Niue (2001) | Slovakia (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | none; note - there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 14 villages each with its own village council whose members are elected and serve three-year terms | 8 regions (kraje, singular - kraj); Banskobystricky, Bratislavsky, Kosicky, Nitriansky, Presovsky, Trenciansky, Trnavsky, Zilinsky |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
0-14 years:
18.86% (male 522,563; female 498,832) 15-64 years: 69.6% (male 1,872,496; female 1,896,249) 65 years and over: 11.54% (male 236,996; female 387,801) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, passion fruit, honey, limes, taro, yams, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, poultry, beef cattle | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, cattle, poultry; forest products |
Airports | 1 (2000 est.) | 35 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
18 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
17 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 7 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
260 sq km land: 260 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
48,845 sq km land: 48,800 sq km water: 45 sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | about twice the size of New Hampshire |
Background | Niue's remoteness, as well as cultural and linguistic differences between its Polynesian inhabitants and those of the rest of the Cook Islands, have caused it to be separately administered. The population of the island continues to drop (from a peak of 5,200 in 1966 to 2,100 in 2000) with substantial emigration to New Zealand. | In 1918 the Slovaks joined 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. Historic, political, and geographic factors have caused Slovakia to experience more difficulty in developing a modern market economy than some of its Central European neighbors. |
Birth rate | NA births/1,000 population | 10.05 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues:
$5.2 billion expenditures: $5.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999) |
Capital | Alofi | Bratislava |
Climate | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters |
Coastline | 64 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 19 October 1974 (Niue Constitution Act) | ratified 1 September 1992, fully 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:
none conventional short form: Niue former: Savage Island |
conventional long form:
Slovak Republic conventional short form: Slovakia local long form: Slovenska Republika local short form: Slovensko |
Currency | New Zealand dollar (NZD) | Slovak koruna (SKK) |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 9.25 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $10.3 billion (2000 est.) |
Dependency status | self-governing in free association with New Zealand; Niue fully responsible for internal affairs; New Zealand retains responsibility for external affairs | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Carl SPIELVOGEL embassy: Hviezdoslavovo Namestie 4, 81102 Bratislava mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [421] (7) 5443-3338 FAX: [421] (7) 5443-0096 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Martin BUTORA chancery: Suite 250, 2201 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; note - new chancery opening in June 2001 at International Court NW, Washington, DC telephone: [1] (202) 965-5161 FAX: [1] (202) 965-5166 |
Disputes - international | none | Gabcikovo/Nagymaros Dam dispute with Hungary is before the ICJ |
Economic aid - recipient | $8.3 million (1995) | $421.9 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Government expenditures regularly exceed revenues, and the shortfall is made up by critically needed grants from New Zealand that are used to pay wages to public employees. Niue has cut government expenditures by reducing the public service by almost half. The agricultural sector consists mainly of subsistence gardening, although some cash crops are grown for export. Industry consists primarily of small factories to process passion fruit, lime oil, honey, and coconut cream. The sale of postage stamps to foreign collectors is an important source of revenue. The island in recent years has suffered a serious loss of population because of migration of Niueans to New Zealand. Efforts to increase GDP include the promotion of tourism and a financial services industry. | Slovakia continues the difficult transition from a centrally planned economy to a modern market economy. The economic slowdown in 1999 stemmed from large budget and current account deficits, fast-growing external debt, and persistent corruption. Even though GDP growth reached only 2.2% in 2000, the year was marked by positive developments such as foreign direct investment of $1.5 billion, strong export performance, restructuring and privatization in the banking sector, entry into the OECD, and initial efforts to stem corruption. Strong challenges face the government in 2001, especially the maintenance of fiscal balance, the further privatization of the economy, and the reduction of unemployment. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.8 million kWh (1999) | 21.471 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 930 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 1.4 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 3 million kWh (1999) | 22.582 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
37.56% hydro: 18.27% nuclear: 44.17% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location near Mutalau settlement 68 m |
lowest point:
