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Compare Macedonia (2006) - Belarus (2002)

Compare Macedonia (2006) z Belarus (2002)

 Macedonia (2006)Belarus (2002)
 MacedoniaBelarus
Administrative divisions 85 municipalities (opstini, singular - opstina); Aerodrom (Skopje), Aracinovo, Berovo, Bitola, Bogdanci, Bogovinje, Bosilovo, Brvenica, Butel (Skopje), Cair (Skopje), Caska, Centar (Skopje), Centar Zupa, Cesinovo, Cucer-Sandevo, Debar, Debartsa, Delcevo, Demir Hisar, Demir Kapija, Dojran, Dolneni, Drugovo, Gazi Baba (Skopje), Gevgelija, Gjorce Petrov (Skopje), Gostivar, Gradsko, Ilinden, Jegunovce, Karbinci, Karpos (Skopje), Kavadarci, Kicevo, Kisela Voda (Skopje), Kocani, Konce, Kratovo, Kriva Palanka, Krivogastani, Krusevo, Kumanovo, Lipkovo, Lozovo, Makedonska Kamenica, Makedonski Brod, Mavrovo i Rastusa, Mogila, Negotino, Novaci, Novo Selo, Ohrid, Oslomej, Pehcevo, Petrovec, Plasnica, Prilep, Probistip, Radovis, Rankovce, Resen, Rosoman, Saraj (Skopje), Skopje, Sopiste, Staro Nagoricane, Stip, Struga, Strumica, Studenicani, Suto Orizari (Skopje), Sveti Nikole, Tearce, Tetovo, Valandovo, Vasilevo, Veles, Vevcani, Vinica, Vranestica, Vrapciste, Zajas, Zelenikovo, Zelino, Zrnovci


note: the ten municipalities followed by Skopje in parentheses collectively constitute "greater Skopje"
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: 20.1% (male 213,486/female 199,127)


15-64 years: 68.9% (male 711,853/female 701,042)


65 years and over: 11% (male 98,618/female 126,428) (2006 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 grapes, wine, tobacco, vegetables; milk, eggs grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Airports 17 (2006) 136 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 10


2,438 to 3,047 m: 2


under 914 m: 8 (2006)
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: 7


914 to 1,523 m: 3


under 914 m: 4 (2006)
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: 25,333 sq km


land: 24,856 sq km


water: 477 sq km
total: 207,600 sq km


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than Vermont slightly smaller than Kansas
Background Macedonia gained its independence peacefully from Yugoslavia in 1991, but Greece's objection to the new state's use of what it considered a Hellenic name and symbols delayed international recognition, which occurred under the provisional designation of the "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia." In 1995, Greece lifted a 20-month trade embargo and the two countries agreed to normalize relations, although differences over Macedonia's name remain. The undetermined status of neighboring Kosovo, implementation of the Framework Agreement - which ended the 2001 ethnic Albanian armed insurgency - and a weak economy continue to be challenges for Macedonia. 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 12.02 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) 9.86 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $2.105 billion


expenditures: $2.15 billion; including capital expenditures of $114 million (2005 est.)
revenues: $4 billion


expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.)
Capital name: Skopje


geographic coordinates: 41 59 N, 21 26 E


time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Minsk
Climate warm, dry summers and autumns; relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution adopted 17 November 1991, effective 20 November 1991; amended November 2001 by a series of new constitutional amendments strengthening minority rights and in 2005 with amendments related to the judiciary 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 Macedonia


conventional short form: Macedonia


local long form: Republika Makedonija


local short form: Makedonija


note: the provisional designation used by the UN, EU, and NATO is Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)


former: People's Republic of Macedonia, Socialist Republic of Macedonia
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 8.77 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) 13.99 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $2.19 billion (2005 est.) $770 million (2001 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Gillian A. MILOVANOVIC


embassy: Bul. Ilindenska bb, 1000 Skopje


mailing address: American Embassy Skopje, US Department of State, 7120 Skopje Place, Washington, DC 20521-7120 (pouch)


telephone: [389] 2 311-6180


FAX: [389] 2 311-7103
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 Ljupco JORDANOVSKI


chancery: 2129 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 667-0501


FAX: [1] (202) 667-2131


consulate(s) general: Southfield (Michigan)
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 ethnic Albanians in Kosovo object to demarcation of the boundary with Macedonia in accordance with the 2000 Macedonia-Serbia and Montenegro delimitation agreement; Greece continues to reject the use of the name Macedonia or Republic of Macedonia boundary demarcation with Latvia and Lithuania is pending European Union funding
Economic aid - recipient $250 million (2003 est.) $194.3 million (1995) (1995)
Economy - overview At independence in September 1991, Macedonia was the least developed of the Yugoslav republics, producing a mere 5% of the total federal output of goods and services. The collapse of Yugoslavia ended transfer payments from the central government and eliminated advantages from inclusion in a de facto free trade area. An absence of infrastructure, UN sanctions on the downsized Yugoslavia, one of its largest markets, and a Greek economic embargo over a dispute about the country's constitutional name and flag hindered economic growth until 1996. GDP subsequently rose each year through 2000. However, the leadership's commitment to economic reform, free trade, and regional integration was undermined by the ethnic Albanian insurgency of 2001. The economy shrank 4.5% because of decreased trade, intermittent border closures, increased deficit spending on security needs, and investor uncertainty. Growth barely recovered in 2002 to 0.9%, then rose by 3.4% in 2003, 4.1% in 2004, and 3.7% in 2005. Macedonia has maintained macroeconomic stability with low inflation, but it has lagged the region in attracting foreign investment and job growth has been anemic. Macedonia has an extensive grey market, estimated to be more than 20 percent of GDP, that falls outside official statistics. 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 7.933 billion kWh (2005) 26.78 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2005) 300 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 1.662 billion kWh (2005) 4.15 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 6.271 billion kWh (2005) 24.66 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Vardar River 50 m


highest point: Golem Korab (Maja e Korabit) 2,764 m
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Environment - current issues air pollution from metallurgical plants 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, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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 Macedonian 64.2%, Albanian 25.2%, Turkish 3.9%, Roma 2.7%, Serb 1.8%, other 2.2% (2002 census) Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4%
Exchange rates Macedonian denars per US dollar - 48.92 (2005), 49.41 (2004), 54.322 (2003), 64.35 (2002), 68.037 (2001) 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 Branko CRVENKOVSKI (since 12 May 2004)


head of government: Prime Minister Nikola GRUEVSKI (since 28 August 2006)


cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the majority vote of all the deputies in the Assembly; note - current cabinet formed by the government coalition parties VMRO/DPMNE, NSDP, PDSH/DPA, and several small parties


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); two-round election last held 14 April and 28 April 2004 (next to be held by April 2009); prime minister elected by the Assembly following legislative elections


election results: Branko CRVENKOVSKI elected president on second-round ballot; percent of vote - Branko CRVENKOVSKI 62.7%, Sasko KEDEV 37.3%
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 NA bbl/day $7.5 billion f.o.b. (2001)
Exports - commodities food, beverages, tobacco; miscellaneous manufactures, iron and steel machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, textiles, foodstuffs, metals
Exports - partners Germany 17.8%, Greece 15.3%, Italy 8.3% (2005) Russia 51%, Ukraine 8%, Poland 4%, Germany 3% (2000)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description a yellow sun with eight broadening rays extending to the edges of the red field 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 - $84.8 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 11.8%


industry: 31.9%


services: 56.3% (2005 est.)
agriculture: 13%


industry: 42%


services: 45% (2000)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $8,200 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4% (2005 est.) 4.1% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates 41 50 N, 22 00 E 53 00 N, 28 00 E
Geography - note landlocked; major transportation corridor from Western and Central Europe to Aegean Sea and Southern Europe to Western Europe 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: 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%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: 5%


highest 10%: 20% (1998)
Illicit drugs major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and hashish; minor transit point for South American cocaine destined for Europe; although not a financial center and most criminal activity is thought to be domestic, money laundering is a problem due to a mostly cash-based economy and weak enforcement (no arrests or prosecutions for money laundering to date) 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 NA bbl/day $8.1 billion f.o.b. (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, automobiles, chemicals, fuels, food products mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
Imports - partners Russia 13.2%, Germany 10.4%, Greece 9.2%, Bulgaria 7.3%, Italy 6% (2005) Russia 65%, Germany 7%, Poland 3% (2000)
Independence 8 September 1991 (referendum by registered voters endorsing independence from Yugoslavia) 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate 6.8% (2005 est.) 5.4% (2001 est.)
Industries food processing, beverages, textiles, chemicals, steel, cement, energy, pharmaceuticals metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Infant mortality rate total: 9.81 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 9.94 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 9.66 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
14.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 0% (2005 est.) 46.1% (2001 est.)
International organization participation BIS, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO 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) - 23 (2002)
Irrigated land 550 sq km (2003) 1,150 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court - the Assembly appoints the judges; Constitutional Court - the Assembly appoints the judges; Republican Judicial Council - the Assembly appoints the judges 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 855,000 (2004 est.) 4.8 million (2000)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: NA%


industry: NA%


services: NA%
industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA%
Land boundaries total: 766 km


border countries: Albania 151 km, Bulgaria 148 km, Greece 246 km, Serbia 221 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: 22.01%


