GOMEL REGION
Gomel region is one of six regions of Belarus that is located in its south-eastern part.
Gomel region is the largest region in Belarus (40 400 sq.km.). The region shares borders with Bryansk region of the Russian Federation and with Kiev, Chernigov, Zhitomir and Rovno regions of Ukraine. Agricultural land takes 34% of the regional territory.
Population of Gomel region: 1 440 700
- 72,9% of population live in towns and villages
- 88,2% – Belarusian
- 7,7% – Russian
- 2,1% – Ukranian
The principal religion – Orthodoxy.
Villages and towns of Gomel region
Gomel is the regional administrative center. The territory of the region is divided into 21 districts. The region has 18 towns, 17 urban type villages and 2470 villages.
Transport communication of Gomel region
Gomel region has a well-developed road infrastructure. Important traffic arteries run through Gomel region. Large railroad junctions are the cities of Gomel, Zhlobin and Kalinkovichi. Gomel is located at the crossroads E 95 Odessa — Kiev — Saint-Petersburg, Bakhmach — Vilnius, М10 Bryansk — Brest.
Highways E 95 Saint-Petersburg — Kiev — Odessa, Bryansk — Kobrin, М5 Gomel — Minsk, Gomel — Mozyr are connected through bus services with all district centers of the region.
Gomel region has a wide net of railroads. 90% of railway cargoes of the country and about a half of passenger trains run through the region.
The main river of the region is the Dnepr (420 km long). The Dnepr runs across the territory of the region from the North to the South. The inflows of the Dnepr and the Pripyat are of shipping and floatable value, also they serve as water inlets for reclamation canals, draining wetlands.
Gomel region has a wide net of canals. Besides, there’re a lot of lakes. The biggest one is the Chervonoye (surface is 43,6 sq.km.).
Gomel and Mozyr have airports.
Industry of Gomel region
Gomel region is one of highly developed industrial regions of Belarus. Its territory has 300 big and medium enterprises, their part forms 24,1% of the volume of republican industrial production. About 70% of the output goes for export. Foreign trade operations are realized with more than 100 countries. The turnout of Gomel region per inhabitant is bigger than in Minsk.
The leading industrial spheres are: fuel, chemical, forestry, light, food, steel production, machinery (mostly agricultural engineering).
The essential industrial potential is focused in Gomel, Mozyr, Zhlobin, Svetlogorsk, Rechitsa and Dobrush.
There has been created Free Economic Zone «Gomel-Raton».
Natural resources of Gomel region
The most significant natural resources are fuel and energy.
There have been explored about 1500 peat deposits.
In 1964 first industrial oil was extracted near to Rechitsa. Today more than 100 billion tons has been extracted.
One third of the regional territory is covered with forests. Gomel region holds 1st position on forest yield in Belarus.
Hard coal deposits have been found in the south-eastern part of Pripyat hollow.
Coal slate deposits have been found in Elsk district.
Brown coal deposits found in Zhitkovichi and Brinevsk are estimated at the volume of 100 million tons.
Explored reserves of rocksalt exceed 22 billion tons. The biggest republican salt production has been created on the basis of Mozyr field (OJSC «Mozyrsalt»).
The region has the necessary basis for commercial exploitation of new raw materials – plaster, basalt fiber, mineral binders and bromine salt brine.
Gomel region also comprises Polesye State Radio Ecological Reserve – the only of its kind in the world. The territories, exposed to radioactive effects after the Chernobyl disaster, are being studied here and are preserved in natural state.
Agriculture in Gomel region
The regional agricultural complex can meet the demands of the population in essential food products and provide the processing industry with the primary goods.
The main agricultural fields are meat and dairy stock farming, vegetable and potato farming and flax growing (in the eastern part of the region). Agricultural land makes 1,4 million ha.
About 50% of the food, produced in the region, is exported to different countries of the world.
The detailed information on a site http://www.gomel-region.by/en/oblast
