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Compare Belarus (2007) - Czech Republic (2005)

Compare Belarus (2007) z Czech Republic (2005)

 Belarus (2007)Czech Republic (2005)
 BelarusCzech Republic
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
13 regions (kraje, singular - kraj) and 1 capital city* (hlavni mesto); Jihocesky Kraj, Jihomoravsky Kraj, Karlovarsky Kraj, Kralovehradecky Kraj, Liberecky Kraj, Moravskoslezsky Kraj, Olomoucky Kraj, Pardubicky Kraj, Plzensky Kraj, Praha (Prague)*, Stredocesky Kraj, Ustecky Kraj, Vysocina, Zlinsky Kraj
Age structure 0-14 years: 14.7% (male 733,010/female 691,734)


15-64 years: 70.4% (male 3,327,119/female 3,520,690)


65 years and over: 14.9% (male 471,863/female 980,307) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 14.7% (male 773,028/female 731,833)


15-64 years: 71.1% (male 3,651,018/female 3,627,006)


65 years and over: 14.2% (male 565,374/female 892,879) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry
Airports 67 (2007) 120 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 36


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: 7 (2007)
total: 44


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 9


1,524 to 2,437 m: 14


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 17 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 31


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 27 (2007)
total: 76


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 27


under 914 m: 48 (2004 est.)
Area total: 207,600 sq km


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 78,866 sq km


land: 77,276 sq km


water: 1,590 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Kansas slightly smaller than South Carolina
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, Alexandr LUKASHENKO has steadily consolidated his power through authoritarian means. Government restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, peaceful assembly, and religion continue. Following the First World War, the closely related Czechs and Slovaks of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire merged to form Czechoslovakia. During the interwar years, the new country's leaders were frequently preoccupied with meeting the demands of other ethnic minorities within the republic, most notably the Sudeten Germans and the Ruthenians (Ukrainians). After World War II, a truncated Czechoslovakia fell within the Soviet sphere of influence. In 1968, an invasion by Warsaw Pact troops ended the efforts of the country's leaders to liberalize Communist party rule and create "socialism with a human face." Anti-Soviet demonstrations the following year ushered in a period of harsh repression. With the collapse of Soviet authority in 1989, Czechoslovakia regained its freedom through a peaceful "Velvet Revolution." On 1 January 1993, the country underwent a "velvet divorce" into its two national components, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004.
Birth rate 9.5 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 9.07 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget revenues: $13.24 billion


expenditures: $13.76 billion (2006 est.)
revenues: $39.31 billion


expenditures: $45.8 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
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
Prague
Climate cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters
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 ratified 16 December 1992, effective 1 January 1993
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: Czech Republic


conventional short form: Czech Republic


local long form: Ceska Republika


local short form: Ceska Republika
Death rate 13.98 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 10.54 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external $5.929 billion (2006 est.) $36.28 billion (2004 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Karen B. STEWART


embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya Street, 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 William J. CABANISS


embassy: Trziste 15, 11801 Prague 1


mailing address: use embassy street address


telephone: [420] (2) 5753-0663


FAX: [420] (2) 5753-0583
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 Martin PALOUS


chancery: 3900 Spring of Freedom Street NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 274-9100


