Belarus (2006) | Chad (2002) | |
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 |
14 prefectures (prefectures, singular - prefecture); Batha, Biltine, Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti, Chari-Baguirmi, Guera, Kanem, Lac, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mayo-Kebbi, Moyen-Chari, Ouaddai, Salamat, Tandjile
note: instead of 14 prefectures, there may be a new administrative structure of 28 departments (departments, singular - department), and 1 city*; Assongha, Baguirmi, Bahr El Gazal, Bahr Koh, Batha Oriental, Batha Occidental, Biltine, Borkou, Dababa, Ennedi, Guera, Hadjer Lamis, Kabia, Kanem, Lac, Lac Iro, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mandoul, Mayo-Boneye, Mayo-Dallah, Monts de Lam, N'djamena*, Ouaddai, Salamat, Sila, Tandjile Oriental, Tandjile Occidental, Tibesti |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 15.7% (male 825,823/female 791,741)
15-64 years: 69.7% (male 3,490,442/female 3,682,950) 65 years and over: 14.6% (male 498,976/female 1,003,079) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 47.8% (male 2,162,732; female 2,135,354)
15-64 years: 49.4% (male 2,108,134; female 2,340,189) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 103,683; female 147,145) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | cotton, sorghum, millet, peanuts, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca); cattle, sheep, goats, camels |
Airports | 86 (2006) | 49 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 41
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: 12 (2006) |
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 45
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 35 (2006) |
total: 43
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 10 (2002) |
Area | total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1.284 million sq km
land: 1,259,200 sq km water: 24,800 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | slightly more than three times the size of California |
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 1994 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. | Chad, part of France's African holdings until 1960, endured three decades of ethnic warfare as well as invasions by Libya before a semblance of peace was finally restored in 1990. The government eventually suppressed or came to terms with most political-military groups, settled a territorial dispute with Libya on terms favorable to Chad, drafted a democratic constitution, and held multiparty presidential and National Assembly elections in 1996 and 1997 respectively. In 1998 a new rebellion broke out in northern Chad, which continued to escalate throughout 2000. A peace agreement, signed in January 2002 between the government and the rebels, provides for the demobilization of the rebels and their reintegration into the political system. Despite movement toward democratic reform, power remains in the hands of a northern ethnic oligarchy. |
Birth rate | 11.16 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 47.74 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $5.903 billion
expenditures: $6.343 billion; including capital expenditures of $180 million (2005 est.) |
revenues: $198 million
expenditures: $218 million, including capital expenditures of $146 million |
Capital | name: Minsk
geographic coordinates: 53 54 N, 27 34 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
N'Djamena |
Climate | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | tropical in south, desert in north |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
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 | passed by referendum 31 March 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Belarus
conventional short form: Belarus local long form: Respublika Byelarus' local short form: Byelarus' former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form: Republic of Chad
conventional short form: Chad local long form: Republique du Tchad local short form: Tchad |
Currency | - | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States |
Death rate | 14.02 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 15.06 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.662 billion (30 June 2005 est.) | $1.1 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Karen B. STEWART
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 Christopher E. GOLDTHWAIT
embassy: Avenue Felix Eboue, N'Djamena mailing address: B. P. 413, N'Djamena telephone: [235] (51) 70-09 FAX: [235] (51) 56-54 |
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 Hassaballah Abdelhadi Ahmat SOUBIANE
chancery: 2002 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 462-4009 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1937 |
Disputes - international | 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; the whole boundary with Latvia and more than half the boundary with Lithuania remains undemarcated; discussions toward economic and political union with Russia proceed slowly | Lake Chad Commission urges signatories Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria to ratify delimitation treaty over lake region, the site of continuing armed clashes; Nigeria requests and Chad rejects redemarcation of boundary, which lacks clear demarcation in sections and has caused several cross-border incidents; Chadian rebels from Aozou reside in Libya |
Economic aid - recipient | $194.3 million (1995) | $238.3 million (1995); note - $125 million committed by Taiwan (August 1997); $30 million committed by African Development Bank |
Economy - overview | Belarus's economy in 2005 posted 8% growth. The government has succeeded in lowering inflation over the past several years. Trade with Russia - by far its largest single trade partner - decreased in 2005, largely as a result of a change in the way the Value Added Tax (VAT) on trade was collected. Trade with European countries increased. 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. During 2005, the government re-nationalized a number of private companies. In addition, businesses have been subject to pressure by 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. Because of these restrictive economic policies, Belarus has had trouble attracting foreign investment, which remains low. Growth has been strong in recent years, despite the roadblocks in a tough, centrally directed economy with a high, but decreasing, rate of inflation. Belarus continues to receive heavily discounted oil and natural gas from Russia. Much of Belarus' growth can be attributed to the re-export of Russian oil at market prices. | Chad's primarily agricultural economy will be boosted by major oilfield and pipeline projects that began in 2000. Over 80% of Chad's population relies on subsistence farming and stock raising for their livelihood. Cotton, cattle, and gum arabic provide the bulk of Chad's export earnings, but Chad will begin to export oil in 2004. Chad's economy has long been handicapped by its land-locked position, high energy costs, and a history of instability. Chad relies on foreign assistance and foreign capital for most public and private sector investment projects. A consortium led by two US companies is investing $3.7 billion to develop oil reserves estimated at 1 billion barrels in southern Chad. |
