Cayman Islands (2003) | Belarus (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 districts; Creek, Eastern, Midland, South Town, Spot Bay, Stake Bay, West End, Western | 6 voblastsi (singular - voblasts') and one municipality* (harady, singular - horad); Brestskaya (Brest), Homyel'skaya (Homyel'), Horad Minsk*, Hrodzyenskaya (Hrodna), Mahilyowskaya (Mahilyow), Minskaya, Vitsyebskaya (Vitsyebsk); note - when using a place name with the adjectival ending 'skaya' the word voblasts' should be added to the place name
note: voblasti have the administrative center name following in parentheses |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.6% (male 4,525; female 4,541)
15-64 years: 70.6% (male 14,463; female 15,157) 65 years and over: 7.7% (male 1,515; female 1,733) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years:
17.93% (male 947,820; female 908,210) 15-64 years: 68.21% (male 3,428,920; female 3,631,290) 65 years and over: 13.86% (male 473,992; female 959,962) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk |
Airports | 3 (2002) | 136 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2002) |
total:
33 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 19 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 11 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
103 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 65 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 262 sq km
land: 262 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
207,600 sq km land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Kansas |
Background | The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries. Administered by Jamaica since 1863, they remained a British dependency after 1962 when the former became independent. | 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 but, to date, neither side has actively sought to implement the accord. |
Birth rate | 13.33 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 9.57 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $265.2 million
expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues:
$4 billion expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.) |
Capital | George Town | Minsk |
Climate | tropical marine; warm, rainy summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to April) | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime |
Coastline | 160 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992 | 30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Cayman Islands |
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 |
Currency | Caymanian dollar (KYD) | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) |
Death rate | 4.7 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 13.97 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $70 million (1996) | $1 billion (2000 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael KOZAK embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Valeriy TSEPAKLO chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604 FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $194.3 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | With no direct taxation, the islands are a thriving offshore financial center. More than 40,000 companies were registered in the Cayman Islands as of 1998, including almost 600 banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion. A stock exchange was opened in 1997. Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and 75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1.2 million in 1997, with 600,000 from the US. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living in the world. | 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 enterprise. In addition to the burdens imposed by extremely high inflation, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, and retroactive application of new business regulations prohibiting practices that had been legal. Further economic problems are two consecutive bad harvests, 1998-99, and persistent trade deficits. Close relations with Russia, possibly leading to reunion, color the pattern of economic developments. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. |
Electricity - consumption | 355.2 million kWh (2001) | 27.647 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 2.62 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 7.1 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 381.9 million kWh (2001) | 24.911 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
99.9% hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: The Bluff 43 m |
lowest point:
Nyoman River 90 m highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchments | soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | mixed 40%, white 20%, black 20%, expatriates of various ethnic groups 20% | Byelorussian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% |
Exchange rates | Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.82 (29 October 2001), 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,180 (yearend 2000), 730,000 (15 December 1999), 139,000 (25 January 1999), 46,080 (second quarter 1998), 25,964 (1997), 15,500 (yearend 1996); note - on 1 January 2000, the national currency was redenominated at one new ruble to 2,000 old rubles |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Governor Bruce DINWIDDY (since 29 May 2002)
head of government: Chief Secretary W. McKeeva BUSH (since NA December 2001) cabinet: Executive Council (three members appointed by the governor, four members elected by the Legislative Assembly) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor is appointed by the monarch; the chief secretary is appointed by the governor |
chief of state:
President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994) head of government: Prime Minister Vladimir YERMOSHIN (since 18 February 2000); First Deputy Prime Minister Andrey KOBYAKOV (since 13 March 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Mikhail DEMCHUK (since 14 July 2000), Mikhail KHORSTOV (since 27 November 2000), Valeriy KOKOREV (since 23 August 1994), Leonid KOZIK (since 4 February 1997), Gennadiy NOVITSKIY (since 11 February 1997), Aleksandr POPKOV (since 10 November 1998) 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 (next to be held NA; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via the November 1996 referendum); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO elected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 85%, Vyacheslav KEBICH 15% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $7.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | turtle products, manufactured consumer goods | machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs |
Exports - partners | mostly US | Russia 66%, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, Lithuania (1998) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Caymanian coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes a pineapple and turtle above a shield with three stars (representing the three islands) and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HE HATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS | 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 the Belarusian national ornament in red |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.27 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $78.8 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.4%
industry: 3.2% services: 95.4% (1994 est.) |
agriculture:
