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Compare Ecuador (2005) - Belarus (2004)

Compare Ecuador (2005) z Belarus (2004)

 Ecuador (2005)Belarus (2004)
 EcuadorBelarus
Administrative divisions 22 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Azuay, Bolivar, Canar, Carchi, Chimborazo, Cotopaxi, El Oro, Esmeraldas, Galapagos, Guayas, Imbabura, Loja, Los Rios, Manabi, Morona-Santiago, Napo, Orellana, Pastaza, Pichincha, Sucumbios, Tungurahua, Zamora-Chinchipe 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
Age structure 0-14 years: 33.5% (male 2,282,252/female 2,195,942)


15-64 years: 61.5% (male 4,094,146/female 4,130,096)


65 years and over: 4.9% (male 310,336/female 350,821) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 16.3% (male 859,219; female 823,839)


15-64 years: 69.2% (male 3,469,926; female 3,662,203)


65 years and over: 14.5% (male 496,204; female 999,129) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products bananas, coffee, cocoa, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca), plantains, sugarcane; cattle, sheep, pigs, beef, pork, dairy products; balsa wood; fish, shrimp grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Airports 205 (2004 est.) 135 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 62


over 3,047 m: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 4


1,524 to 2,437 m: 18


914 to 1,523 m: 19


under 914 m: 18 (2004 est.)
total: 50


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 21


1,524 to 2,437 m: 6


under 914 m: 21 (2003 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 143


914 to 1,523 m: 30


under 914 m: 113 (2004 est.)
total: 85


over 3,047 m: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 2


1,524 to 2,437 m: 5


914 to 1,523 m: 11


under 914 m: 64 (2003 est.)
Area total: 283,560 sq km


land: 276,840 sq km


water: 6,720 sq km


note: includes Galapagos Islands
total: 207,600 sq km


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Nevada slightly smaller than Kansas
Background The "Republic of the Equator" was one of three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others are Colombia and Venezuela). Between 1904 and 1942, Ecuador lost territories in a series of conflicts with its neighbors. A border war with Peru that flared in 1995 was resolved in 1999. Although Ecuador marked 25 years of civilian governance in 2004, the period has been marred by political instability. Seven presidents have governed Ecuador since 1996. 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.
Birth rate 22.67 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) 10.52 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget revenues: $7.9 billion


expenditures: planned $7.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.6 billion (2004 est.)
revenues: $2.976 billion


expenditures: $3.211 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2003 est.)
Capital Quito Minsk
Climate tropical along coast, becoming cooler inland at higher elevations; tropical in Amazonian jungle lowlands cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Coastline 2,237 km 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution 10 August 1998 30 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
Country name conventional long form: Republic of Ecuador


conventional short form: Ecuador


local long form: Republica del Ecuador


local short form: Ecuador
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 - Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR)
Death rate 4.24 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) 14.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external $16.81 billion (2004 est.) $851 million (2001 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Kristie Anne KENNEY


embassy: Avenida 12 de Octubre y Avenida Patria, Quito


mailing address: APO AA 34039


telephone: [593] (2) 256-2890


FAX: [593] (2) 250-2052


consulate(s) general: Guayaquil
chief of mission: Ambassador George A. KROL


embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002


mailing address: PSC 78, Box B Minsk, APO 09723


telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83, 217-7347, 217-7348


FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)


