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Communications

Airports [time series]

158 total, 158 usable; 40 with permanent-surface runways; 19 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 37 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air [time series]

47 major transport aircraft

Roadways (Highways) [time series]

73,540 km total; including 517 km superhighway (1988)

Waterways (Inland waterways) [time series]

475 km (1988); the Elbe (Labe) is the principal river

Merchant marine [time series]

24 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 363,002 GRT/ 565,813 DWT; includes 15 cargo, 6 bulk

Pipelines [time series]

crude oil, 1,448 km; refined products, 1,500 km; natural gas, 8,100 km

Ports [time series]

maritime outlets are in Poland (Gdynia, Gdansk, Szczecin), Yugoslavia (Rijeka, Koper), Germany (Hamburg, Rostock); principal river ports are Prague on the Vltava, Decin on the Elbe (Labe), Komarno on the Danube, Bratislava on the Danube

Railways (Railroads) [time series]

13,103 km total; 12,855 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, 102 km 1.520-meter broad gauge, 146 km 0.750- and 0.760-meter narrow gauge; 2,861 km double track; 3,798 km electrified; government owned (1988)

Telecommunication systems (Telecommunications) [time series]

4 million telephones; 25% of households have a telephone; stations--60 AM, 16 FM, 39 TV (11 Soviet TV relays); 4.4 million TVs (1990)

Defense Forces

Military and security forces (Branches) [time series]

Czechoslovak People's Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, Civil Defense, Border Guard

Military expenditures (Defense expenditures) [time series]

26.9 billion koruny, NA% of GDP (1991); note--conversion of defense expenditures into US dollars using the official administratively set exchange rate would produce misleading results

Manpower availability [time series]

males 15-49, 4,066,419; 3,110,958 fit for military service; 140,620 reach military age (18) annually

Economy

Agricultural products (Agriculture) [time series]

accounts for 7% of GNP (includes forestry); largely self-sufficient in food production; diversified crop and livestock production, including grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit, hogs, cattle, and poultry; exporter of forest products

Budget [time series]

revenues $17.1 billion; expenditures $16.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.5 billion (1991)

Exchange rates (Currency) [time series]

koruna (plural--koruny); 1 koruna (Kc) = 100 haleru

Economic aid [time series]

donor--$4.2 billion in bilateral aid to non-Communist less developed countries (1954-89)

Electricity [time series]

23,000,000 kW capacity; 90,000 million kWh produced, 5,740 kWh per capita (1990)

Exchange rates [time series]

koruny (Kcs) per US$1--27.65 (January 1991), 17.95 (1990), 15.05 (1989), 14.36 (1988), 13.69 (1987), 14.99 (1986), 17.14 (1985)

Exports [time series]

$14.4 billion (f.o.b., 1989); commodities--machinery and equipment 42.7%; fuels, minerals, and metals 16.4%; agricultural and forestry products 12.5%, other 28.4%; partners--USSR, GDR, Poland, Hungary, FRG, Yugoslavia, Austria, Bulgaria, Romania, US

Debt - external (External debt) [time series]

$7.6 billion, hard currency indebtedness (September 1990)

Fiscal year [time series]

calendar year

GNP [time series]

$120.3 billion, per capita $7,700; real growth rate - 2.9% (1990 est.)

Imports [time series]

$14.3 billion (f.o.b., 1989); commodities--machinery and equipment 38.6%; fuels, minerals, and metals 24.1%; agricultural and forestry products 16.4%; other 20.9%; partners--USSR, GDR, Poland, Hungary, FRG, Yugoslavia, Austria, Bulgaria, Romania, US

Industrial production growth rate (Industrial production) [time series]

growth rate - 3.3% (1990 est.); accounts for almost 50% of GDP

Industries [time series]

iron and steel, machinery and equipment, cement, sheet glass, motor vehicles, armaments, chemicals, ceramics, wood, paper products, footwear

Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]

9% (1990 est.)

Economic overview (Overview) [time series]

Czechoslovakia is highly industrialized and has a well-educated and skilled labor force. Its industry, transport, energy sources, banking, and most other means of production are state owned. The country is deficient, however, in energy and in many raw materials. Moreover, its aging capital plant lags well behind West European standards. Industry contributes almost 50% to GNP and construction contributes 10%. About 95% of agricultural land is in collectives or state farms. The centrally planned economy has been tightly linked in trade (80%) to the USSR and Eastern Europe. Growth has been sluggish, averaging less than 2% in the period 1982-89. GNP per capita is the highest in Eastern Europe. As in the rest of Eastern Europe, the sweeping political changes of 1989-90 have been disrupting normal channels of supply and compounding the government's economic problems. Having eased restrictions on private enterprise in 1990 and having adjusted some key prices, Czechoslovakia is now implementing a broad two-year program to make the difficult transition from a command to a market economy. Inflation and unemployment are beginning to rise, albeit from comparatively low levels.

