The Republic of Belarus PREPARED BY THE 1ST YEAR STUDENTS ANISOVETS DARIA AND IVCHENKO TATIANA

Belarus is my mother country. It is the place where I was born.Officially it is called the Republic of Belarus, a sovereign independent state with its own government, constitution, state emblem, flag and anthem

The Republic of Belarus is a presidential republic; state powers are divided into legislative, executive and judicial. The President of the Republic is the head of the state.

Belarus is situated nearly in the centre of Europe in the western part of the East-European Plain within the basins of the Dnieper, the Western Dvina and the Upper Neman. It borders on Poland in the west, Lithuania and Latvia - in the north-west, Russia in the north and east, Ukraine in the south.

Belarus stretches for 560 kilometres from south to north and for 650 kilometres from east to west. It occupies the territory of thousand square kilometres. Its population is about 10 million people: 78% Belarusians, 12% Russians, 4% Poles and 2% Ukrainians.

Belarus is situated on a plain rising to hills, the highest of which is Mt.Dzerzhinskaya reaching 350 metres above sea level.There are more than 3,000 rivers in Belarus. Seven of them are more than 500 kilometres long each. They are the Dnieper, the Neman, the Western Dvina, the Prypiat, the Berezina, the Sozh and the Vilia.Belarus is a lake-country. There are about 10,800 lakes here. The largest is Lake Naroch - 80 square kilometres. The lakes are noted for their great depth, transparent water and beautiful scenery.

The largest forests in Belarus are called pushchas. The Byelovezhskaya Pushcha is famous for its bisons. Fauna is rich there: one can see elks and deer, wild boars and wolves, bears and foxes, beavers and lynxes, birds. The climate of Belarus is moderately continental due to Atlantic influences with mild winters and gently warm summers.

The territory of Belarus is divided into 6 regions: Brest, Vitebsk, Gomel, Grodno, Minsk, and Mogilev. The capital of Belarus is Minsk with a population of over 1.8 million people.

Today Belarus is a highly developed industrial state. The main industries are engineering, chemical industry, wood-working industry, light and food industries. Agriculture of Belarus specializes in milk and meat production, flax, vegetables (especially potatoes) and-fruit (especially apples).

The Republic of Belarus has well-developed science and educational system. The Academy of Sciences is one of the largest centres of science in our country. Nowadays in Belarus there are 54 universities, academies and institutes which provide training in various spheres of science and humanities.

Belarus an interesting region from the tourist point of view. Such places as St Sophia Cathedral and Museum, Brest Fortress, Mir Castle, Nesvizh Castle and Khatyn Memorial are worth visiting.