FAX: 476-9340

FAX: (202) 537-0876

consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, San Francisco

consulate(s): New York

Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)

embassy: 27 Napier Road, Singapore 258508

mailing address: PSC Box 470, FPO AP 96534-0001

telephone: 476-9100

Flag description: two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; near the hoist side of the red band, there is a vertical, white crescent (closed portion is toward the hoist side) partially enclosing five white five-pointed stars arranged in a circle

Singapore Economy

Economy - overview: Singapore is blessed with a highly developed and successful free-market economy, a remarkably open and corruption-free business environment, stable prices, and the fifth highest per capita GDP in the world. Exports, particularly in electronics and chemicals, and services are the main drivers of the economy. Mainly because of robust exports, especially electronic goods, the economy grew 10.1% in 2000. Forecasters, however, are projecting only 4%-6% growth in 2001 largely because of weaker global demand, especially in the US. The government promotes high levels of savings and investment through a mandatory savings scheme and spends heavily in education and technology. It also owns government-linked companies (GLCs) - particularly in manufacturing - that operate as commercial entities. As Singapore looks to a future increasingly marked by globalization, the country is positioning itself as the region's financial and high-tech hub.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $109.8 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 10.1% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $26,500 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: NEGL%

industry: 30%

services: 70%

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA%

highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.4% (2000)

Labor force: 2.1 million (2000)

Labor force - by occupation: financial, business, and other services 35%, manufacturing 21%, construction 13%, transportation and communication 9%

Unemployment rate: 3% (2000 est.)

Budget: revenues: $18.1 billion

expenditures: $17.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $9.5 billion (FY99/00 est.)

Industries: electronics, chemicals, financial services, oil drilling equipment, petroleum refining, rubber processing and rubber products, processed food and beverages, ship repair, entrepot trade, biotechnology

Industrial production growth rate: 14% (2000 est.)

Electricity - production: 27.381 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100%

hydro: 0%

nuclear: 0%

other: 0% (1999)

Electricity - consumption: 25.464 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1999)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1999)

Agriculture - products: rubber, copra, fruit, orchids, vegetables; poultry, eggs, fish, ornamental fish

Exports: $137 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

Exports - commodities: machinery and equipment (including electronics), chemicals, mineral fuels

Exports - partners: US 19%, Malaysia 17%, Hong Kong 8%, Japan 7%,
Taiwan 5%, Thailand 4%, UK 4%, Netherlands 3.8%, China 3%, South
Korea 3%, Germany 3% (1999)

Imports: $127 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs

Imports - partners: US 17%, Japan 17%, Malaysia 16%, Thailand 5%,
China 5%, Taiwan 4%, Germany 3%, Saudi Arabia 3% (1999)

Debt - external: $9.7 billion (2000)

Economic aid - recipient: $NA

Currency: Singapore dollar (SGD)

Currency code: SGD

Exchange rates: Singapore dollars per US dollar - 1.7365 (January 2001), 1.7240 (2000), 1.6950 (1999), 1.6736 (1998), 1.4848 (1997), 1.4100 (1996)

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March

Singapore Communications

Telephones - main lines in use: 1.928 million (November 2000)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 2.333 million (November 2000)

Telephone system: general assessment: major consideration given to serving business interests; excellent international service

domestic: excellent domestic facilities

international: submarine cables to Malaysia (Sabah and Peninsular Malaysia), Indonesia, and the Philippines; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean), and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific Ocean region)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 16, shortwave 2 (1998)

Radios: 2.6 million (2000)

Television broadcast stations: 6 (2000)

Televisions: 1.33 million (1997)

Internet country code: .sg

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 9 (2000)

Internet users: 1.74 million (2000)

Singapore Transportation

Railways: total: 38.6 km

narrow gauge: 38.6 km 1.000-m gauge

note: there is a 83 km mass transit system with 48 stations

Highways: total: 3,150 km

paved: 3,066 km (including 150 km of expressways)

unpaved: 84 km (2000)

Waterways: none

Ports and harbors: Singapore

Merchant marine: total: 879 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 20,849,168 GRT/33,215,317 DWT

ships by type: bulk 134, cargo 111, chemical tanker 63, combination bulk 10, combination ore/oil 6, container 167, liquefied gas 28, livestock carrier 2, multi-functional large-load carrier 4, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 295, refrigerated cargo 7, roll on/roll off 7, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 10, vehicle carrier 33

note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, Bermuda 12, Belgium 6, China 9, Denmark 29, Germany 8, Greece 1, Hong Kong 20, Indonesia 9, Japan 32, South Korea 3, Netherlands 2, Norway 9, Russia 1, Sweden 22, Thailand 22, Taiwan 17, UK 3, US 10 (2000 est.)

Airports: 9 (2000 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 9

over 3,047 m: 2

2,438 to 3,047 m: 1

1,524 to 2,437 m: 4

914 to 1,523 m: 1

under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.)

Heliports: 1 (2000 est.)

Singapore Military

Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, People's Defense Force,
Police Force

Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 1,316,815 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 959,636 (2001 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $5 billion (FY00/01 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 4.5% (FY00/01 est.)

Singapore Transnational Issues

Disputes - international: Pedra Branca Island (Pulau Batu Putih) disputed with Malaysia

Illicit drugs: as a transportation and financial services hub, Singapore is vulnerable, despite strict laws and enforcement, to use as a transit point for Golden Triangle heroin and as a venue for money laundering

@Slovakia

Slovakia Introduction

Background: In 1918 the Slovaks joined 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. Historic, political, and geographic factors have caused Slovakia to experience more difficulty in developing a modern market economy than some of its Central European neighbors.

Slovakia Geography

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: 1,355 km

border countries: Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 515 km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 90 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters

Terrain: rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in the south

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Bodrok River 94 m

highest point: Gerlachovsky Stit 2,655 m

Natural resources: brown coal and lignite; small amounts of iron ore, copper and manganese ore; salt; arable land

Land use: arable land: 31%

permanent crops: 3%

permanent pastures: 17%

forests and woodland: 41%

other: 8% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 800 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: NA

Environment - current issues: 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-Sulphur 85, Air
Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea,
Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geography - note: landlocked

Slovakia People

Population: 5,414,937 (July 2001 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 18.86% (male 522,563; female 498,832)

15-64 years: 69.6% (male 1,872,496; female 1,896,249)

65 years and over: 11.54% (male 236,996; female 387,801) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.13% (2001 est.)

Birth rate: 10.05 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate: 9.25 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.53 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female

total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 8.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 73.97 years

male: 69.95 years

female: 78.2 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.25 children born/woman (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.01% (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 400 (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 100 (1999 est.)

Nationality: noun: Slovak(s)

adjective: Slovak

Ethnic groups: Slovak 85.7%, Hungarian 10.6%, Roma 1.6% (the 1992 census figures underreport the Gypsy/Romany community, which is about 500,000), Czech, Moravian, Silesian 1.1%, Ruthenian and Ukrainian 0.6%, German 0.1%, Polish 0.1%, other 0.2% (1996)

Religions: Roman Catholic 60.3%, atheist 9.7%, Protestant 8.4%,
Orthodox 4.1%, other 17.5%

Languages: Slovak (official), Hungarian

Literacy: definition: NA

total population: NA%

male: NA%

female: NA%

Slovakia Government

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: Bratislava

Administrative divisions: 8 regions (kraje, singular - kraj);
Banskobystricky, Bratislavsky, Kosicky, Nitriansky, Presovsky,
Trenciansky, Trnavsky, Zilinsky

Independence: 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech
Republic and Slovakia)

National holiday: Constitution Day, 1 September (1992)

Constitution: ratified 1 September 1992, fully 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; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; 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 Rudolf SCHUSTER (since 15 June 1999)

head of government: Prime Minister Mikulas DZURINDA (since 30 October 1998)

cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister

elections: president elected by direct popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 29 May 1999 (next to be held NA May/June 2004); 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: Rudolf SCHUSTER elected president in the first direct, popular election; percent of vote - Rudolf SCHUSTER 57%

note: government coalition - SDK, SDL, SMK, SOP, KDH

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 25-26 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2002)

election results: percent of vote by party - HZDS 27%, SDK 26.3%, SDL 14.7%, SMK 9.1%, SNS 9.1%, SOP 8%; seats by party - governing coalition 93 (SDK 42, SDL 23, SMK 15, SOP 13), opposition 57 (HZDS 43, SNS 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)

Political parties and leaders: Christian Democratic Movement or KDH [Pavol HRUSOVSKY]; Liberal Democratic Union or LDU [Jan BUDAJ]; Movement for a Democratic Slovakia or HZDS [Vladimir MECIAR]; Party of Civic Understanding or SOP [Pavol HAMZIK]; Party of the Democratic Left or SDL [Jozef MIGAS]; Party of the Hungarian Coalition or SMK [Bela BUGAR]; Slovak Democratic and Christian Union or SDKU [Mikulas DZURINDA]; note - this is DZURINDA's new party for 2002 elections; he remains chairman of a rump and splintering SDK; Slovak Democratic Coalition or SDK (loose parliamentary club grouping representing members of the smaller SSDS, SZS, and those committed to run under SDKU in 2002) [Mikulas DZURINDA]; Slovak National Party or SNS [Anna MALIKOVA]

Political pressure groups and leaders: Association of Employers of Slovakia; Association of Towns and Villages or ZMOS; Confederation of Trade Unions or KOZ; Metal Workers Unions or KOVO and METALURG

International organization participation: Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
Martin BUTORA

chancery: Suite 250, 2201 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; note - new chancery opening in June 2001 at International Court NW, Washington, DC

telephone: (202) 965-5161