Background: As Europe's largest economy and second most populous nation (after Russia) Germany is a key member of the continent's economic political and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed Germany in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US UK France and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations the EC which became the EU and NATO while the Communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then Germany has expended considerable funds to bring Eastern productivity and wages up to Western standards. In January 1999 Germany and 10 other EU countries introduced a common European exchange currency the euro.

Geographic coordinates: 51 00 N 9 00 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 357,022 km²
Rank: 62
Land: 348,672 km²
Water: 8,350 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Montana

Land boundaries
Total: 3,621 km
Border countries: (9) Austria 784 km; Belgium 167 km; Czech Republic 646 km; Denmark 68 km; France 451 km; Luxembourg 138 km; Netherlands 577 km; Poland 456 km; Switzerland 334 km

Coastline: 2,389 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate: temperate and marine; cool cloudy wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind

Terrain: lowlands in north uplands in center Bavarian Alps in south

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m
Extremes highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m

Natural resources: coal lignite natural gas iron ore copper nickel uranium potash salt construction materials timber arable land

Land use
Arable land: 33.13%
Permanent crops: 0.6%
Other: 66.27% (2005)

Irrigated land: 4,850 km² (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 188 km³ (2005)

Natural hazards: flooding

Geography
Note: strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea

Population: 82,329,758 (July 2009 est.)
Rank: 16
Growth rate: -0.053% (2009 est.)
Growth rate rank: 211
Below poverty line: 11% (2001 est.)

Nationality
Noun: German
Adjective: German

Ethnic groups: German 91.5% Turkish 2.4% other 6.1% (made up largely of Greek Italian Polish Russian Serbo-Croatian Spanish)

Languages: German

Religions: Protestant 34% Roman Catholic 34% Muslim 3.7% unaffiliated or other 28.3%

Age structure
0-14 years: 13.7%
15-64 years: 66.1% (male 27,707,761/female 26,676,759)
65 years and over: 20.3% (male 7,004,805/female 9,701,551) (2009 est.)

Median age
Total: 43.8 years
Male: 42.6 years
Female: 45.2 years (2009 est.)

Population growth rate: -0.053% (2009 est.)
Rank: 211

Birth rate: 8.18 births/1000 population (2009 est.)
Rank: 220

Death rate: 10.9 deaths/1000 population (July 2009 est.)
Rank: 47

Net migration rate: 2.19 migrant(s)/1000 population (2009 est.)
Rank: 40

Urbanization
Urban population: 74% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 0.1% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)

Environment
Current issues: emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora Fauna and Habitat directive
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: 1.06 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2009 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 3.99 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 210
Male: 4.41 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 3.55 deaths/1000 live births (2009 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 79.26 years
Rank: 32
Male: 76.26 years
Female: 82.42 years (2009 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.41 children born/woman (2009 est.)
Rank: 195

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2007 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 123
People living with hivaids: 53,000 (2007 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 64
Deaths: fewer than 500 (2007 est.)
Deaths rank: 85

Education expenditures: 4.6% of GDP (2004)
Rank: 82

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 99%
Male: 99%
Female: 99% (2003 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 16 years
Male: 16 years
Female: 16 years (2006)

Country name
Conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany
Conventional short form: Germany
Local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland
Local short form: Deutschland
Former: German Empire German Republic German Reich

Government type: federal republic

Capital
Name: Berlin
Geographic coordinates: 52 31 N 13 24 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: 16 states (Laender singular - Land); Baden-Wurttemberg Bayern (Bavaria) Berlin Brandenburg Bremen Hamburg Hessen Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania) Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony) Nordrhein-Westfalen (North Rhine-Westphalia) Rheinland-Pfalz (Rhineland-Palatinate) Saarland Sachsen (Saxony) Sachsen-Anhalt (Saxony-Anhalt) Schleswig-Holstein Thuringen (Thuringia); note - Bayern Sachsen and Thuringen refer to themselves as free states (Freistaaten singular - Freistaat)

Independence: 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones of occupation (UK US USSR and later France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK US and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; West Germany and East Germany unified 3 October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March 1991

National holiday: Unity Day 3 October (1990)

Constitution: 23 May 1949 known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united Germany 3 October 1990

Legal system: civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Horst KOEHLER
Head of government: Chancellor Angela MERKEL (since 22 November 2005)
Cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor
Elections: president elected for a five-year term (eligible for a second term) by a Federal Convention including all members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the state parliaments; election last held 23 May 2004 (next scheduled for 23 May 2009); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; Bundestag vote for Chancellor last held 22 November 2005 (next will follow the national elections to be held by 27 September 2009)
Election results: Horst KOEHLER elected president; received 604 votes of the Federal Convention against 589 for Gesine SCHWAN; Angela MERKEL elected chancellor; vote by Federal Assembly 397 to 202 with 12 abstentions

Legislative branch: bicameral legislature consists of the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments sit in the Council; each has three to six votes in proportion to population and are required to vote as a block)and the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (622 seats; members elected by popular vote for a four-year term under a system of personalized proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain proportional representation and caucus recognition)
Elections: Bundestag - last held on 27 September 2009 (next to be held no later than autumn 2013); note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election
Election results: Bundestag - percent of vote by party - CDU/CSU 33.8% SPD 23% FDP 14.6% Left 11.9% Greens 10.7% other 6%; seats by party - CDU/CSU 239 SPD 146 FDP 93 Left 76 Greens 68

Judicial branch: Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat)

Political parties and leaders: Alliance '90/Greens [Claudia ROTH and Cem OZDEMIR]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Horst SEEHOFER]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE]; Left Party or Die Linke [Lothar BISKY and Oskar LAFONTAINE]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Franz MUENTEFERING]

International organization participation: ADB (nonregional member) AfDB (nonregional member) Arctic Council (observer) Australia Group BIS BSEC (observer) CBSS CDB CE CERN EAPC EBRD EIB EMU ESA EU FAO G-20 G-5 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 MIGA NAM (guest) NATO NEA NSG OAS (observer) OECD OPCW OSCE Paris Club PCA Schengen Convention SECI (observer) SICA (observer) UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNIFIL UNMIL UNMIS UNOMIG UNRWA UNWTO UPU WADB (nonregional) WCO WEU WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WTO ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Klaus SCHARIOTH
In the us chancery: 4,645 Reservoir Road NW Washington DC 20,007
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 298-4,000
In the us fax: [1] (202) 298-4,249
In the us consulate general: Atlanta Boston Chicago Houston Los Angeles Miami New York San Francisco
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador ; Charge d'Affaires John KOENIG
From the us embassy: Pariser Platz 2 10,117 Berlin; note - new embassy opened 4 July 2008
From the us mailing address: PSC 120 Box 1000 APO AE 9,265 Clayallee 170 14,195 Berlin
From the us telephone: [49] (030) 2,385,174
From the us fax: [49] (030) 8,305-1215
From the us consulate general: Duesseldorf Frankfurt am Main Hamburg Leipzig Munich

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of black (top) red and gold; these colors have played an important role in German history and can be traced back to the medieval banner of the Holy Roman Emperor - a black eagle with red claws and beak on a gold field

Economy overview: The German economy - the fifth largest economy in the world in PPP terms and Europe's largest - began to contract in the second quarter of 2008 as the strong euro high oil prices tighter credit markets and slowing growth abroad took their toll on Germany's export-dependent economy. At just 1% in 2008 GDP growth is expected to be negative in 2009. Recent stimulus and lender relief efforts will make demands on Germany's federal budget and undercut plans to balance its budget by 2011. The reforms launched by the former government of Chancellor Gerhard SCHOEDER deemed necessary due to chronically high unemployment and low average growth led to strong growth in 2007 while unemployment in 2008 fell below 8% a new post-reunification low. Germany's aging population combined with high chronic unemployment has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions but higher government revenues from the cyclical upturn in 2006-07 and a 3% rise in the value-added tax cut Germany's budget deficit to within the EU's 3% debt limit in 2007. The current government of Chancellor Angela MERKEL has initiated other reform measures such as a gradual increase in the mandatory retirement age from 65 to 67 and measures to increase female participation in the labor market. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy - where unemployment still exceeds 30% in some municipalities - continues to be a costly long-term process with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $80 billion. While corporate restructuring and growing capital markets have set strong foundations to help Germany meet the longer-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization Germany's export-oriented economy has proved a disadvantage in the context of weak global demand.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Rank: 6
Note: data are in 2008 US dollars

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 167

Real gdp per capita:
Rank: 33
Note: data are in 2008 US dollars

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 0.9%
Industry: 30.1%
Services: 69.1% (2008 est.)

Agriculture products: potatoes wheat barley sugar beets fruit cabbages; cattle pigs poultry

Industries: among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron steel coal cement chemicals machinery vehicles machine tools electronics food and beverages shipbuilding textiles

Industrial production growth rate: 0.1% (2008 est.)
Rank: 131

Labor force: 43.6 million (2008 est.)
Rank: 14
By occupation agriculture: 2.4%
By occupation industry: 29.7%
By occupation services: 67.8% (2005)

Unemployment rate: 9% (2007 est.)
Rank: 106
Note: this is the International Labor Organization's estimated rate for international comparisons; Germany's Federal Employment Office estimated a seasonally adjusted rate of 10.8%

Population below poverty line: 11% (2001 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 3.2%
Highest 10: 22.1% (2000)

Distribution of family income gini index: 30 (1994)
Rank: 123

Budget
Revenues: $1.591 trillion
Expenditures: $1.591 trillion (2008 est.)

