Part 66

Area: total area: 207,600 sq km land area: 207,600 sq km comparative area: slightly smaller than Kansas

Land boundaries: total: 3,098 km border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 605 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

International disputes: none

Climate: cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime

Terrain: generally flat and contains much marshland lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m

Natural resources: forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas

Land use: arable land: 29% permanent crops: 1% meadows and pastures: 15% forest and woodland: 0% other: 55%

Irrigated land: 1,490 sq km (1990)

Environment: current issues: soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' natural hazards: NA international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Biodiversity, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified - Climate Change, Law of the Sea

Geographic note: landlocked

People ------

Population: 10,415,973 (July 1996 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 21% (male 1,136,499; female 1,090,101) 15-64 years: 66% (male 3,334,077; female 3,536,982) 65 years and over: 13% (male 429,574; female 888,740) (July 1996 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.2% (1996 est.)

Birth rate: 12.15 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate: 13.64 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Net migration rate: 3.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female all ages: 0.89 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 13.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 68.57 years male: 63.2 years female: 74.21 years (1996 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.69 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Nationality: noun: Belarusian(s) adjective: Belarusian

Ethnic divisions: Byelorussian 77.9%, Russian 13.2%, Polish 4.1%, Ukrainian 2.9%, other 1.9%

Religions: Eastern Orthodox 60%, other (including Roman Catholic and Muslim) 40% (early 1990's)

Languages: Byelorussian, Russian, other

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