Slovakia

[Country map of Slovakia]

Map ©1996 NGS Cartographic Division. Developed in association with GeoSystems Global Corp. World Map

Geography

Location: Central Europe, south of Poland

Map references: Ethnic Groups in Eastern Europe, Europe

Area:
total area: 48,845 sq km
land area: 48,800 sq km
comparative area: about twice the size of New Hampshire

Land boundaries: total 1,355km, Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 515 km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 90 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

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

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

Irrigated land: NA sq km


People

Population: 5,432,383 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 23% (female 609,795; male 638,346)
15-64 years: 66% (female 1,807,312; male 1,778,712)
65 years and over: 11% (female 364,610; male 233,608) (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.54% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 14.51 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 9.12 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 10 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 73.24 years
male: 69.15 years
female: 77.57 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.93 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Slovak(s)
adjective: Slovak

Ethnic divisions: Slovak 85.7%, Hungarian 10.7%, Gypsy 1.5% (the 1992 census figures underreport the Gypsy/Romany community, which could reach 500,000 or more), Czech 1%, Ruthenian 0.3%, Ukrainian 0.3%, German 0.1%, Polish 0.1%, other 0.3%

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

Languages: Slovak (official), Hungarian

Literacy: NA%

Labor force: 2.484 million
by occupation: industry 33.2%, agriculture 12.2%, construction 10.3%, communication and other 44.3% (1990)


Government

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

Digraph: LO

Type: parliamentary democracy

Capital: Bratislava

Administrative divisions: 4 departments (kraje, singular - kraj) Bratislava, Zapadoslovensky, Stredoslovensky, Vychodoslovensky

Independence: 1 January 1993 (from Czechoslovakia)

National holiday: Anniversary of Slovak National Uprising, August 29 (1944)

Constitution: ratified 1 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 Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal


Economy

Overview: In 1994 macroeconomic performance improved steadily but privatization progressed only in fits and starts. Most of Slovakia's IMF-approved targets were met by an interim government that lasted 9 months. Annual inflation fell from 23% in 1993 to 12%; unemployment at 14.6% was still well below forecasts of 17%; and the budget deficit was around half that in 1993. Slovakia's nearly $200 million trade surplus also compares favorably with a more than $800 million deficit in 1993. Furthermore, after contracting almost 25% in the three years following 1990, GDP grew 4.3% in 1994, according to official statistics. Bratislava in June qualified for a $254 million IMF stand-by loan and the second $90 million tranche of its Systemic Transformation Facility and, in December, received approval for a European Union loan worth about $160 million. By the end of September 1994, the Central Bank's foreign currency reserves had tripled since the end of 1993. Slovakia continued to have difficulty attracting foreign investment, however, because of perceived political instability and halting progress in privatization. The interim government prepared property worth nearly $2 billion for the second wave of coupon privatization and sold participation in the program to over 80% of Slovakia's eligible citizens. Parties controlling the new Parliament in November 1994, however, put the second wave of coupon privatization on hold and suspended sales of 38 firms until the new government could evaluate the interim government's decisions in early 1995. The new government's targets for 1995 include GDP growth of 3%, inflation of 8%-10%, unemployment of 15%, and a budget deficit under 3% of GDP. Continuing economic recovery in western Europeshould boost Slovak exports and production, but Slovakia's image with foreign creditors and investors could suffer setbacks in 1995 if progress on privatization stalls or budget deficits mount beyond IMF-recommended levels.

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $32.8 billion (1994 est.)

National product real growth rate: 4.3% (1994 est.)

National product per capita: $6,070 (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 12% (1994 est.)

Unemployment rate: 14.6% (1994 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $4.4 billion
expenditures: $4.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $350 million (1994 est.)

Exports: $6.3 billion (f.o.b., January-November 1994)
commodities: machinery and transport equipment; chemicals; fuels, minerals, and metals; agricultural products
partners: Czech Republic 37.7%, Germany 17.1%, Hungary 5.3%, Austria 5.3%, Italy 4.6%, Russia 4.0%, Poland 2.6%, Ukraine 1.8%, US 1.6% (January-September 1994)

Imports: $6.1 billion (f.o.b., January-November 1994)
commodities: machinery and transport equipment; fuels and lubricants; manufactured goods; raw materials; chemicals; agricultural products
partners: Czech Republic 29.9%, Russia 19.0%, Germany 13.2%, Austria 5.8%, Italy 4.3%, US 2.6%, Poland 2.4%, Ukraine 1.9%, Hungary 1.6% (January-September 1994)

External debt: $4.2 billion hard currency indebtedness(1994 est.)

Industrial production: growth rate NA%

Electricity:
capacity: 6,300,000 kW
production: 20.9 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 3,609 kWh (1993)

Industries: metal and metal products; food and beverages; electricity, gas, and water; coking, oil production, and nuclear fuel production; chemicals and manmade fibers; machinery; paper and printing; earthenware and ceramics; transport vehicles; textiles; electrical and optical apparatus; rubber products

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

Currency: 1 koruna (Sk) = 100 halierov

Fiscal year: calendar year


Transportation

Railroads:
total: 3,660 km (electrified 635 km)
broad gauge: 102 km 1.520-m gauge
standard gauge: 3,511 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 47 km (35 km 1,000-m gauge; 12 km 0.750-m gauge) (1994)

Highways:
total: 17,650 km (1990)
paved: NA
unpaved: NA

Inland waterways: NA km

Pipelines: petroleum products NA km; natural gas 2,700 km

Ports: Bratislava, Komarno

Merchant marine:
total: 2 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,160 GRT/6,163 DWT

Airports:
total: 37
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 1
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 2
with paved runways under 914 m: 4
with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 2
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 10
with unpaved runways under 914 m: 11


Flag by Dream Maker Software, Inc.
Information obtained from CIA, The World Factbook 1995