Is the world ready for Y2K?

On Jan. 1, 2000 all computers from PCs to those that run power plants or nuclear defence systems have to be Y2K ready. And while Canada is expecting no major meltdowns, other parts of the world may not be ready.

• RELATED STORY: CBC Radio's Y2K report.

• MORE COVERAGE: The Millennium: Y2K. I'm okay, you okay?

With just weeks to go Europe appears to be nonchalantly waiting for nothing much to happen. After raising the alarm, the French government is now advising people to relax. There will not be a big bang it says. The country is ready.

Just the same, all French trains will stop for half an hour over midnight. Belgian trains will stop for several hours. Some European shipping will be halted and ports closed. And just in case most countries will have their entire police force and firefighters on standby.

Most importantly, the government of France has assured the country that the majority of bakeries are computer bug-free. So barring a major power failure, there should be fresh bread on New Year's Day.

It may be a very different story in other parts of the world. No one's quite sure how many millennium bugs are lurking in Russia's antiquated computer networks. And while Russian bureaucrats either can't or won't tell, no one here seems to be the least bit worried.

The Russian military began de-bugging its nuclear weapons two years ago. Top generals assure reporters there will be "no apocalypse" caused by an accidental strike.

However, that still leaves the network of old nuclear reactors that heat and light Russia. When really pressed, officials admit there is a chance some Russians could greet the millennium freezing in the dark.

But Russia may be saved from serious Y2k breakdowns simply because so much of the technology it's taking into the new millennium pre-dates the computer age.

Africa is at the heart of the developing world and it's bracing for the year 2000.

The Y2K Co-ordination Centre is Kenya's chief weapon in the battle against the millennium bug. They have been working hard to make sure there are no problems with essential services like the power supply, the phone system and the international airport.

The majority of Africans are worried about basic things like having enough food to eat and access to running water.

However, in a place where war driven by ethnic hatred and political intolerance has brought death to virtually every corner of this vast continent, people are more interested in peace than the millennium bug.

China has been described as one of four countries most likely to suffer the greatest Y2K related disruptions.

But now Chinese authorities say there's no reason to panic. China is Y2K ready. And to show just how confident they are, some top airline executives say they'll be flying in some of their own commercial planes on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1.

But just in case, hundreds of seminars have been held to educate people about Y2K.

China does have one advantage: technology and automation arrived later here than in other countries, so many sectors have computers that came Y2K ready.

As for the really big millennium party, that'll have to wait until February 2000. That's when the Chinese celebrate their new year, ushering in the year of the dragon.