Compare Hungary (2003) - Belarus (2005)

Compare Hungary (2003) z Belarus (2005)

	Hungary (2003)	Belarus (2005)

Administrative divisions	19 counties (megyek, singular - megye), 20 urban counties* (singular - megyei varos), and 1 capital city** (fovaros); Bacs-Kiskun, Baranya, Bekes, Bekescsaba, Borsod-Abauj-Zemplen, Budapest, Csongrad, Debrecen, Dunaujvaros, Eger, Fejer, Gyor, Gyor-Moson-Sopron, Hajdu-Bihar, Heves, Hodmezovasarhely, Jasz-Nagykun-Szolnok, Kaposvar, Kecskemet, Komarom-Esztergom, Miskolc, Nagykanizsa, Nograd, Nyiregyhaza, Pecs, Pest, Somogy, Sopron, Szabolcs-Szatmar-Bereg, Szeged, Szekesfehervar, Szolnok, Szombathely, Tatabanya, Tolna, Vas, Veszprem, Veszprem, Zala, Zalaegerszeg	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: 16.1% (male 832,033; female 787,336) 15-64 years: 69% (male 3,406,046; female 3,523,118) 65 years and over: 14.9% (male 544,099; female 952,775) (2003 est.)	0-14 years: 16% (male 839,292/female 804,738) 15-64 years: 69.5% (male 3,481,432/female 3,672,991) 65 years and over: 14.6% (male 498,717/female 1,003,313) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	wheat, corn, sunflower seed, potatoes, sugar beets; pigs, cattle, poultry, dairy products	grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Airports	49 (2002)	133 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 17 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002)	total: 50 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: 21 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 32 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 8 (2002)	total: 83 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 64 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 93,030 sq km land: 92,340 sq km water: 690 sq km	total: 207,600 sq km land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Indiana	slightly smaller than Kansas
Background	Hungary was part of the polyglot Austro-Hungarian Empire, which collapsed during World War I. The country fell under Communist rule following World War II. In 1956, a revolt and announced withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact were met with a massive military intervention by Moscow. Under the leadership of Janos KADAR in 1968, Hungary began liberalizing its economy, introducing so-called "goulash Communism." Hungary held its first multiparty elections in 1990 and initiated a free market economy. It joined NATO in 1999 and is scheduled to accede to the EU along with nine other states on 1 May 2004. In an April 2003 referendum, 84 percent voted in favor of joining the EU.	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 1995 as the country's first president, Alexander LUKASHENKO has steadily consolidated his power through authoritarian means. Government restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, peaceful assembly, and religion continue.
Birth rate	9.32 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)	10.83 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $13 billion expenditures: $14.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)	revenues: $3.326 billion expenditures: $3.564 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2004 est.)
Capital	Budapest	Minsk
Climate	temperate; cold, cloudy, humid winters; warm summers	cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	18 August 1949, effective 20 August 1949, revised 19 April 1972; 18 October 1989 revision ensured legal rights for individuals and constitutional checks on the authority of the prime minister and also established the principle of parliamentary oversight; 1997 amendment streamlined the judicial system	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
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Hungary conventional short form: Hungary local long form: Magyar Koztarsasag local short form: Magyarorszag	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	forint (HUF)	-
Death rate	13 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)	14.15 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$31.5 billion (2002 est.)	$600 million (2004 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Nancy Goodman BRINKER embassy: 1054 Szabadsag ter 12, Budapest mailing address: pouch: American Embassy Budapest, 5270 Budapest Place, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5270 telephone: [36] (1) 475-4400 FAX: [36] (1) 475-4764	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 Andras SIMONYI chancery: 3910 Shoemaker Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 362-6730 FAX: [1] (202) 966-8135 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York	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	Hungary has yet to amend status law extending special social and cultural benefits to ethnic Hungarians in neighboring states, who protest the law	1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; boundary with Latvia remains undemarcated but a third of the border with Lithuania was demarcated in 2004
Economic aid - recipient	ODA $250 million (2000)	$194.3 million (1995)
Economy - overview	Hungary has made the transition from a centrally planned to a market economy, with a per capita income one-half that of the Big Four European nations. Hungary continues to demonstrate strong economic growth and to work toward accession to the European Union in May 2004. The private sector accounts for over 80% of GDP. Foreign ownership of and investment in Hungarian firms are widespread, with cumulative foreign direct investment totaling more than $23 billion since 1989. Hungarian sovereign debt was upgraded in 2000 to the second-highest rating among all the Central European transition economies. Inflation has declined substantially, from 14% in 1998 to 4.7% in 2003; unemployment has persisted around the 6% level. Germany is by far Hungary's largest economic partner. Short-term issues include the reduction of the public sector deficit to 3% in 2004 and avoiding unjustified increases in wages.	Belarus's economy in 2003-04 posted 6.1% and 6.4% growth. Still, the economy continues 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; the Gini coefficient is among the lowest in the world. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. Growth has been strong in recent years, despite the roadblocks in a tough, centrally directed economy and the high, but decreasing, rate of inflation. Growth has been buoyed by increased Russian demand for generally noncompetitive Belarusian goods.
