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.
Geography
Slovakia
Location:
Central Europe, south of Poland
Geographic coordinates:
48 40 N, 19 30 E
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 48,845 sq km
land: 48,800 sq km
water: 45 sq km
Area - comparative:
about twice the size of New Hampshire
Land boundaries:
total: 1,524 km
border countries: Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 677 km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 97 km
air pollution from metallurgical plants presents human health risks; acid rain damaging forests
Environment - international 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, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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
total: 36.1 years
male: 34.5 years
female: 37.9 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.147% (2007 est.)
Birth rate:
10.65 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate:
9.48 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.048 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.992 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.598 male(s)/female
total population: 0.942 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 7.12 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.32 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 5.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 74.95 years
male: 71 years
female: 79.11 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.33 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
less than 200 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 100 (2001 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Slovak(s)
adjective: Slovak
Ethnic groups:
Slovak 85.8%, Hungarian 9.7%, Roma 1.7%, Ruthenian/Ukrainian 1%, other and unspecified 1.8% (2001 census)
Religions:
Roman Catholic 68.9%, Protestant 10.8%, Greek Catholic 4.1%, other or unspecified 3.2%, none 13% (2001 census)
Languages:
Slovak (official) 83.9%, Hungarian 10.7%, Roma 1.8%, Ukrainian 1%, other or unspecified 2.6% (2001 census)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6%
male: 99.7%
female: 99.6% (2001 est.)
Government
Slovakia
Country name:
conventional long form: Slovak Republic
conventional short form: Slovakia
local long form: Slovenska Republika
local short form: Slovensko
Government type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
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
1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia)
National holiday:
Constitution Day, 1 September (1992)
Constitution:
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
Legal system:
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
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
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 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 in 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%
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 17 June 2006 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - Smer 29.1%, SDKU 18.4%, SMK 11.7%, SNS 11.7%, LS-HZDS 8.8%, KDH 8.3%, other 12%; seats by party - Smer 50, SDKU 31, SMK 20, SNS 19, LS-HZDS 16, KDH 14
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); Special Court (judges elected by a council of judges and appointed by president)
Political parties and leaders:
Parties in the Parliament: Christian Democratic Movement or KDH [Pavol HRUSOVSKY]; Direction-Social Democracy or Smer-SD [Robert FICO]; Party of the Hungarian Coalition or SMK [Bela BUGAR]; People's Party - Movement for a Democratic Slovakia or LS-HZDS [Vladimir MECIAR]; Slovak Democratic and Christian Union or SDKU-DS [Mikulas DZURINDA]; Slovak National Party or SNS [Jan SLOTA]; Parties outside the Parliament: Agrarian Party of the Provinces or ASV [Jozef VASKEBA]; Civic Conservative Party or OKS [Peter TATAR]; Free Forum [Zuzana MARTINAKOVA]; Hope or NADEJ [Alexandra NOVOTNA]; Left-wing Bloc or LB [Jozef KALMAN]; Mission 21 - New Christian Democracy or MISIA 21 [Ivan SIMKO]; Movement for Democracy or HZD [Jozef GRAPA]; New Citizens Alliance or ANO [Pavol RUSKO]; Party of the Democratic Left or SDL [Ladislav KOZMON]; Prosperita Slovenska or PS [Frantisek A. ZVRSKOVEC]; Slovak Communist Party or KSS [Vladimir DADO]; Slovak National Coalition or SLNKO [Vitazoslav MORIC]; Slovak People's Party or SLS [Jozef SASIK]; Union of the Workers of Slovakia or ZRS [Jan LUPTAK]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Federation of Employers' Associations of the Slovak Republic; Association of Towns and Villages or ZMOS; Confederation of Trade Unions or KOZ; National Union of Employers or RUZ; Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry or SOPK; Entrepreneurs Association of Slovakia or ZPS; The Business Alliance of Slovakia or PAS
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
Diplomatic representation from the US:
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
Flag description:
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
Economy
Slovakia
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 2001-04 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 2001-06 despite the general European slowdown. Unemployment, at an unacceptable 18% in 2003-04, dropped to 10.2% in 2006 but remains the economy's Achilles heel. Slovakia joined the EU on 1 May 2004.
metal and metal products; food and beverages; electricity, gas, coke, oil, nuclear fuel; chemicals and manmade fibers; machinery; paper and printing; earthenware and ceramics; hasan_kelleci vehicles; textiles; electrical and optical apparatus; rubber products
Germany 23.6%, Czech Republic 18.2%, Russia 11%, Hungary 6%, Austria 5.5%, Poland 4.9%, Italy 4.4% (2006)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$15.75 billion (2006 est.)
Debt - external:
$31.5 billion (30 June 2006 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$12.67 billion in available EU structural adjustment and cohesion funds (2007-13)
Currency (code):
Slovak koruna (SKK)
Currency code:
SKK
Exchange rates:
koruny per US dollar - 29.611 (2006), 31.018 (2005), 32.257 (2004), 36.773 (2003), 45.327 (2002)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications
Slovakia
Telephones - main lines in use:
1.197 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
4.54 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: Slovakia has a modern telecommunications system that has expanded dramatically in recent years with the growth in cellular services
domestic: analog system is now receiving digital equipment and is being enlarged with fiber-optic cable, especially in the larger cities; 3 companies provide nationwide cellular services
international: country code - 421; 3 international exchanges (1 in Bratislava and 2 in Banska Bystrica) are available; Slovakia is participating in several international telecommunications projects that will increase the availability of external services (2006)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 15, FM 78, shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios:
3.12 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
80 (national broadcasting 6, regional 7, local 67) (2004)
Televisions:
2.62 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.sk
Internet hosts:
210,758 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
6 (2000)
Internet users:
2.5 million (2005)
Transportation
Slovakia
Airports:
36 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways:
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: 18
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 9
under 914 m: 8 (2006)
Heliports:
1 (2006)
Pipelines:
gas 6,769 km; oil 416 km (2006)
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)
Roadways:
total: 42,993 km
paved: 37,533 km (includes 316 km of expressways)
unpaved: 5,460 km (2004)
Waterways:
172 km (on Danube River) (2005)
Merchant marine:
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)
Ports and terminals:
Bratislava, Komarno
Military
Slovakia
Military branches:
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 service age and obligation:
complete transition to an all-volunteer professional force went into effect at the beginning of 2006; volunteers include women, with minimum age of 17 years (2005)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 1,351,848
females age 18-49: 1,322,647 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 1,089,645
females age 18-49: 1,093,077 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 41,544
females age 18-49: 40,183 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.87% (2005 est.)
Transnational Issues
Slovakia
Disputes - international:
bilateral government, legal, technical and economic working group negotiations continued in 2006 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
Illicit drugs:
transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe; producer of synthetic drugs for regional market; consumer of ecstasy
This page was last updated on 19 July, 2007 CIA - The World Factbook
