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Compare Panama (2001) - Belarus (2008)

Compare Panama (2001) z Belarus (2008)

 Panama (2001)Belarus (2008)
 PanamaBelarus
Administrative divisions 9 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and one territory* (comarca); Bocas del Toro, Chiriqui, Cocle, Colon, Darien, Herrera, Los Santos, Panama, San Blas*, and Veraguas 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:
30.13% (male 436,661; female 420,625)

15-64 years:
63.86% (male 920,787; female 896,520)

65 years and over:
6.01% (male 81,682; female 89,372) (2001 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 bananas, rice, corn, coffee, sugarcane, vegetables; livestock; shrimp grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Airports 107 (2000 est.) 67 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total:
42

over 3,047 m:
1

2,438 to 3,047 m:
1

1,524 to 2,437 m:
5

914 to 1,523 m:
13

under 914 m:
22 (2000 est.)
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:
65

914 to 1,523 m:
13

under 914 m:
52 (2000 est.)
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:
78,200 sq km

land:
75,990 sq km

water:
2,210 sq km
total: 207,600 sq km


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than South Carolina slightly smaller than Kansas
Background With US backing, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903 and promptly signed a treaty with the US allowing for the construction of a canal and US sovereignty over a strip of land on either side of the structure (the Panama Canal Zone). The Panama Canal was built by the US Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914. On 7 September 1977, an agreement was signed for the complete transfer of the Canal from the US to Panama by the end of 1999. Certain portions of the Zone and increasing responsibility over the Canal were turned over in the intervening years. With US help, dictator Manuel NORIEGA was deposed in 1989. The entire Panama Canal, the area supporting the Canal, and remaining US military bases were turned over to Panama by or on 31 December 1999. 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 19.06 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 9.5 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues:
$2.8 billion

expenditures:
$2.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $471 million (2000 est.)
revenues: $15.35 billion


expenditures: $16.78 billion (2007 est.)
Capital Panama 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 tropical maritime; hot, humid, cloudy; prolonged rainy season (May to January), short dry season (January to May) cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Coastline 2,490 km 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution 11 October 1972; major reforms adopted 1978, 1983 and 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 Panama

conventional short form:
Panama

local long form:
Republica de Panama

local short form:
Panama
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
Currency balboa (PAB); US dollar (USD) -
Death rate 4.95 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 13.98 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $7.56 billion (2000 est.) $9.272 billion (30 June 2007)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Simon FERRO

embassy:
Avenida Balboa and Calle 37, Apartado 6959, Panama City 5

mailing address:
American Embassy Panama, Unit 0945, APO AA 34002

telephone:
[507] 207-7000

FAX:
[507] 227-1964
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 Alfredo BOYD

chancery:
2862 McGill Terrace NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:
[1] (202) 483-1407

consulate(s) general:
Atlanta, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Tampa
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 none 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 $197.1 million (1995) $53.76 million (2005)
Economy - overview Panama's economy is based primarily on a well-developed services sector that accounts for three-fourths of GDP. Services include the Panama Canal, banking, the Colon Free Zone, insurance, container ports, flagship registry, and tourism. A slump in Colon Free Zone and agricultural exports, high oil prices, and the withdrawal of US military forces held back economic growth in 2000. The government plans public works programs, tax reforms, and new regional trade agreements in order to stimulate growth in 2001. 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 4.049 billion kWh (1999) 29.49 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 95 million kWh (1999) 5.053 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 40 million kWh (1999) 9.091 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 4.413 billion kWh (1999) 29.08 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
27.78%

hydro:
71.65%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0.57% (1999)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m

highest point:
Volcan de Chiriqui 3,475 m
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Environment - current issues water pollution from agricultural runoff threatens fishery resources; deforestation of tropical rain forest; land degradation and soil erosion threatens siltation of Panama Canal 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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:
Marine Life Conservation
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 mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 70%, Amerindian and mixed (West Indian) 14%, white 10%, Amerindian 6% Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census)
Exchange rates balboas per US dollar - 1.000 (fixed rate) 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 Mireya Elisa MOSCOSO Rodriguez (since 1 September 1999); First Vice President Arturo Ulises VALLARINO (since 1 September 1999); Second Vice President Dominador "Kaiser" Baldonero BAZAN Jimenez (since 1 September 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:
President Mireya Elisa MOSCOSO Rodriguez (since 1 September 1999); First Vice President Arturo Ulises VALLARINO (since 1 September 1999); Second Vice President Dominador "Kaiser" Baldonero BAZAN Jimenez (since 1 September 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

cabinet:
Cabinet appointed by the president

elections:
president and vice presidents elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 2 May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2004)

