Czech Republic

Czech Republic 

 

Geography                 Economy                 Defense Forces
 

People                    Transportation          Government



Communications            History      	          Travel

GEOGRAPHY

Location

Central Europe, southeast of Germany

Area

Land Boundaries

Total 1,880 km, Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km, Slovakia 214 km

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime Claims

None; landlocked

International Disputes

Liechtenstein claims restitution for l,600 square kilometers of Czech territory confiscated from its royal family in 1918; Sudeten German claims for restitution of property confiscated in connection with their expulsion after World War II versus the Czech Republic claims that restitution does not preceed before February 1948 when the Communists seized power; unresolved property issues with Slovakia over redistribution of property of the former Czechoslovak federal government

Climate

Temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters

Terrain

Two main regions: Bohemia in the west, consisting of rolling plains, hills, and plateaus surrounded by low mountains; and Moravia in the east, consisting of very hilly country
lowest point: Elbe River 115 m
highest point: Snezka 1,602 m

Natural Resources

Land Use

Irrigated Land

NA

Environment

Note: 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

PEOPLE

Population

10,321,120 (July 1996 est.)
10,432,774 (July 1995 est.)

Age Structure

0-14 Years

18% (male 965,861; female 918,745) (July 1996 est.)
19% (male 1,030,003; female 981,918) (July 1995 est.)

15-64 Years

68% (male 3,519,753; female 3,524,913) (July 1996 est.)
68% (male 3,530,112; female 3,529,411) (July 1995 est.)

65 Years and Over

14% (male 526,841; female 865,007) (July 1996 est.)
13% (male 512,731; female 848,599) (July 1995 est.)

Population Growth Rate

-0.03% (1996 est.)
0.26% (1995 est.)

Birth Rate

10.39 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
13.46 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death Rate

10.89 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
10.85 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net Migration Rate

0.24 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.94 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate

8.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
8.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life Expectancy at Birth

Total Fertility Rate

1.38 children born/woman (1996 est.)
1.84 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

Note: 300,000 Slovaks declared themselves Czech citizens in 1994

Ethnic Divisions

Religions

Languages

Czech, Slovak

Literacy

Can read and write

Labor Force

5.389 million

By occupation:

GOVERNMENT

Names

Digraph

EZ

Type

Parliamentary democracy

Capital

Prague

Administrative Divisions

8 regions (kraje, kraj - singular); Jihocesky, Jihomoravsky, Praha, Severocesky, Severomoravsky, Stredocesky, Vychodocesky, Zapadocesky

Independence

1 January 1993 (from Czechoslovakia)

National Holiday

National Liberation Day, 9 May; Founding of the Republic, 28 October

Constitution

Ratified 16 December 1992; effective 1 January 1993

Legal System

Civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; legal code modified to bring it in line with Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) obligations and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive Branch

Legislative Branch

Bicameral National Council (Narodni rada)

Senate

elections to be held 15-16 November 1996 (next to be held NA); seats (81 total)

Chamber of Deputies

Elections last held 5-6 June 1992 (next to be held NA 1996); results - percent of vote by party NA given breakup and realignment of all parliamentary opposition parties since 1992; seats - (200 Total)

Governing Coalition

ODS 65, KDS 10, ODA 16, KDU-CSL 15,

Judicial Branch

Supreme Court, Constitutional Court

Political Parties and Leaders

Other Political or Pressure Groups

Czech-Moravian Chamber of Trade Unions; Civic Movement

Member of

Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE (guest), CEI, CERN, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NACC, NSG, OECD, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCRO, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOMIG, UNOMIL, UNPROFOR, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

National Anthem

Flag

Two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side (almost identical to the flag of the former Czechoslovakia)

ECONOMY

Overview

The Czech Republic, which separated from Slovakia on 1 January 1993, emerged from recession with 2.6% growth in 1994 and 5% growth in 1995. Inflation in 1994-95 was cut in half; unemployment was kept at about 3%; the budget was balanced; and exports were reoriented to the EU. Prague's mass privatization program, including its innovative distribution of ownership shares to Czech citizens via "coupon vouchers," has made the most rapid progress in Eastern Europe. About 80% of the economy is wholly or partially in private hands. Because of its progress on reform, the Czech Republic in 1995 became the first post-Communist member of the OECD. Its solid economic performance also led Standard and Poor's to upgrade the country's sovereign credit rating to "A" and attracted nearly $5.3 billion in direct foreign investment to Czech industry between 1990 and September 1995. The Czech crown became convertible for current account transactions in October 1995. Czech companies increasingly are using the international capital market to fund capital investment, and foreign currency reserves totaled $13.9 billion at the end of 1995. Prague's biggest macroeconomic concern now is limiting the inflationary effect of these large capital inflows. The Czech economy also still faces microeconomic problems. Prague has promised to strengthen its bankruptcy law and improve the transparency of stock market operations in 1996, but some changes probably will not take effect until some time after the parliamentary elections of mid-1996 and will depend largely on voluntary compliance. Prague forecasts a balanced budget, 5.5% GDP growth, 2.8% unemployment, and 8.1% inflation for 1996.

National Product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $106.2 billion (1995 est.), $76.5 billion (1994 est.)

National Product Real Growth Rate

1.3% (1997)
5% (1995 est.)
2.2% (1994 est.)

National Product Per Capita

$10,200 (1995 est.)
$7,350 (1994 est.)

Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)

10.1% (1997)
9.1% (1995 est.)
10.2% (1994 est.)

Unemployment Rate

4.9% (1997)
2.9% (1995 est.)
3.2% (1994 est.)

Budget

Exports

$17.4 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.)
$13.4 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)

Commodities:

Partners:

Imports

$21.3 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.)
$13.3 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)

Commodities:

Partners:

External Debt

$14.9 billion (June 1995)
$8.7 billion (October 1994)

Industrial Production

Growth rate 4.9% (January-September 1994), 12.9% (January-November 1995)

Electricity

Industries

Agriculture

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

Illicit Drugs

Transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and Latin American cocaine to Western Europe

Economic Aid

Currency

1 koruna (Kc) = 100 haleru

Exchange Rates

Koruny (Kcs) per US$1 - 26.967 (January 1996), 26.541 (1995), 28.785 (1994), 29.153 (1993), 28.26 (1992), 29.53 (1991), 17.95 (1990)

Note: Values before 1993 reflect Czechoslovak exchange rates

Fiscal Year

Calendar year

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads

Highways

Inland Waterways

NA km; the Elbe (Labe) is the principal river

Pipelines

Natural gas 5,400 km

Ports

Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem

Merchant Marine

Airports

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephone System

3,349,539 (1993 est.) telephones

Radio

Television

DEFENSE FORCES

Branches

Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, Civil Defense, Railroad Units

Manpower Availability

Males age 15-49 2,724,607; males fit for military service 2,074,331; males reach military age (18) annually 88,418 (1995 est.)

Defense Expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $931 million, 2.5% of GDP (1995)

History
World Atlas