Compare Laos (2007) - Slovakia (2006)

Compare Laos (2007) z Slovakia (2006)

	Laos (2007)	Slovakia (2006)

Administrative divisions	15 provinces (khoueng, singular and plural), 1 municipality* (kampheng nakhon, singular and plural); Attapu, Bokeo, Bolikhamxai, Champasak, Houaphan, Khammouan, Louangnamtha, Louangphrabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan (Vientiane)*, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xekong, Xiangkhoang	8 regions (kraje, singular - kraj); Banskobystricky, Bratislavsky, Kosicky, Nitriansky, Presovsky, Trenciansky, Trnavsky, Zilinsky
Age structure	0-14 years: 41.2% (male 1,349,352/female 1,338,252) 15-64 years: 55.7% (male 1,795,029/female 1,835,168) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 90,188/female 114,009) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 16.7% (male 465,304/female 443,967) 15-64 years: 71.3% (male 1,929,448/female 1,947,735) 65 years and over: 12% (male 244,609/female 408,385) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry	grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, cattle, poultry; forest products
Airports	42 (2007)	36 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2007)	total: 18 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 8 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 33 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 23 (2007)	total: 18 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 8 (2006)
Area	total: 236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km	total: 48,845 sq km land: 48,800 sq km water: 45 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Utah	about twice the size of New Hampshire
Background	Modern-day Laos has its roots in the ancient Lao kingdom of Lan Xang, established in the 14th Century under King FA NGUM. For three hundred years Lan Xang included large parts of present-day Cambodia and Thailand, as well as all of what is now Laos. After centuries of gradual decline, Laos came under the control of Siam (Thailand) from the late 18th century until the late 19th century when it became part of French Indochina. The Franco-Siamese Treaty of 1907 defined the current Lao border with Thailand. In 1975, the Communist Pathet Lao took control of the government ending a six-century-old monarchy and instituting a strict socialist regime closely aligned to Vietnam. A gradual return to private enterprise and the liberalization of foreign investment laws began in 1986. Laos became a member of ASEAN in 1997.	The dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at the close of World War I allowed the Slovaks to join the closely related Czechs to form Czechoslovakia. Following the chaos of World War II, Czechoslovakia became a Communist nation within Soviet-ruled Eastern Europe. Soviet influence collapsed in 1989 and Czechoslovakia once more became free. The Slovaks and the Czechs agreed to separate peacefully on 1 January 1993. Slovakia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004.
Birth rate	34.98 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	10.65 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $392.3 million expenditures: $541.3 million (2006 est.)	revenues: $22.7 billion expenditures: $23.2 billion (2005 est.)
Capital	name: Vientiane geographic coordinates: 17 58 N, 102 36 E time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: Bratislava geographic coordinates: 48 09 N, 17 07 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Climate	tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)	temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	promulgated 14 August 1991	ratified 1 September 1992, effective 1 January 1993; changed in September 1998 to allow direct election of the president; amended February 2001 to allow Slovakia to apply for NATO and EU membership
Country name	conventional long form: Lao People's Democratic Republic conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none	conventional long form: Slovak Republic conventional short form: Slovakia local long form: Slovenska Republika local short form: Slovensko
Death rate	11.28 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	9.45 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$3.179 billion (2006)	$26.94 billion (2005 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Ravic R. HUSO embassy: 19 Rue Bartholonie, That Dam Road, Vientiane mailing address: American Embassy Vientiane, APO AP 96546 telephone: [856] 21-26-7000 FAX: [856] 21-26-7190	chief of mission: Ambassador Rodolphe "Skip" M. VALLEE embassy: Hviezdoslavovo Namestie 4, 81102 Bratislava mailing address: P.O. Box 309, 814 99 Bratislava telephone: [421] (2) 5443-3338 FAX: [421] (2) 5443-0096
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador PHIANE Philakone chancery: 2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6416 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4923	chief of mission: Ambassador Rastislav KACER chancery: 3523 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 237-1054 FAX: [1] (202) 237-6438 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York
Disputes - international	Southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; talks continue on completion of demarcation with Thailand but disputes remain over islands in the Mekong River; concern among Mekong Commission members that China's construction of dams on the Mekong River will affect water levels	Hungary amended its status law extending special social and cultural benefits to ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia, to which Slovakia had protested; consultations continue between Slovakia and Hungary over Hungary's completion of its portion of the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam project along the Danube; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Slovakia must implement the strict Schengen border rules
