Czech Republic (2005) | Wallis and Futuna (2003) | |
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 | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three kingdoms at the second order named Alo, Sigave, Wallis |
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: NA%
15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry | breadfruit, yams, taro, bananas; pigs, goats |
Airports | 120 (2004 est.) | 2 (2002) |
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: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
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 (2002) |
Area | total: 78,866 sq km
land: 77,276 sq km water: 1,590 sq km |
total: 274 sq km
land: 274 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ile Uvea (Wallis Island), Ile Futuna (Futuna Island), Ile Alofi, and 20 islets |
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. | Although discovered by the Dutch and the British in the 17th and 18th centuries, it was the French who declared a protectorate over the islands in 1842. In 1959, the inhabitants of the islands voted to become a French overseas territory. |
Birth rate | 9.07 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $39.31 billion
expenditures: $45.8 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $20 million
expenditures: $17 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
Capital | Prague | Mata-Utu (on Ile Uvea) |
Climate | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters | tropical; hot, rainy season (November to April); cool, dry season (May to October); rains 2,500-3,000 mm per year (80% humidity); average temperature 26.6 degrees C |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 129 km |
Constitution | ratified 16 December 1992, effective 1 January 1993 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
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: Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands
conventional short form: Wallis and Futuna local long form: Territoire des Iles Wallis et Futuna local short form: Wallis et Futuna |
Currency | - | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF); note - may adopt the euro in 2003 |
Death rate | 10.54 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $36.28 billion (2004 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of France |
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 France) |
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 France) |
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) | assistance from France |
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. | The economy is limited to traditional subsistence agriculture, with about 80% labor force earnings from agriculture (coconuts and vegetables), livestock (mostly pigs), and fishing. About 4% of the population is employed in government. Revenues come from French Government subsidies, licensing of fishing rights to Japan and South Korea, import taxes, and remittances from expatriate workers in New Caledonia. |
Electricity - consumption | 55.33 billion kWh (2002) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 20.9 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 9.5 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 71.75 billion kWh (2002) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 0%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Elbe River 115 m
highest point: Snezka 1,602 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Singavi 765 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 | deforestation (only small portions of the original forests remain) largely as a result of the continued use of wood as the main fuel source; as a consequence of cutting down the forests, the mountainous terrain of Futuna is particularly prone to erosion; there are no permanent settlements on Alofi because of the lack of natural fresh water resources |
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) | Polynesian |
Exchange rates | koruny per US dollar - 25.7 (2004), 28.209 (2003), 32.739 (2002), 38.035 (2001), 38.598 (2000) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 126.41 (2002), 133.26 (2001), 129.43 (2000), 111.93 (1999), 107.25 (1998) |
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: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Administrator Christian JOB (since 6 August 2002)
head of government: President of the Territorial Assembly Patalione KANIMOA (since NA January 2001) cabinet: Council of the Territory consists of three kings and three members appointed by the high administrator on the advice of the Territorial Assembly note: there are three traditional kings with limited powers elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high administrator appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the Territorial Government and the Territorial Assembly are elected by the members of the assembly |
Exports | 26,670 bbl/day (2001) | $250,000 f.o.b. (1999) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 52%, chemicals 5%, raw materials and fuel 9% (2003) | copra, chemicals, construction materials |
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) | Italy 40%, Croatia 15%, US 14%, Denmark 13% |
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) | a large white modified Maltese cross - shifted a little off center toward the fly and slightly downward - on a red background; the flag of France outlined in white on two sides is in the upper hoist quadrant; the flag of France is used for official occasions |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $30 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3.4%
industry: 39.3% services: 57.3% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $16,800 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.7% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 49 45 N, 15 30 E | 13 18 S, 176 12 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 | both island groups have fringing reefs |
Heliports | 2 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 127,204 km
paved: 127,204 km (including 518 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2002) |
total: 120 km (Ile Uvea 100 km, Ile Futuna 20 km)
paved: 16 km (all on Ile Uvea) unpaved: 104 km (Ile Uvea 84 km, Ile Futuna 20 km) |
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 | - |
Imports | 192,300 bbl/day (2001) | $300,000 f.o.b. (1999) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 46%, raw materials and fuels 15%, chemicals 10% (2003) | chemicals, machinery, passenger ships, consumer 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) | France 97%, Australia 2%, New Zealand 1% |
Independence | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) | none (overseas territory of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.7% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Industries | metallurgy, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, glass, armaments | copra, handicrafts, fishing, lumber |
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: NA%
male: NA% female: NA% |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.2% (2004 est.) | NA% |
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 | FZ, SPC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
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 | none; justice generally administered under French law by the high administrator, but the three traditional kings administer customary law and there is a magistrate in Mata-Utu |
Labor force | 5.25 million (2004 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 4%, industry 38%, services 58% (2002 est.) | agriculture, livestock, and fishing 80%, government 4% (2001 est.) |
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: 5%
permanent crops: 20% other: 75% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Czech | French, Wallisian (indigenous Polynesian language) |
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 | French legal system |
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 Territorial Assembly or Assemblee Territoriale (20 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 11 March 2002 (next to be held NA March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR and affiliates 13, Socialists and affiliates 7 note: Wallis and Futuna elects one senator to the French Senate and one deputy to the French National Assembly; French Senate - elections last held 27 September 1998 (next to be held by NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats - RPR (now UMP) 1; French National Assembly - elections last held 16 June 2002 (next to be held by NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats - RPR (UMP) 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.02 years
male: 72.74 years female: 79.49 years (2005 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years (2003 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: 50% male: 50% female: 50% (1969 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, southeast of Germany | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Europe | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | registered in other countries: 3 | total: 4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 85,572 GRT/9,004 DWT
ships by type: passenger 4 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: France 3, US 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Army of the Czech Republic (ACR): Joint Forces Command, Support and Training Forces Command (2005) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $2.17 billion (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.02% (2004) | - |
National holiday | Czech Founding Day, 28 October (1918) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Czech(s)
adjective: Czech |
noun: Wallisian(s), Futunan(s), or Wallis and Futuna Islanders
adjective: Wallisian, Futunan, or Wallis and Futuna Islander |
Natural hazards | flooding | NA |
Natural resources | hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber | NEGL |
Net migration rate | 0.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: there has been steady emigration from Wallis and Futuna to New Caledonia (2003 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] | Lua Kae Tahi (Giscardians) [leader NA]; Mouvement des Radicaux de Gauche or MRG [leader NA]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Clovis LOGOLOGOFOLAU]; Taumu'a Lelei [Soane Muni UHILA]; Union Populaire Locale or UPL [Falakiko GATA]; Union Pour la Democratie Francaise or UDF [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Bohemian and Moravian Trade Union Confederation [Milan STECH] | NA |
Population | 10,241,138 (July 2005 est.) | 15,734 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.05% (2005 est.) | NA (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem | Leava, Mata-Utu |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (2000) |
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) |
0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 26.8%, Protestant 2.1%, other 3.3%, unspecified 8.8%, unaffiliated 59% (2001 census) | Roman Catholic 99%, other 1% |
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.) |
- |
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: NA |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3.626 million (2003) | 1,125 (1994) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 9,708,700 (2003) | 0 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 150 (plus 1,434 repeaters) (2000) | 2 (2000) |
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 | volcanic origin; low hills |
Total fertility rate | 1.2 children born/woman (2005 est.) | NA children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.6% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 664 km (on Elbe, Vltava, and Oder rivers) (2004) | none |