Gomel region

Administrative territorial entities

Gomel region comprises 21 districts and 2 city municipalities. The districts have 278 selsovets, and 17 cities and towns.

Districts of Gomel region

• Aktsyabrski district
• Brahin district
• Buda-Kashalyova district
• Chachersk district
• Dobrush district
• Gomel district
• Kalinkavichy district
• Karma district
• Khoiniki district
• Lyelchytsy district
• Loyew district
• Mazyr district
• Narowlya district
• Pyetrykaw district
• Rahachow district
• Rechytsa district
• Svyetlahorsk district
• Vyetka district
• Yelsk district
• Zhlobin district
• Zhytkavichy district

Cities and towns

Geography

Pripyatsky National Park covers 2% of the territory of the region. Eleven wildlife preserves of national importance cover 2.1% of the region.

The southernmost point of Belarus is located in Gomel region, on the Dnieper River to the south of the urban-type settlement of Kamaryn, Brahin District.

The 3rd largest lake in Belarus, Lake Chervonoye, is located in Gomel region, Zhytkavichy District.

Gomel region borders Mogilev region on the north, Brest region on the west, Russia (Bryansk oblast) on the east and Ukraine (Chernihiv oblast, Kyiv oblast and Zhytomyr oblast) on the south and southeast.

Demography

Belarusians in Homieĺskaja voblasć, Belarus (2009 census).png|Belarusians in the region{{legend|orange| Russians in Homieĺskaja voblasć, Belarus (2009 census).png|Russians in the region{{legend|white| Ukrainians in Homieĺskaja voblasć, Belarus (2009 census).png|Ukrainians in the region{{legend|White|

Economy

The processing industry is represented by alcoholic beverages, such as wine and beer, soft drinks, as well as the vegetable-drying and canning industries. Mazyr is home to one of Belarus' major oil refineries.

Transport

Gomel region is a major transport hub. Major railway junctions include Gomel, Zhlobin, and Kalinkavichy. Gomel is located at the intersection of the highways 95E Odesa–Kyiv–St. Petersburg, Bakhmach–Vilnius, and M10 Bryansk–Brest. River transport is also common in the region with regular navigation on the Pripyat, Dnieper and Berezina rivers.

Tourism

The number of travel agencies in Gomel region has grown from 21 in 2000 to 54 in 2010. The main tourist destinations of the region are Pripyatsky National Park and Gomel.

History

As a result of the disaster at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, 20 out of 21 districts of the Gomel region were damaged, 357 settlements ceased to exist, about 40 farms and 216 thousand hectares of agricultural land were taken out of operation, 1127 settlements were contaminated, the number of affected population was 749 thousand people. The most affected districts are: Brahin, Khoyniki, Narowlya, Vyetka, Dobrush, Chachersk, Karma. The Polesie State Radioecological Reserve, which is a radioecological nature reserve, is situated in the southern part of the region. It was created to enclose the territory of Belarus most affected by radioactive fallout from the Chernobyl disaster. Children in the Gomel oblast (region) in Belarus received the highest thyroid doses of radiation in the county.

Notes

References

References

1. "Gross domestic product and gross regional product by regions and Minsk city in 2023".
2. "Численность населения на 1 января 2024 г. и среднегодовая численность населения за 2023 год по Республике Беларусь в разрезе областей, районов, городов, поселков городского типа".
3. "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab".
4. "English: Chernobyl radiation map from CIA handbook, SVG'd by User:Sting, and re-anglified by me (To the same strange names used in the original)".
5. "Численность населения на 1 января 2023 г. и среднегодовая численность населения за 2022 год по Республике Беларусь в разрезе областей, районов, городов, поселков городского типа".
6. (2011). "Nature reserves and national parks, wildlife preserves and nature sanctuaries". Data of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus.
7. (2011). "Main Geographic Characteristics of the Republic of Belarus. Coordinates of the extreme points of the state frontier". The Scientific and Production State Republican Unitary Enterprise “National Cadastre Agency” of the State Property Committee of the Republic of Belarus.
8. (2011). "Main characteristics of the largest lakes of Belarus". Data of the Research Laboratory for Lake Study of the Belarus State University..
9. Ministry of Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Belarus.. (2011). "Number of organizations engaged in tourist activities in 2010 in Belarus". National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Belarus.
10. Ministry of Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Belarus.. (2011). "Number of organisations engaged in tourist activities in Belarus by region". National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Belarus.
11. "The meeting of the Council for Sustainable Development dedicated to the International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day was held in Minsk - Sustainable Development Goals in Belarus".
12. "Pollution Byelorussia cesium-137 in Minsk, Gomel, Brest and Mogilev region of Belarus | Чернобыль, Припять, зона отчуждения ЧАЭС".
13. "Chernobyl: Chapter IV. Dose estimates".