Economic aid - recipient	$379 million (2006 est.)	$1.9 billion in committed EU structural adjustment and cohesion funds (2004-06)
Economy - overview	The government of Laos, one of the few remaining official Communist states, began decentralizing control and encouraging private enterprise in 1986. The results, starting from an extremely low base, were striking - growth averaged 6% per year in 1988-2006 except during the short-lived drop caused by the Asian financial crisis beginning in 1997. Despite this high growth rate, Laos remains a country with a primitive infrastructure. It has no railroads, a rudimentary road system, and limited external and internal telecommunications, though the government is sponsoring major improvements in the road system with possible support from Japan. Electricity is available in only a few urban areas. Subsistence agriculture, dominated by rice, accounts for about half of GDP and provides 80% of total employment. The economy will continue to benefit from aid by the IMF and other international sources and from new foreign investment in hydropower and mining. Construction will be another strong economic driver, especially as hydroelectric dam and road projects gain steam. Several policy changes since 2004 may help spur growth. In late 2004, Laos gained Normal Trade Relations status with the US, allowing Laos-based producers to benefit from lower tariffs on exports. Laos is taking steps to join the World Trade Organization in the next few years; the resulting trade policy reforms will improve the business environment. On the fiscal side, a value-added tax (VAT) regime, slated to begin in 2008, will streamline the government's inefficient tax system.	Slovakia has mastered much of the difficult transition from a centrally planned economy to a modern market economy. The DZURINDA government made excellent progress during 2001-04 in macroeconomic stabilization and structural reform. Major privatizations are nearly complete, the banking sector is almost completely in foreign hands, and the government has helped facilitate a foreign investment boom with business-friendly policies, such as labor market liberalization and a 19% flat tax. Foreign investment in the automotive sector has been strong. Slovakia's economic growth exceeded expectations in 2001-05, despite the general European slowdown. Unemployment, at an unacceptable 18% in 2003-04, dropped to 16.4% in 2005, but remains the economy's Achilles heel. Slovakia joined the EU on 1 May 2004.
Electricity - consumption	1.193 billion kWh (2005)	24.8 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports	728 million kWh (2005)	10.59 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports	326 million kWh (2005)	8.731 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production	1.715 billion kWh (2005)	30.57 billion kWh (2004)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m	lowest point: Bodrok River 94 m highest point: Gerlachovsky Stit 2,655 m
Environment - current issues	unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water	air pollution from metallurgical plants presents human health risks; acid rain damaging forests
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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	Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1%	Slovak 85.8%, Hungarian 9.7%, Roma 1.7%, Ruthenian/Ukrainian 1%, other and unspecified 1.8% (2001 census)
Exchange rates	kips per US dollar - 10,235 (2006), 10,820 (2005), 10,585.5 (2004), 10,569 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002)	koruny per US dollar - 31.018 (2005), 32.257 (2004), 36.773 (2003), 45.327 (2002), 48.355 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since 8 June 2006); Vice President BOUN-GNANG Volachit (since 8 June 2006) head of government: Prime Minister BOUASONE Bouphavanh (since 8 June 2006); Deputy Prime Ministers Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since May 2002), Maj. Gen. DOUANGCHAI Phichit (since 8 June 2006), SOMSAVAT Lengsavat (since 26 February 1998), and THONGLOUN Sisoulit (since 27 March 2001) cabinet: Ministers appointed by president, approved by National Assembly elections: president and vice president elected by National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 8 June 2006 (next to be held in 2011); prime minister nominated by president and elected by National Assembly for five-year term election results: CHOUMMALI Saignason elected president; BOUN-GNANG Volachit elected vice president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100%; BOUASONE Bouphavanh elected prime minister; percent of National Assembly vote - 97%	chief of state: President Ivan GASPAROVIC (since 15 June 2004) head of government: Prime Minister Robert FICO (since 4 July 2006); Deputy Prime Ministers Dusan CAPLOVIC, Robert KALINAK, Stefan HARABIN, Jan MIKOLAJ (since 4 July 2006) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by direct, popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 3 April and 17 April 2004 (next to be held April 2009); following National Council elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Ivan GASPAROVIC elected president in runoff; percent of vote - Ivan GASPAROVIC 59.9%, Vladimir MECIAR 40.1%
Exports	NA bbl/day	2,160 bbl/day NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin	vehicles 25.9%, machinery and electrical equipment 21.3%, base metals 14.6%, chemicals and minerals 10.1%, plastics 5.4% (2004)
Exports - partners	Thailand 41%, Vietnam 9.7%, China 4.1%, Malaysia 4% (2006)	Germany 26.2%, Czech Republic 14.1%, Austria 7.1%, Italy 6.7%, Poland 6.3%, Hungary 5.7% (2005)
