2000 Edition

Background

Italy became a nation-state belatedly - in 1861 when the city-states of the peninsula and Sicily were united under King Victor EMMANUEL. The Fascist dictatorship of Benito MUSSOLINI that took over after World War I led to a disastrous alliance with Nazi Germany and Italian defeat in World War II. Revival followed. Italy was a charter member of NATO and the European Economic Community (EEC) and joined the growing political and economic unification of Western Europe, including the introduction of the euro in 1999. Persistent problems include illegal immigration, the ravages of organized crime, corruption, high unemployment, and the low incomes and technical standards of southern Italy compared with the more prosperous north.

Area

land

294,020 sq km

note

includes Sardinia and Sicily

total

301,230 sq km

water

7,210 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly larger than Arizona

Climate

predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south

Coastline

7,600 km

Elevation extremes

highest point

Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) 4,807 m

lowest point

Mediterranean Sea 0 m

Environment - current issues

air pollution from industrial emissions such as sulfur dioxide; coastal and inland rivers polluted from industrial and agricultural effluents; acid rain damaging lakes; inadequate industrial waste treatment and disposal facilities

Environment - international agreements

party to

Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Geographic coordinates

42 50 N, 12 50 E

Geography - note

strategic location dominating central Mediterranean as well as southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe

Irrigated land

27,100 sq km (1993 est.)

Land boundaries

border countries

Austria 430 km, France 488 km, Holy See (Vatican City) 3.2 km, San Marino 39 km, Slovenia 232 km, Switzerland 740 km

total

1,932.2 km

Land use

arable land

31%

forests and woodland

23%

other

21% (1993 est.)

permanent crops

10%

permanent pastures

15%

Location

Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia

Map references

Europe

Maritime claims

continental shelf

200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

territorial sea

12 nm

Natural hazards

regional risks include landslides, mudflows, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding; land subsidence in Venice

Natural resources

mercury, potash, marble, sulfur, dwindling natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, coal, arable land

Terrain

mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands

Age structure

0-14 years: 14% (male 4,220,973; female 3,977,962) 15-64 years: 68% (male 19,413,219; female 19,596,668) 65 years and over: 18% (male 4,297,962; female 6,127,543) (2000 est.)

Birth rate

9.13 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate

9.99 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Ethnic groups

Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south)

Infant mortality rate

5.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)

Languages

Italian (official), German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area)

Life expectancy at birth

female

82.41 years (2000 est.)

male

75.85 years

total population

79.03 years

Literacy

definition

age 15 and over can read and write

female

NA%

male

NA%

total population

98% (1998)

Nationality

adjective

Italian

noun

Italian(s)

Net migration rate

1.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Population

57,634,327 (July 2000 est.)

Population growth rate

0.09% (2000 est.)

Religions

predominately Roman Catholic with mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community

Sex ratio

at birth

1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female

total population

0.94 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.18 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Administrative divisions

20 regions (regioni, singular - regione); Abruzzi, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte, Puglia, Sardegna, Sicilia, Toscana, Trentino-Alto Adige, Umbria, Valle d'Aosta, Veneto

Capital

Rome

Constitution

1 January 1948

Country name

conventional long form

Italian Republic

conventional short form

Italy

former

Kingdom of Italy

local long form

Repubblica Italiana

local short form

Italia

Data code

IT

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission

Ambassador Thomas M. FOGLIETTA

embassy

Via Veneto 119/A, 00187-Rome

mailing address

PSC 59, Box 100, APO AE 09624

telephone

(06) 46741

Diplomatic representation in the US

chancery

1601 Fuller Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 and 2700 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009

chief of mission

Ambassador Ferdinando SALLEO

telephone

(202) 328-5500

Executive branch

cabinet

Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and approved by the president

chief of state

President Carlo Azeglio CIAMPI (since 13 May 1999)

election results

Carlo Azeglio CIAMPI elected president; percent of electoral college vote - 70%

elections

president elected by an electoral college consisting of both houses of Parliament and 58 regional representatives for a seven-year term; election last held 13 May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2006); prime minister appointed by the president and confirmed by parliament

head of government

Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the president of the Council of Ministers) Massimo D'ALEMA (since 21 October 1998)

FAX

(202) 483-2187

(06) 488-2672

consulate(s)

