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Background: Popes in their secular role ruled much of the Italian peninsula, including Rome, for about a thousand years, until 1870. A dispute between a series of popes and Italy was settled in 1929 by treaties that recognized the Vatican City as an independent sovereignty and gave Roman Catholicism special status in Italy. The US established formal diplomatic relationships with the Vatican in 1984. Present issues in the Vatican concern the ill health of Pope John Paul II, who turned 79 on 20 May 1999, inter-religious dialogue and reconciliation, and the adjustment of church doctrine in an era of rapid change. About 1 billion people worldwide profess the Roman Catholic faith.


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Location: Southern Europe, an enclave of Rome (Italy)

Geographic coordinates: 41 54 N, 12 27 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 0.44 km²
Land: 0.44 km²
Water: 0 km²
Comparative: about 0.7 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC

Land boundaries
Total: 3.2 km
Border countries: (1) Italy 3.2 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: temperate; mild, rainy winters (September to mid-May) with hot, dry summers (May to September)

Terrain: low hill

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: unnamed location 19 m
Extremes highest point: unnamed location 75 m

Natural resources: none

Land use
Arable land: 0%
Permanent crops: 0%
Permanent pastures: 0%
Forests and woodland: 0%
Other: 100% (urban area)

Irrigated land: 0 km² (1993)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: NA

Geography
Note: urban; landlocked; enclave of Rome, Italy; world's smallest state; outside the Vatican City, 13 buildings in Rome and Castel Gandolfo (the pope's summer residence) enjoy extraterritorial rights


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Population: 870 (July 1999 est.)
Growth rate: 1.15% (1999 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: none
Adjective: none

Ethnic groups: Italians, Swiss, other

Languages: Italian, Latin, various other languages

Religions: Roman Catholic

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 1.15% (1999 est.)

Birth rate

Death rate

Net migration rate

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: NA
International agreements party to: none of the selected agreements
International agreements signed but not ratified: Air Pollution, Environmental Modification

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate

Life expectancy at birth

Total fertility rate

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: The Holy See (State of the Vatican City)
Conventional short form: Holy See (Vatican City)
Local long form: Santa Sede (Stato della Citta del Vaticano)
Local short form: Santa Sede (Citta del Vaticano)

Government type: monarchical-sacerdotal state

Capital: Vatican City

Administrative divisions

Dependent areas

Independence: 11 February 1929 (from Italy)

National holiday: Installation Day of the Pope (John Paul II), 22 October (1978)

Constitution: Apostolic Constitution of 1967 (effective 1 March 1968)

Legal system: NA

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: limited to cardinals less than 80 years old

Executive branch
Chief of state: Pope JOHN PAUL II (since 16 October 1978)
Head of government: Secretary of State Archbishop Angelo Cardinal SODANO (since 2 December 1990)
Cabinet: Pontifical Commission appointed by the pope
Elections: pope elected for life by the College of Cardinals; election last held 16 October 1978 (next to be held after the death of the current pope); secretary of state appointed by the pope
Election results: Karol WOJTYLA elected pope

Legislative branch: unicameral Pontifical Commission

Judicial branch: none; normally handled by Italy

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: IAEA, ICFTU, Intelsat, IOM (observer), ITU, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, UN (observer), UNCTAD, UNHCR, UPU, WIPO, WToO (observer)

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Gabriel MONTALVO
In the us chancery: 3,339 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 333-7,121
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Corrine C. BOGGS
From the us embassy: Villa Domiziana, Via Delle Terme Deciane 26, 00153 Rome
From the us mailing address: PSC 59, Box F, APO AE 9,624
From the us telephone: [39] (06) 46,741
From the us FAX: [39] (06) 5,758,346, 57,300,682

Flag description: two vertical bands of yellow (hoist side) and white with the crossed keys of Saint Peter and the papal miter centered in the white band

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: This unique, noncommercial economy is supported financially by contributions (known as Peter's Pence) from Roman Catholics throughout the world, the sale of postage stamps and tourist mementos, fees for admission to museums, and the sale of publications. The incomes and living standards of lay workers are comparable to, or somewhat better than, those of counterparts who work in the city of Rome.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate

Real gdp per capita

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products

Industries: printing and production of a small amount of mosaics and staff uniforms; worldwide banking and financial activities

Industrial production growth rate

Labor force: NA
Note: dignitaries, priests, nuns, guards and 3,000 layworkers who live outside the Vatican

Unemployment rate

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: NA%

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $175.5 million
Expenditures: $175 million, including capital expenditures of $N/A (1994)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports

Imports

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Vatican lire (VLit) per US$1_1,688.7 (January 1998), 1,736.2 (1998), 1,703.1 (1997), 1,542.9 (1996), 1,628.9 (1995), 1,612.4 (1994; note_the Vatican lira is at par with the Italian lira which circulates freely


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Electricity
Production: 0 kWh
Production by source fossil fuel: NA%
Production by source hydro: NA%
Production by source nuclear: NA%
Production by source other: NA%
Consumption: NA kWh
Exports: NA kWh
Imports: NA kWh; note_electricity supplied by Italy

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones: 2,000

Telephone system: automatic exchange
Domestic: tied into Italian system
International: uses Italian system

Broadcast media

Internet

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: none

Heliports: 1 (1998 est.)

Pipelines

Railways
Total: 862 m; note_connects to Italy's network at Rome's Saint Peter's station
Narrow gauge: 862 m 1.435-m gauge

Roadways

Waterways

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs