1988 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1988 (Internet Archive)
Geography
Boundary disputes
none; complex maritime and air (but not territorial) disputes with Turkey in Aegean Sea; Cyprus question with Turkey; Macedonia question with Bulgaria and Yugoslavia; Northern Epirus question with Albania
Branches
Gibraltar Regiment '50km Corfu Sea OfLtmnos Aegean Sea ' SVfc/OS ATHENS V .^g. •'*- ' ', * ' Mediterranean Sea r~^\ ^-^-. _n * Srr regional map V
Climate
temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers
Coastline
13,676 km
Comparative area
about the size of New York State
Continental shelf
200 meters or to depth of exploitation
Environment
subject to severe earthquakes; archipelago of 2,000 islands; air pollution
Ethnic divisions
97.7% Greek, 1.3% Turkish; 1.0% Vlach, Slav, Albanian, Pomach (note — the Greek Government states there are no ethnic divisions in Greece)
Infant mortality rate
13.8/1,000 (1984)
Labor force
3.86 million (1985); 43% services, 27% agriculture, 20% manufacturing and mining, 7% construction; 8.3% unemployment
Land boundaries
1,191 km total
Land use
23% arable land; 8% permanent crops; 40% meadows and pastures; 20% forest and woodland; 9% other; includes 7% irrigated
Language
Greek (official); English and French widely understood
Life expectancy
men 72, women 75
Literacy
95%
Nationality
noun — Greek(s); adjective — Greek
Organized labor
10-15% of total labor force, 20-25% of urban labor force
Population
9,987,785 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 0.28%
Religion
98% Greek Orthodox, 1.3% Muslim, 0.7% other
Special notes
strategic location dominating the Aegean Sea and southern approach to Turkish Straits
Telecommunications
adequate international radiocommunication facilities; automatic telephone system serving 9,400 telephones (31.5 per 100 popl.); 1 AM, 6 FM, 4 TV stations; 1 Atlantic Ocean satellite station Defense Forces Defense is the responsibility of the United Kingdom
Terrain
mostly mountains with ranges extending into sea as peninsulas or chains of islands
Territorial sea
6 nm
Total area
131,940 km2; land area: 130,800 km2
Government
Administrative divisions
51 departments (nomoi)
Branches
executive consisting of a President, elected by the Vouli (Parliament), a Prime Minister, and a Cabinet; unicameral legislature consisting of the 300-member Vouli; and an independent judiciary
Capital
Athens
Communists
an estimated 60,000 members and sympathizers
Elections
every four years; Papandreou's Panhellenic Socialist Movement defeated the incumbent New Democracy government of George Rallis in elections held on 18 October 1981; PASOK was reelected in June 1985 Greenland Political parties and leaders: Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK), Andreas Papandreou; New Democracy (ND), Constantine Mitsotakis; Democratic Renewal (DR), Constantine Stefanopoulos; Communist Party-Exterior (KKE-Ext), Harilaos Florakis; Communist Party-Interior (KKE-Int), Leonidas Kyrkos
Government leaders
Dr. Andreas PAPANDREOU, Prime Minister (since 1981); Christos SARTZETAKIS, President (since 1985)
Legal system
new constitution enacted in June 1975
Member of
EC, EIB (associate), EMA, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOOC, ITU, IWC — International Wheat Council, NATO, OECD, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG, WTO
National holiday
Independence Day, 25 March
Official name
Hellenic Republic
Suffrage
universal age 18 and over
Type
presidential parliamentary government; monarchy rejected by referendum 8 December 1974
Voting strength
Parliament — Panhellenic Socialist Movement, 157 seats; New Democracy, 111 seats; Democratic Renewal, 10 seats; Communists (Exterior), 10 seats; Communists (Interior), 1 seat; independents, 11 seats
Economy
Agriculture
wheat, olives, tobacco, cotton, raisins, fruit; nearly self-sufficient
Aid
US, including Ex-Im, $525 million (1970-81); other Western bilateral (ODA and OOF), $1.1 billion (1970-84); Communist countries (1970-85), $430 million
Budget
central government revenues, $12.4 billion; expenditures $15.8 billion; deficit, $3.4 billion (1986)
Crude steel
1.3 million metric tons produced (1984 est.), 132 kg per capita
Electric power
11,223,000 kW capacity; 29.580 million kWh produced, 2,970 kWh per capita
Exports
$8.5 billion (f.o.b., 1985); tobacco, minerals, fruits, textiles
Fiscal year
calendar year
GNP
$32.8 billion, $3,300 per capita; real growth rate 2.1% (1985)
Imports
$10.1 billion (c.i.f., 1985); machinery and automotive equipment, petroleum and petroleum products, manufactured consumer goods, chemicals, meat and live animals
Major industries
food and tobacco processing, textiles, chemicals, metal products
Major trade partners
(1985 est.) imports— 18.0% FRG, 9.8% Italy, 8.5% Saudi Arabia, 6.7% France, 6.1% Netherlands; exports— 20.0% FRG, 11.3% Italy, 8.1% US, 8.0% France, 4.1% Netherlands
Military transfers
US (FY70-85) $2.6 billion
Monetary conversion rate
135.0 Greek drachmas=US$l (January 1987)
Natural resources
bauxite, lignite, magnesite, oil
Communications
Airfields
80 total, 78 usable; 58 with permanent-surface runways; 20 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 21 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Branches
Hellenic Army, Hellenic Navy, Hellenic Air Force
Civil air
39 major transport aircraft
Highways
38,938 km total; 16,090 km paved, 13,676 km crushed stone and gravel, 5,632 km improved earth, 3,540 km unimproved earth
Inland waterways
system consists of three coastal canals and three unconnected rivers, which provide navigable length of just under 80 km
Military budget
for fiscal year ending 31 December 1986, $2.6 billion; 16.1% of central government budget
Military manpower
males 15-49, 2,387,000; 1,837,000 fit for military service; about 80,000 reach military age (21) annually
Pipelines
crude oil, 26 km; refined products, 547 km
Ports
4 major, 11 secondary, 42 minor
Railroads
2,476 km total; 1,565 km 1.435meter standard gauge, of which 36 km electrified and 100 km double track, 889 km 1.000-meter gauge; 22 km 0.750-meter narrow gauge; all government owned
Telecommunications
adequate, modern networks reach all areas on mainland islands; 3.52 million telephones (35.5 per 100 popl.); 29 AM, 37 FM, 361 TV stations; 7 submarine cables; 1 satellite station with 2 Atlantic Ocean antennas, 1 Indian Ocean antenna, 1 EUTELSAT antenna Defense Forces