2019 Edition

Background

Greece achieved independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1830. During the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, it gradually added neighboring islands and territories, most with Greek-speaking populations. In World War II, Greece was first invaded by Italy (1940) and subsequently occupied by Germany (1941-44); fighting endured in a protracted civil war between supporters of the king and other anti-communist and communist rebels. Following the latter's defeat in 1949, Greece joined NATO in 1952. In 1967, a group of military officers seized power, establishing a military dictatorship that suspended many political liberties and forced the king to flee the country. In 1974 following the collapse of the dictatorship, democratic elections and a referendum created a parliamentary republic and abolished the monarchy. In 1981, Greece joined the EC (now the EU); it became the 12th member of the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in 2001. Greece has suffered a severe economic crisis since late 2009, due to nearly a decade of chronic overspending and structural rigidities. Beginning in 2010, Greece entered three bailout agreements - with the European Commission, the European Central Bank (ECB), the IMF, and the third in 2015 with the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) - worth in total about $300 billion. The Greek Government formally exited the third bailout in August 2018.

Area

Land

130,647 sq km

Total

131,957 sq km

Water

1,310 sq km

Area Comparative

slightly smaller than Alabama

Climate

temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers

Coastline

13,676 km

Elevation

Highest Point

Mount Olympus 2,917

Lowest Point

Mediterranean Sea 0 m

Mean Elevation

498 m

Environment Current Issues

air pollution; air emissions from transport and electricity power stations; water pollution; degradation of coastal zones; loss of biodiversity in terrestrial and marine ecosystems; increasing municipal and industrial waste

Environment International Agreements

Party To

Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands

Signed But Not Ratified

Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds

Geographic Coordinates

39 00 N, 22 00 E

Geography Note

strategic location dominating the Aegean Sea and southern approach to Turkish Straits; a peninsular country, possessing an archipelago of about 2,000 islands

Irrigated Land

15,550 sq km (2012)

Land Boundaries

Border Countries

Albania 212 km, Bulgaria 472 km, Macedonia 234 km, Turkey 192 km

Total

1,110 km

Land Use

Agricultural Land

63.4% (2011 est.)

Agricultural Land Arable Land

19.7% (2011 est.)

Agricultural Land Permanent Crops

8.9% (2011 est.)

Agricultural Land Permanent Pasture

34.8% (2011 est.)

Forest

30.5% (2011 est.)

Other

6.1% (2011 est.)

Location

Southern Europe, bordering the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea, between Albania and Turkey

Map References

Europe

Maritime Claims

Continental Shelf

200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Territorial Sea

12 nm

Natural Hazards

severe earthquakesvolcanism: Santorini (367 m) has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; although there have been very few eruptions in recent centuries, Methana and Nisyros in the Aegean are classified as historically active

Natural Resources

lignite, petroleum, iron ore, bauxite, lead, zinc, nickel, magnesite, marble, salt, hydropower potential

Population Distribution

one-third of the population lives in and around metropolitan Athens; the remainder of the country has moderate population density mixed with sizeable urban clusters

Terrain

mountainous with ranges extending into the sea as peninsulas or chains of islands

Age Structure

0 14 Years

13.72% (male 760,615 /female 716,054)

15 24 Years

9.68% (male 531,957 /female 509,671)

25 54 Years

42.18% (male 2,259,672 /female 2,279,464)

55 64 Years

13.28% (male 699,205 /female 729,655)

65 Years And Over

21.14% (male 997,359 /female 1,277,871) (2018 est.)

Birth Rate

8.3 births/1,000 population (2018 est.)

Current Health Expenditure

8.5% (2016)

Death Rate

11.4 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.)

Dependency Ratios

Elderly Dependency Ratio

30.5 (2015 est.)

Potential Support Ratio

3.3 (2015 est.)

Total Dependency Ratio

52.7 (2015 est.)

Youth Dependency Ratio

22.2 (2015 est.)

Drinking Water Source

Improved Rural

100% of population

Improved Total

100% of population

Improved Urban

100% of population

Unimproved Rural

0% of population

Unimproved Total

0% of population (2015 est.)

