Zimbabwe (2001) | Czech Republic (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 provinces and 2 cities* with provincial status; Bulawayo*, Harare*, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands | 13 regions (kraje, singular - kraj) and 1 capital city* (hlavni mesto); Jihocesky Kraj, Jihomoravsky Kraj, Karlovarsky Kraj, Kralovehradecky Kraj, Liberecky Kraj, Moravskoslezsky Kraj, Olomoucky Kraj, Pardubicky Kraj, Plzensky Kraj, Praha*, Stredocesky Kraj, Ustecky Kraj, Vysocina, Zlinsky Kraj |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
38.68% (male 2,223,332; female 2,172,479) 15-64 years: 57.69% (male 3,319,982; female 3,236,286) 65 years and over: 3.63% (male 208,785; female 204,502) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 15.7% (male 828,273; female 786,617)
15-64 years: 70.3% (male 3,605,766; female 3,603,058) 65 years and over: 14% (male 551,852; female 881,194) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, cotton, tobacco, wheat, coffee, sugarcane, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs | wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, poultry |
Airports | 455 (2000 est.) | 121 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
18 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 9 (2000 est.) |
total: 44
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 17 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
437 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 209 under 914 m: 224 (2000 est.) |
total: 76
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 27 under 914 m: 48 (2002) |
Area | total:
390,580 sq km land: 386,670 sq km water: 3,910 sq km |
total: 78,866 sq km
land: 77,276 sq km water: 1,590 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Montana | slightly smaller than South Carolina |
Background | The UK annexed Southern Rhodesia from the South Africa Company in 1923. A 1961 constitution was formulated to keep whites in power. In 1965 the government unilaterally declared its independence, but the UK did not recognize the act and demanded voting rights for the black African majority in the country (then called Rhodesia). UN sanctions and a guerrilla uprising finally led to free elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE, the nation's first prime minister, has been the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) and has dominated the country's political system since independence. | Following the First World War, the closely related Czechs and Slovaks of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire merged to form Czechoslovakia. During the interwar years, the new country's leaders were frequently preoccupied with meeting the demands of other ethnic minorities within the republic, most notably the Sudeten Germans and the Ruthenians (Ukrainians). After World War II, Czechoslovakia fell within the Soviet sphere of influence. In 1968, an invasion by Warsaw Pact troops ended the efforts of the country's leaders to liberalize Communist party rule and create "socialism with a human face." Anti-Soviet demonstrations the following year ushered in a period of harsh repression. With the collapse of Soviet authority in 1989, Czechoslovakia regained its freedom through a peaceful "Velvet Revolution." On 1 January 1993, the country underwent a "velvet divorce" into its two national components, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Now a member of NATO, the Czech Republic has moved toward integration in world markets, a development that poses both opportunities and risks. In December 2002, the Czech Republic was invited to join the European Union (EU). It is expected that the Czech Republic will accede to the EU in 2004. |
Birth rate | 24.68 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.08 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$2.5 billion expenditures: $2.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $279 million (FY96/97 est.) |
revenues: $16.7 billion
expenditures: $18 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Harare | Prague |
Climate | tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March) | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 21 December 1979 | ratified 16 December 1992; effective 1 January 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Zimbabwe conventional short form: Zimbabwe former: Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia |
conventional long form: Czech Republic
conventional short form: Czech Republic local long form: Ceska Republika local short form: Ceska Republika |
Currency | Zimbabwean dollar (ZWD) | Czech koruna (CZK) |
Death rate | 23.22 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.76 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.1 billion (2000 est.) | $24.6 billion (2001) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affairs Earl M. IRVING embassy: 172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue, Harare mailing address: P. O. Box 3340, Harare telephone: [263] (4) 250-593 FAX: [263] (4) 796487 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Craig R. STAPLETON
embassy: Trziste 15, 118 #01 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 Simbi Veke MUBAKO chancery: 1608 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 332-7100 FAX: [1] (202) 483-9326 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Martin PALOUS
chancery: 3900 Spring of Freedom Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 363-6315 FAX: [1] (202) 966-8540 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York |
Disputes - international | - | 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 the Temelin nuclear power plant and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities |
Economic aid - recipient | $200 million (2000 est.) | $NA |
Economy - overview | The government of Zimbabwe faces a wide variety of difficult economic problems as it struggles to consolidate earlier moves to develop a market-oriented economy. Its involvement in the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for example, has already drained hundreds of millions of dollars from the economy. Badly needed support from the IMF suffers delays in part because of the country's failure to meet budgetary goals. Inflation rose from an annual rate of 32% in 1998 to 59% in 1999 and 60% in 2000. The economy is being steadily weakened by excessive government deficits and AIDS; Zimbabwe has the highest rate of infection in the world. Per capita GDP, which is twice the average of the poorer sub-Saharan nations, will increase little if any in the near-term, and Zimbabwe will suffer continued frustrations in developing its agricultural and mineral resources. | Basically one of the most stable and prosperous of the post-Communist states, the Czech Republic has been recovering from recession since mid-1999. Growth in 2000-02 was 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 gradually declining as job creation continues in the rebounding economy. Inflation is 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 encourage additional foreign investment, while intensified restructuring among large enterprises and banks and improvements in the financial sector should strengthen output growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.939 billion kWh (1999) | 54.701 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 18.74 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 1.564 billion kWh (1999) | 8.725 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 5.78 billion kWh (1999) | 69.589 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
69.98% hydro: 30.02% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 78%
hydro: 3% nuclear: 19% other: 1% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
junction of the Runde and Save rivers 162 m highest point: Inyangani 2,592 m |
lowest point: Elbe River 115 m
highest point: Snezka 1,602 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; land degradation; air and water pollution; the black rhinoceros herd - once the largest concentration of the species in the world - has been significantly reduced by poaching | 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:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, 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-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 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, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol |
Ethnic groups | African 98% (Shona 71%, Ndebele 16%, other 11%), mixed and Asian 1%, white less than 1% | 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 | Zimbabwean dollars per US dollar - 54.9451 (January 2001), 43.2900 (2000), 38.3142 (1999), 21.4133 (1998), 11.8906 (1997), 9.9206 (1996) | koruny per US dollar - 36.325 (January 2002), 38.035 (2001), 38.598 (2000), 34.569 (1999), 32.281 (1998), 31.698 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Co-Vice Presidents Simon Vengai MUZENDA (since 31 December 1987) and Joseph MSIKA (since 23 December 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE (since 31 December 1987); Co-Vice Presidents Simon Vengai MUZENDA (since 31 December 1987) and Joseph MSIKA (since 23 December 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; responsible to the House of Assembly elections: presidential candidates nominated with a nomination paper signed by at least 10 registered voters (at least one from each province) and elected by popular vote; election last held 16-17 March 1996 (next to be held NA March 2002); co-vice presidents appointed by the president election results: Robert Gabriel MUGABE reelected president; percent of electoral college vote - Robert Gabriel MUGABE 92.7%, Abel MUZOREWA 4.8%; Ndabaningi SITHOLE 2.4% |
chief of state: President Vaclav KLAUS (since 7 March 2003)
note: the Czech Republic's first president Vaclav HAVEL stepped down from office on 2 February 2003 having served exactly 10 years; parliament finally elected a successor after two inconclusive elections in January 2003 and three rounds of balloting on 28 February 2003 head of government: Prime Minister Vladimir SPIDLA (since 12 July 2002), Deputy Prime Ministers Pavel RYCHETSKY (since 22 July 1998), Cyril SVOBODA (since July 2002), Stanislav GROSS (since July 2002), Petr MARES (since July 2002) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; last successful election held 28 February 2003 (after earlier elections held 15 and 24 January 2003 were inconclusive); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Vaclav KLAUS elected president on 28 February 2003; Vaclav KLAUS 142 votes, Jan SOKOL 124 votes (third round; combined votes of both chambers of parliament) |
Exports | $1.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $38 billion f.o.b. (2002) |
Exports - commodities | tobacco 29%, gold 7%, ferroalloys 7%, cotton 5% (1999 est.) | machinery and transport equipment 44%, intermediate manufactures 25%, chemicals 7%, raw materials and fuel 7% (2000) |
