Republic of Italy

Area

116,340 square miles - 301,000 sq. Km

Population (1998)

57,700,000
15% less then 15 yrs. old
68% between ages 15 and 65
17% Older then 65 yrs. old

71% urban, 29% rural
488 Persons per sq. mile - 189 Persons per sq. Km

Ethnic Groups: Italian, small minorities of German. French, Slovene, Albanian, Greek

Language

Italian (official), small sections speak German or Slovene

Capital and Major Cities (Pop.1997)

Rome (2,700,000)

Currency

Euro (€)
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Gross Domestic Product (GDP 1994)

$1.09 trill.
GDP Per capita: $18,700 agriculture 9%; industry and commerce 32%; services 59%.

Imports: 108 bill. - Partners: EU 56%, U.S. 5%.
Exports: $191 bill. - Partners: EU 53%, US 8%
Tourism: $24 bill.
National budget (est.): $431 bill.
CPI: change in 1996 - 4.0%

Religion

Rom. Catholic (98% of the Population)

Education & Health

Literacy (1994)

Education: Free and compulsory: ages 6-13
Literacy: 98% of adult population

Universities (1995)

42

Life Expectancy (1997) at Birth:

Life Exp.: F-81.6, M-75
Births: (per 1,000 pop.): 10
Deaths: (per 1,000 pop.):10
Natural Increase: 0.0.

Health:

Hospital beds: 1 per 147 persons.
Physicians: 1 per 193 persons
Infant mortality: (per 1,000 in births 1997): 7

Government

Form of Government:

Parliamentary Republic

Head of State:

President (Elected to a seven-year term by legislators and representatives of regional councils)

Current President: 
Giorgio Napolitano
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  May 10, 2006

Head of Government:

Prime Minister (Appointed by the president and confirmed by parliament.)

Current Prime Minister: (referred to in Italy as the president of the Council of Ministers) Silvio Berlusconi  (since June 10, 2001, he was re-elected on April 23, 2005 and again on April 13/14, 2008)

Legislature:

Bicameral Legislature or "Parlamento" consists of the 

Senate or "Senato" (326 seats—315 elected by popular vote of which 232 are directly elected and 83 are elected by regional proportional representation, 11 are appointed senators-for-life; members serve five-year terms) elections

Chamber of Deputies or "Camera dei Deputati" (630 seats; 475 are directly elected, 155 by regional proportional representation; members serve five-year terms) elections:

Source: CIA Fact Book on Italy

Voting Qualifications:

Universal suffrage for all citizens age 18 and older

Armed Services:

325,000 troops; Army, Navy, Air Force (men 18 years old and older must serve for 12 months)

Political Divisions:

20 regions with, some autonomy, divided into 95 provinces.

Economy, Transportation & Communication

Economy:

Industries. Tourism, steel, machinery, autos, textiles, shoes, clothing, chemicals.

Chief crops: Grapes, olives, citrus fruits, vegetables, wheat

Minerals: Mercury, Potash, Sulfur,

Crude oil reserves (1996) 685 mil bblis.

Livestock (1996) sheep: 10.5 mil; pigs: 8.0 mil; cattle: 7.0 mil; goats: 1.5 mil;

Fish catch (1995): 609,000 metric tons.

Electricity prod. (1995): 225 bill. kWh.

Labor Force: 58% services, 32% industrial, 10% agriculture

Transportation:

Railroads: Length. 11,774.8 mi.

Motor Vehicles: in use 30.0 mil Passenger cars, 2.8 mil comm. vehicles

Civil Aviation: 19.7 bill. passenger-mi.; 31 airports.

Chief Ports: Genoa, Venice, Trieste, Palermo, Naples. La Spezia

Communications:

Television sets: 1per 2.3 persons

Radios: 1 per 1.2 persons

Telephones: 1 per 2.3 persons

Daily newspaper circ.: 105 per 1,000 population

Organizations and Agencies

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

Major Islands

Sicily:

9,928 sq. mi., pop. (1994 est.) 5,025,000. The island lies in the Mediterranean and has a dimension of 180 by 120 mi., seat of a region that embraces the island of Pantelieria, 32 sq. mi., and the Lipari group, 44 sq. mi., Including 2 active volcanoes: Volcano, 1,637 ft, and Stromboli, 3,038 ft. From prehistoric times Sicily has been settled by various peoples; a Greek state had its capital at Syracuse. Sicily was taken by Rome from Carthage in 215 BC. Mt. Etna, an 11,053-ft. active volcano, is its tallest peak

Sardinia:

9,301 sq. mi., pop. (1994 est.) 1,657,000. The island of Sardinia lies in the Mediterranean, 115 mi. W of Italy and 7 1/2 mi. S of Corsica. It Is 160 mi. long, 68 mi. wide, and mountainous, with mining Of coal, zinc Rod and copper. In 1720 Sardinia was added to the possessions of the Dukes of Savoy in Piedmont and Savoy to form the Kingdom of Sardinia. Giuseppe Garibaldi is buried on the nearby isle of Caprera.

Elba:

86 sq. mi., lies 6 miles West of Tuscany. Napoleon I lived in exile on Elba 1814-1815.