A 27-year-old woman with a transplanted womb gave birth in Prague’s Motol hospital in August and her child is thus the first baby born that way in the Czech Republic. The woman had undergone a womb transplant in 2017. The boy was born by Caesarean section on August 29. “This is the first such case in the Czech Republic when we were able to hold the pregnancy in a womb transplant patient all the way up to birth,” the hospital’s spokeswoman Pavlina Dankova said. He was delivered by Caesarean section in the 35th week of the pregnancy of the mother, who is 27 years old. Doctors said the mother would keep the transplanted womb in case she wishes to have a second child.
This year, the Czech Republic has taken 24th place in the 2019 Social Progress Index. The country climbed two places compared to last year, even though it received fewer points than in 2018. The index is annually prepared by the Social Progress Imperative NGO and Deloitte based on data about the level of social and economic development and the state of the environment. Of the 149 countries which were included in the comparison, Norway came on top while the Central African Republic was last. The Czech Republic achieved the best results in economic indicators and basic human needs, specifically nutrition and basic medical care, water and sanitation, shelter, and personal safety. In contrast, tolerance and inclusion has taken a downward turn in the Czech Republic, ranking it among countries the likes of Botswana. A high score was also achieved by the Czech Republic in respect of access to basic knowledge. “Even the richest countries have weaknesses they have to address. We should be concerned that personal rights indicators are falling. Even in the US”, said Deloitte President Josef Kotrba. “If we compare the four Visegrad countries in the area of personal rights, the Czech Republic is far ahead of Slovakia,...
The Czech Republic is launching a competition for towns and municipalities to test 5G technologies, following a national strategy approved in May. “5G technologies are crucial to the development of local governments,” commented the Czech deputy prime minister and minister of industry and trade, Karel Havlíček. “As a result, municipalities will be able to work more closely with companies and universities on new systems such as smart transportation, security and digital applications for citizens. All in the spirit of making the Czech Republic a country of the future.” One of the main goals of the auction is to promote increased competition within the Czech market and to attract new market entrant(s). It is hoped that this will help to reduce the current high costs of mobile services in the Czech Republic. To this end, block allocation of the 2×10 MHz spectrum in the 700 MHz frequency band will be reserved exclusively for new operators. The competition will show both municipalities and citizens how new technologies can help to improve the quality of life. “Our aim is to promote the competitiveness of regions using smart approaches while avoiding regional disparities,” added Minister for Regional Development Klára Dostálová. The Czech Telecommunication Office plans...
What are the Czechs like 30 years after the Velvet Revolution and how has the Czech Republic changed over the years? Academics in analysis for Czech Radio tried to answer this. The aim of Czech Radio’s research was to find out what is the structure of Czech society, and what social classes can be found in it. Results show that Czechs divide themes like migration or pro-Western direction. Research highlights that the theme of a divided society was fully opened by the first direct presidential election, underlined by the (social) change triggered by the economic crisis, and accelerated the migration process. Discussion of pro-Western direction Since the ’90s, topics of an economic nature have dominated the Czech public debate and political divisions; an economic nature that has shaped the perception of the left and right. However, emphasis on economic issues has diminished due to the establishment of the market and skepticism caused by the crisis. “This opened the door for new cultural themes such as migration or globalization, but it also, partly, returned the debate to the question of the country’s pro-western direction. These topics have become a significant part of the political struggle,” said the analysis. According to research,...
The Steadfast – From Franz Kafka to the Velvet Revolution is an exhibition presenting 30 unbreakable and unbroken authors of Czech art in 1918-1989. The exhibition The Steadfast – From Franz Kafka to Velvet Revolution runs in Prague’s Municipal house until October 6. In cooperation with the Aleš South Bohemian Gallery and the Museum of Czech Literature, the curators Zuzana and Eugen Brikcius prepared a unique exhibition for the thirtieth anniversary of the Velvet Revolution. The exhibition will feature 30 steadfast visual artists, among other things through their exclusive verbal expressions whether they are verses, diary notes, quotes, or interviews. The showcased artists include Otto Gutfreund, Jindřich Štýrský, Toyen, Josef Čapek, Mikuláš Medek, Stanislav Kolíbal, Eva Kmentová, Karel Nepraš, and Jiří Kolář. Some of the most valuable items on display include a work by the Jewish artist Peter Kien, paintings by Mikuláš Medek and objects by Zbyněk Sekal, and an original Kafka’s letter to his parents. It’s on loan from the Literary Archive in Prague. The writer Franz Kafka has inspired a wide range of the presented artists, inclusive of the exhibition’s curators, by his metaphysical work, critical thinking, and responsible social attitude.
Portoguese and Czech artists are celebrating democracy and freedom of expression won by the revolution of the two countries in the exhibition “Carnations and Velvet”, at the Municipal Library of Prague, which lasts until September 29. The curatorial project Carnations and Velvet / Art and Revolution in Portugal and Czechoslovakia for the first time presents Portuguese art in the Czech lands and Slovakia. The common starting point is the year 1968, the time of the Prague Spring in Czechoslovakia and the spring of Marcelo Caetano in Lisbon. This year brought about first hopes for the end of the existing undemocratic regimes – the hopes that were thwarted by the Soviet occupation in Czechoslovakia and by the continuation of the colonial war in Portugal. The years 1974 and 1989, the dates of peaceful revolutions, brought freedom to both countries. The Carnation Revolution took place on 25 April 1974, and the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia on 17 November 1989. The project features works of Czechoslovak artists, the legendary personalities who were of crucial importance for the formation of contemporary art in their diverse responses to the totalitarian regime, namely Adriena Šimotová, Eva Kmentová, Květa Válová, Jitka Válová, Jiří Kovanda, Petr Štembera, Karel Miler, Jan Mlčoch,...
The percentage of employed persons aged 15 to 64 in the European Union (EU) who usually work from home stood at 5.0% in 2018. This figure was highest in the Netherlands (14%), followed by Finland (13.3%) and Luxembourg (11%), and lowest in Bulgaria (0.3%) and Romania (0.4%). Working from home was slightly more common in the euro area (5.7% of employed persons) than in the EU as a whole. In the Czech Republic, there are about 206,000 home office workers. “Working from home or at a distance is increasingly common among Czechs. Ten years ago, there were less than 85,000”, said Jan Krupicka from Europe in Data. According to Deloitte, home office is more frequent among experienced people in managerial positions (69 percent) than among middle-aged (40 percent) and lower-level workers (36 percent), said Pavel Šimák, Strategy and Operations manager. The percentage of employed persons in the EU who sometimes work from home has increased steadily over the years, from 7.7% in 2008 to 9.6% in 2017, although the figure in 2017 was down slightly from 2016 (9.8%). In the EU, more self-employed persons usually worked from home (18.1%) than employees (2.8%). This was true in all Member States. ...
The Mastercard Global Destination Cities Index 2019, released this week, ranks 200 cities based on how many international overnight visitors they’re set to receive this year, based on actual 2019 monthly data and the weighted average of national-level tourism forecasts. The index shows the number of international overnight visitors in these cities growing by a whopping 76% since 2009 — but in recent years, the trends look pretty similar. For the fourth year in a row, Bangkok is the No. 1 most popular city on Mastercard’s Global Destination Cities Index. In 2018, the Thai capital welcomed 22.78 million international overnight visitors, with 3.34% growth forecast for 2019. London was the only city on the current top 10 that saw a visitor decline year-over-year — a nearly 4% drop. Asia-Pacific cities have seen the largest regional increase in international travelers since 2009, with a more than 9% increase spurred by rising numbers of mainland Chinese travelers. Here are the 19 most visited cities around the world in 2019, ranked in ascending order by the total number of international visitors they’re set to receive. Bangkok — 22.78 million Paris — 19.1 million London — 19.09 million Dubai, United Arab Emirates — 15.93 million Singapore —...
Team USA advanced to the quarterfinals, gifting the Czech Republic a spot in the final eight after stifling Brazil 89-73 in the second round of FIBA Basketball World Cup. Kemba Walker and Myles Turner scored 16 points apiece as the U.S. beat Brazil 89-73 in the final second-round game, setting up a quarterfinal clash with France in Dongguan on Wednesday. Team USA also guaranteed qualification to the Tokyo Olympics. The U.S. men will be in the Olympics for the 19th time next summer, with 15 gold medals, one silver, and two bronze. Earlier in the same group, Czech Republic lost to Greece 84-77, but a later USA win over Brazil gifted the Czechs a place in the final eight. Apart from the Czechs and Americans, also already through to the quarterfinals in China are the French and Australians. Argentina, Serbia, Spain and Poland have all locked down their seeding. The Czechs will encounter Australia in the quarterfinals, who squeezed out France 100-98 to top Group L and sent its opponent to the duel with Team USA. In the classification round, Montenegro crushed Japan 80-65 and New Zealand edged Turkey 102-101 in Group O. Jordan overcame Senegal 79-77 while Germany beat...
The Czech Finance Ministry submitted plans to start taxing global internet giants from the middle of 2020, proposing a 7% rate on targeted advertising, multilateral digital interface use and user data sales, it said on Thursday. The tax will apply to revenues from online advertising, the sale of user data, and intermediation services, and will only target companies with a global turnover of 750 million euros or more with sales in the Czech Republic of at last 50 million crowns (1.9 million euros) per year. The tax could raise state revenue of 2.1 billion crowns for the 2020 budget and 5 billion crowns annually after that. “Internet giants do not pay taxes in our country to an extent that would match their profits, which is unfair to other companies in the Czech Republic that pay taxes,” said Finance Minister Alena Schillerová. “We have long supported the search for a common international solution, but unfortunately negotiations at EU and OECD levels will take some time. And because we can no longer wait and see the unequal competition of global giants with other entrepreneurs, we come up with our own temporary digital tax adjustment until an international compromise will be found.” The Czech Republic...
The Czech Republic ranks among the best countries in the world for foreign residents, according to a new survey carried out by international foreign resident community InterNations. Overall, the Czech Republic ranks 10th out of 64 destinations. It ranks second in the world for working abroad, as well as among the best countries for families (fourth) and quality of life (seventh). Almost all respondents (96 per cent) rate the opportunity to travel highly, while 95 per cent are impressed with the transportation infrastructure in the country. However, it’s not all good news for the Czech Republic: the country ranks just 56th globally for ease of settling in. Foreign residents in the Czech Republic are particularly unimpressed with the friendliness of the locals: just two in five (40 per cent) rate the general friendliness of the population positively. The language barrier is one issue that gets identified as a problem Although 56 per cent of respondents agree that it is easy to live in the country without knowing the local language, just 13 per cent agree that learning it is easy. In fact, fewer than one in ten (nine per cent) can speak it very well.
The Czech Republic made history by advancing to the second round after a 91-76 upset victory over Turkey on Thursday. In their first-ever FIBA Basketball World Cup, they join the USA to make it out of Group E. The Czech Republic were led by Vojtech Hruban, who had 18 points, and Ondrej Balvin, who added 17 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks. Both teams began the game having recorded one win and one loss, with the winner guaranteed a ticket to the tournament’s second stage. “Our team played really amazingly,” said Czech coach Ronen Ginzburg. “They did what I asked and more. They are lions. We will celebrate this win for a long time, personally and as a country. Against Turkey we won the ball and didn’t let them run.” “During the game, we tried to do lots of things but they pushed hard to play against us with a tough defense,” said Turkey assistant coach Recep Sen. “We tried to come back and we did but they answered. We are sorry for our fans.” Although Cedi Osman had a game-high 24 points for Turkey, five Czech players managed double-digit points for their victory, with Ondrej Balvin notching 17 points...
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