Slovenia – geography

Slovenia, bordering the Adriatic Sea, is on the landward side surrounded by Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and east, and Italy to the west.

Landscape

Slovenia is characterized by mountains and highlands, and forest covers about half of the country. Towards the NW in the Julian Alps, Triglav reaches 2864 m, and east of it on the border with Austria, the Caravankers’ Grintavec reaches 2558 m. The Alpine chains are replaced by lower mountain ridges such as Pohorje further east. The cultivated areas are found in river valleys and basins. The capital Ljubljana is also located in such a geological basin. The rivers Mura, Drava and Sava run from the mountains down through the eastern and southern densely populated and less hilly parts of the country, which continue in a plain. Here is the Prekmurje area with grain and cattle production. The Julian Alps head south into the Dinarids, which are built of limestone and dolomite. The landscape is very dry, and depressions, underground rivers and caves with the Postojna Caveas the largest are common in this karst landscape. Along the 47 km long Adriatic coast, which forms the northernmost part of Istria, are beautiful towns and good beaches. In this tourist area, olives and wine are grown; Koper is the capital of the coastal region.

Climate

The mountains and highlands have a Central European climate with cold winters and, especially in the valleys, hot summers. In Ljubljana, the average temperature for January and July is respectively. -1 and 20 °C, while the annual rainfall is 1400 mm. The coastal areas have a Mediterranean climate with mild winters and hot, dry summers. Here, sometimes in the spring, a cold, northerly wind blows, bora.

Population

88% of Slovenia’s population are Slovenes (1996), while Croats make up 2.8%, Serbs 2.5% and Muslims 1.4%. In addition, there is a Hungarian minority in Prekmurje (0.4%) and a small Italian minority in the west.

• Countryaah: Do you know how many people there are in Slovenia? Check this site to see population pyramid and resident density about this country.

Industries

In 1991, 51% of the workforce was employed in industry, 47% in service, and 1.7% in agriculture. The manufacturing industries are still significant with 37% of the national product in 2004 against approximately 45% in 1991, but the industry is from being dominated by large state-owned companies today characterized by small and medium-sized companies characterized by higher value added such as pharmaceuticals and electronics companies. However, the privatization process is still not complete (2006). The service industries in particular have experienced significant growth, where in 2004 they amounted to approximately 60% of the national product. In particular, the country’s position as a transit country between the Balkans and the EU, as well as tourism, have contributed to this growth. The soil in the mountainous country is relatively poor, and the agricultural sector, which in 2004 amounted to only approximately 3% of the national product, is dominated by small, traditional use with breeding of dairy and slaughter cattle as well as pig production. The main crops are cereals, potatoes, fruit and wine. The country’s many forest areas make timber an important raw material. Before independence, the coastal signs and the ski and health resorts in the mountains were well-visited tourist destinations, but the wars in the Balkans in the 1990’s have had a negative effect on this relationship.

After World War I and Slovenia’s incorporation into Yugoslavia, industrialization intensified. Among other things, this caused people to move from the mountain areas. Despite the fact that this process accelerated after World War II, it has managed to retain so many people in the countryside that only approximately half of the population lives in urban areas. Therefore, commuting is very common.

Energy and infrastructure

Hydropower from the many rivers and imported oil and natural gas cover a large part of the energy needs; in Krško near the Croatian border is a nuclear power plant operated jointly by Croatia. This plant supplied 37% of the country’s energy needs in 2003, but the settlement of disagreement with Croatia over the ownership of the plant means that half of the electricity production since 2004 has been sent to Croatia. The location of the country makes it an important transit country. Since the 1840’s, the railways have been connected to the Austrian and Italian ones, and the city of Koper is important as a transit port for Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic. The roads to the NW and north follow passports and tunnels through the Julian Alps and the Caravans; the roads south to Croatia are more neglected. There are airports in Ljubljana, Maribor and Portorož.

Slovenia – language

The official language is Slovenian, spoken by almost 90% of the population. In addition, Croatian and Serbian are spoken, as well as to a lesser extent Macedonian, Albanian, Hungarian and Italian. For culture and traditions of Slovenia, please check aparentingblog.

Slovenia – social conditions

The social conditions in Slovenia were before independence secured by the Yugoslav market socialist system, which involved work for all and an extensive social safety net, which guaranteed health insurance and pension. Slovenia has taken a cautious approach to reforming the social system and given priority to continuity. The biggest problems have been how to deal with the new phenomenon of unemployment and how to shift social responsibility from companies to state institutions. The introduction of new tax and pension systems has been a long time coming. The country has a high employment rate and a high wage level. The average retirement age is 53 years for women and 57.5 years for men. There are not the big income differences.

Slovenia – military

The armed forces are (2006) at 6550. The army’s land forces are at 5973, its maritime unit at 47 and its air military unit at 530. The reserve is at 20,000. The equipment of the forces is dominated by Yugoslav or Soviet-produced equipment. A significant portion of this is quite modern. The standing land forces are multiplied into a light brigade; the reserve includes two more brigades. The Army’s maritime force is manning an Israeli-built Super Dvora patrol vessel. The Army’s Air Military Unit advises over three light transport aircraft, 13 helicopters and air defense weapons. The security forces include 4,500 regulars as well as 5,000 reservists.

Slovenia joined NATO in 2004.