Main page Compare countries Index countries Index fields

Query:
Jah-Jah.pl / Index countries / Seychelles (2001) - Belarus (2005) / Compare countries
##ciekawa_strona##

Compare Seychelles (2001) - Belarus (2005)

Compare Seychelles (2001) z Belarus (2005)

 Seychelles (2001)Belarus (2005)
 SeychellesBelarus
Administrative divisions 23 administrative districts; Anse aux Pins, Anse Boileau, Anse Etoile, Anse Louis, Anse Royale, Baie Lazare, Baie Sainte Anne, Beau Vallon, Bel Air, Bel Ombre, Cascade, Glacis, Grand' Anse (on Mahe), Grand' Anse (on Praslin), La Digue, La Riviere Anglaise, Mont Buxton, Mont Fleuri, Plaisance, Pointe La Rue, Port Glaud, Saint Louis, Takamaka 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:
28.27% (male 11,367; female 11,167)

15-64 years:
65.47% (male 25,453; female 26,737)

65 years and over:
6.26% (male 1,673; female 3,318) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 16% (male 839,292/female 804,738)


15-64 years: 69.5% (male 3,481,432/female 3,672,991)


65 years and over: 14.6% (male 498,717/female 1,003,313) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; broiler chickens; tuna fish grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Airports 14 (2000 est.) 133 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total:
6

2,438 to 3,047 m:
1

914 to 1,523 m:
3

under 914 m:
2 (2000 est.)
total: 50


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: 21 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
8

914 to 1,523 m:
4

under 914 m:
4 (2000 est.)
total: 83


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 5


914 to 1,523 m: 11


under 914 m: 64 (2004 est.)
Area total:
455 sq km

land:
455 sq km

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


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC slightly smaller than Kansas
Background A lengthy struggle between France and Great Britain for the islands ended in 1814, when they were ceded to the latter. Independence came in 1976. Socialist rule was brought to a close with a new constitution and free elections in 1993. 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 1995 as the country's first president, Alexander 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 17.66 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 10.83 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget revenues:
$249 million

expenditures:
$262 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.)
revenues: $3.326 billion


expenditures: $3.564 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2004 est.)
Capital Victoria Minsk
Climate tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May) cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Coastline 491 km 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution 18 June 1993 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 Seychelles

conventional short form:
Seychelles
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 Seychelles rupee (SCR) -
Death rate 6.65 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 14.15 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external $240 million (1999 est.) $600 million (2004 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US the US does not have an embassy in Seychelles; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to Seychelles chief of mission: Ambassador George A. KROL


embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., 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 Claude Sylvestre MOREL

chancery:
800 Second Avenue, Suite 400C, New York, NY 10017

telephone:
[1] (212) 972-1785

FAX:
[1] (212) 972-1786
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 claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory) 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; boundary with Latvia remains undemarcated but a third of the border with Lithuania was demarcated in 2004
Economic aid - recipient $16.4 million (1995) $194.3 million (1995)
Economy - overview Since independence in 1976, per capita output in this Indian Ocean archipelago has expanded to roughly seven times the old near-subsistence level. Growth has been led by the tourist sector, which employs about 30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency earnings, and by tuna fishing. In recent years the government has encouraged foreign investment in order to upgrade hotels and other services. At the same time, the government has moved to reduce the dependence on tourism by promoting the development of farming, fishing, and small-scale manufacturing. The vulnerability of the tourist sector was illustrated by the sharp drop in 1991-92 due largely to the Gulf war. Although the industry has rebounded, the government recognizes the continuing need for upgrading the sector in the face of stiff international competition. Other issues facing the government are the curbing of the budget deficit and further privatization of public enterprises. Growth slowed in 1998-2000, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors. Tight controls on exchange rates and the scarcity of foreign exchange have hindered short-term economic prospects. The black market value of the Seychelles ruppee is half the official exchange rate; without a devaluation of the currency the tourist sector should remain sluggish as vacationers seek cheaper destinations such as Comoros, Mauritius, and Madagascar. Belarus's economy in 2003-04 posted 6.1% and 6.4% growth. Still, the economy continues to be hampered by high inflation, persistent trade deficits, and ongoing rocky relations with Russia, Belarus' largest trading partner and energy supplier. 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. In addition, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, retroactive application of new business regulations, and arrests of "disruptive" businessmen and factory owners. 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. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. Growth has been strong in recent years, despite the roadblocks in a tough, centrally directed economy and the high, but decreasing, rate of inflation. Growth has been buoyed by increased Russian demand for generally noncompetitive Belarusian goods.
Electricity - consumption 148.8 million kWh (1999) 34.3 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (1999) 800 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (1999) 3.2 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production 160 million kWh (1999) 30 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
100%

hydro:
0%

nuclear:
0%

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

highest point:
Morne Seychellois 905 m
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Environment - current issues water supply depends on catchments to collect rainwater 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 Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution

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


signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups Seychellois (mixture of Asians, Africans, Europeans) Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census)
Exchange rates Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 6.0397 (November 2000), 5.6009 (2000), 5,3426 (1999), 5.2622 (1998), 5.0263 (1997), 4.9700 (1996) Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003), 1,790.92 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000)
Executive branch chief of state:
President France Albert RENE (since 5 June 1977); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:
President France Albert RENE (since 5 June 1977); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

cabinet:
Council of Ministers appointed by the president

elections:
president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 20-22 March 1998 (next to be held by NA 2003)

election results:
France Albert RENE reelected president; percent of vote - France Albert RENE (SPPF) 66.7%, Wavel RAMKALAWAN (UO) 19.5%, Sir James MANCHAM (DP) 13.8%
chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)


head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (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 LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via a November 1996 referendum; new election held 9 September 2001; October 2004 referendum ended presidential term limits allowing president to run for a third term in September 2006; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president


election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 75.6%, Vladimir GONCHARIK 15.4%
Exports $111 million (f.o.b., 1999) 14,500 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Exports - commodities fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports) machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners France, UK, Netherlands, Italy, China, Germany, Japan Russia 47%, UK 8.3%, Netherlands 6.7%, Poland 5.3% (2004)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the 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 Belarusian national ornamention in red
GDP purchasing power parity - $610 million (2000 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
3.1%

industry:
26.3%

services:
70.6% (1999)
agriculture: 11%


industry: 36.4%


services: 52.6% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $7,700 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $6,800 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 1.5% (2000 est.) 6.4% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates 4 35 S, 55 40 E 53 00 N, 28 00 E
Geography - note 40 granitic and about 50 coralline islands landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes; the country is geologically well endowed with extensive deposits of granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, and clay
Heliports - 1 (2004 est.)
Highways total:
373 km

paved:
315 km

unpaved:
58 km (1997)
total: 79,990 km


paved: 69,351 km


unpaved: 10,639 km (2002)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
NA%

highest 10%:
NA%
lowest 10%: 5.1%


highest 10%: 20% (1998)
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 $440 million (c.i.f., 1999) 360,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
Imports - partners South Africa, UK, China, Singapore, France, Italy Russia 68.2%, Germany 6.6%, Ukraine 3.3% (2004)
Independence 29 June 1976 (from UK) 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate NA% 4% (2004 est.)
Industries fishing; tourism; processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Infant mortality rate 17.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 13.37 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 14.3 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 12.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 6% (1999 est.) 17.4% (2004 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) -
Irrigated land NA sq km 1,150 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Court of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president 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 30,900 (1996) 4.305 million (31 December 2003)
Labor force - by occupation industry 19%, services 71%, agriculture 10% (1989) agriculture 14%, industry 34.7%, services 51.3% (2003 est.)
Land boundaries 0 km total: 2,900 km


border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km
Land use arable land:
2%

permanent crops:
13%

permanent pastures:
0%

forests and woodland:
11%

other:
74% (1993 est.)
arable land: 29.55%


permanent crops: 0.6%


other: 69.85% (2001)
Languages English (official), French (official), Creole Belarusian, Russian, other
Legal system based on English common law, French civil law, and customary law based on civil law system
Legislative branch unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (34 seats - 25 elected by popular vote, 9 allocated on a proportional basis to parties winning at least ten percent of the vote; members serve five-year terms)

elections:
last held 20-22 March 1998 (next to be held by NA 2003)

election results:
percent of vote by party - SPPF 61.7%, UO 26.1%, DP 12.1%; seats by party - SPPF 30, UO 3, DP 1

note:
the 9 awarded seats are apportioned according to the share of each party in the total vote
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 8 members appointed by the president, all for 4-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteley (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms)


elections: last held 18 March and 1 April 2001 and 17 and 31 October 2004; international observers widely denounced the October 2004 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:
70.69 years

male:
65.17 years

female:
76.37 years (2001 est.)
total population: 68.72 years


male: 63.03 years


female: 74.69 years (2005 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
58%

male:
56%

female:
60% (1971 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99.6%


male: 99.8%


female: 99.5% (2003 est.)
Location Eastern Africa, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Map references Africa Europe
Maritime claims contiguous zone:
24 NM

continental shelf:
200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin

exclusive economic zone:
200 NM

territorial sea:
12 NM
none (landlocked)
Merchant marine total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,353 GRT/7,638 DWT

ships by type:
cargo 1 (2000 est.)
-
Military branches Army, Coast Guard, air wing, National Guard, Presidential Protection Unit, Police Force Army, Air and Air Defense Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure $13 million (FY93) $176.1 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.8% (FY93) 1.4% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
22,951 (2001 est.)
-
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
11,452 (2001 est.)
-
National holiday Constitution Day, 18 June (1993) 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:
Seychellois (singular and plural)

adjective:
Seychelles
noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
Natural hazards lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible NA
Natural resources fish, copra, cinnamon trees forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay
Net migration rate -6.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) 2.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines - gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders Democratic Party or DP [James MANCHAM]; Seychelles National Party or SNP (formerly the United Opposition or UO) [Wavel RAMKALAWAN]; Seychelles People's Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE] - the governing party Pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP [leader NA]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Social-Sports Party [leader NA]; Opposition parties: Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat Party Narodnaya Gromada or BSDP NG [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatol LEBEDKO]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson]


note: the opposition Belarusian Party of Labor [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV] was liquidated in August 2004, but remains active
Political pressure groups and leaders Roman Catholic Church; trade unions NA
Population 79,715 (July 2001 est.) 10,300,483 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% 27.1% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate 0.49% (2001 est.) -0.09% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors Victoria Mazyr
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 2 (1998) AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Radios 42,000 (1997) -
Railways 0 km total: 5,512 km


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


standard gauge: 15 km 1.435-m (2004)
Religions Roman Catholic 90%, Anglican 8%, other 2% 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:
1.02 male(s)/female

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

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

total population:
0.93 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female


total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage 17 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
effective system

domestic:
radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago

international:
direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
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' fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational


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); 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 19,635 (1997) 3,071,300 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular 16,316 (1999) 1.118 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997) 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs generally flat and contains much marshland
Total fertility rate 1.83 children born/woman (2001 est.) 1.39 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% 2% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2004)
Waterways none 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.