Electricity - consumption | 34.3 billion kWh (2004) | 85.56 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 800 million kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 7 billion kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 30 billion kWh (2004) | 92 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
lowest point: Djourab Depression 160 m
highest point: Emi Koussi 3,415 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 | inadequate supplies of potable water; improper waste disposal in rural areas contributes to soil and water pollution; 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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census) | 200 distinct groups; in the north and center: Arabs, Gorane (Toubou, Daza, Kreda), Zaghawa, Kanembou, Ouaddai, Baguirmi, Hadjerai, Fulbe, Kotoko, Hausa, Boulala, and Maba, most of whom are Muslim; in the south: Sara (Ngambaye, Mbaye, Goulaye), Moundang, Moussei, Massa, most of whom are Christian or animist; about 1,000 French citizens live in Chad |
Exchange rates | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,150 (2005), 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003), 1,790.92 (2002), 1,390 (2001) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKIY (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, Aleksandr LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via a November 1996 referendum; subsequent election held 9 September 2001; an October 2004 referendum ended presidential term limits allowing president to run in a third election held on 19 March 2006; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 82.6%, Aleksandr MILINKEVICH 6%, Aleksandr KOZULIN 2.3%; note - election marred by electoral fraud |
chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY (since 4 December 1990)
head of government: Prime Minister Haroun KABADI (since 12 June 2002) cabinet: Council of State, members appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote to serve five-year term; if no candidate receives at least 50% of the total vote, the two candidates receiving the most votes must stand for a second round of voting; last held 20 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY reelected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY 63%, Ngarlegy YORONGAR 16%, Saleh KEBZABO 7% note: government coalition - MPS, UNDR, and URD |
Exports | 14,500 bbl/day (2003 est.) | $172 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs | cotton, cattle, gum arabic |
Exports - partners | Russia 38.5%, Ukraine 7.8%, Poland 7.1%, Latvia 4.2%, UK 4.1%, China 4.1% (2005) | Portugal 38%, Germany 12%, Thailand, Costa Rica, South Africa, France, Nigeria (2001) |
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 ornamentation in red | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; similar to the flag of Romania; also similar to the flags of Andorra and Moldova, both of which have a national coat of arms centered in the yellow band; design was based on the flag of France |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $8.9 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 9.3%
industry: 31.6% services: 59.1% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 38%
industry: 13% services: 49% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,030 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 9.2% (2005 est.) | 8% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 15 00 N, 19 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes | landlocked; Lake Chad is the most significant water body in the Sahel |
Heliports | 1 (2006) | - |
Highways | - | total: 33,400 km
paved: 450 km unpaved: 32,950 km note: probably no more than 8,000 km of the total receive maintenance, the remainder being desert tracks (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 | 360,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) | $223 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals | machinery and transportation equipment, industrial goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs, textiles |
Imports - partners | Russia 57.9%, Germany 9.7%, Ukraine 6.4%, Poland 5.2% (2005) | France 40%, Cameroon 13%, Nigeria 12%, India 5% (1999) |
Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 11 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 15.6% (2005 est.) | 5% (1995) |
Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | cotton textiles, meatpacking, beer brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials |
Infant mortality rate | total: 13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.92 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
93.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 10.3% (2005 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | BSEC (observer), CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 1,310 sq km (2003) | 200 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; Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; Magistrate Courts |
Labor force | 4.3 million (31 December 2005) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 14%
industry: 34.7% services: 51.3% (2003 est.) |
agriculture more than 80% (subsistence farming, herding, and fishing) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,900 km
border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km |
total: 5,968 km
border countries: Cameroon 1,094 km, Central African Republic 1,197 km, Libya 1,055 km, Niger 1,175 km, Nigeria 87 km, Sudan 1,360 km |
Land use | arable land: 26.77%
permanent crops: 0.6% other: 72.63% (2005) |
arable land: 2.78%
permanent crops: 0.02% other: 97.2% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Belarusian, Russian, other | French (official), Arabic (official), Sara (in south), more than 120 different languages and dialects |
Legal system | based on civil law system | based on French civil law system and Chadian customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 four-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteley (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 and 31 October 2004; international observers widely denounced the 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 |
