1986 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1986 (Internet Archive)
Geography
Agriculture
diversified agriculture: main crops — wheat, rye, oats, corn, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, hogs, cattle, horses; net food importer — meat, wheat, vegetable oils, fresh fruits and vegetables
Area
127,870 km2; the size of New York; 53% agricultural, 36% forest, 11% other
Branches
executive — President (elected by Federal Assembly), Cabinet (appointed by President); legislative (Federal Assembly; elected directly — Chamber of Nations, Chamber of the People), Czech and Slovak National Councils (also elected directly) legislate on limited area of regional matters; judiciary, Supreme Court (elected by Federal Assembly); entire governmental structure dominated by Communist Party
Capital
Prague
Communists
1.6 million party members (August 1984)
Crude steel
14.8 million metric tons produced (1984), 960 kg per capita
Elections
governmental bodies and president every five years; last election June 1981 Dominant political party and leader: Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSC), Gustav Husak, General Secretary (since 1969); Communist Party of Slovakia (KSS) has status of provincial KSC "organization"
Electric power
20,330,000 kW capacity (1985); 79.5 billion kWh produced (1985), 5,128 kWh per capita
Ethnic divisions
64.3% Czech, 30.5% Slovak, 3.8% Hungarian, 0.4% German, 0.4% Polish, 0.3% Ukrainian, 0.1% Russian, 0.2% other (Jewish, Gypsy)
Exports
$17.398 billion (f.o.b., 1984); 54.8% machinery and equipment; 16.2% manufactured consumer goods; 14.2% fuels, minerals, and metals; 6.7% agricultural and forestry products, 8. 1 % other products (1984 prelim.)
GNP
$127.9 billion in 1984 (in 1984 dollars), $8,280 per capita; 1984 real growth rate 2.3%
Government leaders
Gustav HUSAK, President (since 1975); Lubomir STROUGAL, Premier (since 1970)
Imports
$17.585 billion (f.o.b., 1984); 41.1% fuels, minerals, and metals; 33.2% machinery and equipment; 12.1% agricultural and forestry products; 5.7% manufactured consumer goods; 7.9% other products (1984)
Infant mortality rate
16/1,000(1983)
Labor force
7.51 million (1984); 38.1% industry; 12.5% agriculture; 49.4% construction, communications, and other (1982) Government
Land boundaries
3,540 km People
Language
Czech and Slovak (official), Hungarian
Legal system
civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes, modified by Communist legal theory; revised constitution adopted 1960, and amended in 1968 and 1970; no judicial review of legislative acts; legal education at Charles University School of Law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Life expectancy
70
Literacy
99%
Major industries
iron and steel, machinery and equipment, cement, sheet glass, motor vehicles, armaments, chemicals, ceramics, wood, paper products
Major trade partners
USSR, GDR, Poland, Hungary, FRG, Yugoslavia, Austria, Bulgaria, Romania; $32,484 million (1982); 71% with Communist countries, 29% with nonCommunist countries (1984)
Member of
CEMA, FAO, GATT, IAEA, ICAO, ICO, ILO, International Lead and Zinc Study Group, IMO, IPU, ISO, ITC, ITU, UN, UNESCO, UPU, Warsaw Pact, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG, WTO Economy
National holiday
Liberation Day, 9 May
Nationality
noun — Czechoslovak(s); adjective— Czechoslovak
Natural resources
coal, coke, timber, lignite, uranium, magnesite
Official name
Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (CSSR)
Other political groups
puppet parties — Czechoslovak Socialist Party, Czechoslovak People's Party, Slovak Freedom Party, Slovak Revival Party
Political subdivisions
2 ostensibly separate and nominally autonomous republics (Czech Socialist Republic and Slovak Socialist Republic); 7 regions (kraj) in Czech lands, 3 regions in Slovakia; republic capitals of Prague and Bratislava have regional status
Population
15,542,000 (July 1986), average annual growth rate 0.3%
Religion
77% Roman Catholic, 20% Protestant, 2% Orthodox, 1% other
Shortages
ores, crude oil
Suffrage
universal over age 18
Type
Communist state
Voting strength
(1981 election) 99.96% for Communist-sponsored single slate