2005 Edition

Administrative divisions

16 regions (regioni, singular - regione) and 4 autonomous regions* (regioni autonome, singular - regione autonoma); Abruzzo, 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

Age structure

0-14 years: 13.9% (male 4,166,213/female 3,919,288) 15-64 years: 66.7% (male 19,554,416/female 19,174,629) 65 years and over: 19.4% (male 4,698,441/female 6,590,046) (2005 est.)

Agriculture - products

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

Airports

134 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total

96 over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 32 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 30 under 914 m: 12 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total

38 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 18 (2004 est.)

Area

land

294,020 sq km

total

301,230 sq km

water

7,210 sq km note: includes Sardinia and Sicily

Area - comparative

slightly larger than Arizona

Background

Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the city-states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL II. An era of parliamentary government came to a close in the early 1920s when Benito MUSSOLINI established a Fascist dictatorship. His disastrous alliance with Nazi Germany led to Italy's defeat in World War II. A democratic republic replaced the monarchy in 1946 and economic revival followed. Italy was a charter member of NATO and the European Economic Community (EEC). It has been at the forefront of European economic and political unification, joining the Economic and Monetary Union in 1999. Persistent problems include illegal immigration, organized crime, corruption, high unemployment, sluggish economic growth, and the low incomes and technical standards of southern Italy compared with the prosperous north. Geography Italy

Birth rate

8.89 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Budget

expenditures

$820.1 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)

revenues

$768.9 billion

Capital

Rome

Climate

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

Coastline

7,600 km

Constitution

passed 11 December 1947, effective 1 January 1948; amended many times

Country name

conventional long form

Italian Republic

conventional short form

Italy

former

Kingdom of Italy

local long form

Repubblica Italiana

local short form

Italia

Currency (code)

euro (EUR) note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries

Currency code

EUR

Current account balance

$-21.1 billion (2004 est.)

Death rate

10.3 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Debt - external

$913.9 billion (2004 est.)

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission

Ambassador Melvin F. SEMBLER

consulate(s) general

Florence, Milan, Naples

embassy

Via Vittorio Veneto 119/A, 00187-Rome

FAX

[39] (06) 488-2672, 4674-2356

mailing address

PSC 59, Box 100, APO AE 09624

telephone

[39] (06) 46741

Diplomatic representation in the US

chancery

3000 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

chief of mission

Ambassador Giovanni CASTELLANETA

consulate(s)

Detroit and San Francisco

consulate(s) general

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

FAX

[1] (202) 518-2151

telephone

[1] (202) 612-4400

Disputes - international

Italy's long coastline and developed economy entices tens of thousands of illegal immigrants from southeastern Europe and northern Africa

Distribution of family income - Gini index

27.3 (1995)

Economic aid - donor

ODA, $1 billion (2002 est.)

Economy - overview

Italy has a diversified industrial economy with roughly 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, welfare-dependent agricultural south, with 20% unemployment. Most raw materials needed by industry and more than 75% of energy requirements are imported. Over the past decade, Italy has pursued a tight fiscal policy in order to meet the requirements of the Economic and Monetary Unions and has benefited from lower interest and inflation rates. The current government has enacted numerous short-term reforms aimed at improving competitiveness and long-term growth. Italy has moved slowly, however, on implementing needed structural reforms, such as lightening the high tax burden and overhauling Italy's rigid labor market and over-generous pension system, because of the current economic slowdown and opposition from labor unions. But the

leadership faces a severe economic constraint

the budget has breached the 3% EU deficit ceiling.

Electricity - consumption

293.9 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports

900 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports

51.5 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - production

261.6 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel

78.6%

hydro

18.4%

nuclear

0%

other

3% (2001)

Elevation extremes

highest point

Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) de Courmayeur 4,748 m (a secondary peak of Mont Blanc)

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-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, 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, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants

Ethnic groups

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

Exchange rates

euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000)

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% note: a four-party government coalition includes Forza Italia, National Alliance, Northern League, and Union of Christian Democrats and Center Democrats

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 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) Silvio BERLUSCONI (since 10 June 2001)

Exports

$336.4 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities

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

Exports - partners

Germany 13.6%, France 12.3%, US 8%, Spain 7.2%, UK 6.9%, Switzerland 4.2% (2004)

Fiscal year

calendar year Communications Italy

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 Economy Italy

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture

2.3%

industry

28.8%

services

68.9% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $27,700 (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

1.3% (2004 est.)

