Main page Compare countries Index countries Index fields

Query:
Jah-Jah.pl / Index countries / Malawi (2007) - Belarus (2008) / Compare countries
##ciekawa_strona##

Compare Malawi (2007) - Belarus (2008)

Compare Malawi (2007) z Belarus (2008)

 Malawi (2007)Belarus (2008)
 MalawiBelarus
Administrative divisions 27 districts; Balaka, Blantyre, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu, Chitipa, Dedza, Dowa, Karonga, Kasungu, Likoma, Lilongwe, Machinga (Kasupe), Mangochi, Mchinji, Mulanje, Mwanza, Mzimba, Ntcheu, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Nsanje, Ntchisi, Phalombe, Rumphi, Salima, Thyolo, Zomba 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: 46.1% (male 3,143,724/female 3,130,937)


15-64 years: 51.2% (male 3,491,114/female 3,474,209)


65 years and over: 2.7% (male 155,954/female 207,243) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 14.7% (male 733,010/female 691,734)


15-64 years: 70.4% (male 3,327,119/female 3,520,690)


65 years and over: 14.9% (male 471,863/female 980,307) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses, groundnuts, Macadamia nuts; cattle, goats grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Airports 39 (2007) 67 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total: 6


over 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 4 (2007)
total: 36


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: 7 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 33


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 16


under 914 m: 16 (2007)
total: 31


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 27 (2007)
Area total: 118,480 sq km


land: 94,080 sq km


water: 24,400 sq km
total: 207,600 sq km


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Pennsylvania slightly smaller than Kansas
Background Established in 1891, the British protectorate of Nyasaland became the independent nation of Malawi in 1964. After three decades of one-party rule under President Hastings Kamuzu BANDA the country held multiparty elections in 1994, under a provisional constitution which came into full effect the following year. Current President Bingu wa MUTHARIKA, elected in May 2004 after a failed attempt by the previous president to amend the constitution to permit another term, struggled to assert his authority against his predecessor, culminating in MUTHARIKA quitting the political party on whose ticket he was elected into office. MUTHARIKA subsequently started his own party, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), and has continued with a halting anti-corruption campaign against abuses carried out under the previous regime. Increasing corruption, population growth, increasing pressure on agricultural lands, and the spread of HIV/AIDS pose major problems for the country. 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 1994 as the country's first president, Alexandr 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 42.09 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 9.5 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $1.016 billion


expenditures: $1.097 billion (2006 est.)
revenues: $15.35 billion


expenditures: $16.78 billion (2007 est.)
Capital name: Lilongwe


geographic coordinates: 13 59 S, 33 47 E


time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
name: Minsk


geographic coordinates: 53 54 N, 27 34 E


time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Climate sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November) cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution 18 May 1994 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 Malawi


conventional short form: Malawi


local long form: Dziko la Malawi


local short form: Malawi


former: British Central African Protectorate, Nyasaland Protectorate, Nyasaland
conventional long form: Republic of Belarus


conventional short form: Belarus


local long form: Respublika Byelarus'


local short form: Byelarus'


former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic
Death rate 18.25 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 13.98 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $468 million (2006 est.) $9.272 billion (30 June 2007)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Alan EASTHAM


embassy: Area 40, Plot 24, Kenyatta Road


mailing address: P. O. Box 30016, Lilongwe 3, Malawi


telephone: [265] (1) 773 166


FAX: [265] (1) 770 471
chief of mission: Ambassador Karen B. STEWART


embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya Street, 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 Hawa NDILOWE


