CzechInvest Information Series No. 5
Serial No: GEN/12/94-5
Date of Issue: December 20, 1994
The Czech Republic was founded on January 1, 1993 after the split of the former Czech and Slovak Federal Republic.
The original Czechoslovak state was formed in 1918, following the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Czechoslovak Republic's first president, Tomas Garrique Masaryk, remains a prominent symbol today.
During the interwar period before World War II, Czechoslovakia was considered one of the best functioning parliamentary democracies in Europe, having attained a high level of economic development and an important position among the world's economically advanced countries.
The existence of Czechoslovakia was interrupted by contingencies just before World War II, but the country was re-established in 1945. Because of its geopolitical location in the centre of Europe, Czechoslovakia became a constituent part of the power sphere of the former Soviet Union, with all of its negative consequences.
In November 1989, revolutionary events reopened Czechoslovakia's path to pluralistic democracy and to joining the Czech economy with the world system of economic relations based on market principles.
The Czech and Slovak Federal Republic (CSFR) became a member of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in autumn 1990, and a member of the Council of Europe in 1991. The CSFR is a founding member of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).
On January 1, 1993, the CSFR was split by parliamentary vote, creating the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic.
Landscape: The Czech Republic is a landlocked country of 79,000 square kilometres situated in the very heart of Europe. The country is bordered by Austria, Germany, Poland and Slovakia.
Most of the country's landscape consists of highlands. The river Elbe and its largest tributary, the Vltava provide important links to world oceans.
Resources: Major natural resources include bituminous coal and lignite, kaolin, uranium, and glass sands. Needs for crude oil, natural gas, and iron ores must be covered primarily through imports.
Industry: The Czech Republic is an industrialised country with a well-developed intensive agricultural sector. At present, the major industrial sectors include metallurgy, engineering, chemicals, rubber, food and the traditional textile and glass industries. Partly due to high levels of tourism, development of the services sector is rapidly increasing.
Agriculture: Agricultural production meets the country's needs for food, both in terms of crop production and animal breeding. Chief crops include wheat, sugar, beet, potato, corn, hops, grapes, rape-seed and flax.
Transport: A dense railway network allows for the transportation of people and goods throughout the country and Europe.
Currency: The Czech national currency is the Czech crown (Ke - CZK). The division of Czech and Slovak currency was conducted between February 8, 1993 and May 31, 1994; new Czech currency was subsequently introduced.
Population: As of January 1994, the Czech Republic had 10.33 million inhabitants.
Approximately 1.2 million people live in the capital city Praha (Prague). Other cities with
more than 100,000 inhabitants are Brno, Ostrava, Plzeo, Olomouc, Usti nad Labem, Liberec, and Hradec Kralove. The country's population density is 131 inhabitants per square kilometre.
Government: According to the constitution adopted by the Czech National Council in December 1992, there are two legislative bodies in the Czech Republic: the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate (the Senate has not yet been established). These two bodies elect the president of the republic.
The country is divided into 75 administrative districts. Local autonomous government is ensured by municipal assemblies headed by elected mayors.
Basic Geographic Data Area [km2] 78,864 Population [mil.] 10.33 Czech nationality [mil.] 8.5 Ave. pop. density [per km2] 131
Demographic Data Men [mil.] 5.0 Women [mil.] 5.3 Pop. of working [mil.] 6.1 age Completed sec. [%] 21.0 education Compl. post-sec. [%] 8.0 educ.
Neighbours The Republic of Austria The Federal Republic of Germany The Polish Republic The Slovak Republic
Biggest cities1 Praha (Prague) [inh.] 1,217,000 Brno [inh.] 388,296 Ostrava [inh.] 327,371 Plzen [inh.] 172,424 Olomouc [inh.] 103,993 Liberec [inh.] 101,162 Usti nad Labem [inh.] 100,002 Hradec Kralove [inh.] 99,917 Ceske Budejovice [inh.] 97,243 Pardubice [inh.] 94,638 Havirov [inh.] 86,297 Zlin [inh.] 82,869
1 September 30, 1993
NOTE: This information is current as of December 1994. Although we have made every effort to ensure the reliability of our sources, CzechInvest does not assume responsibility for its accuracy.