Background: In 1918 the Slovenes joined the Serbs and Croats in forming a new nation renamed Yugoslavia in 1929. After World War II Slovenia became a republic of the renewed Yugoslavia which though communist distanced itself from Moscow's rule. Dissatisfied with the exercise of power of the majority Serbs the Slovenes succeeded in establishing their independence in 1991. Historical ties to Western Europe a strong economy and a stable democracy make Slovenia a leading candidate for future membership in the EU and NATO.

Geographic coordinates: 46 00 N 15 00 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 20,253 km²
Land: 20,253 km²
Water: 0 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than New Jersey

Land boundaries
Total: 1,165 km
Border countries: (4) Austria 330 km; , Croatia 501 km; , Italy 232 km; , Hungary 102 km

Coastline: 46.6 km

Maritime claims: NA

Climate: Mediterranean climate on the coast continental climate with mild to hot summers and cold winters in the plateaus and valleys to the east

Terrain: a short coastal strip on the Adriatic an alpine mountain region adjacent to Italy and Austria mixed mountain and valleys with numerous rivers to the east

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
Extremes highest point: Triglav 2,864 m

Natural resources: lignite coal lead zinc mercury uranium silver hydropower

Land use
Arable land: 12%
Permanent crops: 3%
Permanent pastures: 24%
Forests and woodland: 54%
Other: 7% (1996 est.)

Irrigated land: 20 km² (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: flooding and earthquakes

Population: 1,930,132 (July 2001 est.)
Growth rate: 0.14% (2001 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Slovene
Adjective: Slovenian

Ethnic groups: Slovene 88% Croat 3% Serb 2% Bosniak 1% Yugoslav 0.6% Hungarian 0.4% other 5% (1991)

Languages: Slovenian 91% Serbo-Croatian 6% other 3%

Religions: Roman Catholic 68.8% Uniate Catholic 2% Lutheran 1% Muslim 1% atheist 4.3% other 22.9%

Age structure
0-14 years: 16.09% (male 159,428; female 151,134)
15-64 years: 69.61% (male 681,333; female 662,170)
65 years and over: 14.3% (male 101,354; female 174,713) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.14% (2001 est.)

Birth rate: 9.32 births/1000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate: 9.98 deaths/1000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate: 2.11 migrant(s)/1000 population (2001 est.)

Environment
Current issues: Sava River polluted with domestic and industrial waste; pollution of coastal waters with heavy metals and toxic chemicals; forest damage near Koper from air pollution (originating at metallurgical and chemical plants) and resulting acid rain
International agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.06 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.05 male/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male/female
65 years and over: 0.58 male/female
Total population: 0.95 male/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 4.51 deaths/1000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 75.08 years
Male: 71.2 years
Female: 79.17 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.28 children born/woman (2001 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.02% (1999 est.)
People living with hivaids: 200 (1999 est.)
Deaths: less than 100 (1999 est.)

Literacy
Definition: NA
Total population: 99%
Male: NA%
Female: NA%

Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Slovenia
Conventional short form: Slovenia
Local long form: Republika Slovenija
Local short form: Slovenija

Government type: parliamentary democratic republic

Capital: Ljubljana

Administrative divisions
Note: there may be 45 more municipalities

Independence: 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia)

National holiday: Independence Day/Statehood Day 25 June (1991)

Constitution: adopted 23 December 1991 effective 23 December 1991

Legal system: based on civil law system

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal (16 years of age if employed)

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Milan KUCAN (since 22 April 1990)
Head of government: Prime Minister Janez DRNOVSEK (since 15 October 2000);
Cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and elected by the National Assembly
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 24 November 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); following National Assembly elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually nominated to become prime minister by the president and elected by the National Assembly; election last held 15 October 2000 (next to be held NA October 2004)
Election results: Milan KUCAN elected president; percent of vote - Milan KUCAN 56.3%, Janez PODOBNIK 18%; Janez DRNOVSEK elected prime minister; percent of National Assembly vote - NA

Legislative branch
Elections: National Assembly - last held 15 October 2000 (next to be held NA October 2004)
Election results: percent of vote by party - LDS 36%, SDS 16%, ZLSD 12%, SLS/SKD 10%, NSI 9%, SMS 4%, SNS 4%, DeSUS 5%, other 4%; seats by party - LDS 34, SDS 14, ZLDS 11, SLS/SKD 9, NSI 8, SMS 4, SNS 4, DeSUS 4, other 2
Note: the National Council or Drzavni Svet is an advisory body with limited legislative powers; it may propose laws and ask to review any National Assembly decisions; in the election of NA November 1997, 40 members were elected to represent local, professional, and socioeconomic interests (next election to be held in the fall of 2002)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the Judicial Council); Constitutional Court (judges elected for nine-year terms by the National Assembly and nominated by the president)

Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party of Retired (Persons) of Slovenia or DeSUS [Janko KUSAR]; Liberal Democratic or LDS [Janez DRNOVSEK chairman]; New Slovenia or NSI [Andrej BAJUK chairman]; Slovene National Party or SNS [Zmago JELINCIC chairman]; Slovene People's Party or SLS (Slovenian People's Party or SLS and Slovenian Christian Democrats or SKD merged in April 2000) [Franc ZAGOZEN chairman]; Slovene Youth Party or SMS [leader NA]; Social Democratic Party of Slovenia or SDS [Janez JANSA chairman]; United List of Social Democrats (former Communists and allies) or ZLSD [Borut PAHOR chairman]

International organization participation: ABEDA ACCT (observer) BIS CCC CE CEI EAPC EBRD ECE EU (applicant) FAO IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICRM IDA IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Intelsat (nonsignatory user) Interpol IOC IOM ISO ITU NAM (guest) NSG OPCW OSCE PFP UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNFICYP UNIDO UNTAET UNTSO UPU WEU (associate partner) WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTrO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Davorin KRACUN
In the us chancery: 1525 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,036
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 667-5,363
In the us fax: [1] (202) 667-4,563
In the us consulates general: New York
In the us consulates: Cleveland
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Nancy ELY-RAPHEL
From the us embassy: Presernova 31, SI-1000 Ljubljana
From the us mailing address: P. O. Box 254, Presernova 31, 1000 Ljubljana; American Embassy Ljubljana, Department of State, Washington, DC 20,521-7,140
From the us telephone: [386] (01) 200-5,500
From the us fax: [386] (01) 200-5,555

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of white (top) blue and red with the Slovenian seal (a shield with the image of Triglav Slovenia's highest peak in white against a blue background at the center; beneath it are two wavy blue lines depicting seas and rivers and above it are three six-pointed stars arranged in an inverted triangle which are taken from the coat of arms of the Counts of Celje the great Slovene dynastic house of the late 14th and early 15th centuries); the seal is located in the upper hoist side of the flag centered in the white and blue bands

Economy overview: Although Slovenia enjoys one of the highest GDPs per capita among the transition economies of Central Europe it needs to speed up the privatization process and the dismantling of restrictions on foreign investment. About 45% of the economy remains in state hands and the level of foreign direct investment inflows as a percent of GDP is the lowest in the region. Analysts are predicting between 4.0% and 4.2% growth for 2001. Export growth is expected to slow in 2001 and 2002 as EU markets soften. Inflation rose from 6.1% to 8.9% in 2000 and remains a matter of concern.

Real gdp growth rate: 4.5% (2000 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $12,000 (2000 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 4%
Industry: 35%
Services: 61% (1999 est.)

Agriculture products: potatoes hops wheat sugar beets corn grapes; cattle sheep poultry

Industries: ferrous metallurgy and rolling mill products aluminum reduction and rolled products lead and zinc smelting electronics (including military electronics) trucks electric power equipment wood products textiles chemicals machine tools

Industrial production growth rate: 6.2% (2000)

Labor force: 857,400
By occupation agriculture: NA%
By occupation industry: NA%
By occupation services: NA%

Unemployment rate: 7.1% (1997 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 3.2%
Highest 10: 20.7% (1995)

Budget
Revenues: $8.11 billion
Expenditures: $8.32 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 8.9% (2000 est.)

Exports: $8.9 billion (f.o.b. 2000)
Commodities: manufactured goods machinery and transport equipment chemicals food
Partners: Germany 31% Italy 14% Croatia 8% Austria 7% France 6% (1999)

Imports: $9.9 billion (f.o.b. 2000)
Commodities: machinery and transport equipment manufactured goods chemicals fuels and lubricants food
Partners: Germany 21% Italy 17% France 11% Austria 8% Croatia 4% Hungary Russia (1999)

Debt external: $6.2 billion (2000)

Exchange rates: tolars per US dollar - 225.93 (January 2001) 222.66 (2000) 181.77 (1999) 166.13 (1998) 159.69 (1997) 135.36 (1996)

Electricity
Production: 12.451 billion kWh (1999)
Production by source fossil fuel: 34.44%
Production by source hydro: 29.58%
Production by source nuclear: 35.98%
Production by source other: 0% (1999)
Consumption: 10.024 billion kWh (1999)
Exports: 2.2 billion kWh (1999)
Imports: 645 million kWh (1999)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 722,000 (1997)
Mobile cellular: 1 million (2000)

Telephone system
General assessment: NA
Domestic: 100% digital (2000)
International: NA

Internet
Country code: .si
Service providers isps: 11 (2000)
Users: 460,000 (1999)

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $370 million (FY00)
Percent of gdp: 1.7% (FY00)

Airports: 14 (2000 est.)
With paved runways total: 6
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 2
With paved runways under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 8
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 2
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 4 (2000 est.)

Pipelines: crude oil 290 km; natural gas 305 km

Railways
Total: 1,201 km
Standard gauge: 1,201 km 1.435-m gauge (489 km electrified) (1999)

Waterways: NA

Disputes international: progress with Croatia on discussions of adjustments to land boundary but problems remain in defining maritime boundary in Gulf of Piran; Austria has minor dispute with Slovenia over nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities