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Compare Belarus (2005) - Niue (2001)

Compare Belarus (2005) z Niue (2001)

 Belarus (2005)Niue (2001)
 BelarusNiue
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
none; note - there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 14 villages each with its own village council whose members are elected and serve three-year terms
Age structure 0-14 years: 16% (male 839,292/female 804,738)


15-64 years: 69.5% (male 3,481,432/female 3,672,991)


65 years and over: 14.6% (male 498,717/female 1,003,313) (2005 est.)
0-14 years:
NA%

15-64 years:
NA%

65 years and over:
NA%
Agriculture - products grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk coconuts, passion fruit, honey, limes, taro, yams, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, poultry, beef cattle
Airports 133 (2004 est.) 1 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 50


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 22


1,524 to 2,437 m: 4


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.)
total:
1

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1 (2000 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 83


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 5


914 to 1,523 m: 11


under 914 m: 64 (2004 est.)
-
Area total: 207,600 sq km


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total:
260 sq km

land:
260 sq km

water:
0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Kansas 1.5 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. Since his election in July 1995 as the country's first president, Alexander LUKASHENKO has steadily consolidated his power through authoritarian means. Government restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, peaceful assembly, and religion continue. Niue's remoteness, as well as cultural and linguistic differences between its Polynesian inhabitants and those of the rest of the Cook Islands, have caused it to be separately administered. The population of the island continues to drop (from a peak of 5,200 in 1966 to 2,100 in 2000) with substantial emigration to New Zealand.
Birth rate 10.83 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) NA births/1,000 population
Budget revenues: $3.326 billion


expenditures: $3.564 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2004 est.)
revenues:
$NA

expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Capital Minsk Alofi
Climate cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime tropical; modified by southeast trade winds
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 64 km
Constitution 15 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 19 October 1974 (Niue Constitution Act)
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:
none

conventional short form:
Niue

former:
Savage Island
Currency - New Zealand dollar (NZD)
Death rate 14.15 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) NA deaths/1,000 population
Debt - external $600 million (2004 est.) $NA
Dependency status - self-governing in free association with New Zealand; Niue fully responsible for internal affairs; New Zealand retains responsibility for external affairs
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
none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand)
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
none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand)
Disputes - international 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; boundary with Latvia remains undemarcated but a third of the border with Lithuania was demarcated in 2004 none
Economic aid - recipient $194.3 million (1995) $8.3 million (1995)
Economy - overview Belarus's economy in 2003-04 posted 6.1% and 6.4% growth. Still, the economy continues 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; the Gini coefficient is among the lowest in the world. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. Growth has been strong in recent years, despite the roadblocks in a tough, centrally directed economy and the high, but decreasing, rate of inflation. Growth has been buoyed by increased Russian demand for generally noncompetitive Belarusian goods. Government expenditures regularly exceed revenues, and the shortfall is made up by critically needed grants from New Zealand that are used to pay wages to public employees. Niue has cut government expenditures by reducing the public service by almost half. The agricultural sector consists mainly of subsistence gardening, although some cash crops are grown for export. Industry consists primarily of small factories to process passion fruit, lime oil, honey, and coconut cream. The sale of postage stamps to foreign collectors is an important source of revenue. The island in recent years has suffered a serious loss of population because of migration of Niueans to New Zealand. Efforts to increase GDP include the promotion of tourism and a financial services industry.
Electricity - consumption 34.3 billion kWh (2004) 2.8 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports 800 million kWh (2004) 0 kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports 3.2 billion kWh (2003) 0 kWh (1999)
Electricity - production 30 billion kWh (2004) 3 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel:
100%

hydro:
0%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m

highest point:
unnamed location near Mutalau settlement 68 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 increasing attention to conservationist practices to counter loss of soil fertility from traditional slash and burn agriculture
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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification

signed, but not ratified:
Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census) Polynesian (with some 200 Europeans, Samoans, and Tongans)
Exchange rates Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003), 1,790.92 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000) New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.2502 (January 2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8629 (1998), 1.5082 (1997), 1.4543 (1996)
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)