chancery: 1156 15th Street, NW, Suite 320, Washington, DC 20005


telephone: [1] (202) 721-0270


FAX: [1] (202) 721-0288
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 disputes with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and the meandering Songwe River remain dormant as of January 2007, ground demarcations of the boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania were complete and mapped with final ratification documentation in preparation; 1997 boundary delimitation treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security
Economic aid - recipient $575.3 million (2005) $53.76 million (2005)
Economy - overview Landlocked Malawi ranks among the world's least developed countries. The economy is predominately agricultural, with about 85% of the population living in rural areas. Agriculture accounts for about one-third of GDP and four-fifths of export revenues. The performance of the tobacco sector is key to short-term growth as tobacco accounts for more than half of exports. The economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations. In 2006, Malawi was approved for relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program. The government faces many challenges, including developing a market economy, improving educational facilities, facing up to environmental problems, dealing with the rapidly growing problem of HIV/AIDS, and satisfying foreign donors that fiscal discipline is being tightened. In 2005, President MUTHARIKA championed an anticorruption campaign. Since 2005 President MUTHARIKA'S government has exhibited improved financial discipline under the guidance of Finance Minister Goodall GONDWE. 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. Since 2005, the government has re-nationalized a number of private companies. In addition, businesses have been subject to pressure by 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. Because of these restrictive economic policies, Belarus has had trouble attracting foreign investment. Nevertheless, GDP growth has been strong in recent years, reaching nearly 8% in 2007, despite the roadblocks of a tough, centrally directed economy with a high, but decreasing, rate of inflation. Belarus receives heavily discounted oil and natural gas from Russia and much of Belarus' growth can be attributed to the re-export of Russian oil at market prices. Trade with Russia - by far its largest single trade partner - decreased in 2007, largely as a result of a change in the way the Value Added Tax (VAT) on trade was collected. Russia has introduced an export duty on oil shipped to Belarus, which will increase gradually through 2009, and a requirement that Belarusian duties on re-exported Russian oil be shared with Russia - 80% will go to Russia in 2008, and 85% in 2009. Russia also increased Belarusian natural gas prices from $47 per thousand cubic meters (tcm) to $100 per tcm in 2007, and plans to increase prices gradually to world levels by 2011. Russia's recent policy of bringing energy prices for Belarus to world market levels may result in a slowdown in economic growth in Belarus over the next few years. Some policy measures, including tightening of fiscal and monetary policies, improving energy efficiency, and diversifying exports, have been introduced, but external borrowing has been the main mechanism used to manage the growing pressures on the economy.
Electricity - consumption 1.299 billion kWh (2005) 29.49 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2005) 5.053 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2005) 9.091 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 1.397 billion kWh (2005) 29.08 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes lowest point: junction of the Shire River and international boundary with Mozambique 37 m


highest point: Sapitwa (Mount Mlanje) 3,002 m
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; land degradation; water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, industrial wastes; siltation of spawning grounds endangers fish populations 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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuka, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census)
Exchange rates Malawian kwachas per US dollar - 135.96 (2006), 108.894 (2005), 108.898 (2004), 97.433 (2003), 76.687 (2002) Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,145 (2007), 2,144.6 (2006), 2,150 (2005), 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003)
Executive branch chief of state: President Bingu wa MUTHARIKA (since 24 May 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Bingu wa MUTHARIKA (since 24 May 2004)


cabinet: 46-member Cabinet named by the president


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 20 May 2004 (next to be held in May 2009)


election results: Bingu wa MUTHARIKA elected president; percent of vote - Bingu wa MUTHARIKA 35.9%, John TEMBO 27.1%, Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA 25.7%, Brown MPINGANJIRA 8.7%, Justin MALEWEZI 2.5%
chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)


head of government: Prime Minister Sergey SIDORSKIY (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, Aleksandr LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via a November 1996 referendum; subsequent election held 9 September 2001; an October 2004 referendum ended presidential term limits and allowed the president to run in a third election, which was held on 19 March 2006; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president


election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 82.6%, Aleksandr MILINKEVICH 6%, Aleksandr KOZULIN 2.3%; note - election marred by electoral fraud
Exports NA bbl/day 249,900 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities tobacco 53%, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts, wood products, apparel machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners South Africa 12.6%, Germany 9.7%, Egypt 9.6%, US 9.5%, Zimbabwe 8.5%, Russia 5.4%, Netherlands 4.4% (2006) Russia 34.7%, Netherlands 17.7%, UK 7.5%, Ukraine 6.3%, Poland 5.2% (2006)
Fiscal year 1 July - 30 June calendar year
Flag description three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band 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 ornamentation in red
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 36.1%


