Belarus Facts and Figures.

Belarus Facts and Figures. BASIC FACTS Official name Capital Area Republic of Belarus Minsk 207,595 sq km 80,153 sq mi PEOPLE Population 9,685,768 (2008 estimate) Population growth Population growth rate -0.39 percent (2008 estimate) Projected population in 2025 9,033,301 (2025 estimate) Projected population in 2050 7,738,613 (2050 estimate) Population density 47 persons per sq km (2008 estimate) 121 persons per sq mi (2008 estimate) Urban/rural distribution Share urban 72 percent (2005 estimate) Share rural 28 percent (2005 estimate) Largest cities, with population Minsk 1,705,000 (2003 estimate) Homel' 480,000 (2001 estimate) Mahilyow 360,600 (2001 estimate) Vitsyebsk 341,500 (2001 estimate) Grodno 307,100 (2001 estimate) Ethnic groups Belarusian 77.9 percent Russian 13.2 percent Polish 4.1 percent Ukrainian 2.9 percent O ther 1.9 percent Languages Belarusian (official), Russian (official), Polish, Ukranian, other Religious affiliations Eastern Orthodox 49 percent Roman Catholic 13 percent Atheist Nonreligious 9 percent 24 percent O ther 5 percent HEALTH AND EDUCATION Life expectancy Total 70.3 years (2008 estimate) Female 76.4 years (2008 estimate) Male 64.6 years (2008 estimate) Infant mortality rate Population per physician Population per hospital bed 7 deaths per 1,000 live births (2008 estimate) 209 people (2006) 89 people (2003) Literacy rate Total 99.7 percent (2005 estimate) Female 99.6 percent (2005 estimate) Male 99.8 percent (2005 estimate) Education expenditure as a share of gross national product (GNP) Number of years of compulsory schooling Number of students per teacher, primary school 6 percent (1999-2000) 9 years (2002-2003) 16 students per teacher (2002-2003) GOVERNMENT Form of government Republic Voting qualifications Universal at age 18 Constitution Armed forces Total number of military personnel Military expenditures as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) Adopted 28 March 1994, amended 1996, 2004 72,940 (2004) 4 percent (2003) ECONOMY Gross domestic product (GDP, in U.S.$) GDP per capita (U.S.$) GDP by economic sector Agriculture, forestry, fishing $36.9 billion (2006) $3,796.10 (2006) 9.3 percent (2006) I ndustry 42 percent (2006) Services 48.7 percent (2006) Employment Number of workers 4,766,704 (2006) Workforce share of economic sector Agriculture, forestry, fishing 21 percent (1994) I ndustry 35 percent (1994) Services 40 percent (1994) Unemployment rate 3 percent (2002) National budget (U.S.$) Total revenue $13,307 million (2006) Total expenditure $11,223 million (2006) Monetary unit 1 Belarusian ruble (Rbl), consisting of 100 kopeks Major trade partners for exports Russia, Latvia, United Kingdom, Germany, Netherlands Major trade partners for imports Russia, Germany, Ukraine, Poland, Italy ENERGY, COMMUNICATIONS, AND TRANSPORTATION Electricity production Electricity from thermal sources Electricity from hydroelectric sources 99.89 percent (2003 estimate) 0.11 percent (2003 estimate) Electricity from nuclear sources 0 percent (2003 estimate) Electricity from geothermal, solar, and wind sources 0 percent (2003 estimate) Number of radios per 1,000 people 292 (1997) Number of telephones per 1,000 people 336 (2005) Number of televisions per 1,000 people 337 (2000 estimate) Number of Internet hosts per 10,000 people 5 (2003) Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people 152 (1998) Number of motor vehicles per 1,000 people 168 (2003) Paved road as a share of total roads 87 percent (2004) SOURCES Basic Facts and People sections Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org). Health and Education section Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Government section Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data is from Military Balance. Economy section Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the statistical bureaus of individual countries, latest Europa World Yearbook, and various United Nations and International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications. Energy, Communication, and Transportation section Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Note Figures may not total 100 percent due to rounding. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.