The Berestovitsa region is situated in the west of Grodno oblast. It was founded on January 15, 1940 as the Krynkovsk region, since September 22, 1944 – the Berestovitsa region. The area of the region is 743 thousand square meters. Population (as of January 1, 2005) – 19,975 people, with the urban population accounting for 37.5%. Average density – 26.9 people per 1 square kilometer.
The town of Bolshaya Berestovitsa is the centre of the region. The Berestovitsa region includes the settlement of Pogranichnyi, 126 villages, 7 rural councils.
The region is located within the bounds of the Belarusian mountain range. The major part of the region is the Volkovysk height, a part of the Neman lowland is in the north, a part of the Grodno height is in the north-west. The prevalent height – 160-120 meters above sea-level. The highest point – 212 meters is in the north of the region (Mogilyany branch).
Minerals: clay, peat, mortar sand.
The major river is the Svisloch River with its tributaries Vereteika, Berestovichanka, Usnarka and Odla. Forests occupy 15% of the region (coniferous, firry, birch, oaken, hornbeam). The soil is mainly sod-podzol. Bogs occupy 7.6% of the region’s area.
Agricultural lands occupy 50,869 hectares including 7,656 hectares of drained lands. Agricultural lands occupy 60.9% of the total area of the region. The agricultural sector of the region is represented by meat and milk cattle-breeding (the agricultural producers' co-operative “Olekshitsy”), pig-breeding (the agricultural producers' co-operative “Teterevka”), poultry farming (Berestovitsa Battery Farm). Agricultural companies of the region cultivate sugar-beet, cereals and forage crops, potato, vegetables. There are several food-processing companies in the region (a branch of Grodno Dairy Factory, the Berestovitsa Butter and Cheese Making Plant, Oitsovo Distillery).
The railway Volkovysk-Pogranichnyi (Berestovitsa Railway Station) and the motor-road Grodno-Volkovysk pass the region. The border checkpoint Berestovitsa-Bobrowniki (Poland) is in the west of the region.
There are Maloberestovitsa Vocational College #195 (processing production), Berestovitsa Vocational College #194 (agricultural production), 8 secondary schools, 4 primary schools, 2 children’s sports schools, a music school and 2 art schools, 11 kindergartens, 18 clubs, 9 cinema units, 23 libraries, a retirement home, 3 hospitals, 4 out-patients departments, 11 medical assistant’s stations in the region. Museums of local lore are in the village of Malaya Berestovitsa, in the village of Makarovtsy, in the village of Murovana, in the settlement of Berestovitsa.
There are 14 religious communities in the region including 8 Orthodox communities, 5 Catholic communities and an Evangelical Church’s community.
Specimen of architecture: the Catholic Church of the Mother of God in Bolshaya Berestovitsa, the Church of Birth of Mary (1796) and a manor (the end of the 18th – the beginning of the 19th century) in the village of Massoliany, a manor (the 18th century) in the village of Malaya Berestovitsa, the Church of the Dormition of the Virgin (1860) in the village of Gorbachi, the Church of the Intercession of the Holy Virgin (1871) in the village of Olekshitsy, the Catholic Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (the end of the 18th century)in the village of Makarovtsy, the Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (the 19th century) in the village of Klepachi, a manor (the 19th century) in the village of Murovana, the St. Maria’s Catholic Church (the 19th – the beginning of the 20th century) in the village of Bolshie Eismonty, manors (the beginning of the 20th century) in the villages of Parkhimovtsy and Stary Dvorets.