industry: 18.8%


services: 45.1% (2006 est.)
agriculture: 8.7%


industry: 40.6%


services: 50.6% (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 8.5% (2006 est.) 6.9% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 13 30 S, 34 00 E 53 00 N, 28 00 E
Geography - note landlocked; Lake Nyasa, some 580 km long, is the country's most prominent physical feature landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes
Government - note no party has a majority in the fractured legislature -
Heliports - 1 (2007)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA% (2004)
lowest 10%: 3.4%


highest 10%: 23.5% (2002)
Illicit drugs - limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for the domestic market; transshipment point for illicit drugs to and via Russia, and to the Baltics and Western Europe; a small and lightly regulated financial center; new anti-money-laundering legislation does not meet international standards; few investigations or prosecutions of money-laundering activities
Imports NA bbl/day 378,200 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
Imports - partners South Africa 34.6%, India 8.1%, Zambia 7.8%, US 6.4%, Tanzania 5.8%, Germany 4.6%, China 4.3% (2006) Russia 58.6%, Germany 7.5%, Ukraine 5.5% (2006)
Independence 6 July 1964 (from UK) 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate 6.4% (2006 est.) 5% (2007 est.)
Industries tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Infant mortality rate total: 92.1 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 96.27 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 87.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total: 6.63 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 7.67 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 5.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 14% (2006 est.) 8.3% (2007 est.)
International organization participation ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO BSEC (observer), CEI, CIS, EAEC, EAPC, EBRD, GCTU, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land 560 sq km (2003) 1,310 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Supreme Court of Appeal; High Court (chief justice appointed by the president, puisne judges appointed on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission); magistrate's courts 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 4.5 million (2001 est.) 4.3 million (31 December 2005)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 90%


industry and services: 10% (2003 est.)
agriculture: 14%


industry: 34.7%


services: 51.3% (2003 est.)
Land boundaries total: 2,881 km


border countries: Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 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: 20.68%


permanent crops: 1.18%


other: 78.14% (2005)
arable land: 26.77%


permanent crops: 0.6%


other: 72.63% (2005)
Languages Chichewa 57.2% (official), Chinyanja 12.8%, Chiyao 10.1%, Chitumbuka 9.5%, Chisena 2.7%, Chilomwe 2.4%, Chitonga 1.7%, other 3.6% (1998 census) Belarusian, Russian, other
Legal system based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Appeal; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch unicameral National Assembly (193 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held 20 May 2004 (next to be held in May 2009)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UDF 74, MCP 60, independents 24, RP 16, others 18, vacancies 1
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 eight members appointed by the president, to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteley (110 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 17 and 31 October 2004; international observers widely denounced the 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: 42.98 years


male: 43.35 years


female: 42.61 years (2007 est.)
total population: 70.05 years


male: 64.31 years


female: 76.14 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 62.7%


male: 76.1%


female: 49.8% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99.6%


male: 99.8%


female: 99.4% (1999 census)
Location Southern Africa, east of Zambia Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Map references Africa Europe
Maritime claims none (landlocked) none (landlocked)
Military branches Malawi Armed Forces: Army (includes Air Wing and Naval Detachment) (2007) Belarus Armed Forces: Land Force, Air and Air Defense Force (2008)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.3% (2006) 1.4% (2005 est.)
National holiday Independence Day (Republic Day), 6 July (1964) 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: Malawian(s)


adjective: Malawian
noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
Natural hazards NA NA
Natural resources limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines - gas 5,250 km; oil 1,528 km; refined products 1,730 km (2007)
Political parties and leaders Alliance for Democracy or AFORD; Congress for National Unity or CONU; Democratic Progressive Party or DPP [Bingu wa MUTHARIKA]; Malawi Congress Party or MCP [John TEMBO]; Malawi Democratic Party or MDP [Kampelo KALUA]; Malawi Forum for Unity and Development or MAFUNDE [George MNESA]; Mgwirizano Coalition or MC [Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA] (coalition of MAFUNDE, MDP, MGODE, NUP, PETRA, PPM, RP); Movement for Genuine Democratic Change or MGODE [Sam Kandodo BANDA]; National Democratic Alliance or NDA [Brown MPINGANJIRA]; National Unity Party or NUP [Harry CHIUME]; People's Progressive Movement or PPM [Aleke BANDA]; People's Transformation Movement or PETRA [Kamuzu CHIBAMBO]; Republican Party or RP [Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA]; United Democratic Front or UDF pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP [Mikhail SHIMANSKY]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Nikolay ULAKHOVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergey GAYDUKEVICH]; Party of Labor and Justice [Viktor SOKOLOV]; Social-Sports Party [Vladimir ALEXANDROVICH]


