Gomel Region or Gomel Oblast or Homiel Voblasts ( be, Го́мельская во́бласць, Homielskaja vobłasć, russian: Гомельская область, Gomelskaya oblast) is one of the regions of Belarus. Its administrative center is Gomel. The total area of the region is , the population in 2011 stood at 1,435,000 with the number of inhabitants per km² at 36. Important cities within the region include: Homiel, Mazyr, Zhlobin,

Svietlahorsk , nickname = Svietly (The Bright), , image_skyline = Svetlahorsk, Homieĺ Voblaść, Belarus.JPG , image_size = , image_caption = In the center of town, with ''16-floor one'' (left) and ''house with a clock'' (rig ...

, Rechytsa, Kalinkavichy, Rahachow and Dobrush. Both the Gomel Region and the Mogilev Region suffered severely from the

Chernobyl disaster The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear accident that occurred on 26 April 1986 at the No. 4 reactor in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, near the city of Pripyat in the north of the Ukrainian SSR in the Soviet Union. It is one of only two nuc ...

. The Gomel Province borders the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone in places, and parts of it have been designated as mandatory or voluntary resettlement areas as a result of the radioactive contamination.

Administrative territorial entities

Gomel Region comprises 21

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

and 2 city municipalities. The districts have 278 selsovets, and 17 cities and towns.

Districts of Gomel Region

* Akciabrski District *

Brahin District Brahin District or Brahinski Rajon ( be, Брагінскі раён, russian: Брагинский район, Bragin District), is a district of Gomel Region, in Belarus. Its administrative seat is the small town of Brahin. Geography The dist ...

* Buda-Kashalyova District * Chachersk District * Dobrush District * Gomel District * Kalinkavichy District * Karma District *

Khoiniki District Khoiniki District or Chojnicki Rajon ( be, Хойніцкі раён, russian: Хойникский район) is a district of Gomel Region, in Belarus. Its administrative seat is the town of Hoiniki. Geography The district includes the town ...

* Lyelchytsy District *

Loyew District Loyew District or Lójeŭski Rajon ( be, Лоеўскі раён, translit=Lojeŭski rajon; russian: Лоевский район, translit=Loyevsky rayon) is a district (''raion'') of Belarus located in the Gomel Region. Its administrative center ...

* Mazyr District * Naroulia District *

Pietrykaw District The Pyetrykaw District, Pietrykaŭski Rajon ( be, Петрыкаўскі раён) is a district of the Gomel Region, in Belarus. Notable residents * Aleś Dudar (1904, Navasiolki village - 1937), Belarusian poet, critic, translator and a vict ...

* Rahachow District * Rechytsa District *

Svietlahorsk District Svietlahorsk Rajon, Svietlahorski Rajon ( be, Светлагорскі раён) is a district of Gomel Region, in Belarus. Twin towns * Bielsk Podlaski, Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe ...

Vietka District Vetka District, Vietka District or Vietka Rajon, Vietkaŭski Rajon ( be, Веткаўскі раён, russian: Ветковский район) is a district of Gomel Region, in Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelo ...

Yel’sk District Yelsk District or Jeĺsk District ( be, Ельскі раён, Jeĺski Rajon; russian: Ельский район) is a district (raion) of Gomel Region in Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ...

* 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 extreme southern point of Belarus is located in Gomel Region, on the Dnieper River to the south of the urban-type settlement of Kamaryn,

. 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 Chernihiv Oblast ( uk, Черні́гівська о́бласть, translit=Chernihivska oblast; also referred to as Chernihivshchyna, uk, Черні́гівщина, translit=Chernihivshchyna) is an oblast (province) of northern Ukraine. T ...

, Kyiv Oblast and Zhytomyr Oblast) on the south and southeast.

Demography

Belarusians in Homieĺskaja voblasć, Belarus (2009 census).png, Belarusians in the region Russians in Homieĺskaja voblasć, Belarus (2009 census).png, Russians in the region Ukrainians in Homieĺskaja voblasć, Belarus (2009 census).png, Ukrainians in the region

Economy

The processing industry is represented by alcohol,

alcoholic beverage An alcoholic beverage (also called an alcoholic drink, adult beverage, or a drink) is a drink that contains ethanol, a type of alcohol that acts as a drug and is produced by fermentation of grains, fruits, or other sources of sugar. The c ...

, wine, beer and

soft drink A soft drink (see § Terminology for other names) is a drink that usually contains water (often carbonated), a sweetener, and a natural and/or artificial flavoring. The sweetener may be a sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, fruit juice, a su ...

s, 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

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

– 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. Main tourist destinations of the region are Pripyatsky National Park and Gomel.

References

External links

Gomel Oblast Executive CommitteeGomel Regional Executive Committee (Archive) (2004)Homel Region: Epicentre Of Troubles That Bore Celebrities
{{coord, 52, 20, N, 29, 40, E, region:BY-HO_type:adm1st_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Regions of Belarus