permanent crops: 1.79%


other: 76.2% (2005)
arable land: 29.76%


permanent crops: 0.69%


other: 69.55% (1998 est.)
Languages Macedonian 66.5%, Albanian 25.1%, Turkish 3.5%, Roma 1.9%, Serbian 1.2%, other 1.8% (2002 census) Belarusian, Russian, other
Legal system based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts based on civil law system
Legislative branch unicameral Assembly or Sobranie (120 seats - members elected by popular vote from party lists based on the percentage of the overall vote the parties gain in each of six electoral districts; all serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 5 July 2006 (next to be held by July 2010)


election results: percent of vote by party - VMRO-DPMNE 32.5%, SDSM 23.3%, DUI 12.2%, PDSH/DPA 7.5%; seats by party - VMRO-DPMNE 44, SDSM 32, DUI 28, PDSH/DPA 11, other 5
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: 73.97 years


male: 71.51 years


female: 76.62 years (2006 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: 96.1%


male: 98.2%


female: 94.1% (2002 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 98%


male: 99%


female: 97% (1989 est.)
Location Southeastern Europe, north of Greece Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Map references Europe Europe
Maritime claims none (landlocked) none (landlocked)
Military branches Army of the Republic of Macedonia (ARM): Joint Operational Command, with subordinate Air Wing (Makedonsko Voeno Vozduhoplovstvo, MVV), Special Force Command (2006) Army, Air Force (including air defense), Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards
Military expenditures - dollar figure $200 million (FY01/02 est.) $156 million (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 6% (FY01/02 est.) 1% (FY01)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 2,744,267 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 2,149,873 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 86,396 (2002 est.)
National holiday Uprising Day, 2 August (1903); note - also known as Saint Elijah's Day and Ilinden 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: Macedonian(s)


adjective: Macedonian
noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
Natural hazards high seismic risks NA
Natural resources low-grade iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, manganese, nickel, tungsten, gold, silver, asbestos, gypsum, timber, arable land forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay
Net migration rate -0.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) 2.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines gas 268 km; oil 120 km (2006) crude oil 1,470 km; refined products 1,100 km; natural gas 1,980 km (1992)
Political parties and leaders Democratic Alliance [Pavle TRAJANOV]; Democratic Alternative or DA [Vasil TUPURKOVSKI]; Democratic League of the Bosniaks [Rafet MUMINOVIC]; Democratic Party of Albanians or PDSH/DPA [Arben XHAFERI]; Democratic Party of Serbs [Ivan STOILJKOVIC]; Democratic Party of Turks [Kenan HASIPI]; Democratic Renewal of Macedonia [Liljana POPOVSKA]; Democratic Republican Union of Macedonia or DRUM [Goran RAFAJLOVSKI]; Democratic Union of Vlachs for Macedonia [Mitko KOSTOV]; Democratic Union for Integration or DUI [Ali AHMETI]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity or VMRO-DPMNE [Nikola GRUEVSKI]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Macedonian [Boris STOJMENOV]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-People's Party or VMRO-Narodna [Vesna JANEVSKA, acting]; League for Democracy [Gjorgi MARJANOVIC]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Risto PENOV]; Liberal Party [Stojan ANDOV]; National Alternative [Harun ALIU]; National Democratic Party or PDK [Basri HALITI]; National Farmers' Party [Vejljo TANTAROV]; New Democratic Forces [Hysni SHAQIRI]; New Social Democratic Party or NSDP [Tito PETKOVSKI]; Party for Democratic Future [Alajdin DEMIRI]; Party for Democratic Prosperity or PPD/PDP [Abduljhadi VEJSELI]; Social Democratic Alliance of Macedonia or SDSM [Vlado BUCKOVSKI]; Socialist Party of Macedonia or SP [Ljubisav IVANOV-ZINGO]; United Party for Emancipation or OPE [Nezdet MUSTAFA] 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 Civic Movement of Macedonia [Gordana SILJANOVSKA]; World Macedonian Congress [Todor PETROV] NA
Population 2,050,554 (July 2006 est.) 10,335,382 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line 29.6% (2004 est.) 22% (1995 est.)
Population growth rate 0.26% (2006 est.) -0.14% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors - Mazyr
Radio broadcast stations AM 29, FM 20, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Radios - 3.02 million (1997)
Railways total: 699 km


standard gauge: 699 km 1.435-m gauge (233 km electrified) (2005)
total: 5,523 km


broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2000 est.)
Religions Macedonian Orthodox 64.7%, other Christian 0.37%, Muslim 33.3%, other and unspecified 1.63% (2002 census) Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female


total population: 1 male(s)/female (2006 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 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: country code - 389
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 533,200 (2005) 2.313 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular 1.261 million (2005) 8,167 (1997)
Television broadcast stations 31 (plus 166 repeaters) (1995) 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain mountainous territory covered with deep basins and valleys; three large lakes, each divided by a frontier line; country bisected by the Vardar River generally flat and contains much marshland
Total fertility rate 1.57 children born/woman (2006 est.) 1.31 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 37.3% (2005 est.) 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers
Waterways - NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems
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