Detroit

consulate(s) general

Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and San Francisco

consulate(s) general

Florence, Milan, Naples

Flag description

three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; similar to the flag of Ireland, which is longer and is green (hoist side), white, and orange; also similar to the flag of the Cote d'Ivoire, which has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green

note

inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in 1797

Government type

republic

Independence

17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870)

International organization participation

AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 7, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Judicial branch

Constitutional Court or Corte Costituzionale, composed of 15 judges (one-third appointed by the president, one-third elected by Parliament, one-third elected by the ordinary and administrative supreme courts)

Legal system

based on civil law system; appeals treated as new trials; judicial review under certain conditions in Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch

bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of the Senate or Senato della Repubblica (315 seats elected by popular vote of which 232 are directly elected and 83 are elected by regional proportional representation plus, in addition, there are a small number of senators-for-life including former presidents of the republic; members serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; 475 are directly elected, 155 by regional proportional representation; members serve five-year terms)

election results

Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Olive Tree 157, Freedom Alliance 116, Northern League-Padania 27, Communist Renewal 10, regional lists 3, Social Movement-Tricolored Flames 1, Panella Reformers 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Olive Tree 284, Freedom Alliance 246, Northern League 59, Communist Renewal 35, Southern Tyrol People's Party 3, Autonomous List 2, other 1

elections

Senate - last held 21 April 1996 (next scheduled for NA April 2001); Chamber of Deputies - last held 21 April 1996 (next scheduled for NA April 2001)

National holiday

Anniversary of the Republic, 2 June (1946)

Political parties and leaders

Bonino List or LB (used to be the Autonomous List, a group of minor parties) ; Center-Left Coalition (used to be the Olive Tree) - Democrats, DS, FdV, PdCI, PPI, RI, UDEUR; Christian Democratic Center or CCD ; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Rocco BUTTIGLIONE]; Communist Renewal or RC ; Democratic Party ; Democratic Party of the Left or DS [Walter VELTRONI]; Forza Italia or FI ; Freedom Alliance (a center-right coalition) - FI, AN, CCD; Green Federation or FdV ; Italian Communist Party or PdCI ; Italian Democratic Socialists or SDI ; Italian Popular Party or PPI [Pierluigi CASTAGNETTI]; Italian Renewal or RI ; Italian Social Movement-Tricolored Flame or MSI-FT ; National Alliance or AN ; Northern League-Padania or NL-Padania [Umberto BOSSI]; Radical Party (formerly Panella Reformers) ; Republican Party or PR ; Southern Tyrols People's Party or SVP (German speakers) ; Union of Democrats for Europe or UDEUR ; Union for the Republic or UPR

Political pressure groups and leaders

Italian manufacturers and merchants associations (Confindustria, Confcommercio); organized farm groups (Confcoltivatori, Confagricoltura); Roman Catholic Church; three major trade union confederations (Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro or CGIL which is left wing, Confederazione Italiana dei Sindacati Lavoratori or CISL [Sergio D'ANTONI] which is Catholic centrist, and Unione Italiana del Lavoro or UIL which is lay centrist)

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25)

Agriculture - products

fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives; beef, dairy products; fish

Budget

expenditures

$522 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.)

revenues

$530 billion

Currency

1 Italian lira (Lit) = 100 centesimi

Debt - external

$45 billion (1996 est.)

Economic aid - donor

ODA, $1.3 billion (1997)

Economy - overview

Italy has a diversified industrial economy with approximately the same total and per capita output as France and the UK. This capitalistic economy remains divided into a developed industrial north, dominated by private companies, and a less developed agricultural south, with more than 20% unemployment. Most raw materials needed by industry and more than 75% of energy requirements are imported. For several years Italy has adopted budgets compliant with the requirements of the European Monetary Union (EMU); representatives of government, labor, and employers also agreed to an update of the 1993 "social pact," which has been widely credited with having brought Italy's inflation into conformity with EMU requirements. Italy must work to stimulate employment, promote wage flexibility, hold down the growth in pensions, and tackle the informal economy. Growth was 1.3% in 1999 and should edge up to 2.6% in 2000, led by investment and exports.

