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Czechoslovakia (continued) 7 December 1989); Jan CARNOGURSKY (since 7 December 1989)

Political parties and leaders: Civic Forum, since December 1989 leading political force, loose coalition of former oppositionists headed by President Vaclav Havel; Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSC), Ladislav Adamec, chairman (since 20 December 1989); KSC toppled from power in November 1989 by massive anti-regime demonstrations, minority role in coalition government since 10 December 1989

Suffrage: universal at age 18

Elections: President—last held 22 May 1985 (next to be held 8 June 1990; will be a free election); results—Gustáv Husak was reelected without opposition;

Federal Assembly—last held 23 and 24 May 1986 (next to be held 8 June 1990; will be a free election); results—KSC was the only party; seats—(350 total) KSC 350

Communists: 1.71 million party members (April 1988) and falling

Other political groups: Czechoslovak Socialist Party, Czechoslovak People's Party, Slovak Freedom Party, Slovak Revival Party, Christian Democratic Party; more than 40 political groups are expected to field candidates for the 8 June 1990 election

Member of: CCC, CEMA, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBEC, ICAO, ICO, ILO, ILZSG, IMO, IPU, ISO, ITC, ITU, UN, UNESCO, UPU, Warsaw Pact, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG, WTO

Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Rita KLIMOVA; Chancery at 3900 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 363-6315 or 6316; US—Ambassador Shirley Temple BLACK; Embassy at Trziste 15-12548, Prague (mailing address is APO New York 09213); telephone [42](2) 53 6641 through 6649

Flag: two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side

Economy

Overview: Czechoslovakia is highly industrialized and has a well-educated and skilled labor force. Its industry, transport, energy sources, banking, and most other means of production are state owned. The country is deficient, however, in energy and many raw materials. Moreover, its aging capital plant lags well behind West European standards. Industry contributes over 50% to GNP and construction 10%. About 95% of agricultural land is in collectives or state farms. The centrally planned economy has been tightly linked in trade (80%) to the USSR and Eastern Europe. Growth has been sluggish, averaging less than 2% in the period 1982-89. GNP per capita ranks next to the GDR as the highest in the Communist countries. As in the rest of Eastern Europe, the sweeping political changes of 1989 have been disrupting normal channels of supply and compounding the government's economic problems. Czechoslovakia is beginning the difficult transition from a command to a market economy.

GNP: $123.2 billion, per capita $7,878; real growth rate 1.0% (1989 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.5% (1989)

Unemployment rate: 0.9% (1987)

Budget: revenues $22.4 billion; expenditures $21.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.7 billion (1986 state budget)

Exports: $24.5 billion (f.o.b., 1988); commodities—machinery and equipment 58.5%; industrial consumer goods 15.2%; fuels, minerals, and metals 10.6%; agricultural and forestry products 6.1%, other products 15.2%; partners—USSR, GDR, Poland, Hungary, FRG, Yugoslavia, Austria, Bulgaria, Romania, US

Imports: $23.5 billion (f.o.b., 1988); commodities—machinery and equipment 41.6%; fuels, minerals, and metals 32.2%; agricultural and forestry products 11.5%; industrial consumer goods 6.7%; other products 8.0%; partners—USSR, GDR, Poland, Hungary, FRG, Yugoslavia, Austria, Bulgaria, Romania, US

External debt: $7.4 billion, hard currency indebtedness (1989)

Industrial production: growth rate 2.1% (1988)

Electricity: 22,955,000 kW capacity; 85,000 million kWh produced, 5,410 kWh per capita (1989)

Industries: iron and steel, machinery and equipment, cement, sheet glass, motor vehicles, armaments, chemicals, ceramics, wood, paper products, footwear

Agriculture: accounts for 15% of GNP (includes forestry); largely self-sufficient in food production; diversified crop and livestock production, including grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit, hogs, cattle, and poultry; exporter of forest products

Aid: donor—$4.2 billion in bilateral aid to non-Communist less developed countries (1954-88)

Currency: koruna (plural—koruny); 1 koruna (Kč) = 100 haleřu

Exchange rates: koruny (Kčs) per US$1—17.00 (March 1990), 10.00(1989), 5.63 (1988), 5.43 (1987), 5.95 (1986), 6.79 (1985), 6.65 (1984)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications

Railroads: 13,116 km total; 12,868 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, 102 km 1.524-meter broad gauge, 146 km 0.750- and 0.760-meter narrow gauge; 2,854 km double track; 3,530 km electrified; government owned (1986)

Highways: 73,805 km total; including 489 km superhighway (1986)

Inland waterways: 475 km (1986); the Elbe (Labe) is the principal river

Pipelines: crude oil, 1,448 km; refined products, 1,500 km; natural gas, 8,000 km

Ports: maritime outlets are in Poland (Gdynia, Gdansk, Szczecin), Yugoslavia (Rijeka, Koper), FRG (Hamburg), GDR (Rostock); principal river ports are Prague on the Vltava, Děčín on the Elbe (Labe), Komárno on the Danube, Bratislava on the Danube

Merchant marine: 21 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 208,471 GRT/308,072 DWT; includes 15 cargo, 6 bulk

Civil air: 40 major transport aircraft

Airports: 158 total, 158 usable; 40 with permanent-surface runways; 19 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 37 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Telecommunications: stations—58 AM, 16 FM, 45 TV; 14 Soviet TV relays; 4,360,000 TV sets; 4,208,538 radio receivers; at least 1 satellite earth station

Defense Forces

Branches: Czechoslovak People's Army, Frontier Guard, Air and Air Defense Forces

Military manpower: males 15-49, 4,019,311; 3,076,735 fit for military service; 137,733 reach military age (18) annually

Defense expenditures: 28.4 billion koruny, 7% of total budget (1989); note—conversion of the military budget into US dollars using the official administratively set exchange rate would produce misleading results 80