Czechia

Czech Republic conventional short form: Czech Republic local long form: Ceska Republika local short form: Ceska Republika

parliamentary democracy

Czechia as the 2001 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 117 fields, one of 33 editions from 1993 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalPrague

Position49 45 N, 15 30 E

Area78,866 sq km land: 77,276 sq km water: 1,590 sq km

LocationCentral Europe, southeast of Germany

Populationas each edition published it

10.26 million July 2001 est. · 10.39m in 1993

Population growth% a year

-0.07% 2001 est. · 0.16% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 38.4 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

74.73 years 2001 est. · 72.64 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

1.18 children per woman 2001 est. · 1.85 in 1993

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

5.55 deaths per 1,000 live births 2001 est. · 9.7 in 1993

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$12,900 2000 est. · $7,300 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

2.5% 2000 est. · -5% in 1993

Introduction

1 field

Background

After World War II, Czechoslovakia fell within the Soviet sphere of influence. In 1968, an invasion by Warsaw Pact troops ended the efforts of the country's leaders to liberalize party rule and create "socialism with a human face." Anti-Soviet demonstrations the following year ushered in a period of harsh repression. With the collapse of Soviet authority in 1989, Czechoslovakia regained its freedom through a peaceful "Velvet Revolution."

On 1 January 1993, the country underwent a "velvet divorce" into its two national components, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Now a member of NATO, the Czech Republic has moved toward integration in world markets, a development that poses both opportunities and risks.

Geography

Central Europe, southeast of Germany

18 fields

Coastline

0km

(landlocked)Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Irrigated land

240sq km

(1993 est.)

Location

Central Europe, southeast of Germany

Geographic coordinates

49 45 N, 15 30 E

Map references

Europe

Area

total: 78,866 sq km land: 77,276 sq km water: 1,590 sq km

Land boundaries

total: 1,881 km border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km, Slovakia 215 km

Climate

temperate;
cool summers;
cold, cloudy, humid winters

Terrain

Bohemia in the west consists of rolling plains, hills, and plateaus surrounded by low mountains; Moravia in the east consists of very hilly country

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Elbe River 115 m highest point: Snezka 1,602 m

Natural resources

hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber

Land use

arable land: 41% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 11% forests and woodland: 34% other: 12% (1993 est.)

Natural hazards

flooding

Environment - current issues

air and water pollution in areas of northwest Bohemia and in northern Moravia around Ostrava present health risks; acid rain damaging forests

Environment - international agreements

party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geography - 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

18 fields

Population

10,264,212

(July 2001 est.)growth rate: -0.07% (2001 est.)

Per 1,000 population(2001 est.)

Birth

9.11Death

10.81Net migration

0.96

Ethnic groups(1991)

Czech 81.2%Moravian 13.2%Slovak 3.1%Polish 0.6%German 0.5%Silesian 0.4%Roma 0.3%Hungarian 0.2%other 0.5% (1991)

Religions

atheist 39.8%Roman Catholic 39.2%Protestant 4.6%Orthodox 3%other 13.4%

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

0.04%

(1999 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 16.09% (male 847,219; female 804,731) 15-64 years: 69.99% (male 3,592,984; female 3,590,802) 65 years and over: 13.92% (male 549,538; female 878,938) (2001 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: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate

5.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 74.73 years male: 71.23 years female: 78.43 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.18 children born/woman (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

2,200 (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

less than 100 (1999 est.)

Nationality

noun: Czech(s) adjective: Czech

Languages

Czech

Literacy

definition: NA total population: 99.9% (1999 est.) male: NA% female: NA%

Government

Parliamentary democracy; President Vaclav HAVEL (since 2 February 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Milos ZEMAN (since 17 July 1998)

20 fields

Legislature, 200 seatsone dot, one seat

CSSD 74ODS 63KSCM 24KDU-CSL 20US 18CSNS 1

Country name

conventional long form: Czech Republic conventional short form: Czech Republic local long form: Ceska Republika local short form: Ceska Republika

Government type

parliamentary democracy

Capital

Prague

Administrative divisions

13 regions (kraje, singular - kraj) and 1 capital city* (hlavni mesto);
Brnensky, Budejovicky, Jihlavsky, Karlovarsky, Kralovehradecky, Liberecky, Olomoucky, Ostravsky, Pardubicky, Plzensky, Praha*, Stredocesky, Ustecky, Zlinsky

Independence

1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia)

National holiday

Czech Founding Day, 28 October (1918)

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

chief of state:: President Vaclav HAVEL (since 2 February 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Milos ZEMAN (since 17 July 1998);
Deputy Prime Ministers Vladimir SPIDLA (since 22 July 1998), Pavel RYCHETSKY (since 22 July 1998), Jan KAVAN (since 8 December 1999) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term;
election last held 20 January 1998 (next to be held NA January 2003);
prime minister appointed by the president election results: Vaclav HAVEL reelected president;
Vaclav HAVEL received 47 of 81 votes in the Senate and 99 out of 200 votes in the Chamber of Deputies (second round of voting)

Legislative branch

bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (81 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies or Poslanecka snemovna (200 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 12 and 19 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2002);
Chamber of Deputies - last held 19-20 June 1998 (next to be held by NA June 2002) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%;
seats by party - KDU-CSL 28, ODS 22, CSSD 15, ODA 7, US 4, KSCM 3, independents 2;
Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - CSSD 32.3%, ODS 27.7%, KSCM 11%, KDU-CSL 9.0%, US 8.6%;
seats by party - CSSD 74, ODS 63, KSCM 24, KDU-CSL 20, US 18, CSNS 1

Judicial branch

Supreme Court;
Constitutional Court;
chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed by the president for a 10-year term

Political parties and leaders

Christian and Democratic Union-Czechoslovak People's Party or KDU-CSL [Jan KASAL, chairman];
Civic Democratic Alliance or ODA [Daniel KROUPA, chairman];
Civic Democratic Party or ODS [Vaclav KLAUS, chairman];
Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia or KSCM [Miroslav GREBENICEK, chairman];
Communist Party of Czechoslovakia or KSC [Miroslav STEPAN, chairman];
Czech National Social Party of CSNS [Jan SULA, chairman];
Czech Social Democratic Party or CSSD [Milos ZEMAN, chairman];
Democratic Union or DEU [Ratibor MAJZLIK, chairman];
Freedom Union or US [Karel KUEHNL, chairman];
Quad Coalition [Cyril SVOBODA, chairman] (includes KDU-CSL, US, ODA, DEU);
Republicans of Miroslav SLADEK or RMS [Miroslav SLADEK, chairman]

Political pressure groups and leaders

Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions [Richard FALBR]

International organization participation

ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Alexsandr VONDRA chancery: 3900 Spring of Freedom Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 274-9100

FAX

[1] (202) 966-8540 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Steven J. COFFEY embassy: Trziste 15, 11801 Prague 1 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [420] (2) 5753-0663

FAX

[420] (2) 5753-0583

Flag description

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

Economy

Basically one of the most stable and prosperous of the post-Communist states, the Czech Republic has been recovering from recession since mid-1999.

32 fields

Real growth rate

2.5%

(2000 est.)industrial production growth: 7.6% (2000)

Inflation, consumer prices

3.8%

(2000 est.)

Unemployment rate

8.7%

(2000 est.)

Labor force

5.203million

(1999 est.)

Trading partnersexports left, imports right

43%

Germany

37.5%

8.4%

Slovakia

6.7%

6.6%

Austria

6.2%

Italy

5.9%

5.6%

Poland

France

5.4%

Exports $28.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000)Imports $31.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000)(1999)

Electricity

Electricity production

67.642 billion (2000)Electricity consumption

52.898 billion (2000)Electricity exports

18.744 billion (2000)Electricity imports

8.735 billion (2000)

Economy - overview

Basically one of the most stable and prosperous of the post-Communist states, the Czech Republic has been recovering from recession since mid-1999. The economy grew about 2.5% in 2000 and should achieve somewhat higher growth in 2001. Growth is led by exports to the EU, especially Germany, and foreign investment, while domestic demand is reviving.

Uncomfortably high fiscal and current account deficits could be future problems. Unemployment is down to 8.7% as job creation continues in the rebounding economy; inflation is up to 3.8% but still moderate. The EU put the Czech Republic just behind Poland and Hungary in preparations for accession, which will give further impetus and direction to structural reform.

Moves to complete banking, telecommunications and energy privatization will add to foreign investment, while intensified restructuring among large enterprises and banks and improvements in the financial sector should strengthen output growth.

GDP

purchasing power parity - $132.4 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $12,900 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 3.7% industry: 41.8% services: 54.5% (1999)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 5%, industry 40%, services 55% (2000 est.)

Budget

revenues: $16.7 billion expenditures: $18 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)

Industries

metallurgy, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, glass, armaments

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel: 77.8% hydro: 3.43% nuclear: 18.77% other: 0% (2000)

Agriculture - products

wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry

Exports

$28.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

Exports - commodities

machinery and transport equipment 44%, other manufactured goods 40%, chemicals 7%, raw materials and fuel 7% (1999)

Imports

$31.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

Imports - commodities

machinery and transport equipment 42%, other manufactured goods 33%, chemicals 12%, raw materials and fuels 10% (1999)

Debt - external

$21.3 billion (2000)

Economic aid - recipient

$NA

Currency

Czech koruna (CZK)

Currency code

CZK

Exchange rates

koruny per US dollar - 37.425 (January 2001), 38.598 (2000), 34.569 (1999), 32.281 (1998), 31.698 (1997), 27.145 (1996)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

10 fields

Mobile cellular

4.346 million

(2000)

Fixed lines

3.869 million

(2000) · country code .cz

Telephone system

general assessment:: privatization and modernization of the Czech telecommunication system got a late start but is advancing steadily;
growth in the use of mobile cellular telephones is particularly vigorous domestic: 86% of exchanges now digital;
existing copper subscriber systems now being enhanced with Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) equipment to accommodate Internet and other digital signals;
trunk systems include fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions), 1 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat, 1 Globalstar

Radio broadcast stations

AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000)

Radios

3,159,134 (December 2000)

Television broadcast stations

150 (plus 1,434 repeaters) (2000)

Televisions

3,405,834 (December 2000)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

more than 300 (2000)

Internet users

900,000 (2000)

Transportation

9 fields

Military

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

7 fields

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

2.2%

(FY01)

Transnational Issues

2 fields

Disputes - international

Liechtenstein's royal family claims restitution for 1,600 sq km of land in the Czech Republic confiscated in 1918;
individual Sudeten German claims for restitution of property confiscated in connection with their expulsion after World War II;
Austria has minor dispute with Czech Republic over nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities

Illicit drugs

major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and minor transit point for Latin American cocaine to Western Europe;
domestic consumption - especially of locally produced synthetic drugs - on the rise

Central Intelligence Agency. “Czech Republic.” The World Factbook 2001. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/czechia/2001.

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