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$1.609 trillion (2004 est.)

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 People Italy

Government type

republic

Heliports

4 (2004 est.) Military Italy

Highways

paved

479,688 km (including 6,621 km of expressways)

total

479,688 km

unpaved

0 km (1999)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

0.5% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

less than 1,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

140,000 (2001 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 2.1% highest 10%: 26.6% (2000)

Illicit drugs

important gateway for and consumer of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market; money laundering by organized crime and from smuggling This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005 ======================================================================

Imports

$329.3 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities

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

Imports - partners

Germany 18%, France 10.9%, Netherlands 5.9%, Spain 4.6%, Belgium 4.4%, UK 4.3%, China 4.2% (2004)

Independence

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

Industrial production growth rate

0.7% (2004 est.)

Industries

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

Infant mortality rate

female

5.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

male

6.55 deaths/1,000 live births

total

5.94 deaths/1,000 live births

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

2.3% (2004 est.)

International organization participation

AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CDB, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC

Internet country code

.it

Internet hosts

1,437,511 (2004)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

93 (Italy and Holy See) (2000)

Internet users

18.5 million (2003) Transportation Italy

Investment (gross fixed)

19.3% of GDP (2004 est.)

Irrigated land

26,980 sq km (1998 est.)

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)

Labor force

24.27 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 5%, industry 32%, services 63% (2001)

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

27.79%

other

62.68% (2001)

permanent crops

9.53%

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)

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; 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 - House of Liberties 172 (Forza Italia 77, National Alliance 47, UDC 31, Lega Padana 17), Olive Tree 108 (Democrats of the Left 63, Daisy Alliance 35, Greens 10), Per le Autonomie 10, other 25; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - House of Liberties 337 (Forza Italia 176, National Alliance 97, UDC 36, Northern League 28), Olive Tree 214 (Democrats of the Left 135, Daisy Alliance 79), Rifondazione Communista (Italian Communist Party) 11, other 68

elections

Senate - last held 13 May 2001 (next to be held 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 13 May 2001 (next to be held May 2006)

Life expectancy at birth

female

82.81 years (2005 est.)

male

76.75 years

total population

79.68 years

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

female

98.3% (2003 est.) Government Italy

male

99%

total population

98.6%

Location

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

Manpower available for military service

males age 18-49: 13,491,260 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

males age 18-49: 10,963,513 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually

males

286,344 (2005 est.)

Map references

Europe

Maritime claims

continental shelf

200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

territorial sea

12 nm

Median age

female

43.35 years (2005 est.)

male

40.24 years

total

41.77 years

Merchant marine

by type

bulk carrier 38, cargo 43, chemical tanker 128, combination ore/oil 1, container 19, liquefied gas 38, livestock carrier 2, passenger 16, passenger/cargo 152, petroleum tanker 53, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 34, specialized tanker 11, vehicle carrier 26

foreign-owned

47 (France 3, Greece 7, Monaco 2, Switzerland 5, Taiwan 8, Turkey 2, United Kingdom 5, United States 15)

registered in other countries

125 (2005)

total

565 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 8,970,017 GRT/10,354,685 DWT

Military branches

Army (Esercito Italiano, EI), Navy (Marina Militare Italiana, MMI), Air Force (Aeronautica Militare Italiana, AMI), Carabinieri Corps (Corpo dei Carabinieri, CC) (2005)

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$28,182.8 million (2003)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

1.8% (2004) Transnational Issues Italy

Military service age and obligation

18 years of age (2004)

National holiday

Republic Day, 2 June (1946)

Nationality

adjective

Italian

noun

Italian(s)

Natural gas - consumption

71.18 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports

61 million cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports

54.78 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - production

15.49 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves

209.7 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Natural hazards

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

Natural resources

coal, mercury, zinc, potash, marble, barite, asbestos, pumice, fluorospar, feldspar, pyrite (sulfur), natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, arable land

Net migration rate

2.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Oil - consumption

1.866 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports

456,600 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports

2.158 million bbl/day (2001)

Oil - production

79,460 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - proved reserves

586.6 million bbl (1 January 2002)

Pipelines

gas 17,335 km; oil 1,136 km (2004)

Political parties and leaders

Center-Left Olive Tree Coalition [Francesco RUTELLI] - Democrats of the Left, Daisy Alliance (including Italian Popular Party, Italian Renewal, Union of Democrats for Europe, The Democrats), Sunflower Alliance (including Green Federation, Italian Democratic Socialists), Italian Communist Party; Center-Right Freedom House Coalition [Silvio BERLUSCONI] (formerly House of Liberties and Freedom Alliance) - Forza Italia, National Alliance, The Whiteflower Alliance (includes Christian Democratic Center, United Christian Democrats), Northern League; Democrats of the Left or DS [Piero FASSINO]; Forza Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; Green Federation [Alfonso Pecoraro SCANIO]; Italian Communist Party or PdCI [Armando COSSUTTA]; Italian Renewal or RI [Lamberto DINI]; merged with PPI and I Democratici to form La Margherita (or The Daisy Alliance); Italian Social Democrats or SDI [Enrico BOSELLI]; Lega Padana [Roberto BERNARDELLI]; National Alliance or AN [Gianfranco FINI]; Northern League or NL [Umberto BOSSI]; Per le Autonomie [leader NA]; Socialist Movement-Tricolor Flame or MS-Fiamma [Luca ROMAGNOLI]; South Tyrol People's Party or SVP (German speakers) [Elmar Pichler ROLLE]; Sunflower Alliance (includes Green Federation, Italian Social Democrats); The Daisy Alliance (includes Italian Popular Party, Italian Renewal, Union of Democrats for Europe, The Democrats) [Francesco RUTELLI]; The Democrats [Arturo PARISI]; The Radicals (formerly Pannella Reformers and Autonomous List) [Marco PANNELLA]; Union of Democrats for Europe or UDEUR [Clemente MASTELLA]; Union of Christian and Center Democrats or UDC [Marco FOLLINI]

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 [Guglielmo EPIFANI] which is left wing, Confederazione Italiana dei Sindacati Lavoratori or CISL [Savino PEZZOTTA], which is Roman Catholic centrist, and Unione Italiana del Lavoro or UIL [Luigi ANGELETTI] which is lay centrist)

Population

58,103,033 (July 2005 est.)

Population below poverty line

NA

Population growth rate

0.07% (2005 est.)

Ports and harbors

Augusta, Genoa, Livorno, Melilli Oil Terminal, Ravenna, Taranto, Trieste, Venice

Public debt

105.6% of GDP (2004 est.)

Radio broadcast stations

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

Radios

50.5 million (1997)

Railways

narrow gauge

123 km 1.000-m gauge (122 km electrified); 1,195 km 0.950-m gauge (158 km electrified) (2004)

standard gauge

18,001 km 1.435-m gauge (11,333 km electrified)

total

19,319 km (11,613 km electrified)

Religions

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

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$61.5 billion (2004 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth

1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female

total population

0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Suffrage

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

Telephone system

domestic

high-capacity cable and microwave radio relay trunks

general assessment

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

international

country code - 39; 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

26.596 million (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular

55.918 million (2003)

Television broadcast stations

358 (plus 4,728 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions

30.3 million (1997)

Terrain

mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands

Total fertility rate

1.28 children born/woman (2005 est.)

Unemployment rate

8.6% (2004 est.)

Waterways

2,400 km note: used for commercial traffic; of limited overall value compared to road and rail (2004)