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:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by New Zealand High Commissioner John BRYAN (since NA May 2000)

head of government:
Premier Sani LAKATANI (since 1 April 1999)

cabinet:
Cabinet consists of the premier and three ministers

elections:
the monarch is hereditary; premier elected by the Legislative Assembly for a three-year term; election last held 19 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2002)

election results:
Sani LAKATANI elected premier; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - NA%
Exports 14,500 bbl/day (2003 est.) $117,500 (f.o.b., 1989)
Exports - commodities machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs canned coconut cream, copra, honey, passion fruit products, pawpaws, root crops, limes, footballs, stamps, handicrafts
Exports - partners Russia 47%, UK 8.3%, Netherlands 6.7%, Poland 5.3% (2004) NZ 89%, Fiji, Cook Islands, Australia
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 yellow with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the flag of the UK bears five yellow five-pointed stars - a large one on a blue disk in the center and a smaller one on each arm of the bold red cross
GDP - purchasing power parity - $4.5 million (1997 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 11%


industry: 36.4%


services: 52.6% (2004 est.)
agriculture:
NA%

industry:
NA%

services:
NA%
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $6,800 (2004 est.) purchasing power parity - $2,800 (1997 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 6.4% (2004 est.) NA%
Geographic coordinates 53 00 N, 28 00 E 19 02 S, 169 52 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 one of world's largest coral islands
Heliports 1 (2004 est.) -
Highways total: 79,990 km


paved: 69,351 km


unpaved: 10,639 km (2002)
total:
234 km

paved:
86 km

unpaved:
148 km (106 km of which is access and plantation road) (2001)
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 360,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) $4.1 million (c.i.f., 1989)
Imports - commodities mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals food, live animals, manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, lubricants, chemicals, drugs
Imports - partners Russia 68.2%, Germany 6.6%, Ukraine 3.3% (2004) NZ 59%, Fiji 20%, Japan 13%, Samoa, Australia, US
Independence 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) on 19 October 1974, Niue became a self-governing parliamentary government in free association with New Zealand
Industrial production growth rate 4% (2004 est.) NA%
Industries metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators tourism, handicrafts, food processing
Infant mortality rate total: 13.37 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 14.3 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 12.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
NA deaths/1,000 live births
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 17.4% (2004 est.) 1% (1995)
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, WTO (observer) ACP, ESCAP (associate), FAO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UNESCO, WHO, WMO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 1 (2000)
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 of New Zealand; High Court of Niue
Labor force 4.305 million (31 December 2003) 450 (1992 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 14%, industry 34.7%, services 51.3% (2003 est.) most work on family plantations; paid work exists only in government service, small industry, and the Niue Development Board
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:
19%

permanent crops:
8%

permanent pastures:
4%

forests and woodland:
19%

other:
50% (1993 est.)
Languages Belarusian, Russian, other Polynesian closely related to Tongan and Samoan, English
Legal system based on civil law system English common law
Legislative branch bicameral National Assembly 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 Predstaviteley (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; 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 Predstaviteley - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA
unicameral Legislative Assembly (20 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; six elected from a common roll and 14 are village representatives)

elections:
last held 19 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2002)

election results:
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 9, independents 11
Life expectancy at birth total population: 68.72 years


male: 63.03 years


female: 74.69 years (2005 est.)
total population:
NA years

male:
NA years

female:
NA years
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99.6%


male: 99.8%


female: 99.5% (2003 est.)
definition:
NA

total population:
95%

male:
NA%

female:
NA%
Location Eastern Europe, east of Poland Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Tonga
Map references Europe Oceania
Maritime claims none (landlocked) exclusive economic zone:
200 NM

territorial sea:
12 NM
Merchant marine - none (2000 est.)
Military - note - defense is the responsibility of New Zealand
Military branches Army, Air and Air Defense Force Police Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure $176.1 million (FY02) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.4% (FY02) -
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 Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840)
Nationality noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
noun:
Niuean(s)

adjective:
Niuean
Natural hazards NA typhoons
Natural resources forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay fish, arable land
Net migration rate 2.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) NA migrant(s)/1,000 population
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 [leader NA]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Social-Sports Party [leader NA]; 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
Niue People's Action Party or NPP [Sani LAKATANI]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA NA
Population 10,300,483 (July 2005 est.) 2,124 (July 2001 est.)
Population below poverty line 27.1% (2003 est.) NA%
Population growth rate -0.09% (2005 est.) 0.5% (2001 est.)
Ports and harbors Mazyr none; offshore anchorage only
Radio broadcast stations AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios - 1,000 (1997)
Railways total: 5,512 km


broad gauge: 5,497 km 1.520-m gauge (874 km electrified)


standard gauge: 15 km 1.435-m (2004)
0 km
Religions Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) Ekalesia Niue (Niuean Church - a Protestant church closely related to the London Missionary Society) 75%, Latter-Day Saints 10%, other 15% (mostly Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventist)
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 (2005 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:
primitive system

domestic:
single-line telephone system connects all villages on island

international:
NA
Telephones - main lines in use 3,071,300 (2003) 376 (1991)
Telephones - mobile cellular 1.118 million (2003) 0 (1991)
Television broadcast stations 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) 1 (1997)
Terrain generally flat and contains much marshland steep limestone cliffs along coast, central plateau
Total fertility rate 1.39 children born/woman (2005 est.) NA children born/woman
Unemployment rate 2% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2004) NA%
Waterways 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003) none
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