Slovakia

Slovak RepublicSlovenska Republika

parliamentary democracyIndependence 1 January 1993 (from Czechoslovakia)

Slovakia as the 1993 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 79 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.

CapitalBratislava

Area48,845 km2

LocationEastern Europe, between Hungary and Poland

Populationas each edition published it

5.38 million July 1993 est. · 5.56m in 2025

Population growth% a year

0.51% 1993 est. · -0.07% in 2025

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 35 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

72.39 years 1993 est. · 77.2 yrs in 2025

Fertility ratechildren per woman

1.99 children per woman 1993 est. · 1.6 in 2025

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

10.8 deaths per 1,000 live births 1993 est. · 5 in 2025

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$6,100 1992 est. · $40,300 in 2025

GDP real growth% a year

-7% 1992 est. · 2.1% in 2025

Geography

Eastern Europe, between Hungary and Poland

14 fields

Area

48,845km2

land area: 48,800 km2comparative area: about twice the size of New Hampshire

Coastline

0km

(landlocked)Maritime claims: none; landlocked

Land boundaries

1,355km

total · Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 515 km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 90 km

Location

Eastern Europe, between Hungary and Poland

Map references

Ethnic Groups in Eastern Europe, Europe, Standard Time Zones of the World

International disputes

Gabcikovo-Nagymaros Dam dispute with Hungary;
unresolved property issues with Czech Republic over redistribution of former Czechoslovak federal property;
establishment of international border between the Czech Republic and Slovakia

Climate

temperate;
cool summers;
cold, cloudy, humid winters

Terrain

rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in the south

Natural resources

brown coal and lignite;
small amounts of iron ore, copper and manganese ore;
salt;
gas

Land use

arable land:: NA%
permanent crops:: NA%
meadows and pastures:: NA%
forest and woodland:: NA%
other:: NA%

Environment

severe damage to forests from "acid rain" caused by coal-fired power stations

People

14 fields

Population

5,375,501

(July 1993 est.)growth rate: 0.51% (1993 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1993 est.)

Birth

14.59Death

9.47Net migration

Religions

Roman Catholic 60.3%atheist 9.7%Protestant 8.4%Orthodox 4.1%other 17.5%

Labor force

2.484million

by occupation: industry 33.2%, agriculture 12.2%, construction 10.3%, communication and other 44.3% (1990)

Infant mortality rate

10.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population:: 72.39 years
male:: 68.18 years
female:: 76.85 years (1993 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Slovak(s)
adjective:: Slovak

Slovak 85.6%, Hungarian 10.8%, Gypsy 1.5% (the 1992 census figures underreport the Gypsy/Romany community, which could reach 500,000 or more), Czech 1.1%, Ruthenian 15,000, Ukrainian 13,000, Moravian 6,000, German 5,000, Polish 3,000

Languages

Slovak (official), Hungarian

Literacy

total population:: NA%
male:: NA%
female:: NA%

Government

Parliamentary democracy

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Names

conventional long form:: Slovak Republic
conventional short form:: Slovakia
local long form:: Slovenska Republika
local short form:: Slovensko

Digraph

Type

parliamentary democracy

Capital

Bratislava

Administrative divisions

4 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) Bratislava, Zapadoslovensky, Stredoslovensky, Vychodoslovensky

Independence

1 January 1993 (from Czechoslovakia)

Constitution

ratified 3 September 1992; fully effective 1 January 1993

Legal system

civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction;
legal code modified to comply with the obligations of Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory

National holiday

Slovak National Uprising, August 29 (1944)

Political parties and leaders

Hungarian Christian Democratic Movement, Vojtech BUGAR;
Christian Democratic Movement, Jan CARNOGURSKY;
Movement for a Democratic Slovakia, Vladimir MECIAR, chairman;
Party of the Democratic Left, Peter WEISS, chairman;
Slovak National Party, Ludovit CERNAK, chairman;
Coexistence, Miklos DURAY, chairman;
Party of Conservative Democrats, leader NA

Other political or pressure groups

Green Party;
Democratic Party;
Social Democratic Party in Slovakia;
Movement for Czech-Slovak Accord;
Freedom Party;
Slovak Christian Union;
Hungarian Civic Party

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Elections

President:: last held 8 February 1993 (next to be held NA 1998); results - Michal KOVAC elected by the National Council
National Council:: last held 5-6 June 1992 (next to be held NA June 1996);
results - Movement for a Democratic Slovakia 37%, Party of the Democratic Left 15%, Christian Democratic Movement 9%, Slovak National Party 8%, Hungarian Christian Democratic Movement/Coexistence 7%;
seats - (150 total) Movement for a Democratic Slovakia, 74, Party of the Democratic Left 29, Christian Democratic Movement 18, Slovak National Party 15, Hungarian Christian Democratic Movement/Coexistence 14

Executive branch

president, prime minister, Cabinet

Legislative branch

unicameral National Council (Narodni Rada)

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Leaders

Chief of State:: President Michal KOVAC (since 8 February 1993)
Head of Government:: Prime Minister Vladimir MECIAR (since NA), Deputy Prime Minister Roman KOVAC (since NA)

Member of

BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, CSCE, EBRD, ECE, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LORCS, NACC, NAM (guest), NSG, PCA, UN (as of 8 January 1993), UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOSOM, UNPROFOR, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission:
Charge d'Affaires Dr. Milan ERBAN chancery:: 3900 Spring of Freedom Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:: (202) 363-6315 or 6316

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:: Ambassador Elect Eleanor SUTTER
embassy:: Hviczdoslavovo Namestie 4, 81102 Bratislava
mailing address:: use embassy street address
telephone:: 427 330 861

Flag

three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red superimposed with a crest with a white double cross on three blue mountains

Economy

The dissolution of Czechoslovakia into two independent states - the Czech | Republic and Slovakia - on 1 January 1993 has complicated the task of moving | toward a more open and decentralized economy.

19 fields

GDP per capita, PPP

$6,100

(1992 est.)

Real growth rate

-7%

(1992 est.)industrial production growth: growth rate NA%

Inflation, consumer prices

8.7%

(1992 est.)

Unemployment rate

11.3%

(1992 est.)

Overview

The dissolution of Czechoslovakia into two independent states - the Czech Republic and Slovakia - on 1 January 1993 has complicated the task of moving toward a more open and decentralized economy. The old Czechoslovakia, even though highly industrialized by East European standards, suffered from an aging capital plant, lagging technology, and a deficiency in energy and many raw materials.

In January 1991, approximately one year after the end of communist control of Eastern Europe, the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic launched a sweeping program to convert its almost entirely state-owned and controlled economy to a market system. In 1991-92 these measures resulted in privatization of some medium- and small-scale economic activity and the setting of more than 90% of prices by the market - but at a cost in inflation, unemployment, and lower output.

For Czechoslovakia as a whole inflation in 1991 was roughly 50% and output fell 15%. In 1992 in Slovakia, inflation slowed to an estimated 8.7% and the estimated fall in GDP was a more moderate 7%. In 1993 the government anticipates up to a 7% drop in GDP, with the disruptions from the separation from the Czech lands probably accounting for half the decline;

inflation, according to government projections, may rise to 15-20% and unemployment may reach 12-15%. The Slovak government is moving ahead less enthusiastically than the Czech government in the further dismantling of the old centrally controlled economic system. Although the governments of Slovakia and the Czech Republic had envisaged retaining the koruna as a common currency at least in the short run, the two countries ended the currency union in February 1993.

National product

GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $32.1 billion (1992 est.)

Budget

revenues $NA; expenditures $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

Exports

$3.6 billion (f.o.b., 1992)

commodities:: machinery and transport equipment;
chemicals;
fuels, minerals, and metals;
agricultural products
partners:: Czech Republic, CIS republics, Germany, Poland, Austria, Hungary, Italy, France, US, UK

Imports

$3.6 billion (f.o.b., 1992)

commodities:: machinery and transport equipment;
fuels and lubricants;
manufactured goods;
raw materials;
chemicals;
agricultural products
partners:: Czech Republic, CIS republics, Germany, Austria, Poland, Switzerland, Hungary, UK, Italy

External debt

$1.9 billion hard currency indebtedness (December 1992)

Electricity

6,800,000 kW capacity; 24,000 million kWh produced, 4,550 kWh per capita (1992)

Industries

brown coal mining, chemicals, metal-working, consumer appliances, fertilizer, plastics, armaments

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

the former Czechoslavakia was a transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and was emerging as a transshipment point for Latin American cocaine (1992)

Economic aid

the former Czechoslovakia was a donor - $4.2 billion in bilateral aid to non-Communist less developed countries (1954-89)

Currency

1 koruna (Kc) = 100 haleru

Exchange rates

koruny (Kcs) per US$1 - 28.59 (December 1992), 28.26 (1992), 29.53 (1991), 17.95 (1990), 15.05 (1989), 14.36 (1988)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

8 fields

Networkskm · (1990)

Highways

17,650Railroads

3,669

Inland waterways

NA km

Pipelines

natural gas 2,700 km; petroleum products NA km

Ports

maritime outlets are in Poland (Gdynia, Gdansk, Szczecin), Croatia (Rijeka), Slovenia (Koper), Germany (Hamburg, Rostock);
principal river ports are Komarno on the Danube and Bratislava on the Danube

Merchant marine

the former Czechoslovakia had 22 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 290,185 GRT/437,291 DWT;
includes 13 cargo, 9 bulk;
may be shared with the Czech Republic