Unimproved Urban

0% of population

Ethnic Groups

Greek 91.6%, Albanian 4.4%, other 4% (2011)

HIV/AIDS Adult Prevalence Rate

0.2% (2017 est.)

HIV/AIDS Deaths

<100 (2017 est.)

HIV/AIDS People Living With HIV/AIDS

14,000 (2017 est.)

Hospital Bed Density

4.3 beds/1,000 population (2015)

Infant Mortality Rate

Female

4.1 deaths/1,000 live births

Male

5 deaths/1,000 live births

Total

4.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2018 est.)

Languages

Greek (official) 99%, other (includes English and French) 1%

Life Expectancy at Birth

Female

83.6 years

Male

78.2 years

Total Population

80.8 years (2018 est.)

Literacy

Definition

age 15 and over can read and write

Female

96.9% (2015)

Male

98.5%

Total Population

97.7%

Major Urban Areas Population

3.154 million ATHENS (capital), 811,000 Thessaloniki (2019)

Maternal Mortality Rate

3 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)

Median Age

Female

45.9 years

Male

43.8 years

Total

44.9 years (2018 est.)

Mother's Mean Age at First Birth

29.8 years (2014 est.)

Nationality

Adjective

Greek

Noun

Greek(s)

Net Migration Rate

2.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2018 est.)

Obesity Adult Prevalence Rate

24.9% (2016)

Physicians Density

4.59 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

Population

10,761,523 (July 2018 est.)

Population Growth Rate

-0.07% (2018 est.)

Religions

Greek Orthodox (official) 81-90%, Muslim 2%, other 3%, none 4-15%, unspecified 1% (2015 est.)

Sanitation Facility Access

Improved Rural

98.1% of population (2015 est.)

Improved Total

99% of population (2015 est.)

Improved Urban

99.2% of population (2015 est.)

Unimproved Rural

1.9% of population (2015 est.)

Unimproved Total

1% of population (2015 est.)

Unimproved Urban

0.8% of population (2015 est.)

School Life Expectancy Primary To Tertiary Education

Female

18 years (2016)

Male

18 years

Total

18 years

Sex Ratio

0 14 Years

1.06 male(s)/female

15 24 Years

1.04 male(s)/female

25 54 Years

0.99 male(s)/female

55 64 Years

0.96 male(s)/female

65 Years And Over

0.78 male(s)/female

At Birth

1.06 male(s)/female

Total Population

0.95 male(s)/female (2018 est.)

Total Fertility Rate

1.44 children born/woman (2018 est.)

Unemployment Youth Ages 15 24

Female

48.2% (2017 est.)

Male

39.3%

Total

43.6%

Urbanization

Rate Of Urbanization

0.22% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

Urban Population

79.4% of total population (2019)

Administrative Divisions

13 regions (perifereies, singular - perifereia) and 1 autonomous monastic state* (aftonomi monastiki politeia); Agion Oros* (Mount Athos), Anatoliki Makedonia kai Thraki (East Macedonia and Thrace), Attiki (Attica), Dytiki Ellada (West Greece), Dytiki Makedonia (West Macedonia), Ionia Nisia (Ionian Islands), Ipeiros (Epirus), Kentriki Makedonia (Central Macedonia), Kriti (Crete), Notio Aigaio (South Aegean), Peloponnisos (Peloponnese), Sterea Ellada (Central Greece), Thessalia (Thessaly), Voreio Aigaio (North Aegean)

Capital

Daylight Saving Time

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Geographic Coordinates

37 59 N, 23 44 E

Name

Athens

Time Difference

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Citizenship

Citizenship By Birth

no

Citizenship By Descent Only

at least one parent must be a citizen of Greece

Dual Citizenship Recognized

yes

Residency Requirement For Naturalization

10 years

Constitution

Amendments

proposed by at least 50 members of Parliament and agreed by three-fifths majority vote in two separate ballots at least 30 days apart; passage requires absolute majority vote by the next elected Parliament; entry into force finalized through a "special parliamentary resolution"; articles on human rights and freedoms and the form of government cannot be amended; amended 1986, 2001, 2008 (2016)

History

many previous; latest entered into force 11 June 1975

Country Name

Conventional Long Form

Hellenic Republic

Conventional Short Form

Greece

Etymology

the English name derives from the Roman (Latin) designation "Graecia," meaning "Land of the Greeks"; the Greeks call their country "Hellas" or "Ellada"

Former

Hellenic State, Kingdom of Greece

Local Long Form

Elliniki Dimokratia

Local Short Form

Ellas or Ellada

Diplomatic Representation From The Us

Chief Of Mission

Ambassador Geoffrey R. PYATT (since 24 October 2016)

Consulate's General

Thessaloniki

Embassy

91 Vasillisis Sophias Avenue, 10160 Athens

Fax

[30] (210) 645-6282

Mailing Address

PSC 108, APO AE 09842-0108

Telephone

[30] (210) 721-2951

Diplomatic Representation In The Us

Chancery

2217 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

Chief Of Mission

Ambassador Theocharis LALAKOS (since 27 June 2016)

Consulate S

Atlanta, Houston

Consulate's General

Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Tampa (FL), San Francisco

Fax

[1] (202) 939-1324

Telephone

[1] (202) 939-1300

Executive Branch

Cabinet

Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister

Chief Of State

President Prokopios (Prokopis) PAVLOPOULOS (since 13 March 2015)

Election Results

Prokopios PAVLOPOULOS (ND) elected president by Parliament - 233 of 300 votes

Elections Appointments

president elected by Hellenic Parliament for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 18 February 2015 (next to be held by February 2020); president appoints as prime minister the leader of the majority party or coalition in the Hellenic Parliament

Head Of Government

Prime Minister Kyriakos MITSOTAKIS (since 8 July 2019)

Flag Description

nine equal horizontal stripes of blue alternating with white; a blue square bearing a white cross appears in the upper hoist-side corner; the cross symbolizes Greek Orthodoxy, the established religion of the country; there is no agreed upon meaning for the nine stripes or for the colors

Government Type

parliamentary republic

Independence

3 February 1830 (from the Ottoman Empire); note - 25 March 1821, outbreak of the national revolt against the Ottomans; 3 February 1830, signing of the London Protocol recognizing Greek independence by Great Britain, France, and Russia

International Law Organization Participation

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

International Organization Participation

Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CD, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, SELEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Judicial Branch

Highest Courts

Supreme Civil and Criminal Court or Areios Pagos (consists of 56 judges, including the court presidents); Council of State (supreme administrative court) (consists of the president, 7 vice presidents, 42 privy councilors, 48 associate councilors and 50 reporting judges, organized into six 5- and 7-member chambers; Court of Audit (government audit and enforcement) consists of the president, 5 vice presidents, 20 councilors, and 90 associate and reporting judges

Judge Selection And Term Of Office

Supreme Court judges appointed by presidential decree on the advice of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), which includes the president of the Supreme Court, other judges, and the prosecutor of the Supreme Court; judges appointed for life following a 2-year probationary period; Council of State president appointed by the Greek Cabinet to serve a 4-year term; other judge appointments and tenure NA; Court of Audit president appointed by decree of the president of the republic on the advice of the SJC; court president serves a 4-year term or until age 67; tenure of vice presidents, councilors, and judges NA

Subordinate Courts

Courts of Appeal and Courts of First Instance (district courts)

Legal System

civil legal system based on Roman law

Legislative Branch

Description

unicameral Hellenic Parliament or Vouli ton Ellinon (300 seats; 280 members in multi-seat constituencies and 12 members in a single nationwide constituency directly elected by open party-list proportional representation vote; 8 members in single-seat constituencies elected by simple majority vote; members serve up to 4 years); note - only parties surpassing a 3% threshold are entitled to parliamentary seats; parties need 10 seats to become formal parliamentary groups but can retain that status if the party participated in the last election and received the minimum 3% threshold

Election Results

percent of vote by party - ND 39.9%, SYRIZA 31.5%, KINAL 8.1%, KKE 5.3%, Greek Solution 3.7%, MeRA25 3.4%, other 8.1%; seats by party - ND 158, SYRIZA 86, KINAL 22, KKE 15, Greek Solution 10, MeRA25 9; composition - men 244, women 56, percent of women 18.7%