Exports - partners | South Africa 10%, UK 9%, Malawi 8%, Botswana 8%, Japan 7%, (1999 est.) | Germany 35.4%, Slovakia 7.3%, UK 5.5%, Austria 5.3%, Poland 5.2%, (2001) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | seven equal horizontal bands of green, yellow, red, black, red, yellow, and green with a white isosceles triangle edged in black with its base on the hoist side; a yellow Zimbabwe bird is superimposed on a red five-pointed star in the center of the triangle | 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 - $28.2 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $155.9 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
28% industry: 32% services: 40% (1997 est.) |
agriculture: 4%
industry: 41% services: 56% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15,300 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -6.1% (2000 est.) | 2.6% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 20 00 S, 30 00 E | 49 45 N, 15 30 E |
Geography - note | landlocked | 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 | - | 2 (2002) |
Highways | total:
18,338 km paved: 8,692 km unpaved: 9,646 km (1996 est.) |
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%:
1.8% highest 10%: 46.9% (1990) |
lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%: 22% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | significant transit point for African cannabis and South Asian heroin, mandrax, and methamphetamines destined for the South African and European markets | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and minor transit point for Latin American cocaine to Western Europe; producer of synthetic drugs for local and regional markets; susceptible to money laundering related to drug trafficking, organized crime |
Imports | $1.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $41.7 billion f.o.b. (2002) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 35%, other manufactures 18%, chemicals 17%, fuels 14% (1999 est.) | machinery and transport equipment 40%, intermediate manufactures 21%, raw materials and fuels 13%, chemicals 11% (2000) |
Imports - partners | South Africa 46%, UK 6%, China 4%, Germany 4%, US 3% (1999 est.) | Germany 32.9%, Slovakia 6.4%, Russia 6.0%, Italy 5.8%, Austria 4.6% (2001) |
Independence | 18 April 1980 (from UK) | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 3.5% (2002) |
Industries | mining (coal, gold, copper, nickel, tin, clay, numerous metallic and nonmetallic ores), steel, wood products, cement, chemicals, fertilizer, clothing and footwear, foodstuffs, beverages | metallurgy, machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, glass, armaments |
Infant mortality rate | 62.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 5.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 60% (2000 est.) | 2.2% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | 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, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 (2000) | more than 300 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 1,930 sq km (1993 est.) | 240 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Court | Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed by the president for a 10-year term |
Labor force | 5.5 million (2000 est.) | 5.203 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 66%, services 24%, industry 10% (1996 est.) | agriculture 5%, industry 35%, services 60% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
3,066 km border countries: Botswana 813 km, Mozambique 1,231 km, South Africa 225 km, Zambia 797 km |
total: 1,881 km
border countries: Austria 362 km, Germany 646 km, Poland 658 km, Slovakia 215 km |
Land use | arable land:
7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 13% forests and woodland: 23% other: 57% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 40%
permanent crops: 3.04% other: 56.96% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Shona, Sindebele (the language of the Ndebele, sometimes called Ndebele), numerous but minor tribal dialects | Czech |
Legal system | mixture of Roman-Dutch and English common law | 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 parliament, called House of Assembly (150 seats - 120 elected by popular vote for six-year terms, 12 nominated by the president, 10 occupied by traditional chiefs chosen by their peers, and 8 occupied by provincial governors)
elections: last held 24-25 June 2000 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - ZANU-PF 47.2%, MDC 45.6%, ZANU-Ndonga 0.7%, United Parties 0.7%; seats by party - ZANU-PF 63, MDC 56, ZANU-Ndonga 1 |
bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (81 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies or Poslanecka Snemovna (200 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held in two rounds 25-26 October and 1-2 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004); Chamber of Deputies - last held 14-15 June 2002 (next to be held by NA June 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ODS 26, KDU-CSL 14, CSSD 11, US 9, KSCM 3, independents 18; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - CSSD 30.2%, ODS 24.5%, KSCM 18.5%, KDU-CSL & US-DEU coalition 14.3%, other minor 12.5%; seats by party - CSSD 70, ODS 58, KSCM 41, KDU-CSL 21, US-DEU 10 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
37.13 years male: 38.51 years female: 35.7 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 74.95 years
male: 71.46 years female: 78.65 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write English total population: 85% male: 90% female: 80% (1995 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: 99.9% (1999 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southern Africa, between South Africa and Zambia | Central Europe, southeast of Germany |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | Zimbabwe National Army, Air Force of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Republic Police (includes Police Support Unit, Paramilitary Police) | Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, Territorial Defense Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $127 million (FY99/00) | $1,190.2 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.1% (FY99/00) | 2.1% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,996,631 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 2,637,128 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,860,167 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 2,012,779 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 69,393 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 18 April (1980) | Czech Founding Day, 28 October (1918) |
Nationality | noun:
Zimbabwean(s) adjective: Zimbabwean |
noun: Czech(s)
adjective: Czech |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts; floods and severe storms are rare | flooding |
Natural resources | coal, chromium ore, asbestos, gold, nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium, tin, platinum group metals | hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite, timber |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: there is a small but steady flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa in search of better paid employment |
0.96 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | petroleum products 212 km | natural gas 3,550 km (2000) |
Political parties and leaders | Movement for Democratic Change or MDC [Morgan TSVANGIRAI]; Popular Democratic Front or PDF [Austin CHAKAODZA]; United Parties [Abel MUZOREWA]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Ndonga or ZANU-Ndonga [Ndabaningi SITHOLE]; Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF [Robert MUGABE]; Zimbabwe Unity Movement or ZUM [Edgar TEKERE] | Christian and Democratic Union-Czechoslovak People's Party or KDU-CSL [Cyril SVOBODA, chairman]; Civic Democratic Alliance or ODA [Michael ZANTOVSKY, 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 [Petr MARES, chairman]; Quad Coalition [Karel KUHNL, chairman] (includes KDU-CSL, US, ODA, DEU) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | National Constitutional Assembly or NCA | Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions [Richard FALBR] |
Population | 11,365,366
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
10,256,760 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.15% (2001 est.) | -0.07% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Binga, Kariba | Decin, Prague, Usti nad Labem |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 7, FM 20 (plus 17 repeater stations), shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 31, FM 304, shortwave 17 (2000) |
Radios | 1.14 million (1997) | 3,159,134 (December 2000) |
Railways | total:
2,759 km (1995) narrow gauge: 2,759 km 1.067-m gauge (313 km electrified; 42 km double track) (1995 est.) |
total: 9,444 km
standard gauge: 9,350 km 1.435-m gauge (2,843 km electrified; 1,929 km double-track) narrow gauge: 94 km 0.760-m gauge (2000 est.) |
Religions | syncretic (part Christian, part indigenous beliefs) 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous beliefs 24%, Muslim and other 1% | atheist 39.8%, Roman Catholic 39.2%, Protestant 4.6%, Orthodox 3%, other 13.4% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2001 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 (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
system was once one of the best in Africa, but now suffers from poor maintenance; more than 100,000 outstanding requests for connection despite an equally large number of installed but unused main lines domestic: consists of microwave radio relay links, open-wire lines, radiotelephone communication stations, fixed wireless local loop installations, and a substantial mobile cellular network; Internet connection is available in Harare and planned for all major towns and for some of the smaller ones international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat; two international digital gateway exchanges (in Harare and Gweru) |
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 | 212,000 (in addition there are about 20,000 fixed telephones in wireless local loop connections) (1997) | 3.869 million (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 70,000 (1999) | 4.346 million (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 16 (1997) | 150 (plus 1,434 repeaters) (2000) |
Terrain | mostly high plateau with higher central plateau (high veld); mountains in east | 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 | 3.28 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.18 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 50% (2000 est.) | 8.5% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | the Mazoe and Zambezi rivers are used for transporting chrome ore from Harare to Mozambique | 303 km
note: (the Labe (Elbe) is the principal river) (2000) |