STATISTICS: BELARUS

Belarus Official name: Respublika Belarus (Republic of Belarus). Form of government{1}: unitary multiparty republic with two legislative bodies (Council of the Republic ; House of Representatives ). Head of state and government: President assisted by Prime Minister. Capital: Minsk. Official languages: Belarusian; Russian. Official religion: none. Monetary unit{2}: rubel (Rbl; plural rubli) valuation (Sept. 25, 1998) free rate, 1 U.S.$ = Rbl 177,500; 1 = Rbl 302,200. Demography Population (1998): 10,235,000. Density (1998): persons per sq mi 127.7, persons per sq km 49.3. Urban-rural (1996): urban 68.9%; rural 31.1%. Sex distribution (1995): male 47.00%; female 53.00%. Age breakdown (1995): under 15, 22.0%; 15-29, 20.8%; 30-44, 23.6%; 45-59, 16.1%; 60-69, 10.4%; 70 and over, 7.1%. Population projection: (2000) 10,178,000; (2010) 10,227,000. Doubling time: not applicable; population is declining. Linguistic composition (1989): Belarusian 65.6%; Russian 31.9%; Ukrainian 1.3%; other 1.2%. Religious affiliation (1995): Belarusian Orthodox 31.6%; Roman Catholic 17.7%; other (mostly nonreligious) 50.7%. Major cities (1995): Minsk 1,695,000,000; Homel 514,000; Mahilyou 366,000. Vital statistics Birth rate per 1,000 population (1996): 9.3 (world avg. 25.0); (1994) legitimate 87.9%; illegitimate 12.1%. Death rate per 1,000 population (1996): 13.0 (world avg. 9.3). Natural increase rate per 1,000 population (1996): -3.7 (world avg. 15.7). Total fertility rate (avg. births per childbearing woman; 1993): 1.9. Marriage rate per 1,000 population (1994): 7.3. Divorce rate per 1,000 population (1994): 4.3. Life expectancy at birth (1994): male 63.5 years; female 74.3 years. Major causes of death per 100,000 population (1994): diseases of the circulatory system 621.4; malignant neoplasms (cancers) 181.4; accidents and violence 138.5; diseases of the respiratory system 65.2. National economy Budget (1995). Revenue: Rbl 35,018,000,000,000{2} (value-added tax 28.4%, taxes on profits 23.8%, taxes on income 9.4%, excise taxes 8.0%, Chernobyl surcharges 7.9%, taxes on international trade 5.7%, other 16.8%). Expenditures: Rbl 37,888,000,000,000{2} (education 17.5%, health 15.2%, subsidies 10.8%, transfers 9.4%, Chernobyl expenditures 7.9%, lending minus repayments 5.1%, capital expenditure 4.1%, other 30.0%{3}). Public debt (external, outstanding; 1996): U.S.$665,000,000. Household income and expenditure. Average household size (1989) 3.2; income per household (1995) Rbl 2,400,000{2}; sources of income (1994): wages and salaries 47.1%, transfers 45.6%, agricultural income 7.3%; expenditure (1994): retail goods 70.6%, taxes 4.6%, health services 3.8%. Production (metric tons except as noted). Agriculture, forestry, fishing (1996): potatoes 10,881,000, cereal 5,318,000, other vegetables 1,176,000, sugar beets 1,011,000, fruit 377,000; livestock (number of live animals) 5,054,000 cattle, 3,895,000 pigs, 262,000 sheep and goats, 229,000 horses, 39,000,000 poultry; roundwood (1996) 10,015,000 cu m; fish catch (1995) 15,000. Mining and quarrying (1995): peat 4,000,000; potash 3,200,000. Manufacturing (value of production in Rbl '000,000{2}; 1994): machine-building equipment 1,086,650; chemical products 659,438; food products 562,438; construction materials 142,555. Construction (1991): 5,395,000 sq m. Energy production (consumption): electricity (kW-hr; 1995) 24,918,000,000 (32,113,000,000); coal (1994) none (1,199,000); crude petroleum (barrels; 1995) 14,162,000 (94,463,000); petroleum products (1994) 10,735,000 (10,002,000); natural gas (cu m; 1995) 266,000,000 (13,840,000,000). Population economically active (1995): 4,636,000; activity rate of total population 45.2% (participation rate: ages 16-59 , 16-54 83.5%; female 53.3%; unemployed 2.4%). Gross national product (1996){4}: U.S.$22,452,000,000 (U.S.$2,070 per capita). Tourism: receipts from visitors, n.a.; expenditures by nationals abroad, n.a. Land use (1994){5}: forested 33.7%; meadows and pastures 14.1%; agricultural and under permanent cultivation 30.5%; other 21.7%. Foreign trade Imports (1996): U.S.$6,919,000,000 (1995; Commonwealth of Independent States 93.8%, mainly petroleum, natural gas, rolled metal, coal; non-CIS 6.2%, mainly intermediate inputs [rubber, paint, rolled metal] and consumer goods [cars, shoes, cotton textiles]). Major import sources: Russia 46.2%; Ukraine 14.3%; Germany 9.3%; Lithuania 4.3%; Poland 3.9%. Exports (1996): U.S.$5,264,000,000 (1995; CIS 88.9%, mainly trucks, diesel fuel, synthetic fibres, refrigerators, tires, potassium fertilizer, milk and milk products, tractors; non-CIS commodities 11.1%, potassium and nitric fertilizers, trucks, refrigerators, tires, tractors, consumer durables). Major export destinations: Russia 47.0%; Ukraine 16.7%; Poland 4.8%; Germany 4.5%. Transport Transport. Railroads (1995): length 5,488 km; passenger-km 16,000,000,000; (1994) metric ton-km cargo 27,963,000,000. Roads (1995): total length 51,547 km (paved 98.6%). Vehicles (1995): passenger cars 955,256; trucks and buses 9,289. Merchant marine (1992): vessels (100 gross tons and over) n.a.; total deadweight tonnage 18,373,000,000. Air transport (1994): passenger-km 1,390,000,000; metric ton-km cargo 10,000,000; airports (1997) 1. Education and health Educational attainment (1989). Percentage of population age 25 and over having: no formal schooling or primary education only 23.0%; some secondary 16.8%; completed secondary and some postsecondary 49.4%; higher 10.8%. Literacy (1989): total population age 15 and over literate 7,690,000 (97.9%); males literate 3,661,000 (99.4%); females literate 4,029,000 (96.6%). Health (1995): physicians 46,000 (1 per 224 persons); hospital beds 127,000 (1 per 81 persons); infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births 12.6. Military Total active duty personnel (1997): 81,800 (army 61.7%, air force and air defense 26.9%, other 11.4%). Military expenditure as percentage of GNP (1995): 0.8% (world 2.8%); per capita expenditure U.S.$32. {1} Legal status of new constitution approved by referendum on Nov. 27, 1996, and legislative bodies established per this constitution are controversial. Council of the Republic contains 8 unelected seats. {2} On Aug. 20, 1994, the rubel became the unit of account replacing the Belarusian ruble, which was formally recognized as the sole legal tender on May 18, 1994. The conversion took place at the rate of 10 Belarusian rubles per 1 rubel. {3} Includes expenditure arrears and statistical discrepancy. {4} Ruble-area GNP and exchange rate data very speculative. {5} 25% of Belarusian territory severely affected by radioactive fallout from Chernobyl.