Unemployment rate [time series]

officially 0.8% (1990)

Geography

Climate [time series]

temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters

Coastline [time series]

none--landlocked

Area - comparative (Comparative area) [time series]

slightly larger than New York State

Disputes - international (Disputes) [time series]

Nagymaros Dam dispute with Hungary

Environment - current issues (Environment) [time series]

infrequent earthquakes; acid rain; water pollution; air pollution

Land boundaries [time series]

3,446 km total; Austria 548 km, Germany 815 km, Hungary 676 km, Poland 1,309 km, USSR 98 km

Land use [time series]

arable land 40%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and pastures 13%; forest and woodland 37%; other 9%; includes irrigated 1%

Maritime claims [time series]

none--landlocked

Natural resources [time series]

coal, timber, lignite, uranium, magnesite, iron ore, copper, zinc

Note [time series]

landlocked; strategically located astride some of oldest and most significant land routes in Europe; Moravian Gate is a traditional military corridor between the North European Plain and the Danube in central Europe

Terrain [time series]

mixture of hills and mountains separated by plains and basins

Area (Total area) [time series]

127,870 km2; land area: 125,460 km2

Government

Administrative divisions [time series]

2 republics (republiky, singular--republika); Czech Republic (Ceska Republika), Slovak Republic (Slovenska Republika)

Capital [time series]

Prague

Political parties (Communists) [time series]

760,000 party members (September 1990); about 1,000,000 members lost since November 1989

Constitution [time series]

11 July 1960; amended in 1968 and 1970; new Czech, Slovak, and federal constitutions to be drafted in 1991-92

Diplomatic representation in the US (Diplomatic representation) [time series]

Ambassador Rita KLIMOVA; Chancery at 3900 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 363-6315 or 6316; US--Ambassador Shirley Temple BLACK; Embassy at Trziste 15, 125 48, Prague 1 (mailing address is AMEM, Box 5630, APO New York 09213-5630); telephone [42] (2) 536641 through 536649

Executive branch [time series]

president, prime minister, Cabinet

Flag [time series]

two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side

Independence [time series]

28 October 1918 (from Austro-Hungarian Empire)

Judicial branch [time series]

Supreme Court Chief of State--President Vaclav HAVEL; (interim president from 29 December 1989 and president since 5 July 1990); Head of Government--Premier Marian CALFA (since 10 December 1989); Deputy Premier Vaclav VALES (since 28 June 1990); Deputy Premier Jiri DIENSTBIER (since 28 June 1990); Deputy Premier Jozef MIKLOSKO (since 28 June 1990); Deputy Premier Pavel RYCHETSKY (since 28 June 1990) Civic Forum, Vaclav KLAUS, chairman; Public Against Violence, Fedor GAL, chairman; Christian and Democratic Union, Vaclav BENDA; Christian Democratic Movement, Jan CARNOGURSKY; Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSC), Pavol KANIS, chairman; KSC toppled from power in November 1989 by massive antiregime demonstrations, minority role in coalition government since 10 December 1989

Legal system [time series]

civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes, modified by Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; legal code in process of modification to bring it in line with Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) obligations and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory

Legislative branch [time series]

bicameral Federal Assembly (Federalni Shromazdeni) consists of an upper house or Chamber of Nations (Snemovna Narodu) and a lower house or Chamber of the People (Snemovna Lidu)

Country name (Long-form name) [time series]

Czech and Slovak Federal Republic; note--on 23 March 1990 the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was renamed the Czechoslovak Federative Republic; Slovak concerns about their status in the federation prompted the Federal Assembly to approve the name Czech and Slovak Federative Republic on 20 April 1990; on 23 April 1990 the name was modified to Czech and Slovak Federal Republic

International organization participation (Member of) [time series]

BIS, CCC, CSCE, ECE, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBEC, ICAO, IIB, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, PCA, UN, UNAVEM, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

National holiday [time series]

National Liberation Day, 9 May (1945) and Founding of the Republic, 28 October (1918)

Political parties (Other political or pressure groups) [time series]

Czechoslovak Socialist Party, Czechoslovak People's Party, Czechoslovak Social Democracy, Slovak Nationalist Party, Slovak Revival Party, Christian Democratic Party; over 80 registered political groups fielded candidates in the 8-9 June 1990 legislative election

Suffrage [time series]

universal at age 18 President--last held 5 July 1990 (next to be held July 1992); results--Vaclav HAVEL elected by the Federal Assembly; Federal Assembly--last held 8-9 June 1990 (next to be held June 1992); results--Civic Forum/Public Against Violence coalition 46%, KSC 13.6%; seats--(300 total) Civic Forum/Public Against Violence coalition 170, KSC 47, Christian and Democratic Union/Christian Democratic Movement 40, Czech, Slovak, Moravian, and Hungarian groups 43

Government type (Type) [time series]

federal republic in transition to a confederative republic

People

Birth rate [time series]

14 births/1,000 population (1991)

Death rate [time series]

11 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

Ethnic groups (Ethnic divisions) [time series]

Czech 62.9%, Slovak 31.8%, Hungarian 3.8%, Polish 0.5%, German 0.3%, Ukrainian 0.3%, Russian 0.1%, other 0.3%

Infant mortality rate [time series]

11 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

Labor force [time series]

8,200,000 (1987); industry 36.9%, agriculture 12.3%, construction, communications, and other 50.8% (1982)

Languages (Language) [time series]

Czech and Slovak (official), Hungarian

Life expectancy at birth [time series]

69 years male, 77 years female (1991)

Literacy [time series]

99% (male NA%, female NA%) age 15 and over can read and write (1970 est.)

Nationality [time series]

noun--Czechoslovak(s); adjective--Czechoslovak

Net migration rate [time series]

NEGL migrants/1,000 population (1991)

Organized labor [time series]

Czech and Slovak Confederation of Trade Unions (CSKOS); new independent trade unions forming

Population [time series]

15,724,940 (July 1991), growth rate 0.3% (1991)

Religions (Religion) [time series]

Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Orthodox 2%, other 28%

Total fertility rate [time series]

1.9 children born/woman (1991)

Slovakia