Electricity - consumption

266.705 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - exports

900 million kWh (1998)

Electricity - imports

41.59 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - production

243.027 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel

80.22%

hydro

17.3%

nuclear

0%

other

2.48% (1998)

Exchange rates

euros per US$1 - 0.9867 (January 2000), 0.9386 (1999); Italian lire (Lit) per US$1 - 1,688.7 (January 1999), 1,736.2 (1998), 1,703.1 (1997), 1,542.9 (1996), 1,628.9 (1995)

note

on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced a common currency that is now being used for non-cash transactions in some member countries at a fixed rate of 1,936.27 lire per euro; the euro will replace the local currency in consenting countries for all transactions in 2002

Exports

$242.6 billion (f.o.b., 1998)

Exports - commodities

engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals and nonferrous metals

Exports - partners

EU 56% (Germany 16.5%, France 12.7%, UK 7.2%, Spain 5.8%, Netherlands 2.9%), US 8.5% (1998)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $1.212 trillion (1999 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture

2.6%

industry

31.6%

services

65.8% (1998)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $21,400 (1999 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

1.3% (1999 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 2.9% highest 10%: 23.7% (1991)

Imports

$206.9 billion (f.o.b., 1998)

Imports - commodities

engineering products, chemicals, transport equipment, energy products, minerals and nonferrous metals, textiles and clothing; food, beverages and tobacco

Imports - partners

EU 61% (Germany 18.8%, France 13.12%, UK 6.47%, Netherlands 6.2%, Belgium-Luxembourg 4.7%), US 5.1% (1998)

Industrial production growth rate

1.9% (1998 est.)

Industries

tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

1.7% (1999 est.)

Labor force

23.193 million

Labor force - by occupation

services 61%, industry 32%, agriculture 7% (1996)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Unemployment rate

11.5% (1999 est.)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

219 (1999)

Radio broadcast stations

AM about 100, FM about 4,600, shortwave 9 (1998)

Radios

50.5 million (1997)

Telephone system

modern, well-developed, fast; fully automated telephone, telex, and data services

domestic

high-capacity cable and microwave radio relay trunks

international

satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (with a total of 5 antennas - 3 for Atlantic Ocean and 2 for Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and NA Eutelsat; 21 submarine cables

Telephones - main lines in use

25 million (1998)

Telephones - mobile cellular

17.7 million (1998)

Television broadcast stations

6,317 (of which only 117 have 2 kW or more of transmitter power) (1997)

Televisions

30.3 million (1997)

Airports

136 (1999 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total

97 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 33 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 31 under 914 m: 12 (1999 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total

39 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 19 under 914 m: 18 (1999 est.)

Heliports

3 (1999 est.)

Highways

paved

654,676 km (including 6,957 km of expressways)

total

654,676 km

unpaved

0 km (1998 est.)

Merchant marine

ships by type

bulk 41, cargo 45, chemical tanker 73, combination ore/oil 2, container 20, liquified gas 38, livestock carrier 1, multi-functional large load carrier 1, passenger 6, petroleum tanker 87, roll-on/roll-off 58, short-sea passenger 26, specialized tanker 13, vehicle carrier 16 (1999 est.)

total

427 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,971,578 GRT/9,635,770 DWT

Pipelines

crude oil 1,703 km; petroleum products 2,148 km; natural gas 19,400 km

Ports and harbors

Augusta (Sicily), Bagnoli, Bari, Brindisi, Gela, Genoa, La Spezia, Livorno, Milazzo, Naples, Porto Foxi, Porto Torres (Sardigna), Salerno, Savona, Taranto, Trieste, Venice

Railways

narrow gauge

112 km 1.000-m gauge (112 km electrified); 1,211 km 0.950-m gauge (153 km electrified) (1998)

standard gauge

18,071 km 1.435-m gauge; Italian Railways (FS) operates 16,014 km of the total standard gauge routes (11,322 km electrified)

total

19,394 km

Waterways

2,400 km for various types of commercial traffic, although of limited overall value

Military branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, Carabinieri

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$23.294 billion (FY99)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

1.7% (FY99)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 14,315,634 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 12,331,306 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - military age

18 years of age

Military manpower - reaching military age annually

males

311,160 (2000 est.)

Disputes - international

Italy and Slovenia made progress in resolving bilateral issues; Croatia and Italy made progress toward resolving a bilateral issue dating from World War II over property and ethnic minority rights

Illicit drugs

important gateway for and consumer of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market

JAMAICA