chancery: 2535 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009


telephone: [1] (202) 234-7200


FAX: [1] (202) 667-3482


consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Jersey City (New Jersey), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco
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
Disputes - international organized illegal narcotics operations in Colombia penetrate across Ecuador's shared border and caused over 20,000 refugees to flee into Ecuador in 2004 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain undemarcated despite European Union financial support
Economic aid - recipient $216 million (2002) $194.3 million (1995)
Economy - overview Ecuador has substantial petroleum resources, which have accounted for 40% of the country's export earnings and one-fourth of central government budget revenues in recent years. Consequently, fluctuations in world market prices can have a substantial domestic impact. In the late 1990s, Ecuador suffered its worst economic crisis, with natural disasters and sharp declines in world petroleum prices driving Ecuador's economy into free fall in 1999. Real GDP contracted by more than 6%, with poverty worsening significantly. The banking system also collapsed, and Ecuador defaulted on its external debt later that year. The currency depreciated by some 70% in 1999, and, on the brink of hyperinflation, the MAHAUD government announced it would dollarize the economy. A coup, however, ousted MAHAUD from office in January 2000, and after a short-lived junta failed to garner military support, Vice President Gustavo NOBOA took over the presidency. In March 2000, Congress approved a series of structural reforms that also provided the framework for the adoption of the US dollar as legal tender. Dollarization stabilized the economy, and growth returned to its pre-crisis levels in the years that followed. Under the administration of Lucio GUTIERREZ - January 2003 to April 2005 - Ecuador benefited from higher world petroleum prices, but the government has made little progress on economic reforms necessary to reduce Ecuador's vulnerability to petroleum price swings and financial crises. Belarus' economy in 2003 posted 6.1 percent growth and is likely to continue expanding through 2004, albeit at a slower growth rate. The Belarusian economy in 2004 is likely to be hampered by high inflation, persistent trade deficits, and ongoing rocky relations with Russia, Belarus' largest trading partner and energy supplier. Belarus has seen little structural reform since 1995, when President LUKASHENKO launched the country on the path of "market socialism." In keeping with this policy, LUKASHENKO reimposed administrative controls over prices and currency exchange rates and expanded the state's right to intervene in the management of private enterprises. In addition, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, retroactive application of new business regulations, and arrests of "disruptive" businessmen and factory owners. A wide range of redistributive policies has helped those at the bottom of the ladder. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies.
Electricity - consumption 10.79 billion kWh (2002) 26.69 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2002) 300 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 57 million kWh (2002) 4.3 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 11.54 billion kWh (2002) 24.4 billion kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: Chimborazo 6,267 m
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution; pollution from oil production wastes in ecologically sensitive areas of the Amazon Basin and Galapagos Islands 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: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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
Ethnic groups mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 65%, Amerindian 25%, Spanish and others 7%, black 3% Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4%
Exchange rates 25,000 (2004), 25,000 (2003), 25,000 (2002), 25,000 (2001), 24,988 (2000) Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,790.92 (2003), 1,920 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.795 (1999)
Executive branch chief of state: President Alfredo PALACIO (since 20 April 2005); Vice President Nicanor Alejandro SERRANO Aguilar (since 5 May 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government; former President Lucio GUTIERREZ was removed from office by congress effective 20 April 2005


head of government: President Alfredo PALACIO (since 20 April 2005); Vice President Nicanor Alejandro SERRANO Aguilar (since 5 May 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president


elections: the president and vice president are elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a four-year term (no immediate reelection); election last held 20 October 2002; runoff election held 24 November 2002 (next to be held October 2006)


election results: results of the 24 November 2002 runoff election - Lucio GUTIERREZ elected president; percent of vote - Lucio GUTIERREZ 54.3%; Alvaro NOBOA 45.7%; note - Vice President Alfredo PALACIO assumed the presidency on 20 April 2005 after congress removed Lucio GUTIERREZ from office
chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)


head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (since 19 December 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir SEMASHKO (since December 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since December 2003), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since 24 September 2001), Ivan BAMBIZA (since 25 May 2004), Anatoly TYUTYUNOV (since July 2002)


cabinet: Council of Ministers


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; first election took place 23 June and 10 July 1994; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via a November 1996 referendum; new election held 9 September 2001; October 2004 referendum ended presidential term limits allowing president to run for a third term in September 2006; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president


election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 75.6%, Vladimir GONCHARIK 15.4%
Exports 387,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities petroleum, bananas, cut flowers, shrimp machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners US 42.9%, Panama 14.3%, Peru 7.9%, Italy 4.6% (2004) Russia 49.1%, UK 9.4%, Poland 4.4%, Germany 4.2%, Netherlands 4.2% (2003)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double width), blue, and red with the coat of arms superimposed at the center of the flag; similar to the flag of Colombia, which is shorter and does not bear a coat of arms red horizontal band (top) and green horizontal band one-half the width of the red band; a white vertical stripe on the hoist side bears Belarusian national ornamention in red
GDP - purchasing power parity - $62.56 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 8.7%