Fiscal year	1 October - 30 September	calendar year
Flag description	three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band	three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red superimposed with the coat of arms of Slovakia (consisting of a red shield bordered in white and bearing a white Cross of Lorraine surmounting three blue hills); the coat of arms is centered vertically and offset slightly to the hoist side
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 42.7% industry: 31% services: 26.2% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 3.5% industry: 29.4% services: 67.2% (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	8.3% (2006 est.)	6% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	18 00 N, 105 00 E	48 40 N, 19 30 E
Geography - note	landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong River forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand	landlocked; most of the country is rugged and mountainous; the Tatra Mountains in the north are interspersed with many scenic lakes and valleys
Heliports	-	1 (2006)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 3.4% highest 10%: 28.5% (2002)	lowest 10%: 3.1% highest 10%: 20.9% (1992)
Illicit drugs	estimated opium poppy cultivation in 2005 was 5,600 hectares, about a 45% decrease from 2004; estimated potential opium production in 2005 was 28 metric tons, a significant decrease from 200 metric tons in 2003; unsubstantiated reports of domestic methamphetamine production; growing domestic methamphetamine problem	transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe; producer of synthetic drugs for regional market
Imports	NA bbl/day	59,000 bbl/day bbl/day
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods	machinery and transport equipment 41.1%, intermediate manufactured goods 19.3%, fuels 12.3%, chemicals 9.8%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 10.2% (2003)
Imports - partners	Thailand 68.8%, China 11.3%, Vietnam 5.5% (2006)	Germany 25.1%, Czech Republic 19.3%, Russia 10.5%, Austria 6.1%, Poland 4.7%, Hungary 4.6%, Italy 4.5% (2005)
Independence	19 July 1949 (from France)	1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia)
Industrial production growth rate	15.7% (2006 est.)	3.8% (2005 est.)
Industries	copper, tin, and gypsum mining; timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism, cement	metal and metal products; food and beverages; electricity, gas, coke, oil, nuclear fuel; chemicals and manmade fibers; machinery; paper and printing; earthenware and ceramics; transport vehicles; textiles; electrical and optical apparatus; rubber products
Infant mortality rate	total: 81.44 deaths/1,000 live births male: 90.91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 71.56 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 7.26 deaths/1,000 live births male: 8.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6.8% (2006 est.)	2.7% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)	ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land	1,750 sq km (2003)	1,830 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	People's Supreme Court (the president of the People's Supreme Court is elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the National Assembly Standing Committee; the vice president of the People's Supreme Court and the judges are appointed by the National Assembly Standing Committee)	Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Council); Constitutional Court (judges appointed by president from group of nominees approved by the National Council); Special Court (judges elected by a council of judges and appointed by president)
Labor force	2.1 million (2006 est.)	2.24 million (30 September 2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 80% industry and services: 20% (2005 est.)	agriculture 5.8%, industry 29.3%, construction 9%, services 55.9% (2003)
Land boundaries	total: 5,083 km border countries: Burma 235 km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km, Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km	total: 1,524 km border countries: Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 677 km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 97 km
Land use	arable land: 4.01% permanent crops: 0.34% other: 95.65% (2005)	arable land: 29.23% permanent crops: 2.67% other: 68.1% (2005)
Languages	Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages	Slovak (official) 83.9%, Hungarian 10.7%, Roma 1.8%, Ukrainian 1%, other or unspecified 2.6% (2001 census)
Legal system	based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations; legal code modified to comply with the obligations of Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory
Legislative branch	unicameral National Assembly (115 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 30 April 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LPRP 113, independents 2	unicameral National Council of the Slovak Republic or Narodna Rada Slovenskej Republiky (150 seats; members are elected on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 17 June 2006 (next to be held 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - Smer 29.1%, SDKU 18.4%, SNS 11.7%, SMK 11.7%, LS-HZDS 8.8%, KDH 8.3%; seats by party - Smer 50, SDKU 31, SNS 20, SMK 20, LS-HZDS 15, KDH 14
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 55.89 years male: 53.82 years female: 58.04 years (2007 est.)	total population: 74.73 years male: 70.76 years female: 78.89 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 68.7% male: 77% female: 60.9% (2001 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2001 est.)
