Korea, South (2002) | Czech Republic (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 7 metropolitan cities* (gwangyoksi, singular and plural); Cheju-do, Cholla-bukto, Cholla-namdo, Ch'ungch'ong-bukto, Ch'ungch'ong-namdo, Inch'on-gwangyoksi*, Kangwon-do, Kwangju-gwangyoksi*, Kyonggi-do, Kyongsang-bukto, Kyongsang-namdo, Pusan-gwangyoksi*, Soul-t'ukpyolsi*, Taegu-gwangyoksi*, Taejon-gwangyoksi*, Ulsan-gwangyoksi* | 13 regions (kraje, singular - kraj) and 1 capital city* (hlavni mesto); Brnensky, Budejovicky, Jihlavsky, Karlovarsky, Kralovehradecky, Liberecky, Olomoucky, Ostravsky, Pardubicky, Plzensky, Praha*, Stredocesky, Ustecky, Zlinsky |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.4% (male 5,488,808; female 4,875,379)
15-64 years: 71% (male 17,404,645; female 16,894,361) 65 years and over: 7.6% (male 1,434,873; female 2,225,934) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
16.09% (male 847,219; female 804,731) 15-64 years: 69.99% (male 3,592,984; female 3,590,802) 65 years and over: 13.92% (male 549,538; female 878,938) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, root crops, barley, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs, chickens, milk, eggs; fish | wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry |
Airports | 102 (2001) | 114 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 69
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 21 (2002) |
total:
43 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 16 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 33
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 31 (2002) |
total:
71 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 42 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 98,480 sq km
land: 98,190 sq km water: 290 sq km |
total:
78,866 sq km land: 77,276 sq km water: 1,590 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Indiana | slightly smaller than South Carolina |
Background | After World War II, a republic was set up in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula while a Communist-style government was installed in the north. The Korean War (1950-53) had US and other UN forces intervene to defend South Korea from North Korean attacks supported by the Chinese. An armistice was signed in 1953 splitting the peninsula along a demilitarized zone at about the 38th parallel. Thereafter, South Korea achieved rapid economic growth, with per capita income rising to roughly 20 times the level of North Korea. South Korea has maintained its commitment to democratize its political processes. In June 2000, a historic first north-south summit took place between the south's President KIM Dae-jung and the north's leader KIM Chong-il. | After World War II, 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 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. |
Birth rate | 14.55 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 9.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $118.1 billion
expenditures: $95.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $22.6 billion (2000) |
revenues:
$16.7 billion expenditures: $18 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Seoul | Prague |
Climate | temperate, with rainfall heavier in summer than winter | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters |
Coastline | 2,413 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 25 February 1948 | ratified 16 December 1992; effective 1 January 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Korea
conventional short form: South Korea local long form: Taehan-min'guk local short form: none note: the South Koreans generally use the term "Han'guk" to refer to their country abbreviation: ROK |
conventional long form:
Czech Republic conventional short form: Czech Republic local long form: Ceska Republika local short form: Ceska Republika |
Currency | South Korean won (KRW) | Czech koruna (CZK) |
Death rate | 6.02 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.81 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $128.2 billion (2001) | $21.3 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas C. HUBBARD
embassy: 82 Sejong-ro, Chongro-ku, Seoul 110-710 mailing address: American Embassy, Unit 15550, APO AP 96205-0001 telephone: [82] (2) 397-4114 FAX: [82] (2) 738-8845 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Steven J. COFFEY 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 YANG Song-chol
chancery: 2450 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-5600 FAX: [1] (202) 387-0205 consulate(s) general: Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle consulate(s): Tamuning (Guam) |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Alexsandr VONDRA 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 | Demarcation Line with North Korea; Liancourt Rocks/Take-shima/Tok-do disputed with Japan | 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 nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities |
Economic aid - donor | ODA $200 million (2000) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
