Government type: republic
Capital: Minsk
Administrative divisions: 6 voblastsi (singular—voblasts') and one municipality* (harady, singular—horad); Brestskaya (Brest), Homyel'skaya (Homyel'), Horad Minsk*, Hrodzyenskaya (Hrodna), Mahilyowskaya (Mahilyow), Minskaya, Vitsyebskaya (Vitsyebsk) note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)
Independence: 25 August 1991 (Belarusian Supreme Soviet declaration of independence from the Soviet Union)
National holiday: Independence Day, 3 July (1944); note—date set
by referendum of 24 November 1996; represents Minsk liberation from
German occupation
Constitution: 30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24
November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and
became effective 27 November 1996
Legal system: based on civil law system
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Sergey LING (acting since 18
November 1996, confirmed 19 February 1997); First Deputy Prime
Ministers Petr PROKOPOVICH (since 23 December 1996) and Vasiliy
DOLGOLEV (since 2 December 1998); Deputy Prime Ministers Valeriy
KOKOREV (since 23 August 1994), Vladimir ZAMETALIN (since 15 July
1997), Ural LATYPOV (since 30 December 1997), Gennadiy NOVITSKIY
(since 11 February 1997), Leonid KOZIK (since 4 February 1997),
Aleksandr POPKOV (since 10 November 1998)
cabinet: Council of Ministers
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term;
election last held 24 June and 10 July 1994 (next to be held NA;
according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should be in
1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via the November
1996 referendum); prime minister and deputy prime ministers
appointed by the president
election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO elected president; percent of
vote—Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 85%, Vyacheslav KEBICH 15%
note: first presidential elections took place in June-July 1994
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Natsionalnoye
Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet
Respubliki (64 seats; eight appointed by the president and 56
indirectly elected by deputies of local councils for four-year
terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Pretsaviteley
(110 seats; note—present members came from the former Supreme Soviet
which LUKASHENKO disbanded in November 1996)
elections: last held May and November-December 1995 (two rounds,
each with a run-off; disbanded after the November 1996 referendum;
next to be held NA)
election results: after the November 1996 referendum, seats for the
Chamber of Representatives were filled by former Supreme Soviet
members as follows: PKB 24, Agrarian 14, Party of Peoples Concord 5,
LDPB 1, UPNAZ 1, Green World Party 1, Belarusian Social Sports Party
1, Ecological Party 1, Republican Party of Labor and Justice 1,
independents 61; 58 of the 64 seats in the Council of the Republic
have been appointed/elected
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges are appointed by the president; Constitutional Court, half of the judges appointed by the president and half appointed by the Chamber of Representatives
Political parties and leaders: Party of Communists Belarusian or
chairman]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic
International organization participation: CCC, CEI, CIS, EAPC,
EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Inmarsat,
Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO,
ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (applicant)
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires CHEREPANSKY chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 consulate(s) general: New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel V. SPECKHARD (recalled to Washington in June 1998; Charge d'Affaires Randall LE COCQ) embassy: Starovilenskaya #46–220002, Minsk mailing address: use embassy street address
Flag description: red horizontal band (top) and green horizontal band one-half the width of the red band; a white vertical stripe of white on the hoist side bears the Belarusian national ornament in red
Economy
Economy—overview: Belarus has seen little structural reform since 1995, when President LUKASHENKO launched the country on the path of "market socialism". In keeping with this policy, LUKASHENKO re-imposed administrative controls over prices and currency exchange rates and expanded the state's right to intervene in the management of private enterprise. This produced a climate hostile to private business, inhibiting domestic and foreign investment. The Government of Belarus has artificially revived economic output since mid-1996 by pursuing a policy of rapid credit expansion. In a vain attempt to keep the rapidly rising inflation in check, the government placed strict price controls on food and consumer products, which resulted in food shortages. Long lines for dairy products, chicken, and pork became common in the closing months of 1998. With the goal of slowing down the devaluation of the Belarusian ruble, LUKASHENKO in 1997 introduced a new, complex system of legal buying/selling hard currencies. The new "command" system proved to be totally unworkable and resulted in galloping devaluation. In addition to the burdens imposed on businesses by high inflation and an artificial currency regime, businesses have also been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, and retroactive application of new business regulations prohibiting practices that had been legal. A further economic problem is the sizable trade deficit.
GDP: purchasing power parity—$53.7 billion (1998 est.)
GDP—real growth rate: 7% (1998 est.)
GDP—per capita: purchasing power parity?$5,200 (1998 est.)
GDP—composition by sector: agriculture: 20% industry: 43% services: 37% (1997 est.)
Population below poverty line: 77% (1997 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 4.9% highest 10%: 19.4% (1993)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 182% (1998)
Labor force: 4.3 million (1998)
Labor force—by occupation: industry and construction 40%,
agriculture and forestry 19%, services 41% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: 2.3% officially registered unemployed
(December 1998); large number of underemployed workers
Budget: