Background: Italy became a nation-state belatedly - in 1861 when the city-states of the peninsula along with Sardinia and Sicily were united under King Victor EMMANUEL. 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 European Monetary Union 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.

Geographic coordinates: 42 50 N 12 50 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 301,230 km²
Land: 294,020 km²
Water: 7,210 km²
Note: includes Sardinia and Sicily
Comparative: slightly larger than Arizona

Land boundaries
Total: 1,932.2 km
Border countries: (5) Austria 430 km; , France 488 km; , Holy See (Vatican City) 3.2 km; , San Marino 39 km; , Slovenia 232 km; , Switzerland 740 km

Coastline: 7,600 km

Maritime claims
Continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate: predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot dry in south

Terrain: mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains coastal lowlands

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
Extremes highest point: Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) 4,807 m

Natural resources: mercury potash marble sulfur natural gas and crude oil reserves fish coal arable land

Land use
Arable land: 31%
Permanent crops: 10%
Permanent pastures: 15%
Forests and woodland: 23%
Other: 21% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 27,100 km² (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: regional risks include landslides mudflows avalanches earthquakes volcanic eruptions flooding; land subsidence in Venice

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

Population: 57,679,825 (July 2001 est.)
Growth rate: 0.07% (2001 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Italian
Adjective: Italian

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

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)

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

Age structure
0-14 years: 14.17% (male 4,209,102; female 3,964,765)
15-64 years: 67.48% (male 19,375,742; female 19,546,332)
65 years and over: 18.35% (male 4,368,264; female 6,215,620) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.07% (2001 est.)

Birth rate: 9.05 births/1000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate: 10.07 deaths/1000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate: 1.73 migrant(s)/1000 population (2001 est.)

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
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-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, 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
International agreements signed but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.07 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.06 male/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male/female
Total population: 0.94 male/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 5.84 deaths/1000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 79.14 years
Male: 75.97 years
Female: 82.52 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.18 children born/woman (2001 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.35% (1999 est.)
People living with hivaids: 95,000 (1999 est.)
Deaths: 1000 (1999 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 98% (1998)
Male: NA%
Female: NA%

Country name
Conventional long form: Italian Republic
Conventional short form: Italy
Local long form: Repubblica Italiana
Local short form: Italia
Former: Kingdom of Italy

Government type: republic

Capital: Rome

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

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

National holiday: Republic Day 2 June (1946)

Constitution: 1 January 1948

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

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

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Carlo Azeglio CIAMPI (since 13 May 1999)
Head of government: Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the president of the Council of Ministers) Silvio BERLUSCONI (since 10 June 2001)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and approved by the president
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
Election results: Carlo Azeglio CIAMPI elected president; percent of electoral college vote - 70%
Note: a 12-party government coalition; note - BERLUSCONI's coalition includes Forza Italian, National Alliance, Christian Democratic Center, Christian Northern League

Legislative branch
Elections: Senate - last held 13 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 13 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006)
Election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - House of Liberties 177 (Forza Italia 82, National Alliance 46, CCD-CDU 29, Northern League 17, others 3), Olive Tree 128 (Democrats of the Left 62, Daisy Alliance 42, Sunflower Alliance 16, Italian Communist Party 3, independents 5), non-affiliated with either coalition 10, senators for life 9; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - House of Liberties 367 (Forza Italia 189, National Alliance 96, CCD-CDU 40, Northern League 30, others 12), Olive Tree 248 (Democrats of the Left 138, Daisy Alliance 76, Sunflower Alliance 18, Italian Communist Party 9, independents 7), non-affiliated with either coalition 15

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)

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; Christian Democratic Center or CDC [Pier Ferdinando CASINI]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Rocco BUTTIGLIONE]; Communist Renewal or RC [Fausto BERTINOTTI]; Forza Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; Green Federation [Grazia FRANCESCATO]; House of Liberties (formerly Freedom Alliance a center-right coalition) [leader Silvio BERLUSCONI] - Forza Italian National Alliance Christian Democratic Center Christian Democratic Union Northern League; Italian Communist Party or PdCI [Oliviero DILIBERTO]; Italian Democratic Socialists [Enrico BOSELLI]; Italian Popular Party [Pierluigi CASTAGNETTI]; Italian Renewal [Lamberto DINI]; Italian Social Movement-Tricolored Flame or MSI-FI [Pino RAUTI]; National Alliance or AN [Gianfranco FINI]; Northern League or NL [Umberto BOSSI]; Radical Party (formerly Panella Reformers and Autonomous List) [Marco PANNELLA]; Southern Tyrols People's Party or SVP (German speakers) [Siegfried BRUGGER]; Union of Democrats for Europe [Clemente MASTELLA]; The Democrats [Arturo PARISI]

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 NAM (guest) NATO NEA NSG OAS (observer) OECD OPCW OSCE PCA UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNIFIL UNIKOM UNMEE UNMIBH UNMIK UNMOGIP UNTSO UPU WCL WEU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTrO ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Ferdinando SALLEO
In the us chancery: 3,000 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 612-4,400
In the us fax: [1] (202) 518-2,154
In the us consulates general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and San Francisco
In the us consulates: Detroit
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)
From the us embassy: Via Veneto 119/A, 00187-Rome
From the us mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100, APO AE 9,624
From the us telephone: [39] (06) 46,741
From the us fax: [39] (06) 488-2,672
From the us consulates general: Florence, Milan, Naples

Flag description
Note: inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in 1797

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 agricultural south with more than 20% unemployment. Most raw materials needed by industry and more than 75% of energy requirements are imported. Since 1992 Italy has adopted budgets compliant with the requirements of the European Monetary Union (EMU); wage moderation agreements by representatives of government labor and employers have helped to bring Italy's inflation into conformity with EMU requirements. Italy's economic performance however has lagged behind that of its EU partners and it must work to stimulate employment promote labor flexibility reform its expensive pension system and tackle the informal economy.

Real gdp growth rate: 2.7% (2000 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $22,100 (2000 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 2.5%
Industry: 30.4%
Services: 67.1% (2000 est.)

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

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

Industrial production growth rate: 1.9% (2000)

Labor force: 23.4 million (2000)
By occupation services: 61.9%
By occupation industry: 32.6%
By occupation agriculture: 5.5% (1999)

Unemployment rate: 10.4% (2000 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 3.5%
Highest 10: 21.8% (1995)

Budget
Revenues: $488 billion
Expenditures: $501 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 2.5% (2000)

Exports: $241.1 billion (f.o.b. 2000)
Commodities: engineering products textiles and clothing production machinery motor vehicles transport equipment chemicals; food beverages and tobacco; minerals and nonferrous metals
Partners: EU 56.8% (Germany 16.4% France 12.9% Netherlands 7.1% Spain 6.3% Netherlands 2.9%) US 9.5% (1999)

Imports: $231.4 billion (f.o.b. 2000)
Commodities: engineering products chemicals transport equipment energy products minerals and nonferrous metals textiles and clothing; food beverages and tobacco
Partners: EU 61% (Germany 19.3% France 12.6% Netherlands 6.3% Spain 4.4%) US 5.0% (1999)

Debt external: $NA

Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001) 1.0854 (2000) 0.9386 (1999); Italian lire per US dollar - 1688.7 (January 1999) 1736.2 (1998) 1703.1 (1997) 1542.9 (1996)

Electricity
Production: 247.679 billion kWh (1999)
Production by source fossil fuel: 79.09%
Production by source hydro: 18.08%
Production by source nuclear: 0%
Production by source other: 2.83% (1999)
Consumption: 272.35 billion kWh (1999)
Exports: 530 million kWh (1999)
Imports: 42.539 billion kWh (1999)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 25 million (1999)
Mobile cellular: 20.5 million (1999)

Telephone system
General assessment: 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

Internet
Country code: .it
Service providers isps: 93 (Italy and Holy See) (2000)
Users: 11.6 million (2000)

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $20.7 billion (FY00/01)
Percent of gdp: 1.7% (FY00/01)

Airports: 135 (2000 est.)
With paved runways total: 97
With paved runways over 3047 m: 5
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 32
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 17
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 31
With paved runways under 914 m: 12 (2000 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 38
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 18
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 18 (2000 est.)

Heliports: 4 (2000 est.)

Pipelines: crude oil 1703 km; petroleum products 2,148 km; natural gas 19,400 km

Railways
Total: 19,394 km
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)
Narrow gauge: 112 km 1.000-m gauge (112 km electrified); 1,211 km 0.950-m gauge (153 km electrified) (1998)

Waterways
Note: for various types of commercial traffic, although of limited overall value

Merchant marine
Total: 445 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 8,005,136 GRT/10,556,244 DWT
Ships by type: bulk 44, cargo 41, chemical tanker 77, combination ore/oil 4, container 24, liquefied gas 38, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 11, petroleum tanker 85, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 64, short-sea passenger 26, specialized tanker 14, vehicle carrier 15 (2000 est.)

Disputes international: Croatia and Italy made progress toward resolving a bilateral issue dating from World War II over property and ethnic minority rights