Economy - overview | As one of the Four Tigers of East Asia, South Korea has achieved an incredible record of growth and integration into the high-tech modern world economy. Three decades ago GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. Today its GDP per capita is roughly 20 times North Korea's and equal to the lesser economies of the European Union. This success through the late 1980s was achieved by a system of close government/business ties, including directed credit, import restrictions, sponsorship of specific industries, and a strong labor effort. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods and encouraged savings and investment over consumption. The Asian financial crisis of 1997-99 exposed longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's development model, including high debt/equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined financial sector. Growth plunged by 6.6% in 1998, then strongly recovered to 10.8% in 1999 and 9.2% in 2000. Growth fell back to 3.3% in 2001 because of the slowing global economy, falling exports, and the perception that much-needed corporate and financial reforms have stalled. Led by industry and construction, growth in 2002 was an impressive 5.8%, despited anemic global growth. | Basically one of the most stable and prosperous of the post-Communist states, the Czech Republic has been recovering from recession since mid-1999. The economy grew about 2.5% in 2000 and should achieve somewhat higher growth in 2001. Growth is led by exports to the EU, especially Germany, and foreign investment, while domestic demand is reviving. Uncomfortably high fiscal and current account deficits could be future problems. Unemployment is down to 8.7% as job creation continues in the rebounding economy; inflation is up to 3.8% but still moderate. 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 add to foreign investment, while intensified restructuring among large enterprises and banks and improvements in the financial sector should strengthen output growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 254.08 billion kWh (2000) | 52.898 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 18.744 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 8.735 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 273.2 billion kWh (2000) | 67.642 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 61%
hydro: 1% nuclear: 38% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
77.8% hydro: 3.43% nuclear: 18.77% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m
highest point: Halla-san 1,950 m |
lowest point:
Elbe River 115 m highest point: Snezka 1,602 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution in large cities; acid rain; water pollution from the discharge of sewage and industrial effluents; drift net fishing | air and water pollution in areas of northwest Bohemia and in northern Moravia around Ostrava present health risks; acid rain damaging forests |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
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, 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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | homogeneous (except for about 20,000 Chinese) | 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 | South Korean won per US dollar - 1,317.01 (January 2002), 1,290.99 (2001), 1,130.96 (2000), 1,188.82 (1999), 1,401.44 (1998), 951.29 (1997) | koruny per US dollar - 37.425 (January 2001), 38.598 (2000), 34.569 (1999), 32.281 (1998), 31.698 (1997), 27.145 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President ROH Muh-hyun (since 25 February 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister KO Kun (since 27 February 2003); Deputy Prime Minister KIM Chin-p'yo (since 27 February 2003) cabinet: State Council appointed by the president on the prime minister's recommendation elections: president elected by popular vote for a single five-year term; election last held 19 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2007); prime minister appointed by the president; deputy prime ministers appointed by the president on the prime minister's recommendation election results: results of the 19 December 2002 election - ROH Muh-hyun elected president, took office 25 February 2003; percent of vote - ROH Muh-hyun (MDP) 48.9%; YI Hoe-chang (GNP) 46.6%; other 4.5% |
chief of state:
President Vaclav HAVEL (since 2 February 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Milos ZEMAN (since 17 July 1998); Deputy Prime Ministers Vladimir SPIDLA (since 22 July 1998), Pavel RYCHETSKY (since 22 July 1998), Jan KAVAN (since 8 December 1999) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; election last held 20 January 1998 (next to be held NA January 2003); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Vaclav HAVEL reelected president; Vaclav HAVEL received 47 of 81 votes in the Senate and 99 out of 200 votes in the Chamber of Deputies (second round of voting) |
Exports | $159.2 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | $28.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | electronic products, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, steel, ships; textiles, clothing, footwear; fish | machinery and transport equipment 44%, other manufactured goods 40%, chemicals 7%, raw materials and fuel 7% (1999) |
Exports - partners | US 20.7%, China 12.1%, Japan 11.0%, Hong Kong 6.3%, Taiwan 3.9% (2001) | Germany 43%, Slovakia 8.4%, Austria 6.6%, Poland 5.6%, France 4% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | white with a red (top) and blue yin-yang symbol in the center; there is a different black trigram from the ancient I Ching (Book of Changes) in each corner of the white field | 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 - $931 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $132.4 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 4%
