Background: Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the regional 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.

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
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

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

Natural resources: coal mercury zinc potash marble barite asbestos pumice fluorspar feldspar pyrite (sulfur) natural gas and crude oil reserves fish arable land

Land use
Arable land: 26.41%
Permanent crops: 9.09%
Other: 64.5% (2005)

Irrigated land: 27,500 km² (2003)

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: 58,147,733 (July 2007 est.)
Growth rate: 0.01% (2007 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: Roman Catholic 90% (approximately; about one-third regularly attend services) other 10% (includes mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community)

Age structure
0-14 years: 13.8% (male 4,121,246/female 3,874,971)
15-64 years: 66.4% (male 19,527,203/female 19,059,897)
65 years and over: 19.9% (male 4,823,244/female 6,741,172) (2007 est.)

Median age
Total: 42.5 years
Male: 41.1 years
Female: 44.1 years (2007 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.01% (2007 est.)

Birth rate: 8.54 births/1000 population (2007 est.)

Death rate: 10.5 deaths/1000 population (2007 est.)

Net migration rate: 2.06 migrant(s)/1000 population (2007 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-Persistent Organic Pollutants, 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
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.07 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.064 male/female
15-64 years: 1.025 male/female
65 years and over: 0.715 male/female
Total population: 0.959 male/female (2007 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 5.72 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 6.3 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 5.1 deaths/1000 live births (2007 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 79.94 years
Male: 77.01 years
Female: 83.07 years (2007 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.29 children born/woman (2007 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.5% (2001 est.)
People living with hivaids: 140,000 (2001 est.)
Deaths: less than 1000 (2003 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 98.4%
Male: 98.8%
Female: 98% (2001 census)

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
Name: Rome
Geographic coordinates: 41 54 N, 12 29 E
Time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Administrative divisions: 15 regions (regioni singular - regione) and 5 autonomous regions* (regioni autonome singular - regione autonoma); Abruzzo Basilicata Calabria Campania Emilia-Romagna Friuli-Venezia Giulia* Lazio (Latium) Liguria Lombardia Marche Molise Piemonte (Piedmont) Puglia (Apulia) Sardegna* (Sardinia) Sicilia* Toscana (Tuscany) Trentino-Alto Adige* (Trentino-South Tyrol) Umbria Valle d'Aosta* (Aosta Valley) Veneto

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

National holiday: Republic Day 2 June (1946)

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

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 Giorgio NAPOLITANO (since 15 May 2006)
Head of government: Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the president of the Council of Ministers) Romano PRODI (since 17 May 2006)
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 (no term limits); election last held 10 May 2006 (next to be held in May 2013); prime minister appointed by the president and confirmed by parliament
Election results: Giorgio NAPOLITANO elected president on the fourth round of voting; electoral college vote - 543

Legislative branch
Elections: Senate - last held 10 April 2006 (next to be held in 2011); Chamber of Deputies - last held 10 April 2006 (next to be held in May 2011)
Election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - The Union 158 (DS 62, DL 39, RC 27, Together with the Union 11, other 19), House of Freedoms 154 (FI 79, AN 41, UDC 21, LEGA 13), other 3; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - The Union 348 (DS 220, RC 41, Rose in the Fist 18, Italy of Values 17, PdCI 16, Greens Federation 15, UDEUR 10, other 11), House of Freedoms 276 (FI 140, AN 71, Union of Christian and Center Democrats 39, LEGA 26), other 6

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
Centerleft union coalition [romano prodi]: Ulivo Alliance (including Democrats of the Left or DS [Piero FASSINO]; Daisy-Democracy is Freedom or DL [Francesco RUTELLI]); Rose in the Fist (including Italian Social Democrats or SDI [Enrico BOSELLI]; Italian Radical Party [Emma BONINO]); Together with the Union (including Italian Communist Party or PdCI [Oliviero DILIBERTO]; Green Federation [Alfonso PECORARO SCANIO]; United Consumers); Communist Renewal or RC [Fausto BERTINOTTI]; Italy of Values or IdV [Antonio DI PIETRO]; Union of Democrats for Europe or UDEUR [Clemente MASTELLA]; Republican European Movement or MRE [Luciana SBARBATI]
Centerright freedom house coalition [silvio berlusconi]: Forza Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; National Alliance or AN [Gianfranco FINI]; Union of Christian Democrats and Centrist Democrats or UDC [Pier Ferdinando CASINI]; Northern League or LEGA [Umberto BOSSI]; Christian Democracy (Per la Autonomie) [Gianfranco ROTONDI]
Other nonallied parties: New Italian Socialist Party or New PSI [Gianni DE MICHELIS]; Italian Republican Party or PRI [Giorgio LA MALFA]; Social Alternative [Alessandra MUSSOLINI]; Social Movement-Tricolor Flame or MSI-Fiamma [Luca ROMAGNOLI]; Social Idea Movement with Rauti or MIS [Pino RAUTI]; South Tyrol People's Party or SVP (German speakers) [Elmar Pichler ROLLE]; Union of Valley Aosta Region or UV [Guido CESAL]

International organization participation: AfDB AsDB Australia Group BIS BSEC (observer) CBSS (observer) CDB CE CEI CERN EAPC EBRD EIB EMU ESA EU FAO G- 7 G- 8 G-10 IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC ICCt ICRM IDA IEA IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO ITSO ITU ITUC LAIA (observer) MIGA MINURSO NAM (guest) NATO NEA NSG OAS (observer) OECD OPCW OSCE Paris Club PCA Schengen Convention SECI (observer) UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNIFIL Union Latina UNMOGIP UNRWA UNTSO UNWTO UPU WCL WCO WEU WHO WIPO WMO WTO ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Giovanni CASTELLANETA
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) 518-2,151
In the us consulates general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco
In the us consulates: Detroit
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Ronald P. SPOGLI
From the us embassy: Via Vittorio Veneto 121, 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, 4,674-2,356
From the us consulates 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; 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 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 deficit has breached the 3% EU ceiling. The economy experienced low growth in 2006 and unemployment remained at a high level.

Real gdp purchasing power parity: $1.756 trillion (2006 est.)

Real gdp growth rate: 1.9% (2006 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $30,200 (2006 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 1.9%
Industry: 28.9%
Services: 69.2% (2006 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: 1.5% (2006 est.)

Labor force: 24.64 million (2006 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 5%
By occupation industry: 32%
By occupation services: 63% (2001)

Unemployment rate: 7% (2006 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 2.3%
Highest 10: 26.8% (2000)

Distribution of family income gini index: 36 (2000)

Budget
Revenues: $845.2 billion
Expenditures: $928.2 billion (2006 est.)

Public debt: 106.7% of GDP (2006 est.)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 2.1% (2006 est.)

Market value of publicly traded shares: $798.2 billion (2005)

Current account balance: $-47.31 billion (2006 est.)

Exports: $417.1 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Commodities: engineering products textiles and clothing production machinery motor vehicles transport equipment chemicals; food beverages and tobacco; minerals and nonferrous metals
Partners: Germany 13.2% France 11.7% US 7.6% Spain 7.3% UK 6.1% (2006)

Imports: $428.7 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Commodities: engineering products chemicals transport equipment energy products minerals and nonferrous metals textiles and clothing; food beverages and tobacco
Partners: Germany 16.7% France 9.2% Netherlands 5.6% China 5.2% Belgium 4.2% Spain 4.1% (2006)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $75.77 billion (2006 est.)

Debt external: $1.957 trillion (30 June 2006 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $294.8 billion (2006 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad: $375.8 billion (2006 est.)

Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006) 0.8041 (2005) 0.8054 (2004) 0.886 (2003) 1.0626 (2002)

Electricity
Production: 278.5 billion kWh (2005)
Consumption: 307.1 billion kWh (2005)
Exports: 1.109 billion kWh (2005)
Imports: 50.26 billion kWh (2005)

Natural gas
Production: 11.49 billion m³ (2005 est.)
Consumption: 82.64 billion m³ (2005 est.)
Exports: 379.8 million m³ (2005 est.)
Imports: 70.45 billion m³ (2005)
Proven reserves: 217.3 billion m³ (1 January 2006 est.)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 25.049 million (2005)
Mobile cellular: 71.5 million (2005)

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: country code - 39; a series of submarine cables provide links to Asia, Middle East, Europe, North Africa, and US; 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

Internet
Country code: .it
Hosts: 4.117 million (2007)
Users: 28.855 million (2006)

Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: 1.8% (2005 est.)

Military service age and obligation: 18-27 year of age for voluntary military service; conscription abolished January 2005; women may serve in any military branch; 10-month service obligation with a reserve obligation to age 45 (Army and Air Force) or 39 (Navy) (2006)

Airports: 132 (2007)
With paved runways total: 101
With paved runways over 3047 m: 7
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 32
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 15
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 34
With paved runways under 914 m: 13 (2007)
With unpaved runways total: 31
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 11
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 19 (2007)

Heliports: 5 (2007)

Pipelines: gas 17,589 km; oil 1136 km (2006)

Railways
Total: 19,460 km
Standard gauge: 18,038 km 1.435-m gauge (11,354 km electrified)
Narrow gauge: 123 km 1.000-m gauge (123 km electrified); 1,299 km 0.950-m gauge (161 km electrified) (2006)

Roadways
Total: 484,688 km
Paved: 484,688 km (includes 6,621 km of expressways) (2004)

Waterways
Note: used for commercial traffic; of limited overall value compared to road and rail (2006)

Merchant marine
Total: 604 ships (1000 GRT or over) 12,529,192 GRT/13,150,989 DWT
By type: bulk carrier 53, cargo 46, carrier 1, chemical tanker 141, combination ore/oil 1, container 32, liquefied gas 33, livestock carrier 3, passenger 17, passenger/cargo 156, petroleum tanker 40, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 35, specialized tanker 14, vehicle carrier 28
Foreign owned: 62 (Denmark 2, France 5, Germany 1, Greece 13, Sweden 1, Switzerland 5, Taiwan 11, Turkey 1, UK 7, US 16)
Registered in other countries: 169 (Bahamas 1, Belize 4, Bolivia 1, Cayman Islands 10, Cyprus 5, France 2, Gibraltar 1, Greece 1, Isle of Man 1, Liberia 31, Malta 45, Marshall Islands 3, Norway 4, Panama 10, Portugal 11, Singapore 4, Slovakia 1, Spain 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 19, Sweden 7, Turkey 3, UK 4) (2007)

Ports and terminals: Augusta Genoa Livorno Melilli Oil Terminal Ravenna Taranto Trieste Venice

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

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