industry: 30.5%


services: 60.9% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 11.1%


industry: 36.4%


services: 52.5% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2004 est.) purchasing power parity - $6,100 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 5.8% (2004 est.) 6.8% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates 2 00 S, 77 30 W 53 00 N, 28 00 E
Geography - note Cotopaxi in Andes is highest active volcano in world landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes; the country is geologically well endowed with extensive deposits of granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, and clay
Heliports 1 (2004 est.) 1 (2003 est.)
Highways total: 43,197 km


paved: 8,164 km


unpaved: 35,033 km (2002)
total: 74,385 km


paved: 66,203 km


unpaved: 8,182 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 2%


highest 10%: 32%


note: data for urban households only (October 2003)
lowest 10%: 5.1%


highest 10%: 20% (1998)
Illicit drugs significant transit country for cocaine originating in Colombia and Peru; importer of precursor chemicals used in production of illicit narcotics; attractive location for cash-placement by drug traffickers laundering money because of dollarization and weak anti-money-laundering regime, especially vulnerable along the border with Colombia; increased activity on the northern frontier by trafficking groups and Colombian insurgents 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 NA NA (2001)
Imports - commodities vehicles, medicinal products, telecommunications equipment, electricity mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
Imports - partners US 16.5%, Colombia 14.1%, China 9.2%, Venezuela 7.1%, Brazil 6.5%, Chile 4.6%, Japan 4.5%, Mexico 4.3% (2004) Russia 65.8%, Germany 7.1%, Ukraine 3.1% (2003)
Independence 24 May 1822 (from Spain) 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate 10% (2004 est.) 5% (2003 est.)
Industries petroleum, food processing, textiles, wood products, chemicals metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Infant mortality rate total: 23.66 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 28.36 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 18.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
total: 13.62 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 14.71 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 12.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2% (2004 est.) 28.2% (2003 est.)
International organization participation CAN, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer)
Irrigated land 8,650 sq km (1998 est.) 1,150 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (according to the Constitution, new justices are elected by the full Supreme Court; in December 2004, however, Congress successfully replaced the entire court via a simple-majority resolution) 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 4.53 million (urban) (2004 est.) 4.8 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 8%, industry 24%, services 68% (2001) NA
Land boundaries total: 2,010 km


border countries: Colombia 590 km, Peru 1,420 km
total: 2,900 km


border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km
Land use arable land: 5.85%


permanent crops: 4.93%


other: 89.22% (2001)
arable land: 29.55%


permanent crops: 0.6%


other: 69.85% (2001)
Languages Spanish (official), Amerindian languages (especially Quechua) Belarusian, Russian, other
Legal system based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction based on civil law system
Legislative branch unicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (100 seats; members are popularly elected by province to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 20 October 2002 (next to be held October 2006)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PSC 25, PRE 15, ID 16, PRIAN 10, PSP 9, Pachakutik Movement 6, MPD 5, DP 4, PS-FA 3, independents 7; note - defections by members of National Congress are commonplace, resulting in frequent changes in the numbers of seats held by the various parties
bicameral Parliament or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats; 56 members elected by regional councils and 8 members appointed by the president, all for 4-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteliy (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms)


elections: last held 18 March and 1 April 2001 and 17 and 31 October 2004 (bi-election will be held March 2005 to fill one unfilled seat in the Palata Predstaviteliy); international observers widely denounced the October 2004 elections as flawed and undemocratic, based on massive government falsification; pro-Lukashenko candidates won every seat, after many opposition candidates were disqualified for technical reasons


election results: Soviet Respubliki - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Palata Pretsaviteley - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA
Life expectancy at birth total population: 76.21 years


male: 73.35 years


female: 79.22 years (2005 est.)
total population: 68.57 years


male: 62.79 years


female: 74.65 years (2004 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 92.5%


male: 94%


female: 91% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99.6%


male: 99.8%


female: 99.5% (2003 est.)
Location Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean at the Equator, between Colombia and Peru Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Map references South America Europe
Maritime claims territorial sea: 200 nm


