Slovakia

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

6 (2000)

Internet country code

.sk

Internet users

700,000 (2000)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 15, FM 78, shortwave 2 (1998)

Radios

3.12 million (1997)

Telephone system

general assessment: a modernization and privatization program is increasing accessibility to telephone service, reducing the waiting time for new subscribers, and generally improving service quality domestic: predominantly an analog system that is now receiving digital equipment and is being enlarged with fiber-optic cable, especially in the larger cities; mobile cellular capability has been added international: three international exchanges (one in Bratislava and two in Banska Bystrica) are available; Slovakia is participating in several international telecommunications projects that will increase the availability of external services

Telephones - main lines in use

1,934,558 (1998)

Telephones - mobile cellular

736,662 (April 1999)

Television broadcast stations

38 (plus 864 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions

2.62 million (1997)

Agriculture - products

grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, cattle, poultry; forest products

Budget

revenues: $5.2 billion expenditures: $5.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999)

Currency

Slovak koruna (SKK)

Currency code

SKK

Debt - external

$10.3 billion (2000 est.)

Economic aid - recipient

$421.9 million (1995)

Economy - overview

Slovakia continues the difficult transition from a centrally planned economy to a modern market economy. The economic slowdown in 1999 stemmed from large budget and current account deficits, fast-growing external debt, and persistent corruption. Even though GDP growth reached only 2.2% in 2000, the year was marked by positive developments such as foreign direct investment of $1.5 billion, strong export performance, restructuring and privatization in the banking sector, entry into the OECD, and initial efforts to stem corruption. Strong challenges face the government in 2001, especially the maintenance of fiscal balance, the further privatization of the economy, and the reduction of unemployment.

Electricity - consumption

21.471 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - exports

930 million kWh (1999)

Electricity - imports

1.4 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - production

22.582 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel: 37.56% hydro: 18.27% nuclear: 44.17% other: 0% (1999)

Exchange rates

koruny per US dollar - 48.09 (March 2001), 46.395 (2000), 41.363 (1999), 35.233 (1998), 33.616 (1997), 30.654 (1996)

Exports

$12 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Exports - commodities

machinery and transport equipment 39.4%, intermediate manufactured goods 27.5%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 13%, chemicals 8% (1999)

Exports - partners

EU 59.7% (Germany 27.8%, Austria 8%, Italy 8.9%), Czech Republic 18.1% (1999)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $55.3 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 4.5% industry: 29.3% services: 66.2% (1999 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $10,200 (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

2.2% (2000 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 5.1% highest 10%: 18.2% (1992)

Imports

$12.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Imports - commodities

machinery and transport equipment 37.7%, intermediate manufactured goods 18%, fuels 13%, chemicals 11%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 9.5% (1999)

Imports - partners

EU 51.4% (Germany 26%, Italy 7.1%), Czech Republic 16.6%, Russia 11.9% (1999)

Industrial production growth rate

9.3% (2000 est.)

Industries

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

12.2% (2000 est.)

Labor force

3 million (1999)

Labor force - by occupation

industry 29.3%, agriculture 8.9%, construction 8%, transport and communication 8.2%, services 45.6% (1994)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Unemployment rate

17% (2000 est.)

Area

total: 48,845 sq km land: 48,800 sq km water: 45 sq km

Area - comparative

about twice the size of New Hampshire

Climate

temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Bodrok River 94 m highest point: Gerlachovsky Stit 2,655 m

Environment - current issues

air pollution from metallurgical plants presents human 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, 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

Geographic coordinates

48 40 N, 19 30 E

Geography - note

landlocked

Irrigated land

800 sq km (1993 est.)

Land boundaries

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

Land use

arable land: 31% permanent crops: 3% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 41% other: 8% (1993 est.)

Location

Central Europe, south of Poland

Map references

Europe

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Natural hazards

NA

Natural resources

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

Terrain

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

Administrative divisions

8 regions (kraje, singular - kraj); Banskobystricky, Bratislavsky, Kosicky, Nitriansky, Presovsky, Trenciansky, Trnavsky, Zilinsky

Capital

Bratislava

Constitution

ratified 1 September 1992, fully effective 1 January 1993; changed in September 1998 to allow direct election of the president; amended February 2001 to allow Slovakia to apply for NATO and EU membership

Country name

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

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Carl SPIELVOGEL embassy: Hviezdoslavovo Namestie 4, 81102 Bratislava mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [421] (7) 5443-3338

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Martin BUTORA chancery: Suite 250, 2201 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; note - new chancery opening in June 2001 at International Court NW, Washington, DC telephone: [1] (202) 965-5161

Executive branch

chief of state: President Rudolf SCHUSTER (since 15 June 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Mikulas DZURINDA (since 30 October 1998) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by direct popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 29 May 1999 (next to be held NA May/June 2004); following National Council elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Rudolf SCHUSTER elected president in the first direct, popular election; percent of vote - Rudolf SCHUSTER 57% note: government coalition - SDK, SDL, SMK, SOP, KDH

FAX

[1] (202) 965-5166

FAX

[421] (7) 5443-0096

Flag description

three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red superimposed with the Slovak cross in a shield centered on the hoist side; the cross is white centered on a background of red and blue

Government type

parliamentary democracy

Independence

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

International organization participation

Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Judicial branch

Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Council); Constitutional Court (judges appointed by president from group of nominees approved by the National Council)

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

Legislative branch

unicameral National Council of the Slovak Republic or Narodna Rada Slovenskej Republiky (150 seats; members are elected on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 25-26 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - HZDS 27%, SDK 26.3%, SDL 14.7%, SMK 9.1%, SNS 9.1%, SOP 8%; seats by party - governing coalition 93 (SDK 42, SDL 23, SMK 15, SOP 13), opposition 57 (HZDS 43, SNS 14)

National holiday

Constitution Day, 1 September (1992)

Political parties and leaders

Christian Democratic Movement or KDH [Pavol HRUSOVSKY]; Liberal Democratic Union or LDU [Jan BUDAJ]; Movement for a Democratic Slovakia or HZDS [Vladimir MECIAR]; Party of Civic Understanding or SOP [Pavol HAMZIK]; Party of the Democratic Left or SDL [Jozef MIGAS]; Party of the Hungarian Coalition or SMK [Bela BUGAR]; Slovak Democratic and Christian Union or SDKU [Mikulas DZURINDA]; note - this is DZURINDA's new party for 2002 elections; he remains chairman of a rump and splintering SDK; Slovak Democratic Coalition or SDK (loose parliamentary club grouping representing members of the smaller SSDS, SZS, and those committed to run under SDKU in 2002) [Mikulas DZURINDA]; Slovak National Party or SNS [Anna MALIKOVA]

Political pressure groups and leaders

Association of Employers of Slovakia; Association of Towns and Villages or ZMOS; Confederation of Trade Unions or KOZ; Metal Workers Unions or KOVO and METALURG

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Background

In 1918 the Slovaks joined the closely related Czechs to form Czechoslovakia. Following the chaos of World War II, Czechoslovakia became a communist nation within Soviet-ruled Eastern Europe. Soviet influence collapsed in 1989 and Czechoslovakia once more became free. The Slovaks and the Czechs agreed to separate peacefully on 1 January 1993. Historic, political, and geographic factors have caused Slovakia to experience more difficulty in developing a modern market economy than some of its Central European neighbors.

Military branches

Ground Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Territorial Defense Forces, Civil Defense Force

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$380 million (FY00)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

1.71% (FY00)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 1,487,093 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 1,136,811 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - military age

18 years of age

Military manpower - reaching military age annually

males: 45,502 (2001 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 18.86% (male 522,563; female 498,832) 15-64 years: 69.6% (male 1,872,496; female 1,896,249) 65 years and over: 11.54% (male 236,996; female 387,801) (2001 est.)

Birth rate

10.05 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate

9.25 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Ethnic groups

Slovak 85.7%, Hungarian 10.6%, Roma 1.6% (the 1992 census figures underreport the Gypsy/Romany community, which is about 500,000), Czech, Moravian, Silesian 1.1%, Ruthenian and Ukrainian 0.6%, German 0.1%, Polish 0.1%, other 0.2% (1996)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

less than 0.01% (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

less than 100 (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

400 (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate

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

Languages

Slovak (official), Hungarian

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 73.97 years male: 69.95 years female: 78.2 years (2001 est.)

Literacy

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

Nationality

noun: Slovak(s) adjective: Slovak

Net migration rate

0.53 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Population

5,414,937 (July 2001 est.)

Population growth rate

0.13% (2001 est.)

Religions

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

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.25 children born/woman (2001 est.)

Disputes - international

Gabcikovo/Nagymaros Dam dispute with Hungary is before the ICJ

Illicit drugs

transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe

Airports

35 (2000 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total: 18 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 17 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.)

Highways

total: 17,710 km paved: 17,533 km (including 288 km of expressways) unpaved: 177 km (1998 est.)

Merchant marine

total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 15,041 GRT/19,517 DWT ships by type: cargo 3 (2000 est.)

Pipelines

petroleum products NA km; natural gas 2,700 km

Ports and harbors

Bratislava, Komarno

Railways

total: 3,660 km broad gauge: 102 km 1.520-m gauge standard gauge: 3,507 km 1.435-m gauge (1,505 km electrified; 1,011 km double track) narrow gauge: 51 km (46 km 1,000-m gauge; 5 km 0.750-m gauge) (1998)

Waterways

172 km (all on the Danube)