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Compare Belarus (2008) - Portugal (2001)
Compare Belarus (2008) z Portugal (2001)
| Belarus (2008) | Portugal (2001) | |
 |  | |
| 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 |
18 districts (distritos, singular - distrito) and 2 autonomous regions* (regioes autonomas, singular - regiao autonoma); Aveiro, Acores (Azores)*, Beja, Braga, Braganca, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Evora, Faro, Guarda, Leiria, Lisboa, Madeira*, Portalegre, Porto, Santarem, Setubal, Viana do Castelo, Vila Real, Viseu |
| 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:
16.96% (male 877,379; female 830,242) 15-64 years: 67.42% (male 3,321,473; female 3,465,481) 65 years and over: 15.62% (male 637,207; female 934,471) (2001 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | grain, potatoes, olives, grapes; sheep, cattle, goats, poultry, beef, dairy products |
| Airports | 67 (2007) | 66 (2000 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:
40 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 5 (2000 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:
26 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 25 (2000 est.) |
| Area | total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
92,391 sq km land: 91,951 sq km water: 440 sq km note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | slightly smaller than Indiana |
| 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 its heyday as a world power during the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal lost much of its wealth and status with the destruction of Lisbon in a 1755 earthquake, occupation during the Napoleonic Wars, and the independence in 1822 of Brazil as a colony. A 1910 revolution deposed the monarchy; for most of the next six decades repressive governments ran the country. In 1974, a left-wing military coup installed broad democratic reforms. The following year Portugal granted independence to all of its African colonies. Portugal entered the EC in 1985. |
| Birth rate | 9.5 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 11.51 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $15.35 billion
expenditures: $16.78 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues:
$48.6 billion expenditures: $50.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.7 billion (2000 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 |
Lisbon |
| Climate | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | maritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer and drier in south |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 1,793 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 | 25 April 1976, revised 30 October 1982, 1 June 1989, 5 November 1992, and 3 September 1997 |
| 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:
Portuguese Republic conventional short form: Portugal local long form: Republica Portuguesa local short form: Portugal |
| Currency | - | Portuguese escudo (PTE); euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Portugal at a fixed rate of 200.482 Portuguese escudos per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002 |
| Death rate | 13.98 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 10.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Debt - external | $9.272 billion (30 June 2007) | $13.1 billion (1997 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 Gerald S. MCGOWAN embassy: Avenida das Forcas Armadas, 1600 Lisbon mailing address: PSC 83, APO AE 09726 telephone: [351] (21) 727-3300 FAX: [351] (21) 726-9109 consulate(s): Ponta Delgada (Azores) |
| 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 Joao Alberto Bacelar ROCHA PARIS chancery: 2125 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-8610 FAX: [1] (202) 462-3726 consulate(s) general: Boston, New York, Newark (New Jersey), and San Francisco consulate(s): Los Angeles, New Bedford (Massachusetts), Providence (Rhode Island) |
| 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 | - |
| Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $271 million (1995) |
| Economic aid - recipient | $53.76 million (2005) | - |
| Economy - overview | 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. Nevertheless, GDP growth has been strong in recent years, reaching nearly 8% in 2007, despite the roadblocks of 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. Trade with Russia - by far its largest single trade partner - decreased in 2007, largely as a result of a change in the way the Value Added Tax (VAT) on trade was collected. Russia has 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 - 80% will go to Russia in 2008, and 85% in 2009. Russia also increased Belarusian natural gas prices from $47 per thousand cubic meters (tcm) to $100 per tcm in 2007, and plans to increase prices gradually to world levels by 2011. Russia's recent policy of bringing energy prices for Belarus to world market levels may result in a slowdown in economic growth in Belarus over the next few years. Some policy measures, including tightening of fiscal and monetary policies, improving energy efficiency, and diversifying exports, have been introduced, but external borrowing has been the main mechanism used to manage the growing pressures on the economy. | Portugal is an upcoming capitalist economy with a per capita GDP two-thirds that of the four big West European economies. The country qualified for the European Monetary Union (EMU) in 1998 and joined with 10 other European countries in launching the euro on 1 January 1999. The year 2000 was marked by moderation in growth, inflation, and unemployment. The country continues to run a sizable trade deficit. The government is working to reform the tax system, to modernize capital plant, and to increase the country's competitiveness in the increasingly integrated world markets. Growth is expected to fall off slightly in 2001. Improvement in the education sector is critical to the long-run catch-up process. |
| Electricity - consumption | 29.49 billion kWh (2005) | 37.915 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - exports | 5.053 billion kWh (2005) | 4.49 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - imports | 9.091 billion kWh (2005) | 3.628 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production | 29.08 billion kWh (2005) | 41.696 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
