saudi Arabia 6.9%, Japan 5.8%, France 5%, China 4.9%, Iran 4.1% (2002) |
| Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 31 May 1910 (from UK); note - South Africa became a republic in 1961 following an October 1960 referendum |
| Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2003 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
| Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textile, iron and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs |
| 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: 60.84 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 64.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 56.86 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 28.2% (2003 est.) | 9.9% (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) | ACP, AfDB, BIS, C, ECA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, NSG, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 150 (2001) |
| Irrigated land | 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) | 13,500 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 of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrate Courts |
| Labor force | 4.8 million (2000 est.) | 17 million economically active |
| Labor force - by occupation | NA | agriculture 30%, industry 25%, services 45% (1999 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: 4,862 km
border countries: Botswana 1,840 km, Lesotho 909 km, Mozambique 491 km, Namibia 967 km, Swaziland 430 km, Zimbabwe 225 km |
| Land use | arable land: 29.55%
permanent crops: 0.6% other: 69.85% (2001) |
arable land: 12.13%
permanent crops: 0.77% other: 87.1% (1998 est.) |
| Languages | Belarusian, Russian, other | 11 official languages, including Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Pedi, Sotho, Swazi, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu |
| Legal system | based on civil law system | based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
| 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 |
bicameral Parliament consisting of the National Assembly (400 seats; members are elected by popular vote under a system of proportional representation to serve five-year terms) and the National Council of Provinces (90 seats, 10 members elected by each of the nine provincial legislatures for five-year terms; has special powers to protect regional interests, including the safeguarding of cultural and linguistic traditions among ethnic minorities); note - following the implementation of the new constitution on 3 February 1997 the former Senate was disbanded and replaced by the National Council of Provinces with essentially no change in membership and party affiliations, although the new institution's responsibilities have been changed somewhat by the new constitution
elections: National Assembly and National Council of Provinces - last held 2 June 1999 (next to be held by 2 August 2004) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - ANC 66.4%, DP 9.6%, IFP 8.6%, NNP 6.9%, UDM 3.4%, ACDP 1.4%, FF 0.8%, other 2.9%; seats by party - ANC 266, DP 38, IFP 34, NNP 28, UDM 14, ACDP 6, FF 3, other 11; National Council of Provinces - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ANC 61, NNP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.57 years
male: 62.79 years female: 74.65 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 46.56 years
male: 46.57 years female: 46.54 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: 86.4% male: 87% female: 85.7% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Southern Africa, at the southern tip of the continent of Africa |
| Map references | Europe | Africa |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 30,235 GRT/35,904 DWT
ships by type: container 1, petroleum tanker 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Denmark 3, Netherlands 1 (2002 est.) |
| Military - note | - | with the end of Apartheid and the establishment of majority rule, former military, black homelands forces, and ex-opposition forces were integrated into the South African National Defense Force (SANDF); as of 2003 the integration process was considered complete |
| Military branches | Army, Air and Air Defense Force | South African National Defense Force (including Army, Navy, Air Force, and Medical Services), South African Police Service |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $176.1 million (FY02) | $1.746 billion (FY02) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY02) | 1.7% (FY02) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,764,856 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 11,865,280 (2003 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,164,923 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 7,211,075 (2003 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 86,716 (2004 est.) | males: 471,578 (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 | Freedom Day, 27 April (1994) |
| Nationality | noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
noun: South African(s)
adjective: South African |
| Natural hazards | NA | prolonged droughts |
| Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay | gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, natural gas |
| Net migration rate | 2.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -0.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Pipelines | gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004) | condensate 100 km; gas 741 km; oil 847 km; refined products 1,354 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 |
African Christian Democratic Party or ACDP [Kenneth MESHOE, president]; African National Congress or ANC [Thabo MBEKI, president]; Democratic Alliance (formed from the merger of the Democratic Party or DP and the New National Party or NNP; note - NNP split from DP in 2001) [Anthony LEON]; Freedom Front or FF [Dr. Pieter MULDER, president]; Inkatha Freedom Party or IFP [Mangosuthu BUTHELEZI, president]; New National Party or NNP [Marthinus VAN SCHALKWYK]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC [Stanley MOGOBA, president]; United Democratic Movement or UDM [Bantu HOLOMISA] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Congress of South African Trade Unions or COSATU [Zwelinzima VAVI, general secretary]; South African Communist Party or SACP [Blade NZIMANDE, general secretary]; South African National Civics Organization or SANCO [Mlungisi HLONGWANE, national president]; note - COSATU and SACP are in a formal alliance with the ANC |
| Population | 10,310,520 (July 2004 est.) | 42,768,678
note: South Africa took a census October 1996 that showed a population of 40,583,611 (after an official adjustment for a 6.8% underenumeration based on a postenumeration survey); 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 2003 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 22% (1995 est.) | 50% (2000 est.) |
| Population growth rate | -0.11% (2004 est.) | 0.01% (2003 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Mazyr | Cape Town, Durban, East London, Mossel Bay, Port Elizabeth, Richards Bay, Saldanha |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 14, FM 347 (plus 243 repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Railways | total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2003) |
total: 22,298 km
narrow gauge: 21,984 km 1.065-m gauge (10,436 km electrified); 314 km 0.610-m gauge note: includes a 2,228 km commuter rail system (2002) |
| Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Christian 68% (includes most whites and Coloreds, about 60% of blacks and about 40% of Indians), Muslim 2%, Hindu 1.5% (60% of Indians), indigenous beliefs and animist 28.5% |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 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' 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: the system is the best developed and most modern in Africa
domestic: consists of carrier-equipped open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay links, fiber-optic cable, radiotelephone communication stations, and wireless local loops; key centers are Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth, and Pretoria international: 2 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 2 Atlantic Ocean) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 3,071,300 (2003) | more than 5 million (2001) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.118 million (2003) | 7.06 million (2001) |
| Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 556 (plus 144 network repeaters) (1997) |
| Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain |
| Total fertility rate | 1.36 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.24 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers (2003 est.) | 37% (includes workers no longer looking for employment) (2001 est.) |
| Waterways | 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003) | NA |
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Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.