Electricity - consumption	35.15 billion kWh (2001)	34.3 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports	7.261 billion kWh (2001)	800 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports	10.43 billion kWh (2001)	3.2 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	34.39 billion kWh (2001)	30 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source	fossil fuel: 60.1% hydro: 0.5% nuclear: 39% other: 0.3% (2001)	-
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Tisza River 78 m highest point: Kekes 1,014 m	lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Environment - current issues	the approximation of Hungary's standards in waste management, energy efficiency, and air, soil, and water pollution with environmental requirements for EU accession will require large investments	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, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea	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	Hungarian 89.9%, Roma 4%, German 2.6%, Serb 2%, Slovak 0.8%, Romanian 0.7%	Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census)
Exchange rates	forints per US dollar - 257.89 (2002), 286.49 (2001), 282.18 (2000), 237.15 (1999), 214.4 (1998)	Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003), 1,790.92 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000)
Executive branch	chief of state: Ferenc MADL (since 4 August 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Peter MEDGYESSY (since 27 May 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 6 June 2000 (next to be held by June 2005); prime minister elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president election results: Ferenc MADL elected president; percent of legislative vote - NA% (but by a simple majority in the third round of voting); Peter MEDGYESSY elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA% note: to be elected, the president must win two-thirds of legislative vote in the first two rounds or a simple majority in the third round	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) 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	47,180 bbl/day (2001)	14,500 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Exports - commodities	machinery and equipment 57.6%, other manufactures 31.0%, food products 7.5%, raw materials 1.9%, fuels and electricity 1.9% (2001)	machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners	Germany 34.3%, Austria 8.5%, Italy 5.5%, France 5.4%, US 4.9%, UK 4.5% (2002)	Russia 47%, UK 8.3%, Netherlands 6.7%, Poland 5.3% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and green	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 - $134 billion (2002 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 4.1% industry: 33.8% services: 62.1% (2000 est.)	agriculture: 11% industry: 36.4% services: 52.6% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $13,300 (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $6,800 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.3% (2002 est.)	6.4% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	47 00 N, 20 00 E	53 00 N, 28 00 E
Geography - note	landlocked; strategic location astride main land routes between Western Europe and Balkan Peninsula as well as between Ukraine and Mediterranean basin; the north-south flowing Duna (Danube) and Tisza Rivers divide the country into three large regions	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	5 (2002)	1 (2004 est.)
Highways	total: 188,203 km paved: 81,680 km (including 438 km of expressways) unpaved: 106,523 km (1999)	total: 79,990 km paved: 69,351 km unpaved: 10,639 km (2002)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 4.1% highest 10%: 20.5% (1998)	lowest 10%: 5.1% highest 10%: 20% (1998)
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and cannabis and for South American cocaine destined for Western Europe; limited producer of precursor chemicals, particularly for amphetamine and methamphetamine; improving, but remains vulnerable to money laundering related to organized crime and drug trafficking	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	136,600 bbl/day (2001)	360,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment 51.6%, other manufactures 35.3%, fuels and electricity 8.2%, food products 2.9%, raw materials 2.0% (2001)	mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
Imports - partners	Germany 25.3%, Austria 7.7%, Italy 7.5%, Russia 6%, China 5%, France 5% (2002)	Russia 68.2%, Germany 6.6%, Ukraine 3.3% (2004)
Independence	1001 (unification by King Stephen I)	25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate	3.1% (2002 est.)	4% (2004 est.)
