CIA World Fact Book, 2004/Belarus


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!| Background:
 * 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.
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!| Location: !| Geographic coordinates: !| Map references: !| Area: water: 0 sq km land: 207,600 sq km !| Area - comparative: !| Land boundaries: border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km !| Coastline: !| Maritime claims: !| Climate: !| Terrain: !| Elevation extremes: highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m !| Natural resources: !| Land use: permanent crops: 0.6% other: 69.85% (2001) !| Irrigated land: !| Natural hazards: !| Environment - current issues: !| Environment - international agreements: signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea !| Geography - note:
 * Eastern Europe, east of Poland
 * 53 00 N, 28 00 E
 * Europe
 * total: 207,600 sq km
 * slightly smaller than Kansas
 * total: 2,900 km
 * 0 km (landlocked)
 * none (landlocked)
 * cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
 * generally flat and contains much marshland
 * lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
 * forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay
 * arable land: 29.55%
 * 1,150 sq km (1998 est.)
 * NA
 * soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine
 * 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
 * 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
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!| Population: !| Age structure: 15-64 years: 69.2% (male 3,469,926; female 3,662,203) 65 years and over: 14.5% (male 496,204; female 999,129) (2004 est.) !| Median age: male: 34.2 years female: 39.5 years (2004 est.) !| Population growth rate: !| Birth rate: !| Death rate: !| Net migration rate: !| Sex ratio: 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 (2004 est.) !| Infant mortality rate: female: 12.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 14.71 deaths/1,000 live births !| Life expectancy at birth: male: 62.79 years female: 74.65 years (2004 est.) !| Total fertility rate: !| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: !| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: !| HIV/AIDS - deaths: !| Nationality: adjective: Belarusian !| Ethnic groups: !| Religions: !| Languages: !| Literacy: total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.5% (2003 est.)
 * 10,310,520 (July 2004 est.)
 * 0-14 years: 16.3% (male 859,219; female 823,839)
 * total: 36.9 years
 * -0.11% (2004 est.)
 * 10.52 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * 14.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * 2.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
 * total: 13.62 deaths/1,000 live births
 * total population: 68.57 years
 * 1.36 children born/woman (2004 est.)
 * 0.3% (2001 est.)
 * 15,000 (2001 est.)
 * 1,000 (2001 est.)
 * noun: Belarusian(s)
 * Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4%
 * Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
 * Belarusian, Russian, other
 * definition: age 15 and over can read and write
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!| Country name: conventional short form: Belarus local short form: none former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic local long form: Respublika Byelarus' !| Government type: !| Capital: !| Administrative divisions: note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers !| Independence: !| National holiday: !| Constitution: !| Legal system: !| Suffrage: !| Executive branch: head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (since 19 December 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir SEMASHKO (since December 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since December 2003), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since 24 September 2001), Ivan BAMBIZA (since 25 May 2004), Anatoly TYUTYUNOV (since July 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 75.6%, Vladimir GONCHARIK 15.4% 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 !| Legislative branch: election results: Soviet Respubliki - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Palata Pretsaviteley - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA elections: last held 18 March and 1 April 2001 and 17 and 31 October 2004 (bi-election will be held March 2005 to fill one unfilled seat in the Palata Predstaviteliy); 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 !| Judicial branch: !| Political parties and leaders: note: the opposition Belarusian Party of Labor [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV] was liquidated in August 2004, but remains active !| Political pressure groups and leaders: !| International organization participation: !| Diplomatic representation in the US: FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805 consulate(s) general: New York telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604 chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 !| Diplomatic representation from the US: 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 !| Flag description:
 * conventional long form: Republic of Belarus
 * republic in name, although in fact a dictatorship
 * Minsk
 * 6 provinces (voblastsi, singular - voblasts') and 1 municipality* (horad); Brest, Homyel', Horad Minsk*, Hrodna, Mahilyow, Minsk, Vitsyebsk
 * 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
 * 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
 * 30 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
 * based on civil law system
 * 18 years of age; universal
 * chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
 * bicameral Parliament 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 Predstaviteliy (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms)
 * 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)
 * Pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Social-Sports Party; 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]
 * NA
 * 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, WTrO (observer)
 * chief of mission: Ambassador Mikhail KHVOSTOV
 * chief of mission: Ambassador George A. KROL
 * 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
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!| Economy - overview: !| GDP: !| GDP - real growth rate: !| GDP - per capita: !| GDP - composition by sector: industry: 36.4% services: 52.5% (2003 est.) !| Investment (gross fixed): !| Population below poverty line: !| Household income or consumption by percentage share: highest 10%: 20% (1998) !| Distribution of family income - Gini index: !| Inflation rate (consumer prices): !| Labor force: !| Labor force - by occupation: !| Unemployment rate: !| Budget: expenditures: $3.211 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2003 est.) !| Agriculture - products: !| Industries: !| Industrial production growth rate: !| Electricity - production: !| Electricity - consumption: !| Electricity - exports: !| Electricity - imports: !| Oil - production: !| Oil - consumption: !| Oil - exports: !| Oil - imports: !| Natural gas - production: !| Natural gas - consumption: !| Natural gas - exports: !| Natural gas - imports: !| Current account balance: !| Exports: !| Exports - commodities: !| Exports - partners: !| Imports: !| Imports - commodities: !| Imports - partners: !| Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: !| Debt - external: !| Economic aid - recipient: !| Currency: !| Currency code: !| Exchange rates: !| Fiscal year:
 * Belarus' economy in 2003 posted 6.1 percent growth and is likely to continue expanding through 2004, albeit at a slower growth rate. The Belarusian economy in 2004 is likely 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. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies.
