Czech Republic (2003) | Tunisia (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 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 | 23 governorates; Ariana (Aryanah), Beja (Bajah), Ben Arous (Bin 'Arus), Bizerte (Banzart), El Kef (Al Kaf), Gabes (Qabis), Gafsa (Qafsah), Jendouba (Jundubah), Kairouan (Al Qayrawan), Kasserine (Al Qasrayn), Kebili (Qibili), Mahdia (Al Mahdiyah), Medenine (Madanin), Monastir (Al Munastir), Nabeul (Nabul), Sfax (Safaqis), Sidi Bou Zid (Sidi Bu Zayd), Siliana (Silyanah), Sousse (Susah), Tataouine (Tatawin), Tozeur (Tawzar), Tunis, Zaghouan (Zaghwan) |
Age structure | 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.) |
0-14 years:
28.74% (male 1,440,636; female 1,348,133) 15-64 years: 65.12% (male 3,157,988; female 3,161,596) 65 years and over: 6.14% (male 296,930; female 299,819) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry | olives, olive oil, grain, dairy products, tomatoes, citrus fruit, beef, sugar beets, dates, almonds |
Airports | 144 (2002) | 32 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | 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) |
total:
15 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 100
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 36 under 914 m: 62 (2002) |
total:
17 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 78,866 sq km
land: 77,276 sq km water: 1,590 sq km |
total:
163,610 sq km land: 155,360 sq km water: 8,250 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly larger than Georgia |
Background | 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. | Following independence from France in 1956, President Habib BOURGIUBA established a strict one-party state. He dominated the country for 31 years, repressing Islamic fundamentalism and establishing rights for women unmatched by any other Arab nation. In recent years, Tunisia has taken a moderate, non-aligned stance in its foreign relations. Domestically, it has sought to diffuse rising pressure for a more open political society. |
Birth rate | 9.01 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 17.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $16.7 billion
expenditures: $18 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues:
$7.5 billion expenditures: $8.1 billion, including capital expenditures to $1.6 billion (2000 est.) |
Capital | Prague | Tunis |
Climate | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters | temperate in north with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers; desert in south |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 1,148 km |
Constitution | ratified 16 December 1992; effective 1 January 1993 | 1 June 1959; amended 12 July 1988 |
Country name | conventional long form: Czech Republic
conventional short form: Czech Republic local long form: Ceska Republika local short form: Ceska Republika |
conventional long form:
Republic of Tunisia conventional short form: Tunisia local long form: Al Jumhuriyah at Tunisiyah local short form: Tunis |
Currency | Czech koruna (CZK) | Tunisian dinar (TND) |
Death rate | 10.74 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 4.99 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $23.8 billion (2002) | $13 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | 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 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Rust DEMMING embassy: 144 Avenue de la Liberte, 1002 Tunis-Belvedere mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [216] (1) 782-566 FAX: [216] (1) 789-719 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | 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 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Hatem ATALLAH chancery: 1515 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 862-1850 |
Disputes - international | 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 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $108 million; EU structural adjustment funds (2002) | $933.2 million (1995); note - ODA, $90 million (1998 est.) |
Economy - overview | 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. | Tunisia has a diverse economy, with important agricultural, mining, energy, tourism, and manufacturing sectors. Governmental control of economic affairs while still heavy has gradually lessened over the past decade with increasing privatization, simplification of the tax structure, and a prudent approach to debt. Real growth averaged 5.5% in the past four years, and inflation is slowing. Growth in tourism and increased trade have been key elements in this steady growth. Tunisia's association agreement with the European Union entered into force on 1 March 1998, the first such accord between the EU and Mediterranean countries to be activated. Under the agreement Tunisia will gradually remove barriers to trade with the EU over the next decade. Broader privatization, further liberalization of the investment code to increase foreign investment, and improvements in government efficiency are among the challenges for the future. |
Electricity - consumption | 55.6 billion kWh (2001) | 8.677 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 18.92 billion kWh (2001) | 19 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 9.38 billion kWh (2001) | 165 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 70.04 billion kWh (2001) | 9.173 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 76.1%
hydro: 2.9% nuclear: 20% other: 1% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
99.2% hydro: 0.8% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Elbe River 115 m
highest point: Snezka 1,602 m |
lowest point:
Shatt al Gharsah -17 m highest point: Jebel ech Chambi 1,544 m |
Environment - current issues | 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 | toxic and hazardous waste disposal is ineffective and presents human health risks; water pollution from raw sewage; limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification |
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, 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 |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | 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) | Arab 98%, European 1%, Jewish and other 1% |
Exchange rates | koruny per US dollar - 32.74 (2002), 38.04 (2001), 38.6 (2000), 34.57 (1999), 32.28 (1998) | Tunisian dinars per US dollar - 1.3753 (January 2001), 1.4667 (November 2000), 1.1862 (1999), 1.1387 (1998), 1.1059 (1997), 0.9734 (1996) |
Executive branch | 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) |
chief of state:
President Zine El Abidine BEN ALI (since 7 November 1987) head of government: Prime Minister Mohamed GHANNOUCHI (since 17 November 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Zine El Abidine BEN ALI reelected for a third term without opposition; percent of vote - Zine El Abidine BEN ALI nearly 100% |
Exports | 26,670 bbl/day (2001) | $6.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 44%, intermediate manufactures 25%, chemicals 7%, raw materials and fuel 7% (2000) | textiles, mechanical goods, phosphates and chemicals, agricultural products, hydrocarbons |
Exports - partners | Germany 40.2%, Slovakia 7.1%, Austria 5.8%, UK 5.1%, Poland 5%, France 4% (2002) | Germany 28%, France 22%, Italy 17%, Belgium 5%, Libya 4% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | 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) | red with a white disk in the center bearing a red crescent nearly encircling a red five-pointed star; the crescent and star are traditional symbols of Islam |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $157.1 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $62.8 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3.8%
industry: 41% services: 55.2% (2001) |
agriculture:
14% industry: 32% services: 54% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $15,300 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2002 est.) | 5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 49 45 N, 15 30 E | 34 00 N, 9 00 E |
Geography - note | 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 | strategic location in central Mediterranean; Malta and Tunisia are discussing the commercial exploitation of the continental shelf between their countries, particularly for oil exploration |
Heliports | 2 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 55,408 km
paved: 55,408 km (including 499 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
total:
23,100 km paved: 18,226 km unpaved: 4,874 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4.3%
highest 10%: 22.4% (1996) |
lowest 10%:
2.3% highest 10%: 30.7% (1990) |
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 | 192,300 bbl/day (2001) | $8.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 40%, intermediate manufactures 21%, raw materials and fuels 13%, chemicals 11% (2000) | machinery and equipment, hydrocarbons, chemicals, food |
Imports - partners | Germany 39.1%, Slovakia 6%, Austria 5.6%, Italy 5.4%, France 5.3%, Poland 4.1%, UK 4.1%, Russia 4% (2002) | France 23%, Germany 23%, Italy 15%, Belgium 3% (1999) |
Independence | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) | 20 March 1956 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.5% (2002) | 4.1% (2000 est.) |
Industries | metallurgy, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, glass, armaments | petroleum, mining (particularly phosphate and iron ore), tourism, textiles, footwear, food, beverages |
Infant mortality rate | 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.) |
29.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.6% (2002 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | 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 | ABEDA, ACCT, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, AMU, BSEC (observer), CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE (partner), UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | more than 300 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 240 sq km (1998 est.) | 3,850 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed by the president for a 10-year term | Court of Cassation or Cour de Cassation |
Labor force | 5.203 million (1999 est.) | 2.65 million (2000 est.)
note: shortage of skilled labor |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 5%, industry 35%, services 60% (2001 est.) | services 55%, industry 23%, agriculture 22% (1995 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,881 km
border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km, Slovakia 215 km |
total:
1,424 km border countries: Algeria 965 km, Libya 459 km |
Land use | arable land: 40%
permanent crops: 3.04% other: 56.96% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
19% permanent crops: 13% permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 4% other: 44% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Czech | Arabic (official and one of the languages of commerce), French (commerce) |
Legal system | 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 | based on French civil law system and Islamic law; some judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court in joint session |
Legislative branch | 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 |
unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Majlis al-Nuwaab (182 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - RCD 92%; seats by party - RCD 148, MDS 13, UDU 7, PUP 7, Al-Tajdid 5, PSL 2; note - reforms enabled opposition parties to win up to 20% of seats; the opposition increased number of seats from 19 to 34 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.18 years
male: 71.69 years female: 78.87 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
73.92 years male: 72.35 years female: 75.62 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: 99.9% (1999 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 66.7% male: 78.6% female: 54.6% (1995 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, southeast of Germany | Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Libya |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone:
24 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
15 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 149,554 GRT/156,861 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 4, chemical tanker 3, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, Territorial Defense Force | Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary forces, National Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1,190.2 million (FY01) | $356 million (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.1% (FY01) | 1.5% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,622,192 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,739,566 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,002,202 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,561,484 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2003 est.) | 20 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 67,777 (2003 est.) | males:
105,146 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Czech Founding Day, 28 October (1918) | Independence Day, 20 March (1956) |
Nationality | noun: Czech(s)
adjective: Czech |
noun:
Tunisian(s) adjective: Tunisian |
Natural hazards | flooding | NA |
Natural resources | hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber | petroleum, phosphates, iron ore, lead, zinc, salt |
Net migration rate | 0.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -0.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 7,020 km; oil 547 km; refined products 94 km (2003) | crude oil 797 km; petroleum products 86 km; natural gas 742 km |
Political parties and leaders | 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) | Al-Tajdid Movement [Adel CHAOUCH]; Constitutional Democratic Rally Party (Rassemblement Constitutionnel Democratique) or RCD [President Zine El Abidine BEN ALI (official ruling party)]; Liberal Social Party or PSL [Mounir BEJI]; Movement of Democratic Socialists or MDS [Khamis CHAMMARI]; Popular Unity Party or PUP [Mohamed Belhaj AMOR]; Unionist Democratic Union or UDU [Abderrahmane TLILI] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions [Richard FALBR] | the Islamic fundamentalist party, Al Nahda (Renaissance), is outlawed |
Population | 10,249,216 (July 2003 est.) | 9,705,102 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 6% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.08% (2003 est.) | 1.15% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem | Bizerte, Gabes, La Goulette, Sfax, Sousse, Tunis, Zarzis |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000) | AM 7, FM 20, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | - | 2.06 million (1997) |
Railways | 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) |
total:
2,168 km standard gauge: 471 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,687 km 1.000-m gauge dual gauge: 10 km 1.000-m and 1.435-m gauges (three rails) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 39.2%, Protestant 4.6%, Orthodox 3%, other 13.4%, atheist 39.8% | Muslim 98%, Christian 1%, Jewish and other 1% |
Sex ratio | 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.) |
at birth:
1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.99 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | 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 |
general assessment:
above the African average and continuing to be upgraded; key centers are Sfax, Sousse, Bizerte, and Tunis; Internet access available domestic: trunk facilities consist of open-wire lines, coaxial cable, and microwave radio relay international: 5 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Algeria and Libya; participant in Medarabtel; two international gateway digital switches |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3.869 million (2000) | 654,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4.346 million (2000) | 50,000 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 150 (plus 1,434 repeaters) (2000) | 26 (plus 76 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | Bohemia in the west consists of rolling plains, hills, and plateaus surrounded by low mountains; Moravia in the east consists of very hilly country | mountains in north; hot, dry central plain; semiarid south merges into the Sahara |
Total fertility rate | 1.18 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.99 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.8% (2002) | 15.6% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 303 km
note: the Labe (Elbe) is the principal river (2000) |
none |