Public debt: 65.8% of GDP (2004 est.)
Rank: 20

Inflation rate consumer prices: 2.3% (2007 est.)
Rank: 31

Central bank discount rate: 5% (31 December 2007)
Rank: 93
Note: this is the European Central Bank's rate on the marginal lending facility which offers overnight credit to banks in the euro area

Commercial bank prime lending rate: 5.96% (31 December 2007)
Rank: 133

Stock of domestic credit: $4.457 trillion (31 December 2007)
Rank: 5

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 8

Current account balance: $263.1 billion (2007 est.)
Rank: 2

Exports: $1.35 trillion (2007 est.)
Rank: 2
Commodities: machinery vehicles chemicals metals and manufactures foodstuffs textiles
Partners: France 9.7% US 7.1% UK 6.7% Netherlands 6.6% Italy 6.4% Austria 5.4% Belgium 5.2% Spain 4.4% Poland 4% (2008)

Imports: $1.079 trillion (2007 est.)
Rank: 3
Commodities: machinery vehicles chemicals foodstuffs textiles metals
Partners: Netherlands 12.5% France 8.3% Belgium 7.5% China 6.2% Italy 5.7% UK 5.4% Austria 4.3% Russia 4.2% US 4.2% (2008)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $136.2 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Rank: 11

Debt external: $5.155 trillion (31 December 2007)
Rank: 3

Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $1.002 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)
Rank: 5

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad: $1.249 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)
Rank: 4

Exchange rates: euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.6827 (2008 est.) 0.7345 (2007) 0.7964 (2006) 0.8041 (2005) 0.8054 (2004)

Electricity
Production: 593.4 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Production rank: 8
Consumption: 547.3 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Consumption rank: 7
Exports: 61.7 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Imports: 41.67 billion kWh (2008 est.)

Natural gas
Production: 16.36 billion m³ (2008 est.)
Production rank: 32
Consumption: 95.79 billion m³ (2008 est.)
Consumption rank: 7
Exports: 12.68 billion m³ (2008)
Exports rank: 16
Imports: 91.99 billion m³ (2008 est.)
Imports rank: 3
Proven reserves: 175.6 billion m³ (1 January 2009 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 46

Telephones
Main lines in use: 51.5 million (2008)
Main lines in use rank: 3
Mobile cellular: 107.245 million (2008)
Mobile cellular rank: 8

Telephone system
General assessment: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country dating back to World War II has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part
Domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable coaxial cable microwave radio relay and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available expanding rapidly and includes roaming service to many foreign countries
International: country code - 49; Germany's international service is excellent worldwide consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the Inmarsat Intelsat Eutelsat and Intersputnik satellite systems (2001)

Internet
Country code: .de
Hosts: 23.796 million (2009)
Hosts rank: 3
Users: 61.973 million (2008)
Users rank: 6

Military expenditures: 1.5% of GDP (2005 est.)
Rank: 109

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age (conscripts serve a 9-month tour of compulsory military service) (2004)

Airports: 550 (2009)
Rank: 13
With paved runways total: 330
With paved runways over 3047 m: 13
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 52
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 58
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 72
With paved runways under 914 m: 135 (2009)
With unpaved runways total: 220
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 3
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 33
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 184 (2009)

Heliports: 25 (2009)

Pipelines: gas 24,364 km; oil 3,379 km; refined products 3,843 km (2008)

Railways
Total: 41,896 km
Rank: 6
Standard gauge: 41,641 km 1.435-m gauge (20,053 km electrified)
Narrow gauge: 75 km 1.000-m gauge (75 km electrified); 24 km 0.750-m gauge (24 km electrified) (2008)

Roadways
Total: 644,480 km
Rank: 11
Paved: 644,480 km (includes 12,400 km of expressways)
Note: includes local roads (2006)

Waterways: 7,467 km
Rank: 19
Note: Rhine River carries most goods; Main-Danube Canal links North Sea and Black Sea (2008)

Merchant marine
Total: 393
Rank: 26
By type: bulk carrier 2 cargo 43 chemical tanker 13 container 284 liquefied gas 5 passenger 5 passenger/cargo 27 petroleum tanker 11 roll on/roll off 3
Foreign owned: 11 (China 2 Cyprus 2 Denmark 1 Finland 4 Netherlands 1 Sweden 1)
Registered in other countries: 2,998 (Antigua and Barbuda 941 Australia 2 Bahamas 44 Bermuda 22 Brazil 6 Bulgaria 63 Burma 1 Canada 3 Cayman Islands 15 Cyprus 189 Denmark 9 Denmark 1 Estonia 1 Finland 1 France 1 Georgia 2 Gibraltar 129 Hong Kong 6 India 2 Indonesia 1 Isle of Man 56 Jamaica 4 Liberia 849 Luxembourg 5 Malaysia 1 Malta 91 Marshall Islands 235 Mongolia 4 Morocco 2 Netherlands 75 Netherlands Antilles 43 Norway 1 NZ 1 Panama 44 Portugal 20 Russia 1 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3 Singapore 24 Slovakia 3 Spain 5 Sri Lanka 5 Sweden 5 Turkey 1 UK 76 US 5) (2008)

Ports and terminals: Bremen Bremerhaven Duisburg Hamburg Karlsruhe Lubeck Rostock Wilhemshaven

Disputes international: none

Illicit drugs: source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin Latin American cocaine and European-produced synthetic drugs; major financial center