Bodrok River 94 m highest point: Gerlachovsky Stit 2,655 m |
Environment - current issues | increasing attention to conservationist practices to counter loss of soil fertility from traditional slash and burn agriculture | 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 signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
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, 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 | Polynesian (with some 200 Europeans, Samoans, and Tongans) | Slovak 85.7%, Hungarian 10.6%, Roma 1.6% (the 1992 census figures underreport the Gypsy/Romany community, which is about 500,000), Czech, Moravian, Silesian 1.1%, Ruthenian and Ukrainian 0.6%, German 0.1%, Polish 0.1%, other 0.2% (1996) |
Exchange rates | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.2502 (January 2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8629 (1998), 1.5082 (1997), 1.4543 (1996) | koruny per US dollar - 48.09 (March 2001), 46.395 (2000), 41.363 (1999), 35.233 (1998), 33.616 (1997), 30.654 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by New Zealand High Commissioner John BRYAN (since NA May 2000) head of government: Premier Sani LAKATANI (since 1 April 1999) cabinet: Cabinet consists of the premier and three ministers elections: the monarch is hereditary; premier elected by the Legislative Assembly for a three-year term; election last held 19 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2002) election results: Sani LAKATANI elected premier; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - NA% |
chief of state:
President Rudolf SCHUSTER (since 15 June 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Mikulas DZURINDA (since 30 October 1998) 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; election last held 29 May 1999 (next to be held NA May/June 2004); 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: Rudolf SCHUSTER elected president in the first direct, popular election; percent of vote - Rudolf SCHUSTER 57% note: government coalition - SDK, SDL, SMK, SOP, KDH |
Exports | $117,500 (f.o.b., 1989) | $12 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | canned coconut cream, copra, honey, passion fruit products, pawpaws, root crops, limes, footballs, stamps, handicrafts | machinery and transport equipment 39.4%, intermediate manufactured goods 27.5%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 13%, chemicals 8% (1999) |
Exports - partners | NZ 89%, Fiji, Cook Islands, Australia | EU 59.7% (Germany 27.8%, Austria 8%, Italy 8.9%), Czech Republic 18.1% (1999) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | yellow with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the flag of the UK bears five yellow five-pointed stars - a large one on a blue disk in the center and a smaller one on each arm of the bold red cross | three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red superimposed with the Slovak cross in a shield centered on the hoist side; the cross is white centered on a background of red and blue |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.5 million (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $55.3 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture:
4.5% industry: 29.3% services: 66.2% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,800 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10,200 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 2.2% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 02 S, 169 52 W | 48 40 N, 19 30 E |
Geography - note | one of world's largest coral islands | landlocked |
Highways | total:
234 km paved: 86 km unpaved: 148 km (106 km of which is access and plantation road) (2001) |
total:
17,710 km paved: 17,533 km (including 288 km of expressways) unpaved: 177 km (1998 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
5.1% highest 10%: 18.2% (1992) |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe |
Imports | $4.1 million (c.i.f., 1989) | $12.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | food, live animals, manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, lubricants, chemicals, drugs | machinery and transport equipment 37.7%, intermediate manufactured goods 18%, fuels 13%, chemicals 11%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 9.5% (1999) |
Imports - partners | NZ 59%, Fiji 20%, Japan 13%, Samoa, Australia, US | EU 51.4% (Germany 26%, Italy 7.1%), Czech Republic 16.6%, Russia 11.9% (1999) |
Independence | on 19 October 1974, Niue became a self-governing parliamentary government in free association with New Zealand | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 9.3% (2000 est.) |
Industries | tourism, handicrafts, food processing | 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 | NA deaths/1,000 live births | 8.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (1995) | 12.2% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, ESCAP (associate), FAO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UNESCO, WHO, WMO | Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 6 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 800 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of New Zealand; High Court of Niue | Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Council); Constitutional Court (judges appointed by president from group of nominees approved by the National Council) |
Labor force | 450 (1992 est.) | 3 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | most work on family plantations; paid work exists only in government service, small industry, and the Niue Development Board | industry 29.3%, agriculture 8.9%, construction 8%, transport and communication 8.2%, services 45.6% (1994) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
