(Republika Slovenija). Central European State (20,273 km²). Capital: Ljubljana. Administrative division: statistical regions (12, without administrative value). Population: 2,025,866 (2008 estimate). Language: Slovenian (official), Italian, Hungarian. Religion: Catholics 57.8%, non-religious / atheists 10.1%, Muslims 2.4%, Orthodox 2.3%, others 27.4%. Monetary unit: euro (100 cents). Human Development Index: 0.923 (26th place). Borders: Austria (N), Hungary (NE), Croatia (SE and S), Italy (W) and the Adriatic Sea (SW).. Member of: Council of Europe, EBRD, NATO, UN, OSCE, EU and WTO.
OVERVIEW
The territory of Slovenia, largely mountainous, opens in the center into the valleys of the Drava and Sava rivers and includes three natural regions: the Alpine area, the Karst plateau and an eastern part formed by gentle hills and the expanse of the Pannonian plain.. The country owes its name to the Slavic tribe of the Slovenes who settled in the territory towards the second half of the sixth century. and that, unlike the Croats and Serbs, he never managed to create an independent kingdom. The isolation in the alpine valleys and in the limestone plateaus of the Istrian hinterland meant that the population had no relationship with the southern Slavic ethnic group, but took on distinctly Central European characteristics, due to the domination of the Franks and other Germanic populations. After a long period of government by the Habsburg (from the 14th century until the end of the First World War), the region became part of the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (renamed Yugoslavia in 1929) and subsequently of the Federal Socialist Republic led by Tito. Following the death of the latter (1980), Slovenia, characterized by a relatively advanced economy and open to the European West, was traversed by separatist tendencies which culminated, in June 1991, with the proclamation of independence. In the following years, Slovenia had to manage the typical problems of transitional economies and the consequences of the detachment from the Yugoslav Federation. Despite some delays in technological development, which have highlighted the need for major structural reforms, the country has managed to revive its economy by continuing with the privatization and liberalization work already underway since the 1980s. Unlike other Eastern countries, more tied to centralized economic systems and dependence on the Soviet Union, the country has benefited from the good relations existing with the western market, accelerating the process of European integration over time. After joining the United Nations (1992), Slovenia has in fact joined other international organizations, including the OSCE (Organization for European Security and Cooperation), the WTO (World Trade Organization), the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and NATO. On 1 May 2004, on the occasion of Slovenia’s entry into the EU, the last wall that divided Europe also fell, namely the one between Gorizia and Nova Gorica.
THE STATE
Slovenia is a presidential republic; the head of state, elected by universal suffrage, remains in office for a maximum of two terms of 5 years each. The legislative power is vested in a bicameral parliament composed of the National Assembly (90 members, elected every four years by the citizens with proportional system) and by the State Council (40 members elected every five years, 18 of which are designated by various types of organisms). The executive power it is exercised by the prime minister flanked by a cabinet of 15 members. The death penalty was abolished in 1989. Since 2003, the defense of the country has been entrusted to a professional army. The school is free and compulsory from 6 to 15 years. In the Slovenian-Hungarian area teaching is bilingual, in the Slovenian-Italian area it can be in Italian or Slovenian. Visit ehuacom for vocational training in Slovenia.
ENVIRONMENT
Slovenia is the greenest European country after Finland: forests cover more than half of its territory (in which protected areas represent 6.5%), creating an almost virgin environment in the south-eastern area of Kocevje. There are many endemic plant species, a rich representation of which can be admired in the Triglav National Park; the latter, which includes a large part of the Julian Alps on the borders with Austria and Italy, is the first and only Slovenian national park, established in 1924, and one of the best preserved in Europe; here a Mediterranean, Alpine and continental flora thrives, in which rare plants stand out, such as white poppy, yellow gentian and Zoys purple bellflower. There is no shortage of regional parks, the most important of which are those of the Seèovlje (Sečovlje) salt pans, the Rakov Skoèjan gorges and the Sneznik castle. Proteus anguinus), blind amphibian that represents the largest cave vertebrate known. Its natural habitat is in fact represented by the karst caves, the most famous of which are Postumia (Postojna), Trebiciano and San Canziano (Skocjan), the latter declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986. The population demonstrates a remarkable environmental awareness: approx. 5% of Slovenians are members of the Planinska Zveza Slovenije (PZS, Slovenian Alpine Club), an ecological movement which, among its initiatives, includes a successful campaign to block the construction of a large artificial lake under Kobarid (Caporetto). Nonetheless, the country is unfortunately not immune from the harmful effects associated with exhaust gas emissions (nitrogen oxide), which lead to worrying levels of atmospheric pollution in the main urban centers, and in the presence of coal-fired thermoelectric plants, which release sulfur dioxide into the environment. In Krško, in Lower Carniola, a nuclear power plant has also been in operation since 1983, which Slovenia uses in co-ownership with Croatia for the production of electricity and of which environmentalists are demanding closure, considering it to be built in an area seismic risk. In 1999, the government issued a series of directives aimed at regulating waste disposal and combating surface water pollution, which particularly affects the Sava and Mura rivers.