Czech Republic

Facts

Background: At the close of World War I, the Czechs and Slovaks of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire merged to form Czechoslovakia. During the interwar years, having rejected a federal system, 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). On the eve of World War II, the Czech part of the country was forcibly annexed to the Third Reich, and the Slovaks declared independence as a fascist ally of Nazi Germany. After the war, a reunited but truncated Czechoslovakia (less Ruthenia) 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 known as "normalization." With the collapse of Soviet-backed 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. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004.
Location: Central Europe, between Germany, Poland, Slovakia, and Austria
Area land: 77,247 sq km
Area water: 1,620 sq km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Country name conventional long form: Czech Republic
Country name conventional short form: Czech Republic
Country name former: Czech Republic
Population: 10,190,213 (July 2011 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 13.5% (male 704,495/female 666,191); 15-64 years: 70.2% (male 3,599,774/female 3,554,158); 65 years and over: 16.3% (male 663,982/female 1,001,613) (2011 est.);
Population growth rate: -0.12% (2011 est.)
Birth rate: 8.7 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)
Death rate: 10.86 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.059 male(s)/female; under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female; 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female; 65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female; total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2011 est.);
Infant mortality rate: total: 3.73 deaths/1,000 live births; male: 4.06 deaths/1,000 live births; female: 3.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.);
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 77.19 years; male: 73.93 years; female: 80.66 years (2011 est.);
Total fertility rate: 1.26 children born/woman (2011 est.);
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2009 est.);
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 2,000 (2009 est.);
HIV/AIDS - deaths: fewer than 100 (2009 est.);
Nationality: noun: Czech(s); adjective: Czech;
Ethnic groups: Czech 90.4%, Moravian 3.7%, Slovak 1.9%, other 4% (2001 census);
Religions: Roman Catholic 26.8%, Protestant 2.1%, other 3.3%, unspecified 8.8%, unaffiliated 59% (2001 census);
Languages: Czech 94.9%, Slovak 2%, other 2.3%, unidentified 0.8% (2001 census);
Literacy: definition: NA; total population: 99%; male: 99%; female: 99% (2003 est.);
GDP (purchasing power parity): $262.8 billion (2010 est.); $256.9 billion (2009 est.); $267.9 billion (2008 est.);

GDP (official exchange rate): $195.2 billion (2010 est.);
GDP - real growth rate: 2.3% (2010 est.); -4.1% (2009); 2.5% (2008);
GDP - per capita (PPP): $25,600 (2010 est.); $25,200 (2009 est.); $26,200 (2008 est.);
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 2.2%; industry: 38.3%; services: 59.5% (2010 est.);
Population below poverty line: NA%;
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 1.5%; highest 10%: NA (2009);
Labor force: 5.37 million (2010 est.);
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 3.1%; industry: 38.6%; services: 58.3% (2009);
Unemployment rate: 7.1% (30 November 2010 est.); 8% (2009 est.);
Budget: revenues: $77.9 billion; expenditures: $87.87 billion (2010 est.);
Industries: motor vehicles, metallurgy, machinery and equipment, glass, armaments;
Industrial production growth rate: 15.9% (2010 est.);
Electricity - production: 82.25 billion kWh (2009 est.);
Electricity - consumption: 53.42 billion kWh (2009 est.);
Electricity - exports: 22.23 billion kWh (2009 est.);
Electricity - imports: 8.58 billion kWh (2009 est.);

Statistics: CIA World Factbook.

Press

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