##ciekawa_strona##
Compare Estonia (2001) - Belarus (2002)
Compare Estonia (2001) z Belarus (2002)
| Estonia (2001) | Belarus (2002) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 15 counties (maakonnad, singular - maakond): Harjumaa (Tallinn), Hiiumaa (Kardla), Ida-Virumaa (Johvi), Jarvamaa (Paide), Jogevamaa (Jogeva), Laanemaa (Haapsalu), Laane-Virumaa (Rakvere), Parnumaa (Parnu), Polvamaa (Polva), Raplamaa (Rapla), Saaremaa (Kuessaare), Tartumaa (Tartu), Valgamaa (Valga), Viljandimaa (Viljandi), Vorumaa (Voru)
note: counties have the administrative center name following in parentheses |
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:
17.08% (male 123,997; female 119,166) 15-64 years: 68.14% (male 466,823; female 503,032) 65 years and over: 14.78% (male 68,802; female 141,496) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 17.3% (male 914,579; female 876,346)
15-64 years: 68.6% (male 3,443,859; female 3,643,628) 65 years and over: 14.1% (male 482,624; female 974,346) (2002 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | potatoes, fruits, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk |
| Airports | 32 (2000 est.) | 136 (2001) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total:
8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
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 (2002) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
24 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 6 (2000 est.) |
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 (2002) |
| Area | total:
45,226 sq km land: 43,211 sq km water: 2,015 sq km note: includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea |
total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined | slightly smaller than Kansas |
| Background | After centuries of Swedish and Russian rule, Estonia attained independence in 1918. Forcibly incorporated into the USSR in 1940, it regained its freedom in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since the last Russian troops left in 1994, Estonia has been free to promote economic and political ties with Western Europe. | 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 | 8.7 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.86 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Budget | revenues:
$1.37 billion expenditures: $1.37 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
revenues: $4 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.) |
| Capital | Tallinn | Minsk |
| Climate | maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime |
| Coastline | 3,794 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | adopted 28 June 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:
Republic of Estonia conventional short form: Estonia local long form: Eesti Vabariik local short form: Eesti former: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic |
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 | Estonian kroon (EEK) | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) |
| Death rate | 13.48 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 13.99 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Debt - external | $1.6 billion (2000 est.) | $770 million (2001 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Melissa WELLS embassy: Kentmanni 20, 15099 Tallinn mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [372] 668-8100 FAX: [372] 668-8134 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael G. 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 | chief of mission:
Ambassador Sven JURGENSON chancery: 2131 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0108 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Valeriy V. 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 | Estonian and Russian negotiators reached a technical border agreement in December 1996 which has not been signed nor ratified by Russia as of February 2001 | boundary demarcation with Latvia and Lithuania is pending European Union funding |
| Economic aid - recipient | $137.3 million (1995) | $194.3 million (1995) (1995) |
| Economy - overview | In 2000, Estonia rebounded from the Russian financial crisis by scaling back its budget and reorienting trade away from Russian markets into EU member states. After GDP shrank 1.1% in 1999, the economy made a strong recovery in 2000, with growth estimated at 6.4% - the highest in Central and Eastern Europe. Estonia joined the World Trade Organization in November 1999 - the second Baltic state to join - and continues its EU accession talks. For 2001, Estonians predict GDP to grow around 6%, inflation of between 4.2%-5.3%, and a balanced budget. Substantial gains were made in completing privatization of Estonia's few remaining large, state-owned companies in 2000, and this momentum is expected to continue in 2001. Estonia hopes to join the EU during the next round of enlargement tentatively set for 2004. | 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 high inflation and persistent trade deficits, 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. 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 | 6.807 billion kWh (1999) | 26.78 billion kWh (2000) |
| Electricity - exports | 530 million kWh (1999) | 300 million kWh (2000) |
| Electricity - imports | 100 million kWh (1999) | 4.15 billion kWh (2000) |
| Electricity - production | 7.782 billion kWh (1999) | 24.66 billion kWh (2000) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
99.72% hydro: 0.09% nuclear: 0% other: 0.19% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m |
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
| Environment - current issues | air heavily polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast; contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products, chemicals at former Soviet military bases; Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas are heavily affected by organic waste; coastal sea water is polluted in many locations | 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, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 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 | Estonian 65.1%, Russian 28.1%, Ukrainian 2.5%, Byelorussian 1.5%, Finn 1%, other 1.8% (1998) | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% |
| Exchange rates | krooni per US dollar - 16.663 (January 2001), 16.969 (2000), 14.678 (1999), 14.075 (1998), 13.882 (1997), 12.034 (1996); note - krooni are tied to the German deutsche mark at a fixed rate of 8 to 1 | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,590 (yearend 2001), 1,531.000 (November 2001), 876.750 (2000), 248.795 (1999), 46.127 (1998), 26.020 (1997); note - on 1 January 2000, the national currency was redenominated at one new ruble to 2,000 old rubles |
| Executive branch | chief of state:
President Lennart MERI (since 5 October 1992) head of government: Prime Minister Mart LAAR (since 29 March 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; if he or she does not secure two-thirds of the votes after three rounds of balloting, then an electoral assembly (made up of Parliament plus members of local governments) elects the president, choosing between the two candidates with the largest percentage of votes; election last held August-September 1996 (next to be held in the fall of 2001); prime minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament election results: Lennart MERI reelected president by an electoral assembly after Parliament was unable to break a deadlock between MERI and RUUTEL; percent of electoral assembly vote - Lennart MERI 61%, Arnold RUUTEL 39% |
chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Gennadiy NOVITSKIY (since 1 October 2001); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since 13 March 2000), Aleksandr POPKOV (since 10 November 1998), Sergei SIDORSKY (since NA September 2001), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since NA September 2001) 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 (next election to be held by 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 | $3.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $7.5 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment 24%, wood products 20%, textiles 17%, food products 9%, metals, chemical products (1999) | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, textiles, foodstuffs, metals |
| Exports - partners | Finland 19.4%, Sweden 18.8%, Russia 9.2%, Latvia 8.7%, Germany 7.5%, US 2.5% (1999) | Russia 51%, Ukraine 8%, Poland 4%, Germany 3% (2000) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
| Flag description | pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white | 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 - $14.7 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $84.8 billion (2001 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
3.6% industry: 30.7% services: 65.7% (1999) |
agriculture: 13%
industry: 42% services: 45% (2000) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $10,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,200 (2001 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 6.4% (2000 est.) | 4.1% (2001 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 59 00 N, 26 00 E | 53 00 N, 28 00 E |
| Geography - note | - | 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 |
| Highways | total:
30,300 km paved: 29,200 km (including 75 km of expressways); note - 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: 1,100 km (2000) |
total: 98,200 km
paved: 66,100 km (includes some all-weather gravel-surfaced roads) unpaved: 32,100 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1990) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.2% highest 10%: 28.5% (1996) |
lowest 10%: 5%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
| Illicit drugs | transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Southwest Asia and the Caucasus via Russia, cocaine from Latin America to Western Europe and Scandinavia, and synthetic drugs from Western Europe to Scandinavia; possible precursor manufacturing and/or trafficking; synthetic drug production growing, trafficked to Russia, Baltics, Finland | 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; lax money-laundering and banking regulations |
| Imports | $4 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $8.1 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 31%, chemical products 13%, foodstuffs 11%, metal products 8%, textiles 8% (1999) | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals |
| Imports - partners | Finland 22.8%, Russia 13.5%, Sweden 9.3%, Germany 9.3%, Japan 4.7% (1999) | Russia 65%, Germany 7%, Poland 3% (2000) |
| Independence | 6 September 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 5.4% (2001 est.) |
| Industries | oil shale, shipbuilding, phosphates, electric motors, excavators, cement, furniture, clothing, textiles, paper, shoes, apparel | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators |
| Infant mortality rate | 12.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 14.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.1% (1999 est.) | 46.1% (2001 est.) |
| International organization participation | BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | CCC, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, 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) | 28 (2000) | 23 (2002) |
| Irrigated land | 110 sq km (1996 est.) | 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | National Court (chairman appointed by Parliament for life) | 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 | 785,500 (1999 est.) | 4.8 million (2000) |
| Labor force - by occupation | industry 20%, agriculture 11%, services 69% (1999 est.) | industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% |
| Land boundaries | total:
633 km border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 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:
25% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 11% forests and woodland: 44% other: 20% (1996 est.) |
arable land: 29.76%
permanent crops: 0.69% other: 69.55% (1998 est.) |
| Languages | Estonian (official), Russian, Ukrainian, English, Finnish, other | Belarusian, Russian, other |
| Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | based on civil law system |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Riigikogu (101 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Center Party 28, Union of Pro Patria (Fatherland League) 18, Reform Party 18, Moderates 17, Country People's Party (Agrarians) 7, Coalition Party 7, UPPE 6 |
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 Pretsaviteley (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held October 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: party affiliation data unavailable; under present political conditions party designations are meaningless |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
69.73 years male: 63.72 years female: 76.05 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 68.28 years
