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Compare Paraguay (2004) - Belarus (2003)
Compare Paraguay (2004) z Belarus (2003)
| Paraguay (2004) | Belarus (2003) | |
 |  | |
| 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 voblastsi (singular - voblasts') and one municipality* (harady, singular - horad); Brestskaya (Brest), Homyel'skaya (Homyel'), Horad Minsk*, Hrodzyenskaya (Hrodna), Mahilyowskaya (Mahilyow), Minskaya, Vitsyebskaya (Vitsyebsk); note - when using a place name with the adjectival ending 'skaya,' the word voblasts' should be added to the place name
note: voblasti have the administrative center name following in parentheses |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 38.2% (male 1,201,459; female 1,162,954)
15-64 years: 57% (male 1,773,151; female 1,758,323) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 136,376; female 159,105) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.8% (male 885,265; female 848,516)
15-64 years: 68.9% (male 3,456,769; female 3,652,766) 65 years and over: 14.3% (male 490,529; female 988,306) (2003 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 | 880 (2003 est.) | 124 (2002) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 12
over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 4 (2004 est.) |
total: 28
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 866
1,524 to 2,437 m: 26 914 to 1,523 m: 323 under 914 m: 517 (2004 est.) |
total: 96
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 67 (2002) |
| 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. |
| Birth rate | 29.78 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 10.18 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $937.8 million
expenditures: $988.4 million, including capital expenditures of $700 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $4 billion
expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.) |
| Capital | Asuncion | Minsk |
| 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 | 30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996 |
| 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: none former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Currency | guarani (PYG) | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) |
| Death rate | 4.58 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 14.05 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Debt - external | $2.96 billion (2003 est.) | $851 million (2001 est.) |
| 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 Michael G. KOZAK
embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: PSC 78, Box B Minsk, APO 09723 telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James SPALDING Hellmers
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 | unruly region at convergence of Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay borders is locus of money laundering, smuggling, arms and drug trafficking, and fundraising for extremist organizations | 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and encouraging illegal border crossing; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain undemarcated despite European Union financial support |
| Economic aid - recipient | NA (2001) | $194.3 million (1995) |
| 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, rose slightly in 2001, only to fall again in 2002. 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 enterprise. In addition to the burdens imposed by high inflation and persistent trade deficits, 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. Close relations with Russia, possibly leading to reunion, color the pattern of economic developments. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. |
| Electricity - consumption | 2.637 billion kWh (2001) | 26.69 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - exports | 39.11 billion kWh (2001) | 300 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 4.3 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production | 44.89 billion kWh (2001) | 24.4 billion kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 99.5%
hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0.4% (2001) |
| 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: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 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 | mestizo (mixed Spanish and Amerindian) 95% | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% |
| Exchange rates | guarani per US dollar - 6,424.34 (2003), 5,716.26 (2002), 4,105.92 (2001), 3,486.35 (2000), 3,119.07 (1999) | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - NA (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.8 (1999), 46.13 (1998) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Nicanor DUARTE Frutos (since 15 August 2003); Vice President Luis CASTIGLIONI Joria (since 15 August 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Nicanor DUARTE Frutos (since 15 August 2003); Vice President Luis CASTIGLIONI Joria (since 15 August 2003); 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 27 April 2003 (next to be held NA April 2008) election results: Nicanor DUARTE Frutos elected president; percent of vote - Nicanor DUARTE Frutos 37.1%, Julio Cesar Ramon FRANCO Gomez 23.9%, Pedro Nicolas Maraa FADUL Niella 21.3%, Guillermo SANCHEZ Guffanti 13.5%, other 4.2% |
chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (acting; since 10 July 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since 13 March 2000), Sergei SIDORSKY (since 24 September 2001), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since 24 September 2001), Roman VNUCHKO (since 10 July 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 (next election to be held by 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 | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | soybeans, feed, cotton, meat, edible oils, electricity, wood, leather | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs |
| Exports - partners | Brazil 34.2%, Uruguay 19.6%, Switzerland 7.8%, Argentina 5.3% (2003) | Russia 50.8%, Latvia 7.3%, Ukraine 6.3%, Lithuania 4.1%, Germany 4.1% (2002) |
| 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 a Belarusian national ornament in red |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $28.17 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $90.19 billion (2002 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 24.8%
industry: 23.7% services: 51.4% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 15%
industry: 40% services: 45% (2002 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,700 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8,700 (2002 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 1.8% (2003 est.) | 4.7% (2002 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; the country is geologically well endowed with extensive deposits of granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, and clay |
| Highways | total: 29,500 km
paved: 14,986 km unpaved: 14,514 km (1999 est) |
total: 74,385 km
paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 43.8% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
| Illicit drugs | major illicit producer of cannabis, most or all of which is consumed in Brazil, Argentina, and Chile; 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; lax money-laundering and banking regulations |
| Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | road vehicles, consumer goods, tobacco, petroleum products, electrical machinery | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals |
| Imports - partners | Brazil 32.5%, Argentina 21.6%, China 12.7% (2003) | Russia 68.2%, Germany 9.4%, Ukraine 3.2% (2002) |
| Independence | 14 May 1811 (from Spain) | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 0% (2000 est.) | 2.5% (2002 est.) |
| Industries | sugar, cement, textiles, beverages, wood products, steel, metallurgic, electric power | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 26.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 31.5 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 13.87 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.56 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14.2% (2003 est.) | 42.8% (2002 est.) |
| International organization participation | FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM (observer), OAS, ONUB, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, NAM (observer), NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 23 (2002) |
| Irrigated land | 670 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges appointed on the proposal of the Council 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 | 2.15 million (2003 est.) | 4.8 million (2000) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 45% | industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA% |
| Land boundaries | total: 3,920 km
border countries: Argentina 1,880 km, Bolivia 750 km, Brazil 1,290 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: 7.6%
permanent crops: 0.23% other: 92.17% (2001) |
arable land: 29.76%
permanent crops: 0.69% other: 69.55% (1998 est.) |
| 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 |
| 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 27 April 2003 (next to be held NA April 2008); Chamber of Deputies - last held 27 April 2003 (next to be held NA April 2008) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Colorado Party 16, PLRA 12, UNACE 7, MPQ 7, PPS 2, PEN 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Colorado Party 37, PLRA 21, UNACE 10, PQ 10, PPS 2 |
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 Pretsaviteley (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held October 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: party affiliation data unavailable; under present political conditions party designations are meaningless |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.64 years
male: 72.12 years female: 77.29 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 68.43 years
male: 62.54 years female: 74.6 years (2003 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94% male: 94.9% female: 93% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.5% (2003 est.) |
| 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) 31,667 GRT/30,826 DWT
by type: cargo 14, livestock carrier 1, petroleum tanker 3, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: Argentina 2, Japan 1 registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.) |
- |
| Military branches | Army, Navy (includes Naval Air and Marines), Air Force | Army, Air Force (including air defense), Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $52.7 million (2003) | $176.1 million (FY02) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (2003) | 1.4% (FY02) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,504,407 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 2,756,572 (2003 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,084,087 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 2,158,875 (2003 est.) |
| Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 63,386 (2004 est.) | males: 86,654 (2003 est.) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 14 May (1811) (observed 15 May annually) | 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 | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 2.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | gas 4,519 km; oil 1,811 km; refined products 1,686 km (2003) |
| Political parties and leaders | Asociacion Nacional Republicana - Colorado Party or ANR [Herminio CACERES, interim president]; Patria Querida (Beloved Fatherland Party) or PQ [Pedro Nicolas Maraa FADUL Niella]; Movimiento Union Nacional de Ciudadanos Eticos or UNACE [Enrique GONZALEZ Quintana, acting chairman]; Partido Encuentro Nacional or PEN [Luis TORALES Kenney]; Partido Liberal Radical Autentico or PLRA [Julio Cesar FRANCO]; Partido Pais Solidario or PPS [Carlos Alberto FILIZZOLA Pallares]; note - Nicanor DUARTE Frutos on leave as party leader of the Colorado Party or ANR while serving as President of Paraguay; Lino Cesar OVIEDO Silva, leader of UNACE, is currently serving a ten-year prison term | Agrarian Party or AP [Mikhail SHIMANSKY]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [Viktor CHIKIN, chairman]; Belarusian Ecological Green Party (merger of Belarusian Ecological Party and Green Party of Belarus) [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat Party or SDBP [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party or Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Socialist Party [Vyacheslav KUZNETSOV]; Civic Accord Bloc (United Civic Party) or CAB [Anatol LIABEDZKA]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDPB [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH, chairman]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Republican Party of Labor and Justice or RPPS [Anatoliy NETYLKIN, chairman]; Social-Democrat Party of Popular Accord or PPA [Leanid SECHKA]; Women's Party or "Nadezhda" [Valentina POLEVIKOVA, chairperson] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | Ahorristas Estafados or AE; Coordinating Table of National Campesino Organizations or MCNOC; National Federation of Campesinos or FNC; National Workers Central or CNT; Paraguayan Workers Confederation or CPT; Roman Catholic Church; Unitary Workers Central or CUT;; | NA |
| Population | 6,191,368 (July 2004 est.) | 10,322,151 (July 2003 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 36% (2001 est.) | 22% (1995 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 2.51% (2004 est.) | -0.12% (2003 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Asuncion, Villeta, San Antonio, Encarnacion | Mazyr |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 46, FM 27, shortwave 6 (three inactive) (1998) | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) |
| Railways | total: 441 km
standard gauge: 441 km 1.435-m gauge (2003) |
total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2002) |
| 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: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 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 (2003 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: country code - 595; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic 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's fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational international: 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 | 273,200 (2002) | 2.313 million (1997) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,770,300 (2003) | 8,167 (1997) |
| Television broadcast stations | 5 (2003) | 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 | 3.98 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.34 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 18.5% (2003 est.) | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers |
| Waterways | 3,100 km (2004) | NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems |
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