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: 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

Geography - note: 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

People Belarus

Population: 10,335,382 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 17.3% (male 914,579; female 876,346) 15-64
years: 68.6% (male 3,443,859; female 3,643,628) 65 years and over: 14.1%
(male 482,624; female 974,346) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate: -0.14% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 9.86 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 13.99 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: 2.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Sex ratio: 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 (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 14.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: 74.56 years (2002 est.) male: Total fertility
rate: 1.31 children born/woman (2002 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.28% (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 14,000 (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 400 (1999 est.)

Nationality: noun: Belarusian(s) adjective: Belarusian

Ethnic groups: Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian,
and other 7.4%

Religions: Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic,
Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)

Languages: Belarusian, Russian, other

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total
population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.)

Government Belarus

Country name: Republic of Belarus conventional short form: Socialist
Republic local long form: Respublika Byelarus'

Government type: republic

Capital: Minsk

Administrative divisions: 6 voblastsi (singular - voblasts') and one
municipality* (