continental shelf: 100 nm from 2,500 meter isobath
none (landlocked)
Merchant marine total: 31 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 241,403 GRT/391,898 DWT


by type: chemical tanker 2, liquefied gas 1, passenger 8, petroleum tanker 20


foreign-owned: 3 (Germany 1, Greece 1, Paraguay 1) (2005)
-
Military branches Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry, Naval Aviation, Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Ecuatoriana, FAE) Army, Air and Air Defense Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure $655 million (2004) $176.1 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.2% (2004) 1.4% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 2,764,856 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 2,164,923 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 86,716 (2004 est.)
National holiday Independence Day (independence of Quito), 10 August (1809) 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: Ecuadorian(s)


adjective: Ecuadorian
noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
Natural hazards frequent earthquakes, landslides, volcanic activity; floods; periodic droughts NA
Natural resources petroleum, fish, timber, hydropower forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay
Net migration rate -6.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) 2.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines extra heavy crude 578 km; gas 71 km; oil 1,386 km; refined products 1,185 km (2004) gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders Concentration of Popular Forces or CFP [Averroes BUCARAM]; Democratic Left or ID [Guillermo LANDAZURI]; National Action Institutional Renewal Party or PRIAN [Alvaro NOBOA]; Pachakutik Movement [Gilberto TALAHUA]; Patriotic Society Party or PSP [Lucio GUTIERREZ Borbua]; Popular Democracy or DP [Dr. Juan Manuel FUERTES]; Popular Democratic Movement or MPD [Gustavo TERAN Acosta]; Radical Alfarista Front or FRA [Fabian ALARCON, director]; Roldosist Party or PRE [Abdala BUCARAM Ortiz, director]; Social Christian Party or PSC [Leon FEBRES CORDERO]; Socialist Party - Broad Front or PS-FA [Victor GRANDA] Pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Social-Sports Party; Opposition parties: Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat Party Narodnaya Gromada or BSDP NG [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatol LEBEDKO]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson]


note: the opposition Belarusian Party of Labor [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV] was liquidated in August 2004, but remains active
Political pressure groups and leaders Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador or CONAIE [Luis MACAS, president]; Coordinator of Social Movements or CMS [F. Napoleon SANTOS]; Federation of Indigenous Evangelists of Ecuador or FEINE [Marco MURILLO, president]; National Federation of Indigenous Afro-Ecuatorianos and Peasants or FENOCIN [Pedro DE LA CRUZ, president]; Popular Front or FP [Luis VILLACIS] NA
Population 13,363,593 (July 2005 est.) 10,310,520 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line 45% (2001 est.) 22% (1995 est.)
Population growth rate 1.24% (2005 est.) -0.11% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors Esmeraldas, Guayaquil, La Libertad, Manta, Puerto Bolivar Mazyr
Radio broadcast stations AM 392, FM 35, shortwave 29 (2001) AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Railways total: 966 km


narrow gauge: 966 km 1.067-m gauge (2004)
total: 5,523 km


broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2003)
Religions Roman Catholic 95%, other 5% Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female


total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
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 (2004 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal, compulsory for literate persons ages 18-65, optional for other eligible voters 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: generally elementary but being expanded


domestic: facilities generally inadequate and unreliable


international: country code - 593; 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' fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational


international: country code - 375; Belarus is a member of the Trans-European Line (TEL), Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line, and has access to the Trans-Siberia Line (TSL); three fiber-optic segments provide connectivity to Latvia, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine; worldwide service is available to Belarus through this infrastructure; additional analog lines to Russia; Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik earth stations
Telephones - main lines in use 1.549 million (2003) 3,071,300 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 2,394,400 (2003) 1.118 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations 7 (plus 14 repeaters) (2001) 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain coastal plain (costa), inter-Andean central highlands (sierra), and flat to rolling eastern jungle (oriente) generally flat and contains much marshland
Total fertility rate 2.72 children born/woman (2005 est.) 1.36 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate 11.1%; note - underemployment of 47% (2004 est.) 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers (2003 est.)
Waterways 1,500 km (most inaccessible) (2003) 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)
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