Industries	mining, metallurgy, construction materials, processed foods, textiles, chemicals (especially pharmaceuticals), motor vehicles	metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Infant mortality rate	total: 8.58 deaths/1,000 live births male: 9.73 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)	total: 13.37 deaths/1,000 live births male: 14.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	5.3% (2002 est.)	17.4% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	ABEDA, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC	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, WTO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	16 (2000)	-
Irrigated land	2,100 sq km (1998 est.)	1,150 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Constitutional Court (judges are elected by the National Assembly for nine-year terms)	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	4.2 million (1997)	4.305 million (31 December 2003)
Labor force - by occupation	services 65%, industry 27%, agriculture 8% (1996)	agriculture 14%, industry 34.7%, services 51.3% (2003 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 2,171 km border countries: Austria 366 km, Croatia 329 km, Romania 443 km, Serbia and Montenegro 151 km, Slovakia 677 km, Slovenia 102 km, Ukraine 103 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: 52.2% permanent crops: 2.46% other: 45.34% (1998 est.)	arable land: 29.55% permanent crops: 0.6% other: 69.85% (2001)
Languages	Hungarian 98.2%, other 1.8%	Belarusian, Russian, other
Legal system	rule of law based on Western model	based on civil law system
Legislative branch	unicameral National Assembly or Orszaggyules (386 seats; members are elected by popular vote under a system of proportional and direct representation to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 7 and 21 April 2002 (next to be held NA April 2006) election results: percent of vote by party (5% or more of the vote required for parliamentary representation in the first round) - Fidesz/MDF 48.70%, MSzP 46.11%, SzDSz 4.92%, other 0.27%; seats by party - Fidesz 164, MSzP 178, MDF 24, SzDSz 20	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 8 members appointed by the president, all for 4-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteley (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; 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 Predstaviteley - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 72.17 years male: 67.84 years female: 76.81 years (2003 est.)	total population: 68.72 years male: 63.03 years female: 74.69 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.4% male: 99.5% female: 99.3% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.5% (2003 est.)
Location	Central Europe, northwest of Romania	Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Map references	Europe	Europe
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	none (landlocked)
Merchant marine	total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) 3,784 GRT/5,500 DWT ships by type: cargo 1	-
Military branches	Ground Forces, Air Forces	Army, Air and Air Defense Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$1.08 billion (2002 est.)	$176.1 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.75% (2002 est.)	1.4% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 2,541,426 (2003 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 2,026,912 (2003 est.)	-
Military manpower - military age	18 years of age (2003 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 64,305 (2003 est.)	-
National holiday	Saint Stephen's Day, 20 August	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: Hungarian(s) adjective: Hungarian	noun: Belarusian(s) adjective: Belarusian
Natural hazards	-	NA
Natural resources	bauxite, coal, natural gas, fertile soils, arable land	forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay
Net migration rate	0.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)	2.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	gas 4,397 km; oil 990 km; refined products 335 km (2003)	gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Alliance of Free Democrats or SzDSz [Gabor KUNCZE]; Christian Democratic People's Party or KDNP [Laszlo VARGA, chairman]; Hungarian Civic Alliance or Fidesz-MPP [Jozsef SZASER, chairman]; Hungarian Democratic Forum or MDF [Ibolya DAVID]; Hungarian Democratic People's Party or MDNP [Erzsebet PUSZTAI, chairman]; Hungarian Justice and Life Party or MIEP [Istvan CSURKA, chairman]; Hungarian Socialist Party or MSzP [Laszlo KOVACS, chairman]; Hungarian Workers' Party or MMP [Gyula THURMER, chairman]	Pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP [leader NA]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Social-Sports Party [leader NA]; 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	NA	NA
Population	10,045,407 (July 2003 est.)	10,300,483 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	8.6% (1993 est.)	27.1% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate	-0.29% (2003 est.)	-0.09% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	Budapest, Dunaujvaros	Mazyr
Radio broadcast stations	AM 17, FM 57, shortwave 3 (1998)	AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Railways	total: 7,875 km broad gauge: 36 km 1.524-m gauge standard gauge: 7,620 km 1.435-m gauge (2,628 km electrified) narrow gauge: 219 km 0.760-m gauge note: Hungary and Austria jointly manage a cross-border, standard-gauge railway connecting Gyor, Sopron, and Ebenfurt (Gysev railroad) with a route length of 101 km in Hungary and 65 km in Austria; 156 km of this line is electrified (2002)	total: 5,512 km broad gauge: 5,497 km 1.520-m gauge (874 km electrified) standard gauge: 15 km 1.435-m (2004)
Religions	Roman Catholic 67.5%, Calvinist 20%, Lutheran 5%, atheist and other 7.5%	Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.57 male(s)/female total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2003 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 (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: the telephone system has been modernized and is capable of satisfying all requests for telecommunication service domestic: the system is digitalized and highly automated; trunk services are carried by fiber-optic cable and digital microwave radio relay; a program for fiber-optic subscriber connections was initiated in 1996; heavy use is made of mobile cellular telephones international: Hungary has fiber-optic cable connections with all neighboring countries; the international switch is in Budapest; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean regions), 1 Inmarsat, 1 very small aperture terminal (VSAT) system of ground terminals	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	3.095 million (1997)	3,071,300 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	1.269 million (July 1999)	1.118 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations	35 (plus 161 low-power repeaters) (1995)	47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain	mostly flat to rolling plains; hills and low mountains on the Slovakian border	generally flat and contains much marshland
Total fertility rate	1.25 children born/woman (2003 est.)	1.39 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	5.8% (2002 est.)	2% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2004)
Waterways	1,373 km (permanently navigable) (1997)	2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)

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