1,355 km border countries: Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 515 km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 90 km |
Land use | arable land:
19% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 4% forests and woodland: 19% other: 50% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
31% permanent crops: 3% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 41% other: 8% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Polynesian closely related to Tongan and Samoan, English | Slovak (official), Hungarian |
Legal system | English common law | civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; 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 Legislative Assembly (20 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; six elected from a common roll and 14 are village representatives)
elections: last held 19 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 9, independents 11 |
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 25-26 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - HZDS 27%, SDK 26.3%, SDL 14.7%, SMK 9.1%, SNS 9.1%, SOP 8%; seats by party - governing coalition 93 (SDK 42, SDL 23, SMK 15, SOP 13), opposition 57 (HZDS 43, SNS 14) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
NA years male: NA years female: NA years |
total population:
73.97 years male: 69.95 years female: 78.2 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: 95% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Tonga | Central Europe, south of Poland |
Map references | Oceania | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total:
3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 15,041 GRT/19,517 DWT ships by type: cargo 3 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand | - |
Military branches | Police Force | Ground Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Territorial Defense Forces, Civil Defense Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $380 million (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.71% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
1,487,093 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
1,136,811 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
45,502 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) | Constitution Day, 1 September (1992) |
Nationality | noun:
Niuean(s) adjective: Niuean |
noun:
Slovak(s) adjective: Slovak |
Natural hazards | typhoons | NA |
Natural resources | fish, arable land | brown coal and lignite; small amounts of iron ore, copper and manganese ore; salt; arable land |
Net migration rate | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population | 0.53 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products NA km; natural gas 2,700 km |
Political parties and leaders | Niue People's Action Party or NPP [Sani LAKATANI] | Christian Democratic Movement or KDH [Pavol HRUSOVSKY]; Liberal Democratic Union or LDU [Jan BUDAJ]; Movement for a Democratic Slovakia or HZDS [Vladimir MECIAR]; Party of Civic Understanding or SOP [Pavol HAMZIK]; Party of the Democratic Left or SDL [Jozef MIGAS]; Party of the Hungarian Coalition or SMK [Bela BUGAR]; Slovak Democratic and Christian Union or SDKU [Mikulas DZURINDA]; note - this is DZURINDA's new party for 2002 elections; he remains chairman of a rump and splintering SDK; Slovak Democratic Coalition or SDK (loose parliamentary club grouping representing members of the smaller SSDS, SZS, and those committed to run under SDKU in 2002) [Mikulas DZURINDA]; Slovak National Party or SNS [Anna MALIKOVA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Association of Employers of Slovakia; Association of Towns and Villages or ZMOS; Confederation of Trade Unions or KOZ; Metal Workers Unions or KOVO and METALURG |
Population | 2,124 (July 2001 est.) | 5,414,937 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.5% (2001 est.) | 0.13% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; offshore anchorage only | Bratislava, Komarno |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 15, FM 78, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | 1,000 (1997) | 3.12 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total:
3,660 km broad gauge: 102 km 1.520-m gauge standard gauge: 3,507 km 1.435-m gauge (1,505 km electrified; 1,011 km double track) narrow gauge: 51 km (46 km 1,000-m gauge; 5 km 0.750-m gauge) (1998) |
Religions | Ekalesia Niue (Niuean Church - a Protestant church closely related to the London Missionary Society) 75%, Latter-Day Saints 10%, other 15% (mostly Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventist) | Roman Catholic 60.3%, atheist 9.7%, Protestant 8.4%, Orthodox 4.1%, other 17.5% |
Sex ratio | - | 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: 0.61 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
primitive system domestic: single-line telephone system connects all villages on island international: NA |
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: 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 | 376 (1991) | 1,934,558 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1991) | 736,662 (April 1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 38 (plus 864 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | steep limestone cliffs along coast, central plateau | rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in the south |
Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman | 1.25 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 17% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | none | 172 km (all on the Danube) |