Elections

last held on 7 July 2019 (next to be held by July 2023)

National Anthem

Lyrics Music

Dionysios SOLOMOS/Nikolaos MANTZAROS

Name

"Ymnos eis tin Eleftherian" (Hymn to Liberty)

National Holiday

Independence Day, 25 March (1821)

National Symbol S

Greek cross (white cross on blue field, arms equal length); national colors: blue, white

Political Parties And Leaders

Anticapitalist Left Cooperation for the Overthrow or ANTARSYA [collective leadership] Coalition of the Radical Left or SYRIZA [Alexios (Alexis) TSIPRAS] Communist Party of Greece or KKE [Dimitrios KOUTSOUMBAS] Democratic Left or DIMAR [Athanasios (Thanasis) THEOCHAROPOULOS] European Realistic Disobedience Front or MeRA25 [Yanis VAROUFAKIS] Greek Solution [Kyriakos VELOPOULOS] Independent Greeks or ANEL [Panagiotis (Panos) KAMMENOS] Movement for Change or KINAL [Foteini (Fofi) GENIMMATA] New Democracy or ND [Kyriakos MITSOTAKIS] People's Association-Golden Dawn [Nikolaos MICHALOLIAKOS] Popular Unity or LAE [Panagiotis LAFAZANIS] The River (To Potami) [Stavros THEODORAKIS] Union of Centrists or EK [Vasileios (Vasilis) LEVENTIS]

Suffrage

17 years of age; universal and compulsory

Agriculture Products

wheat, corn, barley, sugar beets, olives, tomatoes, wine, tobacco, potatoes; beef, dairy products

Budget

Expenditures

96.35 billion (2017 est.)

Revenues

97.99 billion (2017 est.)

Budget Surplus Or Deficit

0.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Central Bank Discount Rate

11 June 2014

0.15%

31 March 2016

0.05%

Commercial Bank Prime Lending Rate

31 December 2016

5.62%

31 December 2017

5.25%

Current Account Balance

2016

-$2.072 billion

2017

-$1.596 billion

Debt External

31 March 2015

$468.2 billion

31 March 2016

$506.6 billion

Distribution Of Family Income Gini Index

2011

35.7

2012

36.7

Economy Overview

Greece has a capitalist economy with a public sector accounting for about 40% of GDP and with per capita GDP about two-thirds that of the leading euro-zone economies. Tourism provides 18% of GDP. Immigrants make up nearly one-fifth of the work force, mainly in agricultural and unskilled jobs. Greece is a major beneficiary of EU aid, equal to about 3.3% of annual GDP.The Greek economy averaged growth of about 4% per year between 2003 and 2007, but the economy went into recession in 2009 as a result of the world financial crisis, tightening credit conditions, and Athens' failure to address a growing budget deficit. By 2013, the economy had contracted 26%, compared with the pre-crisis level of 2007. Greece met the EU's Growth and Stability Pact budget deficit criterion of no more than 3% of GDP in 2007-08, but violated it in 2009, when the deficit reached 15% of GDP. Deteriorating public finances, inaccurate and misreported statistics, and consistent underperformance on reforms prompted major credit rating agencies to downgrade Greece's international debt rating in late 2009 and led the country into a financial crisis. Under intense pressure from the EU and international market participants, the government accepted a bailout program that called on Athens to cut government spending, decrease tax evasion, overhaul the civil-service, health-care, and pension systems, and reform the labor and product markets. Austerity measures reduced the deficit to 1.3% in 2017. Successive Greek governments, however, failed to push through many of the most unpopular reforms in the face of widespread political opposition, including from the country's powerful labor unions and the general public.In April 2010, a leading credit agency assigned Greek debt its lowest possible credit rating, and in May 2010, the IMF and euro-zone governments provided Greece emergency short- and medium-term loans worth $147 billion so that the country could make debt repayments to creditors. Greece, however, struggled to meet the targets set by the EU and the IMF, especially after Eurostat - the EU's statistical office - revised upward Greece's deficit and debt numbers for 2009 and 2010. European leaders and the IMF agreed in October 2011 to provide Athens a second bailout package of $169 billion. The second deal called for holders of Greek government bonds to write down a significant portion of their holdings to try to alleviate Greece’s government debt burden. However, Greek banks, saddled with a significant portion of sovereign debt, were adversely affected by the write down and $60 billion of the second bailout package was set aside to ensure the banking system was adequately capitalized.In 2014, the Greek economy began to turn the corner on the recession. Greece achieved three significant milestones: balancing the budget - not including debt repayments; issuing government debt in financial markets for the first time since 2010; and generating 0.7% GDP growth — the first economic expansion since 2007.Despite the nascent recovery, widespread discontent with austerity measures helped propel the far-left Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) party into government in national legislative elections in January 2015. Between January and July 2015, frustrations grew between the SYRIZA-led government and Greece’s EU and IMF creditors over the implementation of bailout measures and disbursement of funds. The Greek government began running up significant arrears to suppliers, while Greek banks relied on emergency lending, and Greece’s future in the euro zone was called into question. To stave off a collapse of the banking system, Greece imposed capital controls in June 2015, then became the first developed nation to miss a loan payment to the IMF, rattling international financial markets. Unable to reach an agreement with creditors, Prime Minister Alexios TSIPRAS held a nationwide referendum on 5 July on whether to accept the terms of Greece’s bailout, campaigning for the ultimately successful "no" vote. The TSIPRAS government subsequently agreed, however, to a new $96 billion bailout in order to avert Greece’s exit from the monetary bloc. On 20 August 2015, Greece signed its third bailout, allowing it to cover significant debt payments to its EU and IMF creditors and to ensure the banking sector retained access to emergency liquidity. The TSIPRAS government — which retook office on 20 September 2015 after calling new elections in late August — successfully secured disbursal of two delayed tranches of bailout funds. Despite the economic turmoil, Greek GDP did not contract as sharply as feared, boosted in part by a strong tourist season.In 2017, Greece saw improvements in GDP and unemployment. Unfinished economic reforms, a massive non-performing loan problem, and ongoing uncertainty regarding the political direction of the country hold the economy back. Some estimates put Greece’s black market at 20- to 25% of GDP, as more people have stopped reporting their income to avoid paying taxes that, in some cases, have risen to 70% of an individual’s gross income.

Exchange Rates

2013

0.7634

2014

0.885

2015

0.9214

2016

0.903

2017

0.885

Currency

euros (EUR) per US dollar -

Exports

2016

$27.1 billion

2017

$31.54 billion

Exports Commodities

food and beverages, manufactured goods, petroleum products, chemicals, textiles

Exports Partners

Italy 10.6%, Germany 7.1%, Turkey 6.8%, Cyprus 6.5%, Bulgaria 4.9%, Lebanon 4.3% (2017)

Fiscal Year

calendar year

GDP Composition By End Use

Exports Of Goods And Services

33.4% (2017 est.)

Government Consumption

20.1% (2017 est.)

Household Consumption

69.6% (2017 est.)

Imports Of Goods And Services

-34.7% (2017 est.)

Investment In Fixed Capital

12.5% (2017 est.)

Investment In Inventories

-1% (2017 est.)

GDP Composition By Sector Of Origin

Agriculture

4.1% (2017 est.)

Industry

16.9% (2017 est.)

Services

79.1% (2017 est.)

GDP Official Exchange Rate

$200.7 billion (2017 est.)

GDP Per Capita Ppp

2015

$27,300

2016

$27,400

2017

$27,800

GDP Purchasing Power Parity

2015

$296 billion

2016

$295.3 billion

2017

$299.3 billion

GDP Real Growth Rate

2015

-0.3%

2016

-0.2%

2017

1.4%

Gross National Saving

2015

9.6% of GDP

2016

9.5% of GDP

2017

10.9% of GDP

Household Income Or Consumption By Percentage Share

Highest 10

26.7% (2015 est.)