FAX: [1] (202) 966-8540


consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York
Disputes - international as of January 2007, ground demarcations of the boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania were complete and mapped with final ratification documentation in preparation; 1997 boundary delimitation treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security in February 2005, the ICJ refused to rule on the restitution of Liechtenstein's land and property assets in the Czech Republic confiscated in 1945 as German property; individual Sudeten Germans seek restitution for property confiscated in connection with their expulsion after World War II
Economic aid - recipient $53.76 million (2005) $2.4 billion in available EU structural adjustment and cohesion funds (2004-06)
Economy - overview Belarus's economy in 2006 posted more than 8% growth. Trade with Russia - by far its largest single trade partner - decreased in 2006, 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. Since 2005, the government has 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 receives heavily discounted oil and natural gas from Russia and much of Belarus' growth can be attributed to the re-export of Russian oil at market prices. This growth will be threatened in 2007, however, when Russia raises energy prices closer to world market prices for Belarus. Russia is planning to increase Belarusian gas prices from $47 per thousand cubic meters (tcm) to $100 per tcm for 2007, gradually increasing to world prices by 2011. Russia has also introduced an export duty on oil shipped to Belarus, which will increase gradually through 2009, and a requirement that Belarusian duties on re-exported Russian oil be shared with Russia - 70% will go to Russia in 2007, 80% in 2008, and 85% in 2009. The Czech Republic is one of the most stable and prosperous of the post-Communist states of Central and Eastern Europe. Growth in 2000-04 was supported by exports to the EU, primarily to Germany, and a strong recovery of foreign and domestic investment. Domestic demand is playing an ever more important role in underpinning growth as interest rates drop and the availability of credit cards and mortgages increases. Current account deficits of around 5% of GDP are beginning to decline as demand for Czech products in the European Union increases. Inflation is under control. Recent accession to the EU gives further impetus and direction to structural reform. In early 2004 the government passed increases in the Value Added Tax (VAT) and tightened eligibility for social benefits with the intention to bring the public finance gap down to 4% of GDP by 2006, but more difficult pension and healthcare reforms will have to wait until after the next elections. Privatization of the state-owned telecommunications firm Cesky Telecom is scheduled to take place in 2005. Intensified restructuring among large enterprises, improvements in the financial sector, and effective use of available EU funds should strengthen output growth.
Electricity - consumption 29.49 billion kWh (2005) 55.33 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports 5.053 billion kWh (2005) 20.9 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports 9.091 billion kWh (2005) 9.5 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - production 29.08 billion kWh (2005) 71.75 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
lowest point: Elbe River 115 m


highest point: Snezka 1,602 m
Environment - current issues soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine air and water pollution in areas of northwest Bohemia and in northern Moravia around Ostrava present health risks; acid rain damaging forests; efforts to bring industry up to EU code should improve domestic pollution
Environment - international agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census) Czech 90.4%, Moravian 3.7%, Slovak 1.9%, other 4% (2001 census)
Exchange rates Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,144.6 (2006), 2,150 (2005), 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003), 1,790.92 (2002) koruny per US dollar - 25.7 (2004), 28.209 (2003), 32.739 (2002), 38.035 (2001), 38.598 (2000)
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 NA 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 and allowed the president to run in a third election, which was 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 Vaclav KLAUS (since 7 March 2003)


note: the Czech Republic's first president Vaclav HAVEL stepped down from office on 2 February 2003 having served exactly 10 years; parliament finally elected a successor on 28 February 2003 after two inconclusive elections in January 2003


head of government: Prime Minister Jiri PAROUBEK (since 25 April 2005), Deputy Prime Ministers Zdenek SKROMACH (since 4 August 2004), Martin JAHN (since 4 August 2004), Pavel NEMEC (since 4 August 2004), Milan SIMONOVSKY (since 4 August 2004)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister


elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; last successful election held 28 February 2003 (after earlier elections held 15 and 24 January 2003 were inconclusive; next election to be held January 2008); prime minister appointed by the president


election results: Vaclav KLAUS elected president on 28 February 2003; Vaclav KLAUS 142 votes, Jan SOKOL 124 votes (third round; combined votes of both chambers of parliament)
Exports 249,900 bbl/day (2004 est.) 26,670 bbl/day (2001)
Exports - commodities machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs machinery and transport equipment 52%, chemicals 5%, raw materials and fuel 9% (2003)
Exports - partners Russia 34.7%, Netherlands 17.7%, UK 7.5%, Ukraine 6.3%, Poland 5.2% (2006) Germany 36.1%, Slovakia 8.4%, Austria 6%, Poland 5.3%, UK 4.7%, France 4.7%, Italy 4.3%, Netherlands 4.3% (2004)
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 two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side (identical to the flag of the former Czechoslovakia)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 9.2%


