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Compare Vanuatu (2005) - Belarus (2006)

Compare Vanuatu (2005) z Belarus (2006)

 Vanuatu (2005)Belarus (2006)
 VanuatuBelarus
Administrative divisions 6 provinces; Malampa, Penama, Sanma, Shefa, Tafea, Torba 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: 33.3% (male 35,039/female 33,553)


15-64 years: 63.1% (male 66,311/female 63,502)


65 years and over: 3.6% (male 3,878/female 3,471) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 15.7% (male 825,823/female 791,741)


15-64 years: 69.7% (male 3,490,442/female 3,682,950)


65 years and over: 14.6% (male 498,976/female 1,003,079) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products copra, coconuts, cocoa, coffee, taro, yams, coconuts, fruits, vegetables; fish, beef grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Airports 30 (2004 est.) 86 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways total: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1524 to 2437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
total: 41


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: 12 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 27


914 to 1,523 m: 10


under 914 m: 17 (2004 est.)
total: 45


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 6


under 914 m: 35 (2006)
Area total: 12,200 sq km


land: 12,200 sq km


water: 0 sq km


note: includes more than 80 islands, about 65 of which are inhabited
total: 207,600 sq km


land: 207,600 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than Connecticut slightly smaller than Kansas
Background The British and French, who settled the New Hebrides in the 19th century, agreed in 1906 to an Anglo-French Condominium, which administered the islands until independence in 1980. 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, 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 23.06 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) 11.16 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget revenues: $52.6 million


expenditures: $54.3 million, including capital expenditures of $700,000 (2003 est.)
revenues: $5.903 billion


expenditures: $6.343 billion; including capital expenditures of $180 million (2005 est.)
Capital Port-Vila (Efate) 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; moderated by southeast trade winds from May to October; moderate rainfall from November to April; may be affected by cyclones from December to April cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Coastline 2,528 km 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution 30 July 1980 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 Vanuatu


conventional short form: Vanuatu


former: New Hebrides
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 7.9 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) 14.02 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external $83.7 million (2002) $4.662 billion (30 June 2005 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US the US does not have an embassy in Vanuatu; the ambassador to Papua New Guinea is accredited to Vanuatu chief of mission: Ambassador Karen B. STEWART


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 Vanuatu does not have an embassy in the US; it does, however, have a Permanent Mission to the UN 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 Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by Vanuatu and France 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; the whole boundary with Latvia and more than half the boundary with Lithuania remains undemarcated; discussions toward economic and political union with Russia proceed slowly
Economic aid - recipient $27.5 million (2002) $194.3 million (1995)
Economy - overview This South Pacific island economy is based primarily on small-scale agriculture, which provides a living for 65% of the population. Fishing, offshore financial services, and tourism, with about 50,000 visitors in 2004, are other mainstays of the economy. Mineral deposits are negligible; the country has no known petroleum deposits. A small light industry sector caters to the local market. Tax revenues come mainly from import duties. Economic development is hindered by dependence on relatively few commodity exports, vulnerability to natural disasters, and long distances from main markets and between constituent islands. GDP growth rose less than 3% on average in the 1990s. In response to foreign concerns, the government has promised to tighten regulation of its offshore financial center. In mid-2002 the government stepped up efforts to boost tourism. Agriculture, especially livestock farming, is a second target for growth. Australia and New Zealand are the main suppliers of tourists and foreign aid. Belarus's economy in 2005 posted 8% growth. The government has succeeded in lowering inflation over the past several years. Trade with Russia - by far its largest single trade partner - decreased in 2005, largely as a result of a change in the way the Value Added Tax (VAT) on trade was collected. Trade with European countries increased. 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. During 2005, the government 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, which remains low. Growth has been strong in recent years, despite the roadblocks in a tough, centrally directed economy with a high, but decreasing, rate of inflation. Belarus continues to receive heavily discounted oil and natural gas from Russia. Much of Belarus' growth can be attributed to the re-export of Russian oil at market prices.
Electricity - consumption 45.03 million kWh (2002) 34.3 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2002) 800 million kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2002) 7 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production 48.42 million kWh (2002) 30 billion kWh (2004)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: Tabwemasana 1,877 m
lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m


highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Environment - current issues a majority of the population does not have access to a reliable supply of potable water; deforestation 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: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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 Ni-Vanuatu 98.5%, other 1.5% (1999 Census) Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census)
Exchange rates vatu per US dollar - 111.79 (2004), 122.19 (2003), 139.2 (2002), 145.31 (2001), 137.64 (2000) Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,150 (2005), 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003), 1,790.92 (2002), 1,390 (2001)
Executive branch chief of state: President Kalkot Matas KELEKELE (since 16 August 2004)


head of government: Prime Minister Ham LINI (since 11 December 2004); Deputy Prime Minister Sato KILMAN (since 11 December 2004); Prime Minister Serge VOHOR ousted in no-confidence vote on 11 December 2004


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, responsible to Parliament


elections: president elected for a five-year term by an electoral college consisting of Parliament and the presidents of the regional councils; election for president last held 16 August 2004 (next to be held in 2009); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by Parliament from among its members; election for prime minister last held 29 July 2004 (next to be held following general elections in 2008)


election results: Kalkot Matas KELEKELE elected president, with 49 votes out of 56, after several ballots on 16 August 2004
chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)


head of government: Prime Minister Sergei 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 allowing president to run in a third election 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 14,500 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Exports - commodities copra, beef, cocoa, timber, kava, coffee machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners Thailand 47%, Malaysia 18.4%, Japan 7.5%, Belgium 5.4%, China 4.9% (2004) Russia 38.5%, Ukraine 7.8%, Poland 7.1%, Latvia 4.2%, UK 4.1%, China 4.1% (2005)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a black isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) all separated by a black-edged yellow stripe in the shape of a horizontal Y (the two points of the Y face the hoist side and enclose the triangle); centered in the triangle is a boar's tusk encircling two crossed namele leaves, all in yellow 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: 26%


industry: 12%


services: 62% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 9.3%


industry: 31.6%


services: 59.1% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $2,900 (2003 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 1.1% (2003 est.) 9.2% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates 16 00 S, 167 00 E 53 00 N, 28 00 E
Geography - note a Y-shaped chain of four main islands and 80 smaller islands; several of the islands have active volcanoes landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes
Heliports - 1 (2006)
Highways total: 1,070 km


paved: 256 km


unpaved: 814 km (1999 est.)
-
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 NA 360,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, fuels mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
Imports - partners Taiwan 24%, Australia 16.5%, Japan 11.4%, Singapore 8.5%, New Zealand 7.2%, Fiji 6.3%, US 4.4% (2004) Russia 57.9%, Germany 9.7%, Ukraine 6.4%, Poland 5.2% (2005)
Independence 30 July 1980 (from France and UK) 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate 1% (1997 est.) 15.6% (2005 est.)
Industries food and fish freezing, wood processing, meat canning metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Infant mortality rate total: 55.16 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 57.73 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 52.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
total: 13 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 13.92 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 12.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 3.1% (2003 est.) 10.3% (2005 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO (observer) BSEC (observer), CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land NA 1,310 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the president after consultation with the prime minister and the leader of the opposition, three other justices are appointed by the president on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission) 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 NA 4.3 million (31 December 2005)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 65%, industry 5%, services 30% (2000 est.) 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: 2.46%


permanent crops: 7.38%


other: 90.16% (2001)
arable land: 26.77%


permanent crops: 0.6%


other: 72.63% (2005)
Languages local languages (more than 100) 72.6%, pidgin (known as Bislama or Bichelama) 23.1%, English 1.9%, French 1.4%, other 0.3%, unspecified 0.7% (1999 Census) Belarusian, Russian, other
Legal system unified system being created from former dual French and British systems based on civil law system
Legislative branch unicameral Parliament (52 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 6 July 2004 (next to be held 2008)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP 8, VP 8, NUP 10, VRP 4, MPP 3, VGP 3, other and independent 16; note - political party associations are fluid


note: the National Council of Chiefs advises on matters of culture and language
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 four-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteley (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage 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: 62.49 years


male: 61 years


female: 64.05 years (2005 est.)
total population: 69.08 years


male: 63.47 years


female: 74.98 years (2006 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 74%


male: NA%


female: NA% (1999 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99.6%


male: 99.8%


female: 99.5% (2003 est.)
Location Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Australia Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Map references Oceania Europe
Maritime claims measured from claimed archipelagic baselines


territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
none (landlocked)
Merchant marine total: 52 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,192,474 GRT/1,560,828 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 22, cargo 16, container 1, liquefied gas 2, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 2, vehicle carrier 5