bicameral according to constitution, consists of a National Assembly (155 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and a Senate (not yet created and size unspecified, members to serve six-year terms, one-third of membership renewable every two years)
elections: National Assembly - last held 21 April 2002 (next to be held in NA April 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MPS 110, RDP 12, FAR 9, RNDP 5, URD 5, UNDR 3, others 11 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.08 years
male: 63.47 years female: 74.98 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 51.27 years
male: 49.22 years female: 53.4 years (2002 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 French or Arabic
total population: 40% male: 49% female: 31% (1998) |
Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Central Africa, south of Libya |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | Belarus Armed Forces: Land Force, Air and Air Defense Force (2006) | Armed Forces (including National Army, Air Force, and Gendarmerie), Rapid Intervention Force, National and Nomadic Guard (GNNT), Presidential Security Guard, Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $420.5 million (2006) | $31 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY02) | 1.9% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,881,769 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 985,094 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 82,003 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 3 July (1944); note - 3 July 1944 was the date Minsk was liberated from German troops, 25 August 1991 was the date of independence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 11 August (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
noun: Chadian(s)
adjective: Chadian |
Natural hazards | NA | hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds occur in north; periodic droughts; locust plagues |
Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay | petroleum (unexploited but exploration under way), uranium, natron, kaolin, fish (Lake Chad) |
Net migration rate | 2.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 5,223 km; oil 2,321 km; refined products 1,686 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP [Mikhail SHIMANSKY]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Nikolai ULAKHOVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Party of Labor and Justice [Viktor SOKOLOV]; Social-Sports Party [Vladimir ALEXANDROVICH]
opposition parties: 10 Plus Coalition [Alyaksandr MILINKEVICH], includes: Belarusian Party of Communists or PKB [Syarhey KALYAKIN]; Belarusian Party of Labor (unregistered) [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV, Leonid LEMESHONAK]; Belarusian Popular Front or BPF [Vintsyuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Gramada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH]; Green Party [Oleg GROMYKO]; Party of Freedom and Progress (unregistered) [Vladimir NOVOSYAD]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatol LYABEDKA]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson] other opposition includes: Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Nardonaya Hromada or BSDP NH [Alyaksandr KOZULIN, chairman]; Christian Conservative BPF [Zyanon PAZNIAK]; Ecological Party of Greens [Mikhail KARTASH]; Party of Popular Accord [Sergei YERMAKK]; Republican Party [Vladimir BELAZOR] |
Federation Action for the Republic or FAR [Ngarlejy YORONGAR]; National Rally for Development and Progress or RNDP [Mamadou BISSO]; National Union for Development and Renewal or UNDR [Saleh KEBZABO]; National Union for Renewal and Democracy or UNRD [leader NA]; Party for Liberty and Democracy or PLD [Ibni Oumar Mahamat SALEH]; Patriotic Salvation Movement or MPS [Mahamat Saleh AHMAT, chairman] (originally in opposition but now the party in power and the party of the president); Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Lal Mahamat CHOUA]; Union for Democracy and the Republic or UDR [Jean Bawoyeu ALINGUE]; Union for Renewal and Democracy or URD [Gen. Wadal Abdelkader KAMOUGUE]; Viva Rally for Development and Progress or Viva RNDP [Delwa Kassire COUMAKOYE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Assembly of Pro-Democratic NGOs [Sergey MATSKEVICH]; Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions [Alyaksandr YAROSHUK]; Belarusian Helsinki Committee [Tatiana PROTKO]; Belarusian Organization of Working Women [Irina ZHIKHAR]; Charter 97 [Andrey SANNIKOV]; Lenin Communist Union of Youth (youth wing of the Belarusian Party of Communists or PKB); National Strike Committee of Entrepreneurs [Aleksandr VASILYEV, Valery LEVONEVSKY]; Partnership NGO [Nikolay ASTREYKA]; Perspektiva kiosk watchdog NGO [Anatol SHUMCHENKO]; Vyasna [Ales BYALATSKY]; Women's Independent Democratic Movement [Ludmila PETINA]; Youth Front (Malady Front) [Dzmitryy DASHKEVICH, Syarhey BAKHUN]; Zubr youth group [Vladimir KOBETS] | NA |
Population | 10,293,011 (July 2006 est.) | 8,997,237 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 27.1% (2003 est.) | 80% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.06% (2006 est.) | 3.27% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 5 (2002) |
Radios | - | 1.67 million (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 (2005) |
0 km |
Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Muslim 51%, Christian 35%, animist 7%, other 7% |
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 (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: Belarus lags behind its neighbors in upgrading telecommunications infrastructure; state-owned Beltelcom, is the sole provider of fixed line local and long distance service; modernization of the network to digital switching progressing slowly
domestic: fixed line penetration is improving although rural areas continue to be underserved; four GSM wireless networks are experiencing rapid growth; strict government controls on telecommunications technologies 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: fair system of radiotelephone communication stations international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,284,300 (2005) | 9,700 (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4.098 million (2005) | 5,500 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 1 (2002) |
Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | broad, arid plains in center, desert in north, mountains in northwest, lowlands in south |
Total fertility rate | 1.43 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 6.5 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 1.6% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2005) | NA% |
Waterways | 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003) | 2,000 km |