election results:
Mireya Elisa MOSCOSO Rodriguez elected president; percent of vote - Mireya Elisa MOSCOSO Rodriguez (PA) 44%, Martin TORRIJOS (PRD) 37%

note:
government coalition - PA, MOLIRENA, Democratic Change, MORENA, PLN, PS
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 $5.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) 249,900 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities bananas, shrimp, sugar, coffee, clothing machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners US 42%, Germany 11%, Costa Rica 5%, Benelux 4%, Italy 4% (1999) Russia 34.7%, Netherlands 17.7%, UK 7.5%, Ukraine 6.3%, Poland 5.2% (2006)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description divided into four, equal rectangles; the top quadrants are white (hoist side) with a blue five-pointed star in the center and plain red; the bottom quadrants are plain blue (hoist side) and white with a red five-pointed star in the center 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 purchasing power parity - $16.6 billion (2000 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
7%

industry:
16.5%

services:
76.5% (1999 est.)
agriculture: 8.7%


industry: 40.6%


services: 50.6% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $6,000 (2000 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 2.5% (2000 est.) 6.9% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 9 00 N, 80 00 W 53 00 N, 28 00 E
Geography - note strategic location on eastern end of isthmus forming land bridge connecting North and South America; controls Panama Canal that links North Atlantic Ocean via Caribbean Sea with North Pacific Ocean landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes
Heliports - 1 (2007)
Highways total:
11,592 km

paved:
4,079 km (including 30 km of expressways)

unpaved:
7,513 km (2000)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
1.2%

highest 10%:
35.7% (1997)
lowest 10%: 3.4%


highest 10%: 23.5% (2002)
Illicit drugs major cocaine transshipment point and major drug money-laundering center; no recent signs of coca cultivation; monitoring of financial transactions is improving; official corruption remains a major problem; Panama was cited by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) an international organization that includes the US Government, for its lack of cooperation in the fight against international money laundering 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 $6.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) 378,200 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities capital goods, crude oil, foodstuffs, consumer goods, chemicals mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
Imports - partners US 39%, Colon Free Zone 14%, Japan 8%, Ecuador 6%, Mexico 5% (1999) Russia 58.6%, Germany 7.5%, Ukraine 5.5% (2006)
Independence 3 November 1903 (from Colombia; became independent from Spain 28 November 1821) 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate 2% (2000 est.) 5% (2007 est.)
Industries construction, petroleum refining, brewing, cement and other construction materials, sugar milling metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Infant mortality rate 20.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 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) 1.8% (2000 est.) 8.3% (2007 est.)
International organization participation CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO 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)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 6 (2000) -
Irrigated land 320 sq km (1993 est.) 1,310 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (nine judges appointed for 10-year terms); five superior courts; three courts of appeal 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 1.1 million (2000 est.)

note:
shortage of skilled labor, but an oversupply of unskilled labor
4.3 million (31 December 2005)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 20.8%, industry 18%, services 61.2% (1995 est.) agriculture: 14%


industry: 34.7%


services: 51.3% (2003 est.)
Land boundaries total:
555 km

border countries:
Colombia 225 km, Costa Rica 330 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:
7%

permanent crops:
2%

permanent pastures:
20%

forests and woodland:
44%

other:
27% (1993 est.)
arable land: 26.77%


permanent crops: 0.6%


other: 72.63% (2005)
Languages Spanish (official), English 14%

note:
many Panamanians bilingual
Belarusian, Russian, other
Legal system based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Justice; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch unicameral Legislative Assembly or Asamblea Legislativa (71 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections:
last held 2 May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2004)

election results:
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 34, PA 18, PDC 5, PS 4, MOLIRENA 3, PLN 3, Democratic Change 2, PRC 1, MORENA 1

note:
legislators from outlying rural districts are chosen on a plurality basis while districts located in more populous towns and cities elect multiple legislators by means of a proportion-based formula
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:
75.68 years

male:
72.94 years

female:
78.53 years (2001 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:
90.8%

male:
91.4%

female:
90.2% (1995 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99.6%


male: 99.8%


female: 99.4% (1999 census)
Location Middle America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Colombia and Costa Rica Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Map references Central America and the Caribbean Europe
Maritime claims contiguous zone:
24 NM

exclusive economic zone:
200 NM

territorial sea:
12 NM
none (landlocked)
Merchant marine total:
4,711 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 111,515,984 GRT/169,655,363 DWT