industry: 41.7%


services: 49.1% (2006 est.)
agriculture: 3.4%


industry: 39.3%


services: 57.3% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $16,800 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 9.9% (2006 est.) 3.7% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates 53 00 N, 28 00 E 49 45 N, 15 30 E
Geography - note landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes landlocked; strategically located astride some of oldest and most significant land routes in Europe; Moravian Gate is a traditional military corridor between the North European Plain and the Danube in central Europe
Heliports 1 (2007) 2 (2004 est.)
Highways - total: 127,204 km


paved: 127,204 km (including 518 km of expressways)


unpaved: 0 km (2002)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3.4%


highest 10%: 23.5% (2002)
lowest 10%: 4.3%


highest 10%: 22.4% (1996)
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 point for Southwest Asian heroin and minor transit point for Latin American cocaine to Western Europe; producer of synthetic drugs for local and regional markets; susceptible to money laundering related to drug trafficking, organized crime
Imports 378,200 bbl/day (2004 est.) 192,300 bbl/day (2001)
Imports - commodities mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals machinery and transport equipment 46%, raw materials and fuels 15%, chemicals 10% (2003)
Imports - partners Russia 58.6%, Germany 7.5%, Ukraine 5.5% (2006) Germany 31.7%, Slovakia 5.4%, Italy 5.3%, China 5.2%, Poland 4.8%, France 4.8%, Russia 4.1% (2004)
Independence 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia)
Industrial production growth rate 15.6% (2005 est.) 4.7% (2004 est.)
Industries metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators metallurgy, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, glass, armaments
Infant mortality rate total: 6.63 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 7.67 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 5.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total: 3.93 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 4.28 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 3.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 7% (2006 est.) 3.2% (2004 est.)
International organization participation BSEC (observer), CEI, CIS, EAEC, EAPC, EBRD, GCTU, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land 1,310 sq km (2003) 240 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Constitutional Court (half of the judges appointed by the president and half appointed by the Chamber of Representatives) Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed by the president for a 10-year term
Labor force 4.3 million (31 December 2005) 5.25 million (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 14%


industry: 34.7%


services: 51.3% (2003 est.)
agriculture 4%, industry 38%, services 58% (2002 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: 1,881 km


border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km, Slovakia 215 km
Land use arable land: 26.77%


permanent crops: 0.6%


other: 72.63% (2005)
arable land: 39.8%


permanent crops: 3.05%


other: 57.15% (2001)
Languages Belarusian, Russian, other Czech
Legal system based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; legal code modified to bring it in line with Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) obligations and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory
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 eight members appointed by the president, to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteley (110 seats; members elected by popular vote 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 Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (81 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies or Poslanecka Snemovna (200 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: Senate - last held in two rounds 5-6 November and 12-13 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 14-15 June 2002 (next to be held by June 2006)


election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ODS 37, KDU-CSL 14, Open Democracy 13, CSSD 7, Caucus Open Democracy 7, independents 3; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - CSSD 30.2%, ODS 24.5%, KSCM 18.5%, KDU-CSL & US-DEU coalition 14.3%, other minor 12.5%; seats by party - CSSD 70, ODS 57, KSCM 41, KDU-CSL 21, US-DEU 10, independent 1
Life expectancy at birth total population: 70.05 years


male: 64.31 years


female: 76.14 years (2007 est.)
total population: 76.02 years


male: 72.74 years


female: 79.49 years (2005 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99.6%


male: 99.8%


female: 99.4% (1999 census)
definition: NA


total population: 99.9% (1999 est.)