Lowest 10

1.7%

Imports

2016

$45.45 billion

2017

$52.27 billion

Imports Commodities

machinery, transport equipment, fuels, chemicals

Imports Partners

Germany 10.4%, Italy 8.2%, Russia 6.8%, Iraq 6.3%, South Korea 6.1%, China 5.4%, Netherlands 5.3%, France 4.3% (2017)

Industrial Production Growth Rate

3.5% (2017 est.)

Industries

tourism, food and tobacco processing, textiles, chemicals, metal products; mining, petroleum

Inflation Rate Consumer Prices

2016

0%

2017

1.1%

Labor Force

4.769 million (2017 est.)

Labor Force By Occupation

Agriculture

12.6%

Industry

15%

Services

72.4% (30 October 2015 est.)

Market Value Of Publicly Traded Shares

31 December 2013

$82.59 billion

31 December 2014

$55.15 billion

31 December 2015

$42.08 billion

Population Below Poverty Line

36% (2014 est.)

Public Debt

2016

183.5% of GDP

2017

181.8% of GDP

Reserves Of Foreign Exchange And Gold

31 December 2015

$6.026 billion

31 December 2017

$7.807 billion

Stock Of Broad Money

31 December 2016

$86.53 billion

31 December 2017

$106.6 billion

Stock Of Direct Foreign Investment Abroad

31 December 2016

$32.91 billion

31 December 2017

$29.64 billion

Stock Of Direct Foreign Investment at Home

31 December 2016

$30.8 billion

31 December 2017

$35.48 billion

Stock Of Domestic Credit

31 December 2016

$231.4 billion

31 December 2017

$248.7 billion

Stock Of Narrow Money

31 December 2016

$86.53 billion

31 December 2017

$106.6 billion

Taxes And Other Revenues

48.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Unemployment Rate

2016

23.6%

2017

21.5%

Carbon Dioxide Emissions From Consumption Of Energy

69.37 million Mt (2017 est.)

Crude Oil Exports

3,229 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Crude Oil Imports

484,300 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Crude Oil Production

4,100 bbl/day (2018 est.)

Crude Oil Proved Reserves

10 million bbl (1 January 2018 est.)

Electricity Access

100% (2016)

Electricity Consumption

56.89 billion kWh (2016 est.)

Electricity Exports

1.037 billion kWh (2016 est.)

Electricity From Fossil Fuels

57% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)

Electricity From Hydroelectric Plants

14% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

Electricity From Nuclear Fuels

0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

Electricity From Other Renewable Sources

29% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

Electricity Imports

9.833 billion kWh (2016 est.)

Electricity Installed Generating Capacity

19.17 million kW (2016 est.)

Electricity Production

52.05 billion kWh (2016 est.)

Natural Gas Consumption

4.927 billion cu m (2017 est.)

Natural Gas Exports

0 cu m (2017 est.)

Natural Gas Imports

4.984 billion cu m (2017 est.)

Natural Gas Production

8 million cu m (2017 est.)

Natural Gas Proved Reserves

991.1 million cu m (1 January 2018 est.)

Refined Petroleum Products Consumption

304,100 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Refined Petroleum Products Exports

371,900 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Refined Petroleum Products Imports

192,200 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Refined Petroleum Products Production

655,400 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Broadband Fixed Subscriptions

Subscriptions Per 100 Inhabitants

35 (2017 est.)

Total

3,778,263

Broadcast Media

broadcast media dominated by the private sector; roughly 150 private TV channels, about 10 of which broadcast nationwide; 1 government-owned terrestrial TV channel with national coverage; 3 privately owned satellite channels; multi-channel satellite and cable TV services available; upwards of 1,500 radio stations, all of them privately owned; government-owned broadcaster has 2 national radio stations

Internet Country Code

.gr

Internet Users

Percent Of Population

69.1% (July 2016 est.)

Total

7,443,016

Telephone System

Domestic

microwave radio relay trunk system; extensive open-wire connections; submarine cable to offshore islands; 48 per 100 for fixed-line and 120 per 100 for mobile-cellular (2018)

General Assessment

adequate, modern networks reach all areas; good mobile telephone and international service; 3 mobile network operators; 2019 5G trials and LTE use; despite rough economic conditions broadband penetration developing (2018)

International

country code - 30; landing points for the SEA-ME-WE-3, Adria-1, Italy-Greece 1, OTEGLOBE, MedNautilus Submarine System, Aphrodite 2, AAE-1 and Silphium optical telecommunications submarine cable that provides links to Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, Asia and Australia; tropospheric scatter; satellite earth stations - 4 (2 Intelsat - 1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean, 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat - Indian Ocean region) (2019)

Telephones Fixed Lines

Subscriptions Per 100 Inhabitants

48 (2017 est.)

