Slovakia (2004) | Australia (2004) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 8 regions (kraje, singular - kraj); Banskobystricky, Bratislavsky, Kosicky, Nitriansky, Presovsky, Trenciansky, Trnavsky, Zilinsky | 6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 17.5% (male 485,523; female 463,173)
15-64 years: 70.8% (male 1,908,425; female 1,929,861) 65 years and over: 11.7% (male 239,081; female 397,504) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 20.1% (male 2,044,449; female 1,948,574)
15-64 years: 67.2% (male 6,747,687; female 6,623,995) 65 years and over: 12.8% (male 1,121,522; female 1,426,917) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, cattle, poultry; forest products | wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry |
Airports | 34 (2003 est.) | 444 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 17
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: 7 (2004 est.) |
total: 305
over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 131 914 to 1,523 m: 139 under 914 m: 13 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 17
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 7 (2004 est.) |
total: 143
1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 112 under 914 m: 14 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 48,845 sq km
land: 48,800 sq km water: 45 sq km |
total: 7,686,850 sq km
land: 7,617,930 sq km water: 68,920 sq km note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island |
Area - comparative | about twice the size of New Hampshire | slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states |
Background | 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. Slovakia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. | Aboriginal settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia about 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession in the name of Great Britain. Six colonies were created in the late 18th and 19th centuries; they federated and became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901. The new country took advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop its agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. In recent decades, Australia has transformed itself into an internationally competitive, advanced market economy. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef. A referendum to change Australia's status, from a commonwealth headed by the British monarch to a republic, was defeated in 1999. |
Birth rate | 10.57 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 12.4 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $12.03 billion
expenditures: $13.69 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003) |
revenues: $185 billion
expenditures: $181 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003) |
Capital | Bratislava | Canberra |
Climate | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters | generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 25,760 km |
Constitution | 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 | 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901 |
Country name | conventional long form: Slovak Republic
conventional short form: Slovakia local long form: Slovenska Republika local short form: Slovensko |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia
conventional short form: Australia |
Currency | Slovak koruna (SKK) | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Death rate | 9.48 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 7.38 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $18.31 billion (2003 est.) | $233.5 billion (2003 est.) |
Dependent areas | - | Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Scott N. THAYER
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador J. Thomas SCHIEFFER
embassy: Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2600 mailing address: APO AP 96549 telephone: [61] (02) 6214-5600 FAX: [61] (02) 6214-5970 consulate(s) general: Melbourne, Perth, Sydney |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Rastislav KACER
chancery: 3523 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 237-1054 FAX: [1] (202) 237-6438 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael J. THAWLEY
chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 797-3000 FAX: [1] (202) 797-3168 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco |
Disputes - international | Hungary amended its status law extending special social and cultural benefits to ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia, many of whom had protested the law; Slovakia and Hungary have renewed discussions on ways to resolve differences over the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam on the Danube, with possible resort again to the ICJ for final resolution | the 1999 maritime delimitation established partial maritime boundaries with East Timor over part of the Timor Gap but temporary resource-sharing agreements over an unreconciled area grant Australia 90% share of exploited gas reserves and hamper creation of a southern maritime boundary with Indonesia (see Ashmore and Cartier Islands disputes); Australia asserts a territorial claim to Antarctica and to its continental shelf (see Antarctica) |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $894 million (FY99/00) |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA $113 million (2000),; $92 million EU structural adjustment funds (2000 est.) | - |
Economy - overview | 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 2001-03 in macroeconomic stabilization and structural reform. Major privatizations are nearly complete, the banking sector is almost completely in foreign hands, and foreign investment has picked up. Slovakia's economy exceeded expectations in 2001-03, despite the general European slowdown. Unemployment, at an unacceptable 15% in 2003, remains the economy's Achilles heel. The government faces other strong challenges in 2004, especially cutting the budget deficit, containing inflation, and strengthening the health care system. | Australia has an enviable Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP on par with the four dominant West European economies. Rising output in the domestic economy has been offsetting the global slump, and business and consumer confidence remains robust. Australia's emphasis on reforms, low inflation, and growing ties with China are other key factors behind the economy's strength. The impact of drought, weak foreign demand, and strong import demand pushed the trade deficit up to $18 billion in 2003 and to $20 billion in 2004 from $8 billion in 2002. One other concern is the domestic housing bubble. |
Electricity - consumption | 24.41 billion kWh (2001) | 184.4 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 5.141 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 1.381 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 30.29 billion kWh (2001) | 198.2 billion kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Bodrok River 94 m
highest point: Gerlachovsky Stit 2,655 m |
lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m
highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from metallurgical plants presents human health risks; acid rain damaging forests | soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, 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: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | 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) | Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1% |
Exchange rates | koruny per US dollar - 36.7729 (2003), 45.3267 (2002), 48.3548 (2001), 46.0352 (2000), 41.3628 (1999) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000), 1.55 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Ivan GASPAROVIC (since 15 June 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Mikulas DZURINDA (since 30 October 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Ivan MIKLOS (since 30 October 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Pal CSAKY (since 30 October 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Pavol RUSKO (since May 2004) 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 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%; Mikulas DZURINDA reelected prime minister October 2002 note: government coalition - SDKU, SMK, KDH, ANO |
chief of state: Queen of Australia ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Michael JEFFERY (since 11 August 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister John Winston HOWARD (since 11 March 1996); Deputy Prime Minister John ANDERSON (since 20 July 1999) cabinet: Parliament nominates and selects, from among its members, a list of candidates to serve as government ministers; from this list, the governor general swears in the final selections for the Cabinet elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is sworn in as prime minister by the governor general note: government coalition - Liberal Party and National Party |
Exports | NA (2001) | 523,400 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 39.4%, intermediate manufactured goods 27.5%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 13%, chemicals 8% (1999) | coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment |
Exports - partners | Germany 37.2%, Czech Republic 12%, Austria 9.8%, Italy 5.4%, Poland 4.7%, US 4.7%, Hungary 4.2% (2003) | Japan 18.1%, US 8.7%, China 8.4%, South Korea 7.4%, New Zealand 7.4%, UK 6.7% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | 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 | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant known as the Commonwealth Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901; the star depicts one point for each of the six original states and one representing all of Australia's internal and external territories; the remaining half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four larger, seven-pointed stars |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $72.29 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $571.4 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 5.9%
industry: 47.9% services: 46.2% (2003) |
agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 26.3% services: 70.2% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $13,300 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $29,000 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.9% (2003 est.) | 3% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 48 40 N, 19 30 E | 27 00 S, 133 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; most of the country is rugged and mountainous; the Tatra Mountains in the north are interspersed with many scenic lakes and valleys | world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; regular, tropical, invigorating, sea breeze known as "the Doctor" occurs along the west coast in the summer |
Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 42,717 km
paved: 37,036 km (including 296 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,681 km (2000) |
total: 811,603 km
paved: 314,090 km (including 18,619 km of expressways) unpaved: 497,513 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 18.2% (1992) |
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 25.4% (1994) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe; producer of synthetic drugs for regional market | Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate |
Imports | NA (2001) | 530,800 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 37.7%, intermediate manufactured goods 18%, fuels 13%, chemicals 11%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 9.5% (1999) | machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Germany 27.5%, Czech Republic 18.3%, Russia 10.8%, Austria 6.4%, Italy 5.6%, Poland 4.1%, Hungary 4% (2003) | US 16%, Japan 12.5%, China 11%, Germany 6.1%, UK 4.2% (2003) |
Independence | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) | 1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.2% (2003 est.) | -0.1% (2003 est.) |
Industries | 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 | mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.62 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.88 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 4.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.16 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8.6% (2003 est.) | 2.8% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | Australia Group, BIS, 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, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC | ANZUS, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CP, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, Paris Club, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMEE, UNMISET, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WToO, ZC |
Irrigated land | 1,740 sq km (1998 est.) | 24,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Council); Constitutional Court (judges appointed by president from group of nominees approved by the National Council) | High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general) |
Labor force | 2.58 million (2003) | 10.19 million (37256) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 8.9%, industry 29.3%, construction 8%, transport and communication 8.2%, services 45.6% (1994) | agriculture 5%, industry 22%, services 73% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,524 km
border countries: Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 677 km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 97 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 30.16%
permanent crops: 2.62% other: 67.22% (2001) |
arable land: 6.55% (includes about 27 million hectares of cultivated grassland)
permanent crops: 0.04% other: 93.41% (2001) |
Languages | Slovak (official), Hungarian | English, native languages |
