##ciekawa_strona##
Compare Madagascar (2003) - Belarus (2001)
Compare Madagascar (2003) z Belarus (2001)
| Madagascar (2003) | Belarus (2001) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 6 provinces (faritany); Antananarivo, Antsiranana, Fianarantsoa, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Toliara | 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: 45% (male 3,822,823; female 3,807,958)
15-64 years: 51.9% (male 4,366,748; female 4,452,686) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 243,411; female 286,118) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years:
17.93% (male 947,820; female 908,210) 15-64 years: 68.21% (male 3,428,920; female 3,631,290) 65 years and over: 13.86% (male 473,992; female 959,962) (2001 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | coffee, vanilla, sugarcane, cloves, cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), beans, bananas, peanuts; livestock products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk |
| Airports | 121 (2002) | 136 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 29
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total:
33 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 19 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 11 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 92
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 46 under 914 m: 44 (2002) |
total:
103 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 65 (2000 est.) |
| Area | total: 587,040 sq km
land: 581,540 sq km water: 5,500 sq km |
total:
207,600 sq km land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Arizona | slightly smaller than Kansas |
| Background | Formerly an independent kingdom, Madagascar became a French colony in 1886, but regained its independence in 1960. During 1992-93, free presidential and National Assembly elections were held, ending 17 years of single-party rule. In 1997, in the second presidential race, Didier RATSIRAKA, the leader during the 1970s and 1980s, was returned to the presidency. The 2001 presidential election was contested between the followers of Didier RATSIRAKA and Marc RAVALOMANANA, nearly causing secession of half of the country. In April 2002, the High Constitutional Court announced RAVALOMANANA the winner. | After seven decades as a constituent republic of the USSR, Belarus attained its independence in 1991. It has retained closer political and economic ties to Russia than any of the other former Soviet republics. Belarus and Russia signed a treaty on a two-state union on 8 December 1999 envisioning greater political and economic integration but, to date, neither side has actively sought to implement the accord. |
| Birth rate | 42.16 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 9.57 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $553 million
expenditures: $735 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
revenues:
$4 billion expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.) |
| Capital | Antananarivo | Minsk |
| Climate | tropical along coast, temperate inland, arid in south | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime |
| Coastline | 4,828 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | 19 August 1992 by national referendum | 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 Madagascar
conventional short form: Madagascar local long form: Republique de Madagascar local short form: Madagascar former: Malagasy 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 | Malagasy franc (MGF) | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) |
| Death rate | 11.88 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 13.97 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Debt - external | $4.6 billion (2002) | $1 billion (2000 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Wanda L. NESBITT
embassy: 14-16 Rue Rainitovo, Antsahavola, Antananarivo 101 mailing address: B. P. 620, Antsahavola, Antananarivo telephone: [261] (20) 22-212-57, 22-212-73, 22-209-56 FAX: [261] (20) 22-345-39 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael KOZAK embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Rajaonarivony NARISOA
chancery: 2374 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-5525, 5526 FAX: [1] (202) 483-7603 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Valeriy TSEPAKLO chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604 FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805 consulate(s) general: New York |
| Disputes - international | claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, and Juan de Nova Island (all administered by France) | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | $838 million (1997) | $194.3 million (1995) |
| Economy - overview | Having discarded past socialist economic policies, Madagascar has since the mid 1990s followed a World Bank and IMF led policy of privatization and liberalization, which has placed the country on a slow and steady growth path. Agriculture, including fishing and forestry, is a mainstay of the economy, accounting for one-fourth of GDP and employing four-fifths of the population. Export earnings primarily are earned in the small industrial sector, which features textile manufacturing and agriculture processing. Deforestation and erosion, aggravated by the use of firewood as the primary source of fuel are serious concerns. The separatist political crisis of 2002 undermined macroeconomic stability, with the estimated drop in output being subject to a wide margin of error. Poverty reduction will be the centerpiece of economic policy for the next few years. | Belarus has seen little structural reform since 1995, when President LUKASHENKO launched the country on the path of "market socialism." In keeping with this policy, LUKASHENKO reimposed administrative controls over prices and currency exchange rates and expanded the state's right to intervene in the management of private enterprise. In addition to the burdens imposed by extremely high inflation, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, and retroactive application of new business regulations prohibiting practices that had been legal. Further economic problems are two consecutive bad harvests, 1998-99, and persistent trade deficits. Close relations with Russia, possibly leading to reunion, color the pattern of economic developments. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. |
| Electricity - consumption | 772.1 million kWh (2001) | 27.647 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 2.62 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 7.1 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production | 830.2 million kWh (2001) | 24.911 billion kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 36.1%
hydro: 63.9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
99.9% hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Maromokotro 2,876 m |
lowest point:
Nyoman River 90 m highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
| Environment - current issues | soil erosion results from deforestation and overgrazing; desertification; surface water contaminated with raw sewage and other organic wastes; several species of flora and fauna unique to the island are endangered | 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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, 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, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
| Ethnic groups | Malayo-Indonesian (Merina and related Betsileo), Cotiers (mixed African, Malayo-Indonesian, and Arab ancestry - Betsimisaraka, Tsimihety, Antaisaka, Sakalava), French, Indian, Creole, Comoran | Byelorussian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% |
| Exchange rates | Malagasy francs per US dollar - 6,831.96 (2002), 6,588.49 (2001), 6,767.48 (2000), 6,283.77 (1999), 5,441.4 (1998) | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,180 (yearend 2000), 730,000 (15 December 1999), 139,000 (25 January 1999), 46,080 (second quarter 1998), 25,964 (1997), 15,500 (yearend 1996); note - on 1 January 2000, the national currency was redenominated at one new ruble to 2,000 old rubles |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Marc RAVALOMANANA (since 6 May 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Jacques SYLLA (27 May 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 16 December 2001 (next to be held NA November 2006); prime minister appointed by the president from a list of candidates nominated by the National Assembly election results: percent of vote - Didier RATSIRAKA (AREMA) 40.89%, Marc RAVALOMANANA 46.21%; note - on 29 April 2002, the High Constitutional Court announced RAVALOMANANA the winner by 51.5% after a recount; RATSIRIKA's prime minister was put under house arrest on 27 May 2002, and SYLLA was appointed the new prime minister by President RAVALOMANANA |
chief of state:
President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994) head of government: Prime Minister Vladimir YERMOSHIN (since 18 February 2000); First Deputy Prime Minister Andrey KOBYAKOV (since 13 March 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Mikhail DEMCHUK (since 14 July 2000), Mikhail KHORSTOV (since 27 November 2000), Valeriy KOKOREV (since 23 August 1994), Leonid KOZIK (since 4 February 1997), Gennadiy NOVITSKIY (since 11 February 1997), Aleksandr POPKOV (since 10 November 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; first election took place 23 June and 10 July 1994 (next to be held NA; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via the November 1996 referendum); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO elected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 85%, Vyacheslav KEBICH 15% |
| Exports | NA (2001) | $7.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
| Exports - commodities | coffee, vanilla, shellfish, sugar; cotton cloth, chromite, petroleum products | machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs |
| Exports - partners | France 34%, US 24.6%, Netherlands 6%, Germany 5.9%, Mauritius 4% (2002) | Russia 66%, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, Lithuania (1998) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
| Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a vertical white band of the same width on hoist side | 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 - $12.59 billion (2002) | purchasing power parity - $78.8 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 25%
industry: 12% services: 63% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
13% industry: 46% services: 41% (1999 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $800 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7,500 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | -11.9% (2002 est.) | 4% (2000 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 20 00 S, 47 00 E | 53 00 N, 28 00 E |
| Geography - note | world's fourth-largest island; strategic location along Mozambique Channel | landlocked |
| Highways | total: 49,827 km
paved: 5,780 km unpaved: 44,047 km (1999 est.) |
total:
63,355 km paved: 60,567 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather) unpaved: 2,788 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1998) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 29% (1999) |
lowest 10%:
4.9% highest 10%: 19.4% (1993) |
| Illicit drugs | illicit producer of cannabis (cultivated and wild varieties) used mostly for domestic consumption; transshipment point for heroin | limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for the domestic market; transshipment point for illicit drugs to and via Russia, and to the Baltics and Western Europe |
| Imports | NA (2001) | $8.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
| Imports - commodities | capital goods, petroleum, consumer goods, food | mineral products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, foodstuffs |
| Imports - partners | France 17.2%, Iran 11%, Mauritius 10.6%, Bahrain 9.4%, Hong Kong 6.9%, South Africa 5.9%, China 4.1% (2002) | Russia 54%, Ukraine, Germany, Poland, Lithuania (1998) |
| Independence | 26 June 1960 (from France) | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 5% (2000 est.) |
| Industries | meat processing, soap, breweries, tanneries, sugar, textiles, glassware, cement, automobile assembly plant, paper, petroleum, tourism | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earth movers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 80.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 88.63 deaths/1,000 live births female: 71.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
14.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.4% (2001 est.) | 200% (2000 est.) |
| International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | CCC, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | 4 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | 10,900 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,000 sq km (1993 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Constitutional Court or Haute Cour Constitutionnelle | 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 | 7.3 million (2000) | 4.8 million (2000) |
| Labor force - by occupation | - | industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
3,098 km border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 605 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km |
| Land use | arable land: 4.41%
permanent crops: 0.93% other: 94.66% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
29% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 15% forests and woodland: 34% other: 21% (1993 est.) |
| Languages | French (official), Malagasy (official) | Byelorussian, Russian, other |
| Legal system | based on French civil law system and traditional Malagasy law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on civil law system |
| Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (160 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - the legislature is scheduled to become a bicameral Parliament with the establishment of a Senate; two-thirds of the seats of this Senate will be filled by regional assemblies whose members will be elected by popular vote; the remaining one-third of the seats will be appointed by the president; the total number of seats will be determined by the National Assembly; all members will serve four-year terms
elections: National Assembly - last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - TIM 103, FP 22, AREMA 3, LEADER/Fanilo 2, RPSD 5, others 3, independents 22 |
bicameral Parliament or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Pretsaviteley (110 seats)
elections: last held October 2000 (next to be held NA) election results: party affiliation data unavailable; under present political conditions party designations are meaningless |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 56.14 years
male: 53.82 years female: 58.53 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
68.14 years male: 62.06 years female: 74.52 years (2001 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 68.9% male: 75.5% female: 62.5% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
| Location | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Mozambique | Eastern Europe, east of Poland |
| Map references | Africa | Commonwealth of Independent States |
| Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or 100 NM from the 2,500-m deep isobath exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | total: 11 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 14,865 GRT/17,936 DWT
ships by type: cargo 8, chemical tanker 1, roll on/roll off 2 (2002 est.) |
- |
| Military branches | People's Armed Forces (comprising Intervention Force, Development Force, Aeronaval [Navy and Air] Force), Gendarmerie, Presidential Security Regiment | Army, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $52.3 million (FY02) | $156 million (FY98) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (FY02) | 1.2% (FY98) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 3,880,332 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,729,956 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,300,587 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,138,743 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age (2003 est.) | 18 years of age |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 163,864 (2003 est.) | males:
86,396 (2001 est.) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 26 June (1960) | 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: Malagasy (singular and plural)
adjective: Malagasy |
noun:
Belarusian(s) adjective: Belarusian |
| Natural hazards | periodic cyclones | NA |
| Natural resources | graphite, chromite, coal, bauxite, salt, quartz, tar sands, semiprecious stones, mica, fish, hydropower | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 2.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | crude oil 1,470 km; refined products 1,100 km; natural gas 1,980 km (1992) |
| Political parties and leaders | Association for the Rebirth of Madagascar or AREMA [leader vacant]; Economic Liberalism and Democratic Action for National Recovery or LEADER/Fanilo [Herizo RAZAFIMAHALEO]; I Love Madagascar or TIM [leader NA]; National Union or FP [leader NA]; Renewal of the Social Democratic Party or RPSD [Evariste MARSON] | Agrarian Party or AP [Semyon SHARETSKY, chairman]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [Viktor CHIKIN, chairman]; Belarusian Ecological Green Party (merger of Belarusian Ecological Party and Green Party of Belarus) [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat or SDBP [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Socialist Party [Vyacheslav KUZNETSOV]; Civic Accord Bloc (United Civic Party) or CAB [Stanislav BOGDANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDPB [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH, chairman]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Republican Party of Labor and Justice or RPPS [Anatoliy NETYLKIN, chairman]; Social-Democrat Party of Popular Accord or PPA [Leanid SECHKA]; Women's Party Nadezhda [Valentina POLEVIKOVA, chairperson] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | Federalist Movement; National Council of Christian Churches or FFKM | NA |
| Population | 16,979,744 (July 2003 est.) | 10,350,194 (July 2001 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 71% (1999 est.) | 22% (1995 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 3.03% (2003 est.) | -0.15% (2001 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Antsiranana, Antsohimbondrona, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Toliara | Mazyr |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 2 (plus a number of repeater stations), FM 9, shortwave 6 (2001) | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) |
| Radios | - | 3.02 million (1997) |
| Railways | total: 732 km
narrow gauge: 732 km 1.000-m gauge (2002) |
total:
5,523 km broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2000) |
| Religions | indigenous beliefs 52%, Christian 41%, Muslim 7% | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: system is above average for the region
domestic: open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter links connect regions international: submarine cable to Bahrain; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) |
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 | 55,000 (2000) | 2.313 million (1997) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 63,100 (2000) | 8,167 (1997) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus 36 repeaters) (2001) | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) |
| Terrain | narrow coastal plain, high plateau and mountains in center | generally flat and contains much marshland |
| Total fertility rate | 5.73 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.28 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 5.9% (1998) | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers |
| Waterways | of local importance only | NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems |
Sitemap:
Compare countries listing (map site) |
Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.