13% industry: 46% services: 41% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $35,000 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.7% (2002 est.) | 4% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 30 N, 80 30 W | 53 00 N, 28 00 E |
Geography - note | important location between Cuba and Central America | landlocked |
Highways | total: 785 km
paved: 785 km (2000) |
total:
63,355 km paved: 60,567 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather) unpaved: 2,788 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
4.9% highest 10%: 19.4% (1993) |
Illicit drugs | offshore financial center; vulnerable to drug transshipment to the US and Europe | 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 |
Imports | NA (2001) | $8.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, manufactured goods | mineral products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan | Russia 54%, Ukraine, Germany, Poland, Lithuania (1998) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 5% (2000 est.) |
Industries | tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earth movers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators |
Infant mortality rate | total: 8.64 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.9 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
14.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.8% (2002) | 200% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UNESCO (associate) | CCC, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | 4 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 1,000 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Summary Court; Grand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal | 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) |
Labor force | 19,820 (1995) | 4.8 million (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) | industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
3,098 km border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 605 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
29% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 15% forests and woodland: 34% other: 21% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English | Byelorussian, Russian, other |
Legal system | British common law and local statutes | based on civil law system |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (18 seats, three appointed members from the Executive Council and 15 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA |
bicameral Parliament or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Pretsaviteley (110 seats)
elections: last held October 2000 (next to be held NA) election results: party affiliation data unavailable; under present political conditions party designations are meaningless |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.67 years
male: 77.08 years female: 82.3 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
68.14 years male: 62.06 years female: 74.52 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island group in Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras | Eastern Europe, east of Poland |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Commonwealth of Independent States |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 123 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,402,058 GRT/3,792,094 DWT
ships by type: bulk 22, cargo 5, chemical tanker 31, container 2, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 21, refrigerated cargo 35, roll on/roll off 5, specialized tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Bahrain 2, China 1, Germany 4, Greece 27, Hong Kong 3, Italy 2, Japan 1, Norway 14, Sweden 13, United Kingdom 15, United States 35 (2002 est.) |
- |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Cayman Islands Police Force (RCIPF) | Army, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $156 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.2% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
2,729,956 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
2,138,743 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
86,396 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, first Monday in July | 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 |
Nationality | noun: Caymanian(s)
adjective: Caymanian |
noun:
Belarusian(s) adjective: Belarusian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (July to November) | NA |
Natural resources | fish, climate and beaches that foster tourism | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas |
Net migration rate | 19.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: major destination for Cubans trying to migrate to the US (2003 est.) |
2.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 1,470 km; refined products 1,100 km; natural gas 1,980 km (1992) |
Political parties and leaders | there are no formal political parties but the following loose groupings act as political organizations; National Team [leader NA]; Democratic Alliance [leader NA]; Team Cayman [leader NA]; United Democratic Party [leader NA] | Agrarian Party or AP [Semyon SHARETSKY, chairman]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [Viktor CHIKIN, chairman]; Belarusian Ecological Green Party (merger of Belarusian Ecological Party and Green Party of Belarus) [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat or SDBP [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Socialist Party [Vyacheslav KUZNETSOV]; Civic Accord Bloc (United Civic Party) or CAB [Stanislav BOGDANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDPB [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH, chairman]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Republican Party of Labor and Justice or RPPS [Anatoliy NETYLKIN, chairman]; Social-Democrat Party of Popular Accord or PPA [Leanid SECHKA]; Women's Party Nadezhda [Valentina POLEVIKOVA, chairperson] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 41,934 (July 2003 est.) | 10,350,194 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 22% (1995 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.79% (2003 est.) | -0.15% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cayman Brac, George Town | Mazyr |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) |
Radios | - | 3.02 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total:
5,523 km broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2000) |
Religions | United Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), Anglican, Baptist, Church of God, other Protestant, Roman Catholic | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: 1 submarine coaxial cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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's fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational international: 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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 19,000 (1995) | 2.313 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,534 (1995) | 8,167 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 with cable system | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs | generally flat and contains much marshland |
Total fertility rate | 1.91 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.28 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.1% (1997) | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers |
Waterways | none | NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems |