Czech Republic (2005) | Cayman Islands (2004) | |
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 (Prague)*, Stredocesky Kraj, Ustecky Kraj, Vysocina, Zlinsky Kraj | 8 districts; Creek, Eastern, Midland, South Town, Spot Bay, Stake Bay, West End, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14.7% (male 773,028/female 731,833)
15-64 years: 71.1% (male 3,651,018/female 3,627,006) 65 years and over: 14.2% (male 565,374/female 892,879) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 21.4% (male 4,608; female 4,616)
15-64 years: 70.6% (male 14,858; female 15,593) 65 years and over: 8% (male 1,607; female 1,821) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry | vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming |
Airports | 120 (2004 est.) | 3 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 44
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 17 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 76
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 27 under 914 m: 48 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 78,866 sq km
land: 77,276 sq km water: 1,590 sq km |
total: 262 sq km
land: 262 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
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. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004. | The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries. Administered by Jamaica since 1863, they remained a British dependency after 1962 when the former became independent. |
Birth rate | 9.07 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 13.11 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $39.31 billion
expenditures: $45.8 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $265.2 million
expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1997) |
Capital | Prague | George Town |
Climate | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters | tropical marine; warm, rainy summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to April) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 160 km |
Constitution | ratified 16 December 1992, effective 1 January 1993 | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992 |
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: none
conventional short form: Cayman Islands |
Currency | - | Caymanian dollar (KYD) |
Death rate | 10.54 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 4.76 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $36.28 billion (2004 est.) | $70 million (1996) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador William J. CABANISS
embassy: Trziste 15, 11801 Prague 1 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [420] (2) 5753-0663 FAX: [420] (2) 5753-0583 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | in February 2005, the ICJ refused to rule on the restitution of Liechtenstein's land and property assets in the Czech Republic confiscated in 1945 as German property; individual Sudeten Germans seek restitution for property confiscated in connection with their expulsion after World War II | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $2.4 billion in available EU structural adjustment and cohesion funds (2004-06) | NA (1999) |
Economy - overview | The Czech Republic is one of the most stable and prosperous of the post-Communist states of Central and Eastern Europe. Growth in 2000-04 was supported by exports to the EU, primarily to Germany, and a strong recovery of foreign and domestic 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. Current account deficits of around 5% of GDP are beginning to decline as demand for Czech products in the European Union increases. Inflation is under control. Recent accession to the EU gives further impetus and direction to structural reform. In early 2004 the government passed increases in the Value Added Tax (VAT) and tightened eligibility for social benefits with the intention to bring the public finance gap down to 4% of GDP by 2006, but more difficult pension and healthcare reforms will have to wait until after the next elections. Privatization of the state-owned telecommunications firm Cesky Telecom is scheduled to take place in 2005. Intensified restructuring among large enterprises, improvements in the financial sector, and effective use of available EU funds should strengthen output growth. | With no direct taxation, the islands are a thriving offshore financial center. More than 40,000 companies were registered in the Cayman Islands as of 1998, including almost 600 banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion. A stock exchange was opened in 1997. Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and 75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1.2 million in 1997, with 600,000 from the US. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living in the world. |
Electricity - consumption | 55.33 billion kWh (2002) | 355.2 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 20.9 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 9.5 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 71.75 billion kWh (2002) | 381.9 million kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Elbe River 115 m
highest point: Snezka 1,602 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: The Bluff 43 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 | no natural fresh water resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchments |
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 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
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | Czech 90.4%, Moravian 3.7%, Slovak 1.9%, other 4% (2001 census) | mixed 40%, white 20%, black 20%, expatriates of various ethnic groups 20% |
Exchange rates | koruny per US dollar - 25.7 (2004), 28.209 (2003), 32.739 (2002), 38.035 (2001), 38.598 (2000) | Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.82 (29 October 2001), 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) |
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 Jiri PAROUBEK (since 25 April 2005), Deputy Prime Ministers Zdenek SKROMACH (since 4 August 2004), Martin JAHN (since 4 August 2004), Pavel NEMEC (since 4 August 2004), Milan SIMONOVSKY (since 4 August 2004) 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; next election to be held January 2008); 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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Governor Bruce DINWIDDY (since 29 May 2002)
head of government: Chief Secretary W. McKeeva BUSH (since NA December 2001) cabinet: Executive Council (three members appointed by the governor, four members elected by the Legislative Assembly) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor is appointed by the monarch; the chief secretary is appointed by the governor |
Exports | 26,670 bbl/day (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 52%, chemicals 5%, raw materials and fuel 9% (2003) | turtle products, manufactured consumer goods |
Exports - partners | Germany 36.1%, Slovakia 8.4%, Austria 6%, Poland 5.3%, UK 4.7%, France 4.7%, Italy 4.3%, Netherlands 4.3% (2004) | mostly US |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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) | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Caymanian coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes a pineapple and turtle above a shield with three stars (representing the three islands) and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HE HATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.27 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3.4%
industry: 39.3% services: 57.3% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 1.4%