male: 62.3 years female: 74.56 years (2002 est.) |
| Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (1998 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
| Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia | Eastern Europe, east of Poland |
| Map references | Europe | Europe |
| Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
limits fixed in coordination with neighboring states territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | total:
44 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 253,460 GRT/219,727 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 19, combination bulk 1, container 5, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 10, short-sea passenger 6 (2000 est.) |
- |
| Military branches | Ground Forces, Navy/Coast Guard, Air and Air Defense Force (not officially sanctioned), Maritime Border Guard, Volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit), Security Forces (internal and border troops) | Army, Air Force (including air defense), Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $70 million (FY99) | $156 million (FY98) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (FY99) | 1% (FY01) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
359,677 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 2,744,267 (2002 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
282,418 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 2,149,873 (2002 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
11,164 (2001 est.) |
males: 86,396 (2002 est.) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 was the date of independence from Soviet Russia, 6 September 1991 was the date of independence from the Soviet Union | 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:
Estonian(s) adjective: Estonian |
noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
| Natural hazards | flooding occurs frequently in the spring | NA |
| Natural resources | shale oil (kukersite), peat, phosphorite, amber, cambrian blue clay, limestone, dolomite, arable land | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay |
| Net migration rate | -0.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 2.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Pipelines | natural gas 420 km (1992) | crude oil 1,470 km; refined products 1,100 km; natural gas 1,980 km (1992) |
| Political parties and leaders | Center Party or K [Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman]; Christian People's Party [Aldo VINKEL]; Coalition Party and Rural Union or KMU [Andrus OOBEL, chairman]; Estonian Democratic Party (formerly Estonian Blue Party) [Jaan LAAS]; Estonian Independence Party [leader NA]; Estonian National Democratic Party or ENDP [leader NA]; Estonian Pensioners and Families Party [Mai TREIAL]; Estonian Progressive Party [Andra VEIDEMANN]; Estonian Republican Party [leader NA]; Estonian Social-Democratic Labor Party [Tiit TOOMSALU]; Estonian Rural People's Union (1999 merger of Estonian Country People's Party and the Estonian Rural Union) [Arvo SIRENDI]; Party of Consolidation Today [leader NA]; People's Party Moderates (1999 merger of People's Party and Moderates) [Andres TARAND]; Reform Party or RE [Siim KALLAS, chairman]; Russian Party in Estonia [Nikolai MASPANOV]; Russian Unity Party [Igor SEDASHEV]; Union of Pro Patria or Fatherland League (Isamaaliit) [Mart LAAR, chairman]; United People's Party or UPPE [Viktor ANDREJEV, chairman] | Agrarian Party or AP [Mikhail SHIMANSKY]; 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 Party or SDBP [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party or Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Socialist Party [Vyacheslav KUZNETSOV]; Civic Accord Bloc (United Civic Party) or CAB [Anatol LIABEDZKA]; 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 or "Nadezhda" [Valentina POLEVIKOVA, chairperson] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
| Population | 1,423,316 (July 2001 est.) | 10,335,382 (July 2002 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 8.9% (1995 est.) | 22% (1995 est.) |
| Population growth rate | -0.55% (2001 est.) | -0.14% (2002 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Haapsalu, Kunda, Muuga, Paldiski, Parnu, Tallinn | Mazyr |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 3 (all AM stations inactive since July 1998), FM 82, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) |
| Radios | 1.01 million (1997) | 3.02 million (1997) |
| Railways | total:
1,018 km common carrier lines only; does not include dedicated industrial lines broad gauge: 1,018 km 1.520-m gauge (132 km electrified) (1995) |
total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2000 est.) |
| Religions | Evangelical Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Estonian Orthodox, Baptist, Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Word of Life, Jewish | 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: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2001 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 (2002 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal for all Estonian citizens | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment:
foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service; Internet services available throughout most of the country; about 150,000 unfilled subscriber requests domestic: local - the Ministry of Transport and Communications is expanding cellular telephone services to form rural networks; intercity - highly developed fiber-optic backbone (double loop) system presently serving at least 16 major cities (1998) international: fiber-optic cables to Finland, Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched service; two international switches are located in Tallinn |
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 | 476,078 (yearend 1998) | 2.313 million (1997) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 475,000 (yearend 2000) | 8,167 (1997) |
| Television broadcast stations | 31 (plus five repeaters) (September 1995) | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) |
| Terrain | marshy, lowlands | generally flat and contains much marshland |
| Total fertility rate | 1.21 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.31 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 11.7% (1999 est.) | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers |
| Waterways | 320 km (perennially navigable) | NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems |
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