industry: 42% services: 54% (2002 est.) |
agriculture:
3.7% industry: 41.8% services: 54.5% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $19,400 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $12,900 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.8% (2002 est.) | 2.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 37 00 N, 127 30 E | 49 45 N, 15 30 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on Korea Strait | 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 | 204 (2002) | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 87,534 km
paved: 65,388 km (including 1,996 km of expressways) unpaved: 22,146 km (1999) |
total:
55,432 km paved: 55,432 km (including 499 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 25% (1998 est.) |
lowest 10%:
4.3% highest 10%: 22.4% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | - | major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and minor transit point for Latin American cocaine to Western Europe; domestic consumption - especially of locally produced synthetic drugs - on the rise |
Imports | $146.6 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | $31.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, electronics and electronic equipment, oil, steel, transport equipment, textiles, organic chemicals, grains | machinery and transport equipment 42%, other manufactured goods 33%, chemicals 12%, raw materials and fuels 10% (1999) |
Imports - partners | Japan 18.9%, US 15.9%, China 9.4%, Saudi Arabia 5.7%, Australia 3.9% (2001) | Germany 37.5%, Slovakia 6.7%, Austria 6.2%, Italy 5.9%, France 5.4% (1999) |
Independence | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6.5% (2002 est.) | 7.6% (2000) |
Industries | electronics, automobile production, chemicals, shipbuilding, steel, textiles, clothing, footwear, food processing | metallurgy, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, glass, armaments |
Infant mortality rate | 7.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 5.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.8% (2002 est.) | 3.8% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IEA (observer), IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 11 (2000) | more than 300 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 11,590 sq km (1998 est.) | 240 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (justices are appointed by the president with the consent of the National Assembly) | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed by the president for a 10-year term |
Labor force | 22 million (2001) | 5.203 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 69%, industry 22%, agriculture 10% (2001) | agriculture 5%, industry 40%, services 55% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 238 km
border countries: North Korea 238 km |
total:
1,881 km border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km, Slovakia 215 km |
Land use | arable land: 17.44%
permanent crops: 2.05% other: 80.51% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
41% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 11% forests and woodland: 34% other: 12% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Korean, English widely taught in junior high and high school | Czech |
Legal system | combines elements of continental European civil law systems, Anglo-American law, and Chinese classical thought | 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 or Kukhoe (273 seats total - 227 elected by direct, popular vote; members serve four-year terms); note - beginning in 2004, all members will be directly elected; possible redistricting before 2004 may affect the number of seats in the National Assembly
elections: last held 13 April 2000 (next to be held NA April 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - GNP 133, MDP 115, ULD 17, other 8; note - the distribution of seats as of January 2002 is: GNP 136, MDP 118, ULD 15, DPP 2, independents 2 |
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 12 and 19 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2002); Chamber of Deputies - last held 19-20 June 1998 (next to be held by NA June 2002) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - KDU-CSL 28, ODS 22, CSSD 15, ODA 7, US 4, KSCM 3, independents 2; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - CSSD 32.3%, ODS 27.7%, KSCM 11%, KDU-CSL 9.0%, US 8.6%; seats by party - CSSD 74, ODS 63, KSCM 24, KDU-CSL 20, US 18, CSNS 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.88 years
male: 71.2 years female: 78.95 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
74.73 years male: 71.23 years female: 78.43 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: 99.3% female: 96.7% (1995 est.) |
definition:
NA total population: 99.9% (1999 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Eastern Asia, southern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea | Central Europe, southeast of Germany |
Map references | Asia | Europe |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: not specified exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM; between 3 NM and 12 NM in the Korea Strait |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 501 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,679,171 GRT/9,172,403 DWT
