Bahrain (2001) | Czech Republic (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 12 municipalities (manatiq, singular - mintaqah); Al Hadd, Al Manamah, Al Mintaqah al Gharbiyah, Al Mintaqah al Wusta, Al Mintaqah ash Shamaliyah, Al Muharraq, Ar Rifa' wa al Mintaqah al Janubiyah, Jidd Hafs, Madinat Hamad, Madinat 'Isa, Juzur Hawar, Sitrah
note: all municipalities administered from Manama |
13 regions (kraje, singular - kraj) and 1 capital city* (hlavni mesto); Jihocesky Kraj, Jihomoravsky Kraj, Karlovarsky Kraj, Kralovehradecky Kraj, Liberecky Kraj, Moravskoslezsky Kraj, Olomoucky Kraj, Pardubicky Kraj, Plzensky Kraj, Praha*, Stredocesky Kraj, Ustecky Kraj, Vysocina, Zlinsky Kraj |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
29.6% (male 96,697; female 94,330) 15-64 years: 67.43% (male 257,360; female 177,839) 65 years and over: 2.97% (male 9,721; female 9,414) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 15.4% (male 809,697; female 768,747)
15-64 years: 70.6% (male 3,617,214; female 3,614,060) 65 years and over: 14% (male 554,922; female 884,576) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish | wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 144 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 over 3,047 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 44
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 19 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 100
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 36 under 914 m: 62 (2002) |
Area | total:
620 sq km land: 620 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 78,866 sq km
land: 77,276 sq km water: 1,590 sq km |
Area - comparative | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than South Carolina |
Background | Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors. Possessing minimal oil reserves, Bahrain has turned to petroleum processing and refining, and has transformed itself into an international banking center. The new amir is pushing economic and political reforms, and has worked to improve relations with the Shi'a community. In 2001, the International Court of Justice awarded the Hawar Islands, long disputed with Qatar, to Bahrain. | 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. Now a member of NATO, the Czech Republic has moved toward integration in world markets, a development that poses both opportunities and risks. In December 2002, the Czech Republic was invited to join the European Union (EU). It is expected that the Czech Republic will accede to the EU in 2004. |
Birth rate | 20.07 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.01 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1.8 billion expenditures: $2.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $16.7 billion
expenditures: $18 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Manama | Prague |
Climate | arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters |
Coastline | 161 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | adopted late December 2000 (new constitution calls for a partially elected legislature, a constitutional monarchy, and an independent judiciary) | ratified 16 December 1992; effective 1 January 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form:
State of Bahrain conventional short form: Bahrain local long form: Dawlat al Bahrayn local short form: Al Bahrayn former: Dilmun |
conventional long form: Czech Republic
conventional short form: Czech Republic local long form: Ceska Republika local short form: Ceska Republika |
Currency | Bahraini dinar (BHD) | Czech koruna (CZK) |
Death rate | 3.92 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.74 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.7 billion (2000) | $23.8 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Johnny YOUNG embassy: #979, Road 3119 (next to Al-Ahli Sports Club), Block 321, Zinj District, Manama mailing address: American Embassy Manama, PSC 451, FPO AE 09834-5100; international mail: American Embassy, Box 26431, Manama telephone: [973] 273-300 FAX: [973] 272-594 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Craig R. STAPLETON
embassy: Trziste 15, 11801 Prague 1 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [420] (2) 5753-0663 FAX: [420] (2) 5753-0583 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant) chancery: 3502 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 342-0741 FAX: [1] (202) 362-2192 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Martin PALOUS
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 |
Disputes - international | in March of 2001, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) awarded the Hawar Islands to Bahrain and also adjusted Bahrain's maritime boundary with Qatar | 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 the Temelin nuclear power plant and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities |
Economic aid - recipient | $48.4 million (1995) | $108 million; EU structural adjustment funds (2002) |
Economy - overview | In Bahrain, petroleum production and refining account for about 60% of export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP. With its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. Bahrain is dependent on Saudi Arabia for oil revenue granted as aid. A large share of exports consists of petroleum products made from imported crude. Construction proceeds on several major industrial projects. Unemployment, especially among the young, and the depletion of both oil and underground water resources are major long-term economic problems. | One of the most stable and prosperous of the post-Communist states, the Czech Republic has been recovering from recession since mid-1999. Growth in 2000-03 was supported by exports to the EU, primarily to Germany, and a near doubling of foreign direct investment. Domestic demand is playing an ever more important role in underpinning growth as interest rates drop and the availability of credit cards and mortgages increases. High current account deficits - averaging around 5% of GDP in the last several years - could be a persistent problem. Inflation is under control. 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 encourage additional foreign investment, while intensified restructuring among large enterprises and banks and improvements in the financial sector should strengthen output growth. But revival in the European economies remains essential to stepped-up growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.752 billion kWh (1999) | 55.6 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 18.92 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 9.38 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 6.185 billion kWh (1999) | 70.04 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 76.1%
hydro: 2.9% nuclear: 20% other: 1% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m |
lowest point: Elbe River 115 m
highest point: Snezka 1,602 m |
Environment - current issues | desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land, periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution stations; no natural fresh water resources so that groundwater and sea water are the only sources for all water needs | 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:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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 |
Ethnic groups | Bahraini 63%, Asian 19%, other Arab 10%, Iranian 8% | 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) |
Exchange rates | Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.3760 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar) | koruny per US dollar - 32.74 (2002), 38.04 (2001), 38.6 (2000), 34.57 (1999), 32.28 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Amir HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa (since 6 March 1999); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SALMAN bin Hamad (son of the monarch, born 21 October 1969) head of government: Prime Minister KHALIFA bin Salman Al Khalifa (since NA 1971) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Vaclav KLAUS (since 7 March 2003)
note: the Czech Republic's first president Vaclav HAVEL stepped down from office on 2 February 2003 having served exactly 10 years; parliament finally elected a successor on 28 February 2003 after two inconclusive elections in January 2003 head of government: Prime Minister Vladimir SPIDLA (since 12 July 2002), Deputy Prime Ministers Bohuslav SOBOTKA (since 20 August 2003), Cyril SVOBODA (since July 2002), Stanislav GROSS (since July 2002), Petr MARES (since July 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; last successful election held 28 February 2003 (after earlier elections held 15 and 24 January 2003 were inconclusive); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Vaclav KLAUS elected president on 28 February 2003; Vaclav KLAUS 142 votes, Jan SOKOL 124 votes (third round; combined votes of both chambers of parliament) |
Exports | $5.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | 26,670 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products 61%, aluminum 7% | machinery and transport equipment 44%, intermediate manufactures 25%, chemicals 7%, raw materials and fuel 7% (2000) |
Exports - partners | India 14%, Saudi Arabia 5%, US 5%, UAE 5%, Japan 4%, South Korea 4% (1999) | Germany 40.2%, Slovakia 7.1%, Austria 5.8%, UK 5.1%, Poland 5%, France 4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a white serrated band (eight white points) on the hoist side | 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) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10.1 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $157.1 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
1% industry: 46% services: 53% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 3.8%
industry: 41% services: 55.2% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $15,900 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,300 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 2% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 26 00 N, 50 33 E | 49 45 N, 15 30 E |
Geography - note | close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf which much of Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean | 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 |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | 2 (2002) |
Highways | total:
3,164 km paved: 2,433 km unpaved: 731 km note: there is a paved causeway connecting Bahrain to Saudi Arabia (1997) |
total: 55,408 km
paved: 55,408 km (including 499 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 4.3%
highest 10%: 22.4% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | - | 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 |
Imports | $4.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | 192,300 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | nonoil 59%, crude oil 41% | machinery and transport equipment 40%, intermediate manufactures 21%, raw materials and fuels 13%, chemicals 11% (2000) |
Imports - partners | France 20%, US 14%, UK 8%, Saudi Arabia 7%, Japan 5% (1999) | Germany 39.1%, Slovakia 6%, Austria 5.6%, Italy 5.4%, France 5.3%, Poland 4.1%, UK 4.1%, Russia 4% (2002) |
Independence | 15 August 1971 (from UK) | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | 3.5% (2002) |
Industries | petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, offshore banking, ship repairing; tourism | metallurgy, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, glass, armaments |
Infant mortality rate | 19.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 5.37 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.85 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2000 est.) | 0.6% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | more than 300 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | 240 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Civil Appeals Court | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed by the president for a 10-year term |
Labor force | 295,000 (1998 est.)
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (July 1998 est.) |
5.203 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | industry, commerce, and service 79%, government 20%, agriculture 1% (1997 est.) | agriculture 5%, industry 35%, services 60% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 1,881 km
border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km, Slovakia 215 km |
Land use | arable land:
1% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 0% other: 92% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 40%
permanent crops: 3.04% other: 56.96% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu | Czech |
Legal system | based on Islamic law and English common law | 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 |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly was dissolved 26 August 1975 and legislative powers were assumed by the Cabinet; appointed Advisory Council established 16 December 1992; the National Action Charter created a bicameral legislature on 23 December 2000; approved by referendum of 14 February 2001 | 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 in two rounds 25-26 October and 1-2 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004); Chamber of Deputies - last held 14-15 June 2002 (next to be held by NA June 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ODS 26, KDU-CSL 14, CSSD 11, US 9, KSCM 3, independents 18; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - CSSD 30.2%, ODS 24.5%, KSCM 18.5%, KDU-CSL & US-DEU coalition 14.3%, other minor 12.5%; seats by party - CSSD 70, ODS 58, KSCM 41, KDU-CSL 21, US-DEU 10 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
73.2 years male: 70.81 years female: 75.67 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 75.18 years
male: 71.69 years female: 78.87 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.2% male: 89.1% female: 79.4% (1995 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: 99.9% (1999 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia | Central Europe, southeast of Germany |
Map references | Middle East | Europe |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 175,609 GRT/207,652 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 3, container 2 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Police Force | Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, Territorial Defense Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $318 million (FY99) | $1,190.2 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.2% (FY99) | 2.1% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
222,141 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 2,622,192 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
121,833 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 2,002,202 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 15 years of age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
5,926 (2001 est.) |
males: 67,777 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | National Day, 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 is the date of independence from the UK, 16 December 1971 is the date of independence from British protection | Czech Founding Day, 28 October (1918) |
Nationality | noun:
Bahraini(s) adjective: Bahraini |
noun: Czech(s)
adjective: Czech |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; dust storms | flooding |
Natural resources | oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls | hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber |
Net migration rate | 1.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 56 km; petroleum products 16 km; natural gas 32 km | gas 7,020 km; oil 547 km; refined products 94 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | political parties prohibited | Christian and Democratic Union-Czechoslovak People's Party or KDU-CSL [Miroslav KALOUSEK, chairman]; Civic Democratic Alliance or ODA [Michael ZANTOVSKY, chairman]; Civic Democratic Party or ODS [Mirek TOPOLANEK, 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 [Vladimir SPIDLA, chairman]; Freedom Union-Democratic Union or US-DEU [Petr MARES, chairman]; Quad Coalition [Karel KUHNL, chairman] (includes KDU-CSL, US, ODA, DEU) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically 1994-97, demanding the return of an elected National Assembly and an end to unemployment; several small, clandestine leftist and Islamic fundamentalist groups are active | Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions [Richard FALBR] |
Population | 645,361
note: includes 228,424 non-nationals (July 2001 est.) |
10,249,216 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.73% (2001 est.) | -0.08% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Manama, Mina' Salman, Sitrah | Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000) |
Radios | 338,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 9,462 km
standard gauge: 9,363 km 1.435-m gauge (1,745 km electrified) narrow gauge: 99 km 0.760-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Shi'a Muslim 70%, Sunni Muslim 30% | Roman Catholic 39.2%, Protestant 4.6%, Orthodox 3%, other 13.4%, atheist 39.8% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.45 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.29 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
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 (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | none | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
modern system domestic: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile cellular telephones international: tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; submarine cable to Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat (1997) |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 152,000 (1997) | 3.869 million (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 58,543 (1997) | 4.346 million (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (1997) | 150 (plus 1,434 repeaters) (2000) |
Terrain | mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment | Bohemia in the west consists of rolling plains, hills, and plateaus surrounded by low mountains; Moravia in the east consists of very hilly country |
Total fertility rate | 2.79 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.18 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (1998 est.) | 9.8% (2002) |
Waterways | none | 303 km
note: the Labe (Elbe) is the principal river (2000) |