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Compare Paraguay (2002) - Belarus (2008)
Compare Paraguay (2002) z Belarus (2008)
| Paraguay (2002) | Belarus (2008) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 17 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 1 capital city*; Alto Paraguay, Alto Parana, Amambay, Asuncion*, Boqueron, Caaguazu, Caazapa, Canindeyu, Central, Concepcion, Cordillera, Guaira, Itapua, Misiones, Neembucu, Paraguari, Presidente Hayes, San Pedro | 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: 38.7% (male 1,156,366; female 1,119,558)
15-64 years: 56.6% (male 1,671,721; female 1,658,683) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 128,137; female 150,026) (2002 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 | cotton, sugarcane, soybeans, corn, wheat, tobacco, cassava (tapioca), fruits, vegetables; beef, pork, eggs, milk; timber | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk |
| Airports | 899 (2001) | 67 (2007) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 11
over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 4 (2002) |
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: 868
1,524 to 2,437 m: 27 914 to 1,523 m: 323 under 914 m: 518 (2002) |
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: 406,750 sq km
land: 397,300 sq km water: 9,450 sq km |
total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than California | slightly smaller than Kansas |
| Background | In the disastrous War of the Triple Alliance (1865-70), Paraguay lost two-thirds of all adult males and much of its territory. It stagnated economically for the next half century. In the Chaco War of 1932-35, large, economically important areas were won from Bolivia. The 35-year military dictatorship of Alfredo STROESSNER was overthrown in 1989, and, despite a marked increase in political infighting in recent years, relatively free and regular presidential elections have been held since then. | 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 | 30.5 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 9.5 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $1.3 billion
expenditures: $2 billion, including capital expenditures of $700 million (1999 est.) |
revenues: $15.35 billion
expenditures: $16.78 billion (2007 est.) |
| Capital | Asuncion | 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 | subtropical to temperate; substantial rainfall in the eastern portions, becoming semiarid in the far west | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | promulgated 20 June 1992 | 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 Paraguay
conventional short form: Paraguay local long form: Republica del Paraguay local short form: Paraguay |
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 | guarani (PYG) | - |
| Death rate | 4.69 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 13.98 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Debt - external | $2.9 billion (2001 est.) | $9.272 billion (30 June 2007) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John F. KEANE
embassy: 1776 Avenida Mariscal Lopez, Casilla Postal 402, Asuncion mailing address: Unit 4711, APO AA 34036-0001 telephone: [595] (21) 213-715 FAX: [595] (21) 213-728 |
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 Leila Teresa RACHID COWLES
chancery: 2400 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-6960 through 6962 FAX: [1] (202) 234-4508 consulate(s) general: Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Mikhail KHVOSTOV
chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604 FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805 consulate(s) general: New York |
| Disputes - international | 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 | $NA | $53.76 million (2005) |
| Economy - overview | Paraguay has a market economy marked by a large informal sector. The informal sector features both reexport of imported consumer goods to neighboring countries as well as the activities of thousands of microenterprises and urban street vendors. Because of the importance of the informal sector, accurate economic measures are difficult to obtain. A large percentage of the population derives their living from agricultural activity, often on a subsistence basis. The formal economy grew by an average of about 3% annually in 1995-97, but GDP declined slightly in 1998, 1999, and 2000. On a per capita basis, real income has stagnated at 1980 levels. Most observers attribute Paraguay's poor economic performance to political uncertainty, corruption, lack of progress on structural reform, substantial internal and external debt, and deficient infrastructure. | 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 | 1.95 billion kWh (2000) | 29.49 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - exports | 47.392 billion kWh (2000) | 5.053 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 9.091 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production | 53.056 billion kWh (2000) | 29.08 billion kWh (2005) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 0%
hydro: 100% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: junction of Rio Paraguay and Rio Parana 46 m
highest point: Cerro Pero (Cerro Tres Kandu) 842 m |
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
| Environment - current issues | deforestation; water pollution; inadequate means for waste disposal present health risks for many urban residents; loss of wetlands | 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, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Nuclear Test Ban |
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 Spanish and Amerindian) 95% | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census) |
| Exchange rates | guarani per US dollar - 4,783.0 (January 2002), 4,107.7 (2001), 3,486.4 (2000), 3,119.1 (1999), 2,726.5 (1998), 2,177.9 (1997); note - since early 1998, the exchange rate has operated as a managed float; prior to that, the exchange rate was determined freely in the market | 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 Luis Angel GONZALEZ MACCHI (since 28 March 1999); Vice President Julio Cesar FRANCO (since NA August 2000) resigned 16 October 2002; position now vacant; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Luis Angel GONZALEZ MACCHI (since 28 March 1999); Vice President Julio Cesar FRANCO (since NA August 2000) resigned 16 October 2002; position now vacant; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 10 May 1998 (next to be held NA May 2003) election results: Raul CUBAS Grau elected president; percent of vote - 55.3%; resigned 28 March 1999 note: President Luis Angel GONZALEZ MACCHI, formerly president of the Chamber of Senators, constitutionally succeeded President Raul CUBAS Grau, who resigned after being impeached soon after the assassination of Vice President Luis Maria ARGANA; the successor to ARGANA was decided in an election held in August 2000 |
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 | $2.2 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | 249,900 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | electricity, soybeans, feed, cotton, meat, edible oils | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs |
| Exports - partners | Brazil 39%, Uruguay 14%, Argentina 11% (2000) | Russia 34.7%, Netherlands 17.7%, UK 7.5%, Ukraine 6.3%, Poland 5.2% (2006) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
| Flag description | three equal, horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue with an emblem centered in the white band; unusual flag in that the emblem is different on each side; the obverse (hoist side at the left) bears the national coat of arms (a yellow five-pointed star within a green wreath capped by the words REPUBLICA DEL PARAGUAY, all within two circles); the reverse (hoist side at the right) bears the seal of the treasury (a yellow lion below a red Cap of Liberty and the words Paz y Justicia (Peace and Justice) capped by the words REPUBLICA DEL PARAGUAY, all within two circles) | 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 - $26.2 billion (2001 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 29%
industry: 26% services: 45% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 8.7%