79.97% hydro: 17.25% nuclear: 0% other: 2.78% (1999) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Ponta do Pico (Pico or Pico Alto) on Ilha do Pico in the Azores 2,351 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 | soil erosion; air pollution caused by industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution, especially in coastal areas |
| 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, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Environmental Modification, Nuclear Test Ban |
| Ethnic groups | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census) | homogeneous Mediterranean stock; citizens of black African descent who immigrated to mainland during decolonization number less than 100,000 |
| Exchange rates | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,145 (2007), 2,144.6 (2006), 2,150 (2005), 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003) | euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Portuguese escudos per US dollar - 180.10 (1998), 175.31 (1997), 154.24 (1996) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Sergey 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 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 Jorge SAMPAIO (since 9 March 1996) head of government: Prime Minister Antonio Manuel de Oliviera GUTERRES (since 28 October 1995) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister note: there is also a Council of State that acts as a consultative body to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 14 January 2001 (next to be held NA January 2006); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Jorge SAMPAIO re-elected president; percent of vote - Jorge SAMPAIO (Socialist) 55.8%, Joaquim FERREIRA Do Amaral (Social Democrat) 34.5%, Antonio ABREU (Communist) 5.1% |
| Exports | 249,900 bbl/day (2004 est.) | $26.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs | clothing and footwear, machinery, chemicals, cork and paper products, hides |
| Exports - partners | Russia 34.7%, Netherlands 17.7%, UK 7.5%, Ukraine 6.3%, Poland 5.2% (2006) | EU 83% (Germany 20%, Spain 18%, France 14%, UK 12%, Netherlands 5%, Benelux 5%, Italy), US 5% (1999) |
| 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 vertical bands of green (hoist side, two-fifths) and red (three-fifths) with the Portuguese coat of arms centered on the dividing line |
| GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $159 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8.7%
industry: 40.6% services: 50.6% (2007 est.) |
agriculture:
4% industry: 36% services: 60% (1999 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $15,800 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 6.9% (2007 est.) | 2.7% (2000 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 39 30 N, 8 00 W |
| Geography - note | landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes | Azores and Madeira Islands occupy strategic locations along western sea approaches to Strait of Gibraltar |
| Heliports | 1 (2007) | - |
| Highways | - | total:
68,732 km paved: 59,110 km (including 797 km of expressways) unpaved: 9,622 km (1999) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.4%
highest 10%: 23.5% (2002) |
lowest 10%:
3.1% highest 10%: 28.4% (1995 est.) |
| 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 | important gateway country for Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market; transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Europe; consumer of Southwest Asian heroin |
| Imports | 378,200 bbl/day (2004 est.) | $41 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals | machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum, textiles, agricultural products |
| Imports - partners | Russia 58.6%, Germany 7.5%, Ukraine 5.5% (2006) | EU 78% (Spain 25%, Germany 15%, France 11%, Italy 8%, UK 7%, Netherlands 5%), US 3%, Japan 3% (1998) |
| Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 1140 (independent republic proclaimed 5 October 1910) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2007 est.) | 2.9% (1999 est.) |
| Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | textiles and footwear; wood pulp, paper, and cork; metalworking; oil refining; chemicals; fish canning; wine; tourism |
| 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.) |
5.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8.3% (2007 est.) | 2.8% (2000 est.) |
| International organization participation | BSEC (observer), CEI, CIS, EAEC, EAPC, EBRD, GCTU, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, 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) | AfDB, Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 16 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | 1,310 sq km (2003) | 6,300 sq km (1993 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 or Supremo Tribunal de Justica (judges appointed for life by the Conselho Superior da Magistratura) |
| Labor force | 4.3 million (31 December 2005) | 5 million (1999) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 14%
industry: 34.7% services: 51.3% (2003 est.) |
services 60%, industry 30%, agriculture 10% (1999 est.) |
| Land boundaries | total: 3,098 km
border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 605 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km |
total:
1,214 km border countries: Spain 1,214 km |
| Land use | arable land: 26.77%
permanent crops: 0.6% other: 72.63% (2005) |
arable land:
26% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 9% forests and woodland: 36% other: 20% (1993 est.) |
| Languages | Belarusian, Russian, other | Portuguese |
| Legal system | based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | civil law system; the Constitutional Tribunal reviews the constitutionality of legislation; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
| 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 |
unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da Republica (230 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 October 1999 (next to be held by NA October 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PS 115, PSD 81, PCP 15, PP 15, PEV 2, The Left Bloc 2 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.05 years
male: 64.31 years female: 76.14 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
75.94 years male: 72.44 years female: 79.68 years (2001 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.4% (1999 census) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 87.4% male: NA% female: NA% |
| Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Southwestern Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Spain |
| Map references | Europe | Europe |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Merchant marine | - | total:
158 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,053,586 GRT/1,611,238 DWT ships by type: bulk 14, cargo 84, chemical tanker 16, container 10, liquefied gas 7, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 11, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 6, short-sea passenger 4, vehicle carrier 4 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Spain 1 (2000 est.) |
| Military branches | Belarus Armed Forces: Land Force, Air and Air Defense Force (2008) | Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force, National Republican Guard |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $2.458 billion (FY97) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (2005 est.) | 2.6% (FY97) |
| Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
2,530,466 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
2,030,759 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
71,404 (2001 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 | Portugal Day, 10 June (1580) |
| Nationality | noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
noun:
Portuguese (singular and plural) adjective: Portuguese |
| Natural hazards | NA | Azores subject to severe earthquakes |
| Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay | fish, forests (cork), tungsten, iron ore, uranium ore, marble, arable land, hydro power |
| Net migration rate | 0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Pipelines | gas 5,250 km; oil 1,528 km; refined products 1,730 km (2007) | crude oil 22 km; petroleum products 58 km; natural gas 700 km
note: the secondary lines for the natural gas pipeline that will be 300 km long have not yet been built |
| 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 [Nikolay ULAKHOVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergey GAYDUKEVICH]; Party of Labor and Justice [Viktor SOKOLOV]; Social-Sports Party [Vladimir ALEXANDROVICH]
opposition parties: Belarusian Christian Democracy Party (unregistered) [Pavel SEVERINETS]; Belarusian Party of Communists or PKB [Sergey KALYAKIN]; Belarusian Party of Labor (unregistered) [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV, Leonid LEMESHONAK]; Belarusian Popular Front or BPF [Vintsyuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Gramada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH]; Belarusian Social Democratic Party Hramada (People's Assembly) or BSDPH [Aleksandr KOZULIN; Anatoliy LEVKOVICH, acting]; Green Party [Oleg GROMYKO]; Party of Freedom and Progress (unregistered) [Vladimir NOVOSYAD]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatoliy LEBEDKO]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson] other opposition includes: Christian Conservative BPF [Zyanon PAZNIAK]; Ecological Party of Greens [Mikhail KARTASH]; Party of Popular Accord [Sergey YERMAKK]; Republican Party [Vladimir BELAZOR] |
The Greens or PEV [leader NA]; Popular Party or PP [Paulo PORTAS]; Portuguese Communist Party/United Democratic Coalition or PCP/CDU [Carlos CARVALHAS]; Portuguese Socialist Party or PS [Antonio GUTERRES]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [leader vacant]; The Left Bloc [no leader] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | Assembly of Pro-Democratic NGOs [Sergey MATSKEVICH]; Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions [Aleksandr YAROSHUK]; Belarusian Helsinki Committee [Tatiana PROTKO]; Belarusian Organization of Working Women [Irina ZHIKHAR]; Charter 97 [Andrey SANNIKOV]; For Freedom (unregistered) [Aleksandr MILINKEVICH]; 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) [Dmitriy DASHKEVICH, Sergey BAKHUN]; Zubr youth group [Vladimir KOBETS] | NA |
| Population | 9,724,723 (July 2007 est.) | 10,066,253 (July 2001 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 27.1% (2003 est.) | NA% |
| Population growth rate | -0.41% (2007 est.) | 0.18% (2001 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | - | Aveiro, Funchal (Madeira Islands), Horta (Azores), Leixoes, Lisbon, Porto, Ponta Delgada (Azores), Praia da Vitoria (Azores), Setubal, Viana do Castelo |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 47, FM 172 (many are repeaters), shortwave 2 (1998) |
| Radios | - | 3.02 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 (2006) |
total:
2,850 km broad gauge: 2,576 km 1.668-m gauge (623 km electrified; 426 km double track) narrow gauge: 274 km 1.000-m gauge (1998) |
| Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Roman Catholic 94%, Protestant (1995) |
| 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:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2001 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:
undergoing rapid development in recent years, Portugal's telephone system, by the end of 1998, achieved a state-of-the-art network with broadband, high-speed capabilities and a main line telephone density of 53% domestic: integrated network of coaxial cables, open wire, microwave radio relay, and domestic satellite earth stations international: 6 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to Azores; note - an earth station for Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region) is planned |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 3.368 million (2006) | 5.3 million (end 1998) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 5.96 million (2006) | 3,074,194 (1999) |
| Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 62 (plus 166 repeaters)
note: includes Azores and Madeira Islands (1995) |
| Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | mountainous north of the Tagus River, rolling plains in south |
| Total fertility rate | 1.22 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.48 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 1.6% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2005) | 4.3% (2000 est.) |
| Waterways | 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003) | 820 km
note: relatively unimportant to national economy, used by shallow-draft craft limited to 300 metric-ton or less cargo capacity |
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