Compare Belarus (2004) - Tonga (2007)

Compare Belarus (2004) z Tonga (2007)

	Belarus (2004)	Tonga (2007)

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	3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u
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: 34.6% (male 20,624/female 19,779) 15-64 years: 61.2% (male 35,551/female 36,052) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 2,087/female 2,828) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk	squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish
Airports	135 (2003 est.)	6 (2007)
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: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007)
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: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
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.	Tonga - unique among Pacific nations - never completely lost its indigenous governance. The archipelagos of "The Friendly Islands" were united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. Tonga became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900; it withdrew from the protectorate and joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970. Tonga remains the only monarchy in the Pacific.
Birth rate	10.52 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	23.67 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $2.976 billion expenditures: $3.211 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2003 est.)	revenues: $56.97 million expenditures: $83.88 million (FY04/05)
Capital	Minsk	name: Nuku'alofa geographic coordinates: 21 08 S, 175 12 W time difference: UTC+13 (18 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
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; revised again 17 October 2004 removing presidential term limits	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 local long form: Pule'anga Tonga local short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands
Currency	Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR)	-
Death rate	14.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	5.2 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$851 million (2001 est.)	$80.7 million (2004)
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	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 Fekitamoeloa 'UTOIKAMANU 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 diminishing border security; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain undemarcated despite European Union financial support	none
Economic aid - recipient	$194.3 million (1995)	$31.75 million (2005)
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.	Tonga has a small, open, South Pacific island economy. It 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. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. Tourism is the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances. 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, a continuing upturn in inflation, pressures for democratic reform, and rising civil service expenditures are major issues facing the government.
Electricity - consumption	26.69 billion kWh (2001)	32.55 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	300 million kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	4.3 billion kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	24.4 billion kWh (2001)	35 million kWh (2005)
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-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: 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
Exchange rates	Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,790.92 (2003), 1,920 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.795 (1999)	pa'anga per US dollar - 2.0277 (2006), 1.96 (2005), 1.9716 (2004), 2.142 (2003), 2.1952 (2002)
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: King George TUPOU V (since 11 September 2006) head of government: Prime Minister Dr. Feleti SEVELE (since 11 February 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Viliami TANGI (since 16 May 2006) cabinet: Cabinet consists of 14 members, 10 appointed by the monarch for life; four appointed from among the elected members of the Legislative Assembly, including two each from the nobles' and peoples' representatives serving three-year terms 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 by the monarch
Exports	NA (2001)	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs	squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops
Exports - partners	Russia 49.1%, UK 9.4%, Poland 4.4%, Germany 4.2%, Netherlands 4.2% (2003)	US 39.7%, Japan 27.8%, NZ 8.2%, South Korea 7.6% (2006)
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 Belarusian national ornamention in red	red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner
GDP	purchasing power parity - $62.56 billion (2003 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 11.1% industry: 36.4% services: 52.5% (2003 est.)	agriculture: 23% industry: 27% services: 50% (FY03/04 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $6,100 (2003 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	6.8% (2003 est.)	2.4% (2005 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)
Heliports	1 (2003 est.)	-
Highways	total: 74,385 km paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000)	-
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; 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	-
Imports	NA (2001)	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals	foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners	Russia 65.8%, Germany 7.1%, Ukraine 3.1% (2003)	Fiji 30.3%, NZ 27.7%, US 8.2%, Australia 7.5%, France 5.7%, UK 4.7% (2006)
Independence	25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)	4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate)
Industrial production growth rate	5% (2003 est.)	1% (2003 est.)
Industries	metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators	tourism, fishing
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: 11.99 deaths/1,000 live births male: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	28.2% (2003 est.)	11.1% (2005 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, AsDB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, ITUC, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land	1,150 sq km (1998 est.)	NA
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 (Chief Justice and high court justices from overseas chosen and approved by Privy Council)
Labor force	4.8 million (2000 est.)	33,910 (2003)
Labor force - by occupation	NA	agriculture: 65% industry and services: 35% (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: 29.55% permanent crops: 0.6% other: 69.85% (2001)	arable land: 20% permanent crops: 14.67% other: 65.33% (2005)
Languages	Belarusian, Russian, other	Tongan, English
Legal system	based on civil law system	based on English common 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 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 Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (32 seats - 14 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 on 21 March 2005 (next to be held in 2008) election results: Peoples Representatives: percent of vote - HRDMT 70%, other 30%; seats - HRDMT 7, independents 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 68.57 years male: 62.79 years female: 74.65 years (2004 est.)	total population: 70.12 years male: 67.6 years female: 72.76 years (2007 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: 98.9% male: 98.8% female: 99% (1999 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: 14 ships (1000 GRT or over) 58,756 GRT/67,889 DWT by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 9, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 3 (Australia 1, Switzerland 1, UK 1) (2007)
Military branches	Army, Air and Air Defense Force	Tonga Defense Services: Land Force (Royal Guard), Naval Force (includes Royal Marines, Air Wing) (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$176.1 million (FY02)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.4% (FY02)	0.9% (2006 est.)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 2,764,856 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 2,164,923 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 86,716 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 3 July (1944); note - 3 July 1944 was the date Minsk was liberated from German troops, 25 August 1991 was the date of independence from the Soviet Union	Emancipation 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	2.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004)	-
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	People's Democratic Party [Tesina FUKO]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Human Rights and Democracy Movement Tonga or HRDMT [Rev. Simote VEA, chairman]; Public Servant's Association [Finau TUTONE]
Population	10,310,520 (July 2004 est.)	116,921 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	22% (1995 est.)	24% (FY03/04)
Population growth rate	-0.11% (2004 est.)	1.847% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors	Mazyr	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)	AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001)
Railways	total: 5,523 km broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2003)	-
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 (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.986 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.738 male(s)/female total population: 0.993 male(s)/female (2007 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' 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: competition between Tonga Telecommunications Corporation (TCC) and Shoreline Communications Tonga (SCT) is accelerating expansion of telecommunications; SCT recently granted authority to develop high-speed digital service for telephone, Internet, and television domestic: fully automatic switched network international: country code - 676; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2004)
Telephones - main lines in use	3,071,300 (2003)	13,700 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	1.118 million (2003)	29,900 (2005)
Television broadcast stations	47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)	3 (2004)
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	1.36 children born/woman (2004 est.)	2.75 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers (2003 est.)	13% (FY03/04 est.)
Waterways	2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)	-

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