CZECH REPUBLIC
Location: Europe
Status: EU Country
Capital: Prague (Praha)
Main Cities: Brno, Ostrava
Population: 10,241,000
Area: (sq.Km) 78,866
Currency: koruna
Language: Czech
Official Fashion Week
Fashion Show Prague Hilton
Introduction ::CZECH REPUBLIC
Following the First World War, the closely related Czechs and Slovaks of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire merged to form Czechoslovakia. During the interwar years, the new country's leaders were frequently preoccupied with meeting the demands of other ethnic minorities within the republic, most notably the Sudeten Germans and the Ruthenians (Ukrainians). After World War II, a truncated 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 Communist 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. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004.
Geography ::CZECH REPUBLIC
Central Europe, between Germany, Poland, Slovakia, and Austria
49 45 N, 15 30 E
Area:
total: 78,867 sq km
country comparison to the world: 115
land: 77,247 sq km
water: 1,620 sq km
slightly smaller than South Carolina
total: 1,989 km
border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 815 km, Poland 615 km, Slovakia 197 km
0 km (landlocked)
none (landlocked)
temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters
Bohemia in the west consists of rolling plains, hills, and plateaus surrounded by low mountains; Moravia in the east consists of very hilly country
lowest point: Elbe River 115 m
highest point: Snezka 1,602 m
hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber
arable land: 38.82%
permanent crops: 3%
other: 58.18% (2005)
240 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
16 cu km (2005)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 1.91 cu km/yr (41%/57%/2%)
per capita: 187 cu m/yr (2002)
flooding
air and water pollution in areas of northwest Bohemia and in northern Moravia around Ostrava present health risks; acid rain damaging forests; efforts to bring industry up to EU code should improve domestic pollution
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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 ::CZECH REPUBLIC
10,201,707 (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 81
0-14 years: 13.5% (male 706,453/female 668,166)
15-64 years: 70.7% (male 3,624,662/female 3,583,106)
65 years and over: 15.9% (male 642,258/female 977,062) (2010 est.)
total: 40.4 years
male: 38.9 years
female: 42.2 years (2010 est.)
-0.106% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 211
8.76 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 213
10.79 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43
0.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 52
urban population: 73% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 0% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
at birth: 1.059 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
total: 3.76 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 211
male: 4.1 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 3.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
total population: 77.01 years
country comparison to the world: 61
male: 73.74 years
female: 80.48 years (2010 est.)
1.25 children born/woman (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 215
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
country comparison to the world: 162
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
1,500 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 139
fewer than 10 (2001 est.)
country comparison to the world: 154
noun: Czech(s)
adjective: Czech
Czech 90.4%, Moravian 3.7%, Slovak 1.9%, other 4% (2001 census)
Roman Catholic 26.8%, Protestant 2.1%, other 3.3%, unspecified 8.8%, unaffiliated 59% (2001 census)
Czech 94.9%, Slovak 2%, other 2.3%, unidentified 0.8% (2001 census)
definition: NA
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (2003 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 15 years
male: 15 years
female: 15 years (2006)
4.4% of GDP (2004)
country comparison to the world: 94
Government ::CZECH REPUBLIC
conventional long form: Czech Republic
conventional short form: Czech Republic
local long form: Ceska Republika
local short form: Cesko
parliamentary democracy
name: Prague
geographic coordinates: 50 05 N, 14 28 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
13 regions (kraje, singular - kraj) and 1 capital city* (hlavni mesto); Jihocesky (South Bohemia), Jihomoravsky (South Moravia), Karlovarsky, Kralovehradecky, Liberecky, Moravskoslezsky (Moravia-Silesia), Olomoucky, Pardubicky, Plzensky (Pilsen), Praha (Prague)*, Stredocesky (Central Bohemia), Ustecky, Vysocina, Zlinsky
1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia); note - although 1 January is the day the Czech Republic came into being, the Czechs generally consider 28 October 1918, the day the former Czechoslovakia declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, as their independence day
Czechoslovak Founding Day, 28 October (1918)
ratified on 16 December 1992, effective on 1 January 1993; amended in 1997, 2000, 2001 (twice), 2002
civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; legal code modified to bring it in line with European Union obligations and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory
18 years of age; universal
chief of state: President Vaclav KLAUS (since 7 March 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Jan FISCHER (since 8 May 2009); Deputy Prime Ministers Jan KOHOUT (since 8 May 2009) and Martin BARTAK (since 8 May 2009)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister
elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); last successful election held on 15 February 2008 (after earlier elections held 8 and 9 February 2008 were inconclusive; next election to be held in 2013); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: Vaclav KLAUS reelected president on 15 February 2008; Vaclav KLAUS 141 votes, Jan SVEJNAR 111 votes (third round; combined votes of both chambers of parliament)
bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (81 seats; members 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 in two rounds on 17-18 and 24-25 October 2008 (next to be held by October 2010); Chamber of Deputies - last held on 2-3 June 2006 (next to be held by 28-29 May 2010)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ODS 36, CSSD 29, KDU-CSL 7, Open Democracy Club 6, others 3; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - ODS 35.4%, CSSD 32.3%, KSCM 12.8%, KDU-CSL 7.2%, Greens 6.3%, other 6%; seats by party - ODS 81, CSSD 74, KSCM 26, KDU-CSL 13, Greens 6; note - seats by party as of March 2010 - ODS 78, CSSD 70, KSCM 26, KDU-CSL 9, Greens 4, unaffiliated 13 (former CSSD, ODS, and Green Party members)
Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; Supreme Administrative Court; chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed by the president for a 10-year term
Political parties and leaders:
Association of Independent Candidates-European Democrats or SNK-ED [Helmut DOHNALEK]; Christian Democratic Union-Czechoslovak People's Party or KDU-CSL [Cyril SVOBODA]; Civic Democratic Party or ODS [Mirek TOPOLANEK]; Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia or KSCM [Vojtech FILIP]; Czech Social Democratic Party or CSSD [Jiri PAROUBEK]; Green Party [Ondrej LISKA]; Open Democracy Club (a liberal parliamentary group within the Czech senate); Tradice Odpovednost Prosperita 09 or TOP 09 [Karel SCHWARZENBERG]; Union of Freedom-Democratic Union or US-DEU [Jan CERNY]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions or CMKOS [Milan STECH]
International organization participation:
ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CD, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Petr KOLAR
chancery: 3900 Spring of Freedom Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 274-9100
FAX: [1] (202) 966-8540
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Mary THOMPSON-JONES
embassy: Trziste 15, 118 01 Prague 1
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [420] 257 022 000
FAX: [420] 257 022 809
two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side
note: uses the pan-Slavic colors and is identical to the flag of the former Czechoslovakia
Economy ::CZECH REPUBLIC
The Czech Republic is one of the most stable and prosperous of the post-Communist states of Central and Eastern Europe. Maintaining an open investment climate has been a key element of the Czech Republic's transition from a communist, centrally planned economy to a functioning market economy. As a member of the European Union, with an advantageous location in the center of Europe, a relatively low cost structure, and a well-qualified labor force, the Czech Republic is an attractive destination for foreign investment. Prior to its EU accession in 2004, the Czech government harmonized its laws and regulations with those of the European Union. The small, open, export-driven Czech economy grew by over 6% annually from 2005-2007 and by 2.5% in 2008. The conservative Czech financial system has remained relatively healthy throughout 2009. Nevertheless, the real economy contracted by 4.1% in 2009, mainly due to a significant drop in external demand as the Czech Republic's main export markets fell into recession.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$256.6 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43
$267.6 billion (2008 est.)
$261.1 billion (2007 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
$191.9 billion (2009 est.)
-4.1% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 182
2.5% (2008 est.)
6.1% (2007 est.)
$25,100 (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 52
$26,200 (2008 est.)
$25,500 (2007 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
agriculture: 2.8%
industry: 35%
services: 62.3% (2009 est.)
5.38 million (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 70
agriculture: 3.6%
industry: 40.2%
services: 56.2% (2007)
9.3% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 107
5.4% (2008 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 4.3%
highest 10%: 22.4% (1996)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
26 (2005)
country comparison to the world: 128
25.4 (1996)
23.2% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 56
revenues: $76.71 billion
expenditures: $85.65 billion (2009 est.)
32.8% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 78
26.8% of GDP (2008 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1.1% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 42
6.3% (2008 est.)
0.25% (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 130
2.25% (31 December 2008)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
6.25% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 140
5.79% (31 December 2007)
$86.55 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 16
$84.43 billion (31 December 2007)
$58.6 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 30
$58.77 billion (31 December 2007)
$110.5 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 39
$103.9 billion (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$48.85 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 52
$73.42 billion (31 December 2007)
$48.6 billion (31 December 2006)
wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry
motor vehicles, metallurgy, machinery and equipment, glass, armaments
Industrial production growth rate:
-13.4% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 151
82.72 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 35
61.65 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 41
19.99 billion kWh (2008 est.)
8.52 billion kWh (2008 est.)
16,080 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 79
212,800 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 54
22,560 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 90
213,900 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 44
15 million bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 84
192 million cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 75
8.719 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 49
968 million cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 35
9.573 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 24
Natural gas - proved reserves:
3.964 billion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 92
-$3.886 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 167
-$6.642 billion (2008 est.)
$106.4 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
$145.7 billion (2008 est.)
machinery and transport equipment, raw materials and fuel, chemicals
Germany 28%, Taiwan 8.5%, Slovakia 8.4%, Poland 5.9%, France 4.9%, UK 4.4%, Austria 4.3%, Italy 4.3% (2008)
$99.97 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 30
$139.4 billion (2008 est.)
machinery and transport equipment, raw materials and fuels, chemicals
Germany 28.6%, Taiwan 6.8%, Slovakia 6.2%, Poland 6.1%, Russia 5.8%, Netherlands 5.3%, Austria 4.9%, China 4.6% (2008)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$38.68 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 27
$36.68 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
$76.83 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
$80.43 billion (31 December 2008)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$118.9 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 30
$111.9 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$11.11 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 44
$9.913 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
koruny (CZK) per US dollar - 19.373 (2009), 17.064 (2008), 20.53 (2007), 22.596 (2006), 23.957 (2005)
Communications ::CZECH REPUBLIC
Telephones - main lines in use:
2.278 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 54
13.78 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 48
general assessment: privatization and modernization of the Czech telecommunication system got a late start but is advancing steadily; virtually all exchanges now digital; existing copper subscriber systems 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
domestic: access to the fixed-line telephone network expanded throughout the 1990s but the number of fixed line connections has been dropping since then; mobile telephone usage increased sharply beginning in the mid-1990s and the number of cellular telephone subscriptions now greatly exceeds the population
international: country code - 420; satellite earth stations - 6 (2 Intersputnik - Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions, 1 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat, 1 Globalstar) (2008)
AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000)
Television broadcast stations:
71 (2008)
.cz
3.233 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 24
6.028 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 38
Transportation ::CZECH REPUBLIC
122 (2009)
country comparison to the world: 48
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 44
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 18 (2009)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 78
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 27
under 914 m: 50 (2009)
1 (2009)
gas 7,010 km; oil 547 km; refined products 94 km (2009)
total: 9,620 km
country comparison to the world: 22
standard gauge: 9,521 km 1.435-m gauge (3,013 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 99 km 0.750-m gauge (2008)
total: 128,582 km
country comparison to the world: 36
paved: 128,582 km (includes 691 km of expressways) (2008)
664 km (principally on Elbe, Vltava, Oder, and other navigable rivers, lakes, and canals) (2008)
country comparison to the world: 77
registered in other countries: 1 (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1) (2008)
country comparison to the world: 150
Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem
Military ::CZECH REPUBLIC
Army of the Czech Republic (ACR): Joint Forces Command (includes Land Forces and Air Forces), Support and Training Forces Command (2010)
Military service age and obligation:
18-28 years of age for voluntary and 19-28 for compulsory military service (2008)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 2,517,268
females age 16-49: 2,418,163 (2010 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 2,086,662
females age 16-49: 2,003,055 (2010 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 55,139
female: 52,440 (2010 est.)
1.46% of GDP (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 103
Transnational Issues ::CZECH REPUBLIC
while threats of international legal action never materialized in 2007, 915,220 Austrians, with the support of the popular Freedom Party, signed a petition in January 2008, demanding that Austria block the Czech Republic's accession to the EU unless Prague closes its controversial Soviet-style nuclear plant in Temelin, bordering Austria
transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and minor transit point for Latin American cocaine to Western Europe; producer of synthetic drugs for local and regional markets; susceptible to money laundering related to drug trafficking, organized crime; significant consumer of ecstasy (2008)
Source: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ar.html
COMING SOON.