Legal system | 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 | based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | 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 20-21 September 2002 (next to be held NA September 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - HZDS-LS 19.5%, SDKU 15.1%, SMER 13.5%, SMK 11.2%, KDH 8.3%, ANO 8%, KSS 6.3%; seats by party - governing coalition 69 (SDKU 22, SMK 20, KDH 15, ANO 12), opposition 81 (HZDS 26, Smer 25, KSS 9, Free Forum 6, People's Union 5, and independents 10) |
bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats - 12 from each of the six states and two from each of the two mainland territories; one-half of the members elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (150 seats - this is up from 148 seats in 2001 election; members elected by popular vote on the basis of preferential representation to serve three-year terms; no state can have fewer than five representatives)
elections: Senate - last held 9 October 2004 (next to be held not later than June 2008); House of Representatives - last held 9 October 2004 (next to be held not later than November 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party (as of 1 July 2003) - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 34, Australian Labor Party 28, Australian Democrats 7, Green Party 2, One Nation Party 1, Country Liberal Party 1, Australian Progressive Alliance 1, independent 2; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 86, Australian Labor Party 60, Country Liberal Party 1, independent and other 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.19 years
male: 70.21 years female: 78.37 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 80.26 years
male: 77.4 years female: 83.27 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (1980 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, south of Poland | Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean |
Map references | Europe | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 41,891 GRT/63,185 DWT
by type: bulk 4, cargo 4 foreign-owned: Bulgaria 3, Estonia 1, Greece 1, India 1, Liberia 1, Panama 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 52 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,531,461 GRT/1,999,409 DWT
by type: bulk 20, cargo 5, chemical tanker 3, combination bulk 2, container 3, liquefied gas 4, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 6 foreign-owned: United Kingdom 2, United States 12 registered in other countries: 60 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Ground Forces (including Home Guard [Domobrana]), Air and Air Defense Forces (January 2003) | Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force, new Special Operations Command (announced in December 2002) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $406 million (2002) | $14,120.1 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.89% (2002) | 2.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,477,017 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 5,061,810 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,129,935 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 4,356,671 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 43,029 (2004 est.) | males: 140,182 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 1 September (1992) | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) |
Nationality | noun: Slovak(s)
adjective: Slovak |
noun: Australian(s)
adjective: Australian |
Natural hazards | NA | cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires |
Natural resources | brown coal and lignite; small amounts of iron ore, copper and manganese ore; salt; arable land | bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum |
Net migration rate | 0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 3.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 6,769 km; oil 449 km (2004) | condensate/gas 492 km; gas 28,680 km; liquid petroleum gas 240 km; oil 4,773 km; oil/gas/water 110 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Movement or KDH [Pavol HRUSOVSKY]; Direction (Smer) [Robert FICO]; Free Forum [Zuzana MARTINAKOVA]; Movement for Democracy or HZD [Jozef GRAPA]; Movement for a Democratic Slovakia-People's Party or HZDS-LS [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 [Jozef SEVC]; Slovak Democratic and Christian Union or SDKU [Mikulas DZURINDA]; Slovak National Party or SNS [Peter SULOVSKY] | Australian Democrats [Andrew BARTLETT]; Australian Labor Party [Mark LATHAM]; Australian Progressive Alliance [Meg LEES]; Country Liberal Party [Terry MILLS]; Australian Greens [Bob BROWN]; Liberal Party [John Winston HOWARD]; The Nationals [John ANDERSON]; One Nation Party [Len HARRIS] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | 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 | Australian Monarchist League [leader NA]; Australian Republican Movement [leader NA] |
Population | 5,423,567 (July 2004 est.) | 19,913,144 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA |
Population growth rate | 0.14% (2004 est.) | 0.9% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bratislava, Komarno | Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Devonport (Tasmania), Fremantle, Geelong, Hobart (Tasmania), Launceston (Tasmania), Mackay, Melbourne, Sydney, Townsville |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 15, FM 78, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | total: 3,661 km
broad gauge: 100 km 1.520-m gauge standard gauge: 3,512 km 1.435-m gauge (1,588 km electrified) narrow gauge: 49 km (1.000-m or 0.750-m gauge) (2003) |
total: 44,015 km (5,290 km electrified)
broad gauge: 1,957 km 1.600-m gauge standard gauge: 27,095 km 1.435-m gauge (2,828 km electrified) narrow gauge: 14,957 km 1.067-m gauge (2,462 km electrified) dual gauge: 213 km dual gauge (2003) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 60.3%, atheist 9.7%, Protestant 8.4%, Orthodox 4.1%, other 17.5% | Anglican 26.1%, Roman Catholic 26%, other Christian 24.3%, non-Christian 11%, other 12.6% |
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: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | 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 |
general assessment: excellent domestic and international service
domestic: domestic satellite system; much use of radiotelephone in areas of low population density; rapid growth of mobile cellular telephones international: country code - 61; submarine cables to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean), 2 Inmarsat (Indian and Pacific Ocean regions) (1998) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1,294,700 (2003) | 10.815 million (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3,678,800 (2003) | 14.347 million (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 national broadcasting, 7 regional, 67 local (2004) | 104 (1997) |
Terrain | rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in the south | mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 1.31 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.76 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15.2% (2003 est.) | 6% (2003) |
Waterways | 172 km (on Danube River) (2004) | 2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2004) |