ships by type:
bulk 1,381, cargo 925, chemical tanker 314, combination bulk 71, combination ore/oil 18, container 525, liquefied gas 193, livestock carrier 5, multi-functional large-load carrier 12, passenger 41, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 544, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 297, roll on/roll off 106, short-sea passenger 36, specialized tanker 29, vehicle carrier 208

note:
includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Argentina 11, Australia 1, Austria 1, Bermuda 21, Belgium 4, The Bahamas 7, Brazil 2, Canada 4, China 154, Chile 4, Cayman Islands 1, Colombia 6, Cuba 7, Cyprus 4, Denmark 12, Egypt 8, Ireland 2, Equatorial Guinea 1, Finland 1, France 4, Germany 17, Greece 248, Hong Kong 158, Honduras 2, Croatia 3, Indonesia 40, India 11, Iran 1, Israel 3, Italy 7, Japan 1,007, Jordan 2, South Korea 223, Latvia 4, Lithuania 1, Liberia 2, Monaco 43, Malta 1, Mexico 5, Malaysia 6, Netherlands 6, Norway 36, Netherlands Antilles 1, Peru 5, Pakistan 1, Portugal 5, Philippines 10, Russia 6, Saudi Arabia 6, Seychelles 2, South Africa 5, Singapore 73, Spain 35, Sweden 4, Syria 11, Switzerland 53, UAE 11, Thailand 15, Taiwan 170, UK 18, US 79, Venezuela 18, Samoa 1 (2000 est.)
-
Military - note on 10 February 1990, the government of then President ENDARA abolished Panama's military and reformed the security apparatus by creating the Panamanian Public Forces; in October 1994, Panama's Legislative Assembly approved a constitutional amendment prohibiting the creation of a standing military force, but allowing the temporary establishment of special police units to counter acts of "external aggression" -
Military branches an amendment to the Constitution abolished the armed forces, but there are security forces (Panamanian Public Forces or PPF includes the Panamanian National Police, National Maritime Service, and National Air Service) Belarus Armed Forces: Land Force, Air and Air Defense Force (2008)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $128 million (FY99) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.3% (FY99) 1.4% (2005 est.)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
775,966 (2001 est.)
-
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
530,916 (2001 est.)
-
National holiday Independence Day, 3 November (1903) 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:
Panamanian(s)

adjective:
Panamanian
noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
Natural hazards NA NA
Natural resources copper, mahogany forests, shrimp, hydropower forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay
Net migration rate -1.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) 0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines crude oil 130 km (2001) gas 5,250 km; oil 1,528 km; refined products 1,730 km (2007)
Political parties and leaders Arnulfista Party or PA [Mireya Elisa MOSCOSO Rodriguez]; Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Ruben AROSEMENA]; Civic Renewal Party or PRC [Serguei DE LA ROSA]; Democratic Change [Ricardo MARTINELLI]; Democratic Revolutionary Party or PRD [Martin TORRIJOS]; National Liberal Party or PLN [Raul ARANGO Gasteazopo]; National Renovation Movement or MORENA [Pedro VALLARINO Cox]; Nationalist Republican Liberal Movement or MOLIRENA [Ramon MORALES]; Solidarity Party or PS [Samuel LEWIS Galindo] 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 Chamber of Commerce; National Civic Crusade; National Council of Organized Workers or CONATO; National Union of Construction and Similar Workers (SUNTRACS); National Council of Private Enterprise or CONEP; Panamanian Association of Business Executives or APEDE; Panamanian Industrialists Society or SIP; Workers Confederation of the Republic of Panama or CTRP 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 2,845,647 (July 2001 est.) 9,724,723 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 37% (1999 est.) 27.1% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate 1.3% (2001 est.) -0.41% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Balboa, Cristobal, Coco Solo, Manzanillo (part of Colon area), Vacamonte -
Radio broadcast stations AM 101, FM 134, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Radios 815,000 (1997) -
Railways total:
355 km

broad gauge:
76 km 1.524-m gauge

narrow gauge:
279 km 0.914-m gauge
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 Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 15% Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
Sex ratio at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.04 male(s)/female

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

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

total population:
1.02 male(s)/female (2001 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 and compulsory 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
domestic and international facilities well developed

domestic:
NA

international:
1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to the Central American Microwave System
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 396,000 (1997) 3.368 million (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 17,000 (1997) 5.96 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations 38 (including repeaters) (1998) 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain interior mostly steep, rugged mountains and dissected, upland plains; coastal areas largely plains and rolling hills generally flat and contains much marshland
Total fertility rate 2.27 children born/woman (2001 est.) 1.22 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 13% (2000 est.) 1.6% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2005)
Waterways 882 km

note:
800 km navigable by shallow draft vessels; 82 km Panama Canal
2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)
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