ships by type: bulk 104, cargo 160, chemical tanker 47, combination bulk 6, container 52, liquefied gas 16, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 73, refrigerated cargo 25, roll on/roll off 5, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 3, vehicle carrier 5, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, Bulgaria 1, China 1, Greece 1, Japan 1, Malaysia 1, Norway 1, Panama 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, United Kingdom 1 (2002 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, National Maritime Police (Coast Guard) | Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, Territorial Defense, Railroad Units |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $12.8 billion (FY00) | $1.2 billion (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.8% (FY00) | 2.2% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 14,194,960 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,653,456 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 8,990,488 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,024,070 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 394,397 (2002 est.) | males:
69,393 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Liberation Day, 15 August (1945) | Czech Founding Day, 28 October (1918) |
Nationality | noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean |
noun:
Czech(s) adjective: Czech |
Natural hazards | occasional typhoons bring high winds and floods; low-level seismic activity common in southwest | flooding |
Natural resources | coal, tungsten, graphite, molybdenum, lead, hydropower potential | hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0.96 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | petroleum products 455 km; note - additionally, there is a parallel petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) pipeline being completed | natural gas 3,550 km (2000) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic People's Party or DPP [CHO Sun, chairman]; Grand National Party or GNP [YI Hoe-chang, president]; Millennium Democratic Party or MDP [leader NA]; United Liberal Democrats or ULD [KIM Chong-p'il, honorary chairman, KIM Chong-ho, acting president]
note: on 20 January 2000, the National Congress for New Politics or NCNP was renamed the Millennium Democratic Party or MDP |
Christian and Democratic Union-Czechoslovak People's Party or KDU-CSL [Jan KASAL, chairman]; Civic Democratic Alliance or ODA [Daniel KROUPA, chairman]; Civic Democratic Party or ODS [Vaclav KLAUS, 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 [Milos ZEMAN, chairman]; Democratic Union or DEU [Ratibor MAJZLIK, chairman]; Freedom Union or US [Karel KUEHNL, chairman]; Quad Coalition [Cyril SVOBODA, chairman] (includes KDU-CSL, US, ODA, DEU); Republicans of Miroslav SLADEK or RMS [Miroslav SLADEK, chairman] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Federation of Korean Industries; Federation of Korean Trade Unions; Korean Confederation of Trade Unions; Korean National Council of Churches; Korean Traders Association; Korean Veterans' Association; National Council of Labor Unions; National Democratic Alliance of Korea; National Federation of Farmers' Associations; National Federation of Student Associations | Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions [Richard FALBR] |
Population | 48.324 million (July 2002 est.) | 10,264,212 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 4% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.85% (2002 est.) | -0.07% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Chinhae, Inch'on, Kunsan, Masan, Mokp'o, P'ohang, Pusan, Tonghae-hang, Ulsan, Yosu | Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 104, FM 136, shortwave 5 (2001) | AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000) |
Radios | 47.5 million (2000) | 3,159,134 (December 2000) |
Railways | total: 3,124 km
standard gauge: 3,124 km 1.435-m gauge (661 km electrified) (2000) |
total:
9,444 km standard gauge: 9,350 km 1.435-m standard gauge (2,843 km electrified; 1,929 km double track) narrow gauge: 94 km 0.760-m narrow gauge (2000) |
Religions | Christian 49%, Buddhist 47%, Confucianist 3%, Shamanist, Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way), and other 1% | atheist 39.8%, Roman Catholic 39.2%, Protestant 4.6%, Orthodox 3%, other 13.4% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.11 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.13 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 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 (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 20 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: excellent domestic and international services
domestic: NA international: fiber-optic submarine cable to China; the Russia-Korea-Japan submarine cable; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific Ocean region) |
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 | 24 million (2000) | 3.869 million (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 28 million (September 2000) | 4.346 million (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 121 (plus 850 repeater stations and the eight-channel American Forces Korea Network) (1999) | 150 (plus 1,434 repeaters) (2000) |
Terrain | mostly hills and mountains; wide coastal plains in west and south | 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 | 1.72 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.18 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 3.1% (2002 est.) | 8.7% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 1,609 km
note: restricted to small native craft |
303 km
note: (the Labe (Elbe) is the principal river) (2000) |