Belarus

Belarus is situated in the Eastern Europe and is bordered by Russia to the north and east, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the north. The capital Minsk is situated at 53 54 N, 27 34 E.

 The formation of the Union of Russia and Belarus is proposed by Belarus to Russia in 1996.


HISTORY:- East Slavic tribes settled colonies in Belarus in 5th century AD. After the downfall of The Kievan Rus' state by the Mongols in the 13th century, the land came under the control of the dukes of Lithuania. As the Grand Duchy of Lithuania joined into a federation with Poland in 1569, Belarus became a part of Poland. After the partition of Poland in 1772, 1793, and 1795, the territory of Poland was divided among Russia, Prussia, and Austria. Belarus came under the Russian part. The country claimed its independence after the World War I. The Polish-Soviet War decided the fate of Belarus, as the western region was captured by Poland and the eastern part became the Belorussian SSR, which joined with USSR in 1922. Later Soviet Union took back the west Belarus from Poland to form the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. The Nazi Germany occupied the land during World War II. In the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic, Belarus declared its sovereignty in 1990, and finally in 1991 on 27th July, Belarus gained independence and the country’s name was changed into the Republic of Belarus.

 

GEOGRAPHY:- Belarus is located at 53 00 N, 28 00 E in Eastern Europe. It is a landlocked country, spanning across total 207,600 sq km land area. The lowest point is situated at Nyoman River (90 m) and the highest point is Dzyarzhynskaya Hara (346 m). The country is generally flat and consists of marshy lands. It is estimated that 34% of the nation is covered by forests. Belarus has 11000 lakes. The three major rivers of the landlocked country are the Neman, the Pripyat, and the Dnepr.

 

CLIMATE:- Belarus experiences a transition from continental climate to maritime climate every year. It has cool winters and wet summers. It has an annual rainfall of 550 to 700 millimeters.

 

GOVERNMENT:- Belarus has a Presidential republic. It can be said that it is under the dictatorship instead. The constitution was adopted on 15th March. 1994. The legal system is based on the civil law codes. The three major government branches are:

Executive branch is consisted of the chief of state (President), head of government (Prime Minister) and cabinet. Prime minister and deputy prime ministers are appointed by the President.

Legislative branch is consisted of the bicameral National Assembly, which comprises the Council of the Republic (64 seats) and the Chamber of Representatives (110 seats).

Judicial branch is consisted of the Supreme Court, and Constitutional Court. The judges of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President and the judges of the Constitutional Court are appointed by the President and the Chamber of Representatives with an equal division.

There are 15 registered political parties: Agrarian Party, Belarusian Communist Party, Green Party Belarusian Social and Sports Party, Belarusian Patriotic Movement, Belarusian Popular Front, Belarusian Social-Democrat Party, Social-Democratic Hramada Party, Conservative Christian Party-BNF, United Civic Party, Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus, Party of Communists Belarusian, Party of Popular Accord, Republican Party of Labor and Justice, Social Democratic Party of Popular Accord, along with several unregistered political parties. Suffrage is universal above 18.

President   Alexander Lukashenko

Prime Minister  Sergey Sidorsky

Deputy Prime Minister  Vladimir Semashko

 

ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS:- Belarus is divided into 6 voblasts or provinces:

Brest Voblast (Brest)

Homel Voblast (Homel)

Hrodna Voblast (Hrodna)

Mahilyow Voblast (Mahilyow)

Minsk Voblast (Minsk)

Vitsebsk Voblast (Vitsebsk)

There is a municipality: Horad Minsk.

 

CULTURE:- Belarus has 4 World Heritage Sites: the Mir Castle Complex, the Niasvizh Castle, the Belovezhskaya Pushcha, and the Struve Geodetic Arc. Belarusian literary works began with the religious writing in 11th- to 13th century. Belarusian culture is much influenced by the Russian culture. Ballet, opera are very famous in the country. Belarusian cuisine mainly comprises vegetables, meat, pork, and breads. Traditional dresses of Belarus are originated from the Kievan Rus' period.

 

ECONOMY:- The Belarusian economy is mainly state-controlled. 30 state-owned banks and one privatized bank form the Belarusian banking system. Agriculture and manufacturing are the pillars of its economy.

GDP/PPP (2005 est.): $79.13 billion; per capita $7,700.

Real growth rate: 8%.

Inflation: 8%.

Unemployment: 1.6%.

Arable land: 26.77%.

Agriculture: grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk.

Labor force: 4.3 million (Dec. 31, 2005); agriculture 14%, industry 34.7%, services 51.3% (2003 est.).

Industries: metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators.

Natural resources: forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay.

Exports: $16.14 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals, textiles, foodstuffs.

Imports: $16.94 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals.

Major trading partners: Russia, UK, Netherlands, Poland, Germany, Ukraine (2004)

Budget:  

Revenues: $20.76 billion

Expenditures: $21.18 billion (2007 est.)

Debt - external: $6.889 billion (31 December 2007)

Monetary unit: Belorussian ruble

 

LANGUAGE:- Belarusian, Russian are the official languages.

 

CITIES:- The capital city Minsk is the largest city. Other large cities are Gomel, Mogilyov, Vitebsk, Grodno, Brest, Bobruysk.

 

POPULATION:- The estimated Belarusian population is 9,685,768 with a growth rate of –0.3%.

Density per sq mi: 46

Literacy rate: 100% (2003 est.)

 

RACE:-

Belarusian 81.2%

Russian 11.4%

Polish 3.9%

Ukrainian 2.4%

Other 1.1% (1999)

 

RELIGION:-

Eastern Orthodox 80%

Other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)

 

HEALTH:-

Birth rate: 9.62 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Death rate: 13.92 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 6.53 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 70.34 years

Total fertility rate: 1.23 children born/woman (2008 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 1,000 (2001 est.)

Total expenditure on health per capita (Intl $, 2005): 515

 

UNICEF:- UNICEF with its partners works on education and health sectors in Belarus. ‘Baby-friendly’ clinics and hospitals are set up to minimize risk birth. Enrolment in school reaches almost 90%. Immunization coverage is 89%. To fight HIV, awareness campaigns are organized, blood samples tests are mandatory.

 

TRANSPORTATION:-

Railways: total: 5,512 km (2004).

Highways: total: 79,990 km (2004).

Waterways: 2,500 km (2003).

Ports and harbors: Mazyr.

Airports: 101 (2005).

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