Location	Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam	Central Europe, south of Poland
Map references	Southeast Asia	Europe
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	none (landlocked)
Merchant marine	total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT by type: cargo 1 (2007)	total: 43 ships (1000 GRT or over) 217,819 GRT/309,049 DWT by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 36, chemical tanker 1 foreign-owned: 40 (Bulgaria 7, Estonia 1, Greece 4, Israel 7, Poland 2, Syria 2, Turkey 8, UK 1, Ukraine 8) registered in other countries: 2 (Cyprus 1, Georgia 1) (2006)
Military - note	Laos is one of the world's least developed countries; the Lao People's Armed Forces are small, poorly funded, and ineffectively resourced; there is little political will to allocate sparse funding to the military, and the armed forces' gradual degradation is likely to continue; the massive drug production and trafficking industry centered in the Golden Triangle makes Laos an important narcotics transit country, and armed Wa and Chinese smugglers are active on the Lao-Burma border (2005)	-
Military branches	Lao People's Army (LPA; includes Riverine Force), Air Force	Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic (Ozbrojene Sily Slovenskej Republiky): Land Forces (Pozemne Sily), Air Forces (Vzdusne Sily), Training and Support Forces (Vycviku a Podpory Sily) (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$406 million (2002)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	0.5% (2006)	1.87% FY05 (2005)
National holiday	Republic Day, 2 December (1975)	Constitution Day, 1 September (1992)
Nationality	noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian	noun: Slovak(s) adjective: Slovak
Natural hazards	floods, droughts	NA
Natural resources	timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones	brown coal and lignite; small amounts of iron ore, copper and manganese ore; salt; arable land
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines	refined products 540 km (2006)	gas 6,769 km; oil 416 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [CHOUMMALI Saignason]; other parties proscribed	Christian Democratic Movement or KDH [Pavol HRUSOVSKY]; Direction-Social Democracy or Smer-SD [Robert FICO]; Free Forum [Zuzana MARTINAKOVA]; Movement for Democracy or HZD [Jozef GRAPA]; People's Party - Movement for a Democratic Slovakia or LS-HZDS [Vladimir MECIAR]; New Citizens Alliance or ANO [Pavol RUSKO]; Party of the Hungarian Coalition or SMK [Bela BUGAR]; People's Union or LU [Gustav KRAJCI]; Slovak Communist Party or KSS [Vladimir DADO]; Slovak Democratic and Christian Union or SDKU [Mikulas DZURINDA]; Slovak National Party or SNS [Jan SLOTA]
Political pressure groups and leaders	noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975	Federation of Employers' Associations of the Slovak Republic; Association of Towns and Villages or ZMOS; Confederation of Trade Unions or KOZ
Population	6,521,998 (July 2007 est.)	5,439,448 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	30.7% (2005 est.)	At-risk-of-poverty rate after social transfers: 21%
Population growth rate	2.37% (2007 est.)	0.15% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 7, FM 14, shortwave 2 (2006)	AM 15, FM 78, shortwave 2 (1998)
Railways	-	total: 3,662 km broad gauge: 100 km 1.520-m gauge standard gauge: 3,512 km 1.435-m gauge (1,588 km electrified) narrow gauge: 50 km (1.000-m or 0.750-m gauge) (2005)
Religions	Buddhist 65%, animist 32.9%, Christian 1.3%, other and unspecified 0.8% (1995 census)	Roman Catholic 68.9%, Protestant 10.8%, Greek Catholic 4.1%, other or unspecified 3.2%, none 13% (2001 census)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.008 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.978 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.791 male(s)/female total population: 0.984 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: service to general public is poor but improving; the government relies on a radiotelephone network to communicate with remote areas domestic: multiple service providers; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular subscribership about 10 per 100 persons international: country code - 856; satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)	general assessment: a modernization and privatization program is increasing accessibility to telephone service, reducing the waiting time for new subscribers, and generally improving service quality domestic: predominantly an analog system that is now receiving digital equipment and is being enlarged with fiber-optic cable, especially in the larger cities; mobile cellular capability has been added international: country code - 421; three international exchanges (one in Bratislava and two in Banska Bystrica) are available; Slovakia is participating in several international telecommunications projects that will increase the availability of external services
Telephones - main lines in use	90,067 (2006)	1.197 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	638,200 (2006)	4.54 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	7 (includes 1 station relaying Vietnam Television from Hanoi) (2006)	6 national broadcasting, 7 regional, 67 local (2004)
Terrain	mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus	rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in the south
Total fertility rate	4.59 children born/woman (2007 est.)	1.33 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	2.4% (2005 est.)	16.4% (2005 est.)
Waterways	4,600 km note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,900 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m (2007)	172 km (on Danube River) (2005)

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