industry: 40.6% services: 50.6% (2007 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,600 (2001 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 0% (2001 est.) | 6.9% (2007 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 23 00 S, 58 00 W | 53 00 N, 28 00 E |
| Geography - note | landlocked; lies between Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil; population concentrated in southern part of country | landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes |
| Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
| Highways | total: 25,901 km
paved: 3,067 km unpaved: 22,834 km (2001) |
- |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 44% (1998) (1998) |
lowest 10%: 3.4%
highest 10%: 23.5% (2002) |
| Illicit drugs | major illicit producer of cannabis, most or all of which is consumed in South America; transshipment country for Andean cocaine headed for Brazil, other Southern Cone markets, Europe, and US; corruption and some money-laundering activity, especially in the Tri-Border Area | 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 | $2.7 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | 378,200 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | road vehicles, consumer goods, tobacco, petroleum products, electrical machinery | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals |
| Imports - partners | Argentina 25.4%, Brazil 24.5%, Uruguay 3.8% (2000) | Russia 58.6%, Germany 7.5%, Ukraine 5.5% (2006) |
| Independence | 14 May 1811 (from Spain) | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 0% (2000 est.) | 5% (2007 est.) |
| Industries | sugar, cement, textiles, beverages, wood products | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators |
| Infant mortality rate | 28.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 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) | 7.2% (2001 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, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MONUC, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, 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) | 4 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | 670 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,310 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges appointed on the proposal of the Counsel of Magistrates or Consejo de la Magistratura) | 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 | 2 million (2000 est.) | 4.3 million (31 December 2005) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 45% | agriculture: 14%
industry: 34.7% services: 51.3% (2003 est.) |
| Land boundaries | total: 3,920 km
border countries: Argentina 1,880 km, Bolivia 750 km, Brazil 1,290 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: 5.54%
permanent crops: 0.21% other: 94.25% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 26.77%
permanent crops: 0.6% other: 72.63% (2005) |
| Languages | Spanish (official), Guarani (official) | Belarusian, Russian, other |
| Legal system | based on Argentine codes, Roman law, and French codes; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court of Justice | based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Legislative branch | bicameral Congress or Congreso consists of the Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (80 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators - last held 10 May 1998 (next to be held NA May 2003); Chamber of Deputies - last held 10 May 1998 (next to be held NA May 2003) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Colorado Party 25, PLRA 13, PEN 7; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Colorado Party 45, PLRA 26, PEN 9 |
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: 74.16 years
male: 71.67 years female: 76.77 years (2002 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: 92.1% male: 93.5% female: 90.6% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.4% (1999 census) |
| Location | Central South America, northeast of Argentina | Eastern Europe, east of Poland |
| Map references | South America | Europe |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | total: 21 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 34,623 GRT/36,821 DWT
ships by type: cargo 14, chemical tanker 1, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll off 3 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Argentina 2, Japan 1 (2002 est.) |
- |
| Military branches | Army, Navy (includes Naval Air and Marines), Air Force | Belarus Armed Forces: Land Force, Air and Air Defense Force (2008) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $125 million (FY98) | - |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY98) | 1.4% (2005 est.) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,427,160 (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,028,935 (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - military age | 17 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 58,359 (2002 est.) | - |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 14 May (1811) | 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: Paraguayan(s)
adjective: Paraguayan |
noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
| Natural hazards | local flooding in southeast (early September to June); poorly drained plains may become boggy (early October to June) | NA |
| Natural resources | hydropower, timber, iron ore, manganese, limestone | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay |
| Net migration rate | -0.09 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 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 | Authentic Radical Liberal Party or PLRA [Miguel Abdon SAGUIER]; Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Luis Miguel ANDRADA Nogues]; Febrerista Revolutionary Party or PRF [Oscar ACUNA TORRES]; National Encounter Party or PEN [Mario PAZ CASTAING]; National Republican Association - Colorado Party [Nicanor DUARTE FRUTOS] | 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 | Ahorristas Estafados or AE; National Workers Central or CNT; Paraguayan Workers Confederation or CPT; Roman Catholic Church; Unitary Workers Central or CUT | 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 | 5,884,491 (July 2002 est.) | 9,724,723 (July 2007 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 36% (2001 est.) | 27.1% (2003 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 2.57% (2002 est.) | -0.41% (2007 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Asuncion, Villeta, San Antonio, Encarnacion | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 46, FM 27, shortwave 6 (three inactive) (1998) | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) |
| Radios | 925,000 (1997) | - |
| Railways | total: 971 km
standard gauge: 441 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 60 km 1.000-m gauge note: there are 470 km of various gauges that are privately owned |
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 90%, Mennonite, and other Protestant | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 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 up to age 75 | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: meager telephone service; principal switching center is Asuncion
domestic: fair microwave radio relay network international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (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 | 290,475 (2001) | 3.368 million (2006) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 510,000 (2001) | 5.96 million (2006) |
| Television broadcast stations | 4 (2001) | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) |
| Terrain | grassy plains and wooded hills east of Rio Paraguay; Gran Chaco region west of Rio Paraguay mostly low, marshy plain near the river, and dry forest and thorny scrub elsewhere | generally flat and contains much marshland |
| Total fertility rate | 4.07 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.22 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 17.8% (2001 est.) | 1.6% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2005) |
| Waterways | 3,100 km | 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003) |
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