foreign-owned: 52 (Australia 2, Canada 5, Estonia 1, Greece 1, Israel 1, Japan 25, New Zealand 1, Poland 11, Russia 1, Switzerland 2, Thailand 1, United States 1)


registered in other countries: 1 (2005)
-
Military branches no regular military forces; security forces comprise the Vanuatu Police Force (VPF) and paramilitary Vanuatu Mobile Force (VMF), which includes Vanuatu's naval force, known as the Police Maritime Wing (PMW); border security in Vanuatu is the joint responsibility of the Customs and Inland Revenue Service, VPF, VMF, and PMW (2003) Belarus Armed Forces: Land Force, Air and Air Defense Force (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure NA $420.5 million (2006)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA 1.4% (FY02)
National holiday Independence Day, 30 July (1980) 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: Ni-Vanuatu (singular and plural)


adjective: Ni-Vanuatu
noun: Belarusian(s)


adjective: Belarusian
Natural hazards tropical cyclones or typhoons (January to April); volcanism causes minor earthquakes; tsunamis NA
Natural resources manganese, hardwood forests, fish 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 (2005 est.) 2.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines - gas 5,223 km; oil 2,321 km; refined products 1,686 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders Jon Frum Movement [Song KEASPAI]; Melanesian Progressive Party or MPP [Barak SOPE]; National United Party or NUP [leader NA]; Union of Moderate Parties or UMP [Serge VOHOR]; Vanua'aku Pati (Our Land Party) or VP [Edward NATAPEI]; Vanuatu Republican Party or VRP [Maxime Carlot KORMAN]; Vanuatu Greens Party or VGP [Moana CARCASSES] pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP [Mikhail SHIMANSKY]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Nikolai ULAKHOVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Party of Labor and Justice [Viktor SOKOLOV]; Social-Sports Party [Vladimir ALEXANDROVICH]


opposition parties: 10 Plus Coalition [Alyaksandr MILINKEVICH], includes: Belarusian Party of Communists or PKB [Syarhey KALYAKIN]; Belarusian Party of Labor (unregistered) [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV, Leonid LEMESHONAK]; Belarusian Popular Front or BPF [Vintsyuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Gramada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH]; Green Party [Oleg GROMYKO]; Party of Freedom and Progress (unregistered) [Vladimir NOVOSYAD]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatol LYABEDKA]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson]


other opposition includes: Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Nardonaya Hromada or BSDP NH [Alyaksandr KOZULIN, chairman]; Christian Conservative BPF [Zyanon PAZNIAK]; Ecological Party of Greens [Mikhail KARTASH]; Party of Popular Accord [Sergei YERMAKK]; Republican Party [Vladimir BELAZOR]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA Assembly of Pro-Democratic NGOs [Sergey MATSKEVICH]; Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions [Alyaksandr YAROSHUK]; Belarusian Helsinki Committee [Tatiana PROTKO]; Belarusian Organization of Working Women [Irina ZHIKHAR]; Charter 97 [Andrey SANNIKOV]; 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) [Dzmitryy DASHKEVICH, Syarhey BAKHUN]; Zubr youth group [Vladimir KOBETS]
Population 205,754 (July 2005 est.) 10,293,011 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line NA 27.1% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate 1.52% (2005 est.) -0.06% (2006 est.)
Ports and harbors Forari, Port-Vila, Santo (Espiritu Santo) -
Radio broadcast stations AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2004) AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Railways - total: 5,512 km


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


standard gauge: 15 km 1.435 m (2005)
Religions Presbyterian 31.4%, Anglican 13.4%, Roman Catholic 13.1%, Seventh-Day Adventist 10.8%, other Christian 13.8%, indigenous beliefs 5.6% (including Jon Frum cargo cult), other 9.6%, none 1%, unspecified 1.3% (1999 Census) 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: 1.04 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 1.12 male(s)/female


total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 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 (2006 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: country code - 678; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific 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; modernization of the network to digital switching progressing slowly


domestic: fixed line penetration is improving although rural areas continue to be underserved; four 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); 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 6,500 (2003) 3,284,300 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular 7,800 (2003) 4.098 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations 1 (2004) 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain mostly mountainous islands of volcanic origin; narrow coastal plains generally flat and contains much marshland
Total fertility rate 2.77 children born/woman (2005 est.) 1.43 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% 1.6% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2005)
Waterways - 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)
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