male: NA%


female: NA%
Location Eastern Europe, east of Poland Central Europe, southeast of Germany
Map references Europe Europe
Maritime claims none (landlocked) none (landlocked)
Merchant marine - registered in other countries: 3
Military branches Belarus Armed Forces: Land Force, Air and Air Defense Force (2006) Army of the Czech Republic (ACR): Joint Forces Command, Support and Training Forces Command (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $2.17 billion (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.4% (2005 est.) 2.02% (2004)
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 Czech Founding Day, 28 October (1918)
Nationality noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
noun: Czech(s)


adjective: Czech
Natural hazards NA flooding
Natural resources forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber
Net migration rate 0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 0.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines gas 5,223 km; oil 2,321 km; refined products 1,686 km (2006) gas 7,020 km; oil 547 km; refined products 94 km (2004)
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 [Aleksandr 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 (People's Assembly) or BSDP NH [Aleksandr KOZULIN]; Christian Conservative BPF [Zyanon PAZNIAK]; Ecological Party of Greens [Mikhail KARTASH]; Party of Popular Accord [Sergei YERMAKK]; Republican Party [Vladimir BELAZOR]
Caucus SNK [Josef ZOSER]; Christian and Democratic Union-Czechoslovak People's Party or KDU-CSL [Miroslav KALOUSEK, chairman]; Civic Democratic Alliance or ODA [Jirina NOVAKOVA, chairman]; Civic Democratic Party or ODS [Mirek TOPOLANEK, chairman]; Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia or KSCM [Miroslav GREBENICEK, chairman]; Communist Party of Czechoslovakia or KSC [Miroslav STEPAN, chairman]; Czech National Social Party of CSNS [Jaroslav ROVNY, chairman]; Czech Social Democratic Party or CSSD [Stanislav GROSS, acting chairman]; European Democrats [Jan KASL]; Freedom Union-Democratic Union or US-DEU [Hana Marvanova, chairwoman]; Open Democracy [Sona PAUKRTOVA, chairwoman]
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] Bohemian and Moravian Trade Union Confederation [Milan STECH]
Population 9,724,723 (July 2007 est.) 10,241,138 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line 27.1% (2003 est.) NA
Population growth rate -0.41% (2007 est.) -0.05% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors - Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem
Radio broadcast stations AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000)
Railways total: 5,512 km


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


standard gauge: 15 km 1.435 m (2006)
total: 9,543 km


standard gauge: 9,421 km 1.435-m gauge (2,893 km electrified)


narrow gauge: 122 km 0.760-m gauge (23 km electrified) (2004)
Religions Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) Roman Catholic 26.8%, Protestant 2.1%, other 3.3%, unspecified 8.8%, unaffiliated 59% (2001 census)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.945 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.481 male(s)/female


total population: 0.873 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female


total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 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; fixed-line teledensity of 33 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of 58 per 100 persons; modernization of the network progressing with roughly two-thirds of switching equipment now digital


domestic: fixed-line penetration is improving although rural areas continue to be underserved; 4 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); 3 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 (2007)
general assessment: privatization and modernization of the Czech telecommunication system got a late start but is advancing steadily; growth in the use of mobile cellular telephones is particularly vigorous


domestic: 86% of exchanges now digital; existing copper subscriber systems now being enhanced with Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) equipment to accommodate Internet and other digital signals; trunk systems include fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay


international: country code - 420; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions), 1 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat, 1 Globalstar
Telephones - main lines in use 3.368 million (2006) 3.626 million (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 5.96 million (2006) 9,708,700 (2003)
Television broadcast stations 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) 150 (plus 1,434 repeaters) (2000)
Terrain generally flat and contains much marshland Bohemia in the west consists of rolling plains, hills, and plateaus surrounded by low mountains; Moravia in the east consists of very hilly country
Total fertility rate 1.22 children born/woman (2007 est.) 1.2 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate 1.6% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2005) 10.6% (2004 est.)
Waterways 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003) 664 km (on Elbe, Vltava, and Oder rivers) (2004)
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