opposition parties: Belarusian Christian Democracy Party (unregistered) [Pavel SEVERINETS]; Belarusian Party of Communists or PKB [Sergey KALYAKIN]; Belarusian Party of Labor (unregistered) [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV, Leonid LEMESHONAK]; Belarusian Popular Front or BPF [Vintsyuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Gramada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH]; Belarusian Social Democratic Party Hramada (People's Assembly) or BSDPH [Aleksandr KOZULIN; Anatoliy LEVKOVICH, acting]; Green Party [Oleg GROMYKO]; Party of Freedom and Progress (unregistered) [Vladimir NOVOSYAD]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatoliy LEBEDKO]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson]


other opposition includes: Christian Conservative BPF [Zyanon PAZNIAK]; Ecological Party of Greens [Mikhail KARTASH]; Party of Popular Accord [Sergey YERMAKK]; Republican Party [Vladimir BELAZOR]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA Assembly of Pro-Democratic NGOs [Sergey MATSKEVICH]; Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions [Aleksandr YAROSHUK]; Belarusian Helsinki Committee [Tatiana PROTKO]; Belarusian Organization of Working Women [Irina ZHIKHAR]; Charter 97 [Andrey SANNIKOV]; For Freedom (unregistered) [Aleksandr MILINKEVICH]; Lenin Communist Union of Youth (youth wing of the Belarusian Party of Communists or PKB); National Strike Committee of Entrepreneurs [Aleksandr VASILYEV, Valery LEVONEVSKY]; Partnership NGO [Nikolay ASTREYKA]; Perspektiva kiosk watchdog NGO [Anatol SHUMCHENKO]; Vyasna [Ales BYALATSKY]; Women's Independent Democratic Movement [Ludmila PETINA]; Youth Front (Malady Front) [Dmitriy DASHKEVICH, Sergey BAKHUN]; Zubr youth group [Vladimir KOBETS]
Population 13,603,181


note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)
9,724,723 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 53% (2004) 27.1% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate 2.383% (2007 est.) -0.41% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations AM 9, FM 5 (plus 15 repeater stations), shortwave 2 (plus one shortwave station on standby) (2001) AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Railways total: 797 km


narrow gauge: 797 km 1.067-m gauge (2006)
total: 5,512 km


broad gauge: 5,497 km 1.520-m gauge (874 km electrified)


standard gauge: 15 km 1.435 m (2006)
Religions Christian 79.9%, Muslim 12.8%, other 3%, none 4.3% (1998 census) Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.004 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.005 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.753 male(s)/female


total population: 0.997 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.945 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.481 male(s)/female


total population: 0.873 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: system employs open-wire lines, microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations


international: country code - 265; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean, 1 Atlantic Ocean)
general assessment: Belarus lags behind its neighbors in upgrading telecommunications infrastructure; state-owned Beltelcom is the sole provider of fixed-line local and long distance service; fixed-line teledensity of 33 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of 58 per 100 persons; modernization of the network progressing with roughly two-thirds of switching equipment now digital


domestic: fixed-line penetration is improving although rural areas continue to be underserved; 4 GSM wireless networks are experiencing rapid growth; strict government controls on telecommunications technologies


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); 3 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 (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use 102,700 (2005) 3.368 million (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 429,300 (2005) 5.96 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations 1 (2001) 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains generally flat and contains much marshland
Total fertility rate 5.74 children born/woman (2007 est.) 1.22 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% 1.6% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2005)
Waterways 700 km (on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire River) (2007) 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)
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.