industry: 3.2% services: 95.4% (1994 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $16,800 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $35,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.7% (2004 est.) | 1.7% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 49 45 N, 15 30 E | 19 30 N, 80 30 W |
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 | important location between Cuba and Central America |
Heliports | 2 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 127,204 km
paved: 127,204 km (including 518 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2002) |
total: 785 km
paved: 785 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4.3%
highest 10%: 22.4% (1996) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
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 | offshore financial center; vulnerable to drug transshipment to the US and Europe |
Imports | 192,300 bbl/day (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 46%, raw materials and fuels 15%, chemicals 10% (2003) | foodstuffs, manufactured goods |
Imports - partners | Germany 31.7%, Slovakia 5.4%, Italy 5.3%, China 5.2%, Poland 4.8%, France 4.8%, Russia 4.1% (2004) | US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan |
Independence | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.7% (2004 est.) | NA |
Industries | metallurgy, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, glass, armaments | tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture |
Infant mortality rate | total: 3.93 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.28 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 8.41 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.2% (2004 est.) | 2.8% (2002) |
International organization participation | ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU |
Irrigated land | 240 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed by the president for a 10-year term | Summary Court; Grand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 5.25 million (2004 est.) | 19,820 (1995) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 4%, industry 38%, services 58% (2002 est.) | agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,881 km
border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km, Slovakia 215 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 39.8%
permanent crops: 3.05% other: 57.15% (2001) |
arable land: 3.85%
permanent crops: 0% other: 96.15% (2001) |
Languages | Czech | English |
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 | British common law and local statutes |
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 5-6 November and 12-13 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 14-15 June 2002 (next to be held by June 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ODS 37, KDU-CSL 14, Open Democracy 13, CSSD 7, Caucus Open Democracy 7, independents 3; 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 57, KSCM 41, KDU-CSL 21, US-DEU 10, independent 1 |
unicameral Legislative Assembly (18 seats, three appointed members from the Executive Council and 15 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 November 2000 (next to be held 17 November 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.02 years
male: 72.74 years female: 79.49 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 79.81 years
male: 77.21 years female: 82.45 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: 99.9% (1999 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, southeast of Germany | Caribbean, island group in Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras |
Map references | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | registered in other countries: 3 | total: 137 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,827,837 GRT/4,555,974 DWT
by type: bulk 27, cargo 7, chemical tanker 36, container 2, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 25, refrigerated cargo 33, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea/passenger 1, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: Germany 9, Greece 25, Hong Kong 3, Italy 14, Norway 4, Singapore 1, Spain 11, Sweden 13, Switzerland 1, United Kingdom 18, United States 43 registered in other countries: 2 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army of the Czech Republic (ACR): Joint Forces Command, Support and Training Forces Command (2005) | no regular military forces; Royal Cayman Islands Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $2.17 billion (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.02% (2004) | - |
National holiday | Czech Founding Day, 28 October (1918) | Constitution Day, first Monday in July |
Nationality | noun: Czech(s)
adjective: Czech |
noun: Caymanian(s)
adjective: Caymanian |
Natural hazards | flooding | hurricanes (July to November) |
Natural resources | hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber | fish, climate and beaches that foster tourism |
Net migration rate | 0.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 18.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: major destination for Cubans trying to migrate to the US (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 7,020 km; oil 547 km; refined products 94 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Caucus SNK [Josef ZOSER]; Christian and Democratic Union-Czechoslovak People's Party or KDU-CSL [Miroslav KALOUSEK, chairman]; Civic Democratic Alliance or ODA [Jirina NOVAKOVA, 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 [Jaroslav ROVNY, chairman]; Czech Social Democratic Party or CSSD [Stanislav GROSS, acting chairman]; European Democrats [Jan KASL]; Freedom Union-Democratic Union or US-DEU [Hana Marvanova, chairwoman]; Open Democracy [Sona PAUKRTOVA, chairwoman] | no national teams (loose groupings of political organizations) were formed for the 2000 elections; United Democratic Party or UDP [leader McKeeva BUSH]; People's Progressive Movement or PPM [leader Kurt TIBBETTS] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Bohemian and Moravian Trade Union Confederation [Milan STECH] | NA |
Population | 10,241,138 (July 2005 est.) | 43,103 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.05% (2005 est.) | 2.71% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem | Cayman Brac, George Town |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 9,543 km
standard gauge: 9,421 km 1.435-m gauge (2,893 km electrified) narrow gauge: 122 km 0.760-m gauge (23 km electrified) (2004) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 26.8%, Protestant 2.1%, other 3.3%, unspecified 8.8%, unaffiliated 59% (2001 census) | United Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), Anglican, Baptist, Church of God, other Protestant, Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 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: country code - 420; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions), 1 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat, 1 Globalstar |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-345; 1 submarine coaxial cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3.626 million (2003) | 38,000 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 9,708,700 (2003) | 17,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 150 (plus 1,434 repeaters) (2000) | 1 with cable system |
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 | low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs |
Total fertility rate | 1.2 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 1.9 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.6% (2004 est.) | 4.1% (1997) |
Waterways | 664 km (on Elbe, Vltava, and Oder rivers) (2004) | - |