 * purchasing power parity - $62.56 billion (2003 est.)
 * 6.8% (2003 est.)
 * purchasing power parity - $6,100 (2003 est.)
 * agriculture: 11.1%
 * 21.7% of GDP (2003)
 * 22% (1995 est.)
 * lowest 10%: 5.1%
 * 21.7 (1998)
 * 28.2% (2003 est.)
 * 4.8 million (2000 est.)
 * NA
 * 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers (2003 est.)
 * revenues: $2.976 billion
 * grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
 * metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
 * 5% (2003 est.)
 * 24.4 billion kWh (2001)
 * 26.69 billion kWh (2001)
 * 300 million kWh (2001)
 * 4.3 billion kWh (2001)
 * 37,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
 * 230,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
 * NA (2001)
 * NA (2001)
 * 200 million cu m (2001 est.)
 * 18 billion cu m (2001 est.)
 * 0 cu m (2001 est.)
 * 17.8 billion cu m (2001 est.)
 * $-945 million (2003)
 * $9.413 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
 * machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs
 * Russia 49.1%, UK 9.4%, Poland 4.4%, Germany 4.2%, Netherlands 4.2% (2003)
 * $11.09 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
 * mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
 * Russia 65.8%, Germany 7.1%, Ukraine 3.1% (2003)
 * $637 million (2003)
 * $851 million (2001 est.)
 * $194.3 million (1995)
 * Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR)
 * BYB/BYR
 * Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,790.92 (2003), 1,920 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.795 (1999)
 * calendar year
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!| Telephones - main lines in use: !| Telephones - mobile cellular: !| Telephone system: 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 !| Radio broadcast stations: !| Radios: !| Television broadcast stations: !| Televisions: !| Internet country code: !| Internet hosts: !| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): !| Internet users:
 * 3,071,300 (2003)
 * 1.118 million (2003)
 * general assessment: the Ministry of Telecommunications controls all telecommunications through its carrier (a joint stock company) Beltelcom which is a monopoly
 * AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
 * 3.02 million (1997)
 * 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
 * 2.52 million (1997)
 * .by
 * 5,308 (2004)
 * 23 (2002)
 * 1,391,900 (2003)
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!| Railways: broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2003) !| Highways: paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000) !| Waterways: !| Pipelines: !| Ports and harbors: !| Airports: !| Airports - with paved runways: over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 under 914 m: 21 (2003 est.) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 !| Airports - with unpaved runways: under 914 m: 64 (2003 est.) 914 to 1,523 m: 11 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 !| Heliports:
 * total: 5,523 km
 * total: 74,385 km
 * 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)
 * gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004)
 * Mazyr
 * 135 (2003 est.)
 * total: 50
 * total: 85
 * 1 (2003 est.)
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!| Military branches: !| Military manpower - military age and obligation: !| Military manpower - availability: !| Military manpower - fit for military service: !| Military manpower - reaching military age annually: !| Military expenditures - dollar figure: !| Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
 * Army, Air and Air Defense Force
 * 18-27 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 18 months (May 2004)
 * males age 15-49: 2,764,856 (2004 est.)
 * males age 15-49: 2,164,923 (2004 est.)
 * males: 86,716 (2004 est.)
 * $176.1 million (FY02)
 * 1.4% (FY02)
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