Total Subscriptions

5,176,475

Telephones Mobile Cellular

Subscriptions Per 100 Inhabitants

120 (2017 est.)

Total Subscriptions

12,937,106

Airports

77 (2013)

Airports With Paved Runways

1 524 To 2 437 M

19 (2017)

2 438 To 3 047 M

15 (2017)

914 To 1 523 M

18 (2017)

Over 3 047 M

6 (2017)

Total

68 (2017)

Under 914 M

10 (2017)

Airports With Unpaved Runways

914 To 1 523 M

2 (2013)

Total

9 (2013)

Under 914 M

7 (2013)

Civil Aircraft Registration Country Code Prefix

SX (2016)

Heliports

9 (2013)

Merchant Marine

By Type

bulk carrier 191, container ship 6, general cargo 136, oil tanker 405, other 605 (2018)

Total

1,343

National Air Transport System

Annual Freight Traffic On Registered Air Carriers

27,452,961 mt-km (2015)

Annual Passenger Traffic On Registered Air Carriers

12,583,541 (2015)

Inventory Of Registered Aircraft Operated By Air Carriers

93 (2015)

Number Of Registered Air Carriers

9 (2015)

Pipelines

1329 km gas, 94 km oil (2013)

Ports And Terminals

Container Port's Teus

Piraeus (4,145,079) (2017)

Lng Terminal's Import

Revithoussa

Major Seaport S

Aspropyrgos, Pachi, Piraeus, Thessaloniki

Oil Terminal S

Agioi Theodoroi

Railways

Narrow Gauge

961 km 1.000-m gauge (2014)

Standard Gauge

1,565 km 1.435-m gauge (764 km electrified) (2014)

Total

2,548 km (2014)

Roadways

117,000 km (2018)

Waterways

6 km (the 6-km-long Corinth Canal crosses the Isthmus of Corinth; it shortens a sea voyage by 325 km) (2012)

Military And Security Forces

Hellenic Armed Forces: Hellenic Army (Ellinikos Stratos, ES; includes National Guard reserves), Hellenic Navy (Elliniko Polemiko Navtiko, EPN), Hellenic Air Force (Elliniki Polemiki Aeroporia, EPA; includes air defense). (2019)

Military Expenditures

2015

2.3% of GDP

2016

2.38% of GDP

2017

2.34% of GDP

2018

2.48% of GDP

2019

2.28% of GDP

Military Service Age And Obligation

19-45 years of age for compulsory military service; during wartime the law allows for recruitment beginning January of the year of inductee's 18th birthday, thus including 17 year olds; 18 years of age for volunteers; conscript service obligation is 1 year for the Army and 9 months for the Air Force and Navy; women are eligible for voluntary military service (2014)

Disputes International

Greece and Turkey continue discussions to resolve their complex maritime, air, territorial, and boundary disputes in the Aegean Sea; the mass migration of unemployed Albanians still remains a problem for developed countries, chiefly Greece and Italy

Illicit Drugs

a gateway to Europe for traffickers smuggling cannabis and heroin from the Middle East and Southwest Asia to the West and precursor chemicals to the East; some South American cocaine transits or is consumed in Greece; money laundering related to drug trafficking and organized crime

Refugees And Internally Displaced Persons

Refugees Country Of Origin

23,931 (Syria), 9,291 (Afghanistan) (2018)

Stateless Persons

198 (2018)

Terrorist Groups Home Based

aim(s): disrupt the influence of globalization and international capitalism on Greek society and, ultimately, overthrow the Greek Government area(s) of operation: operates exclusively inside Greece, primarily in Athens note: largely inactive in recent years, with the exception of shootouts with police officers trying to arrest members (2018)