Detoito, Christine Y.

Czech Republic (Czechia)

History
In the early history of the land that is today the Czech Republic, various tribes
settled the land starting with the Celtics, then the Germanic tribes, and later the Slavic
peoples. After WWI, the country of Czechoslovakia was formed from the Czech and
Slovak lands of the Austrian Empire. At the start of World War II, Czechoslovakia
quickly became a part of Germany. Many Jewish and other minorities suffered greatly
during this period. After the war, the country came under the dominion of the Soviet
Union and the communist party. Once the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990,
Czechoslovakia's freedom was restored. The Czechs and the Slovaks decided they would
each rather have their own country and they were peacefully split up into the Czech
Republic and Slovakia.
Czech Republic, also called Czechia, Czech Republic is located in Central
Europe. It is surrounded by Germany to the northwest, Poland to the northeast, Slovakia
to the southeast, and Austria to the south. The total area is 78,866 square kilometers
(49,007 square miles) with a population of 10.68 million. In 2016 the country adopted
the name “Czechia” as a shortened, informal name for the Czech Republic. It is known
for being the Castle Capital of the world. There are over 2000 castles in Czech
Republic including the ruins of the old ones. Keeping in mind that Prague castle is
the largest castle in the world (7 hectares)
Education
Education in the Czech Republic is free and compulsory from ages 6 to 15. In
1996, the gross primary enrollment rate was 104 percent, and in 1995, the net primary
enrollment rate was 86.9 percent. Public school system is free and does not create
significant financial barriers for children to attend, the private schools, particularly in
Prague, are largely financially inaccessible for the majority of local population and thus
also represent an element of exclusion, educating children separately from the rest of
their peers. However, one of the major issues or complains of Czechs is that Czech
Republic’s education system is lacking of focus on practice in which if a student wants
practical classes, they have to pay for it. In Czech Republic the education system is
divided into several levels and types of schools according to age and the kind of training
provided. Pre-primary education for children between the ages of 3 and 6 is optional.
Basic education is provided to pupils between the ages of 6 and 15 (9 years elementary
education), with pupils ages 6-13 enrolled in primary schools and pupils 11-15 enrolled
in lower secondary schools or gymnasiums. Gymnasiums are schools targeted toward a
specific area of study, but still provide students with their elementary education. Upper
secondary education can be either general or vocational, is generally four years in length
(grades 10-13), and is not considered mandatory. At this level, vocational education is
much more common than the general secondary education. Students who graduate with a
vocational certificate often do not continue in the classical education system, and instead
pursue a career in their chosen area of study right away.
Upon doing research about the education system that Czech Republic (Czechia)
have, I think the government in this country valued education as how other countries do.
Having nine years in elementary that is divided into two levels, primary and low-
secondary education then upper-secondary and tertiary education which gives the
students many options as mentioned above to choose in which path they prefer to go.
Moreover, the government really make sure to produce well-equipped and competent
students by providing relatively good, best, affordable and high quality of education that
their country’s future leaders can have. Having free education gives those less fortunate
people to study and achieve what they want. School education is a capital investment
because it usually provides the "owner" (the student) with the possibility of a future
profession and position in society. Moreover, I think the state is being considerate to
their students by paying health insurance for them and it is really a good thing. However,
I think attending practical class should be free also because in this way, students may
learn well and be more knowledgeable about a certain topic. I like how education system
works in this country because they have such strategies to make and produce more
competent students for the betterment of the country itself. No wonder why Czech
Republic is one of the best countries for education who ranked on 27 th place out of 80
countries for having a good quality of education according to U.S News and World
Report. In addition, there are also international students who studied in Czechia and after
reading such reviews about their experiences on studying in this country, Czechia
received good and positive feedbacks from them. In fact, a student from Belgium said
that the quality of classes is good and he experienced a different way of teaching which is
learning on small groups with lots of interaction.
Environment
The Czech Republic is a landlocked piece of land with rolling plains, hills, and
plateaus surrounded by low mountains.  In those mountains many natural resources are
mined including hard coal, soft coal, kaolin, clay, graphite.  With 34% of the land making
up woodland and forest areas, forest products also make up a considerable natural
resource.  These make up most of the natural resources that come from the Czech
Republic. Major environmental issues of the Czech Republic mainly revolve around the
industrialization of much of the country and the subsequent air and water pollution such
as in the areas of northwest Bohemia and in northern Moravia around Ostrava that can
present health risks caused by industry, mining, and agriculture. To add to that, acid rain
is another factor damaging forests that cover the Czech Republic.  Conservation revolves
around forest animals and the loss of habitat due to growing cities and human incursion
into wildlife habitat.
One thing I can really say about Czech Republic is that it is very blessed on the
kind of environment it has. As what mentioned above, the country is abundant in hills,
mountains, etc., which are the main source of natural resources that truly benefit the
people living around it as well as the economy of the country. These natural resources
have a great impact on the growth of the economy. To support this, according to
Economics, Natural Resources and Sustainable Development (2017), the essence of
economics is the well-being of the people, which is formulated as the maximization of
social welfare function (SWF). Economic activities lead to transformation of natural
resources into consumable/usable goods and services, in other words, production of
goods and services, create income earning job opportunities for achieving best outcomes
of SWF. However, it is our responsibility as people who benefit on environment to take
good care and balance the consumption of natural resources in a wise and proper usage of
these. I think Czechia is too focused only on the economic growth and in industrialization
to the point that their environment suffers from such environmental issues like air, water
and land pollution which are major problems that the country is facing until these days.
Because of urbanization, mining and any other form of abusive actions, the environment
is slowly dying. As what in the world encyclopedia is stated, Czechia, in the mid-1990s
had the world's highest industrial carbon dioxide emissions. I was disappointed because
western nations have offered $1 billion to spur environmental reforms, but the pressure to
continue economic growth has postponed the push for environmental action. On the other
hand, we are all aware that economic growth of a country greatly benefits its people but
we should also consider our role as a human living in this world.
Government/Law/Politics
The Czech Republic is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic, in which
the head of the State and the Prime Minister is the head of government. Executive power
is exercised by the Government of the Czech Republic which reports to the lower
house of Parliament. Corruption remains major problem in Czech Republic. Since the
revolutions that brought about the end of the communist bloc 25 years ago, one of the
thorniest problems to plague parts of Eastern Europe has been corruption. It is believed to
be a big problem for many countries, but it is most openly talked about in the Czech
Republic. A recent report from the European Union showed that 95% of Czechs perceive
corruption as a problem, and 71% of companies consider it to be the main hurdle to doing
business in the country. Nonetheless, the government does not implement the legal anti-
corruption framework effectively.  In terms of acts/laws/policy, one of the things that the
government focused on is the education in the country. Parliament enacts laws on
education and decides on the general principles of education policy. The right of all
children to be educated is enshrined in the Constitution of the Czech Republic (Ústava
České republiky No. 1/1993). The Constitution states that everybody is equal in
accessing the law and according to the law. Everyone has the equal opportunity to
receive education, free of charge, at compulsory and upper-secondary level.
It is such disappointment that Czechia’s biggest government/political issue is
corruption which other counties’ major issue also. Since Czechia is a unitary
parliamentary government, electorate or those people in the country who are entitled to
vote in an election have the power to choose the leaders they want to lead the state. It is
very disappointing for them that the officials they chose to sit on the position corrupt the
money of the country which is basically comes from their own pockets. According to
Manhood (2017), corruption impacts societies in many ways. In the worst cases, it costs
lives. Furthermore, it costs people freedom, health and money. Corruption greatly
impacts the political, economical, social and environmental aspect. It diminishes the
national wealth because corrupt politicians invest a little portion of money for public
resources in projects that will line their pocket instead of benefit communities. In
addition, rather than prioritizing high-profile projects and those most urgent infrastructure
projects such as hospitals, roads and schools, these politicians tends to focus more on
corrupting the allotted budget for these. Furthermore, corruption destroys the social fabric
of society. It impairs people’s trust in the institutions as well as in political systems and in
leadership of these corrupt officials. It is already 2020 and corruption remains the most
common issue worldwide, I think it is about time to wake up and combat this issue. We
should not be quiet and not let those corrupt people took the money that comes from our
hard work. It is indeed a good news that World Bank Group is taking an action to combat
corruption.
In terms of laws or acts, education is one of the main focuses of this government,
paying attention and focusing on the equality of opportunities to study is being
prioritized. Such policy like this would be a great help for those people who thinks
education is not for them. Through this policy, they will have the courage to study
because of the equal opportunities that they can have, rich or poor, and access on free
education. I think this is the greatest investment of the country, investing on the future
leaders that it may have and to people that will surely help to boost the economy of
the country.
Health
According to the report about the health of Czech citizens, the most common
causes of death in the Czech Republic in the long-term perspective is cardiovascular
disease, kills 50% of the population. The mortality rate due to cancer is the second
leading cause of death for both males and females in the Czech Republic. The incidence
of new cases of the disease is steadily increasing, but the mortality rate remains at the
same. In recent years, it has even been slightly declining. Severe disease with high-
growth dynamics of morbidity includes diabetes mellitus. Allergic diseases represent a
significant burden for public health and the economy. Asthma has become one of the
most common chronic non-infectious diseases over the past few decades. Some habits of
Czech population influence also health status.
Despite of these health issues and increasing number of cases of different kind of
diseases in Czechia lately, the government still manage to take an action for these and
make the moratlity rate in the country to decrease. According to Fialova (2018), during
the past 10 years, the mortality rate has been reduced by 20%, mainly due to the more
effective diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Compared to developed EU countries,
the mortality rate due to the cardiovascular disease is twice as high in the Czech
Republic. I think one of the reasons why this happen is because the state provides free
medical care to Czech citizens through compulsory contributions to an approved Czech
health insurance company. According to Expat Arrivals, Czech citizens and employees of
companies based in the country must make regular contributions to this fund. It is
mandatory for employers to pay a portion of the monthly fee with the employee
contributing the remainder of the fee. Except for this, people themselves could also make
a huge difference to combat these health issues in the country. Prevention is the best thing
to do and to consider. For example, the use of tobacco products is among the most
significant risk factors resulting in severe diseases and premature deaths in Czechia,
which can be effectively avoided by prevention. Because of this, smokers among adult
citizens of the Czech Republic has been relatively stable in recent years, ranging between
28 and 32%.