Austria (2007) | Greece (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 9 states (Bundeslaender, singular - Bundesland); Burgenland, Kaernten (Carinthia), Niederoesterreich (Lower Austria), Oberoesterreich (Upper Austria), Salzburg, Steiermark (Styria), Tirol, Vorarlberg, Wien (Vienna) | 51 prefectures (nomoi, singular - nomos)and 1 autonomous region*; Ayion Oros* (Mt. Athos), Aitolia kai Akarnania, Akhaia, Argolis, Arkadhia, Arta, Attiki, Dhodhekanisos, Drama, Evritania, Evros, Evvoia, Florina, Fokis, Fthiotis, Grevena, Ilia, Imathia, Ioannina, Irakleion, Kardhitsa, Kastoria, Kavala, Kefallinia, Kerkyra, Khalkidhiki, Khania, Khios, Kikladhes, Kilkis, Korinthia, Kozani, Lakonia, Larisa, Lasithi, Lesvos, Levkas, Magnisia, Messinia, Pella, Pieria, Preveza, Rethimni, Rodhopi, Samos, Serrai, Thesprotia, Thessaloniki, Trikala, Voiotia, Xanthi, Zakinthos |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 15.1% (male 633,375/female 603,459)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 2,781,291/female 2,749,539) 65 years and over: 17.5% (male 585,747/female 846,372) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years:
14.98% (male 820,219; female 771,466) 15-64 years: 67.3% (male 3,580,535; female 3,569,755) 65 years and over: 17.72% (male 834,234; female 1,047,626) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber | wheat, corn, barley, sugar beets, olives, tomatoes, wine, tobacco, potatoes; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 55 (2007) | 81 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 25
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 15 (2007) |
total:
65 over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 15 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 9 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 30
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 26 (2007) |
total:
16 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 83,870 sq km
land: 82,444 sq km water: 1,426 sq km |
total:
131,940 sq km land: 130,800 sq km water: 1,140 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maine | slightly smaller than Alabama |
Background | Once the center of power for the large Austro-Hungarian Empire, Austria was reduced to a small republic after its defeat in World War I. Following annexation by Nazi Germany in 1938 and subsequent occupation by the victorious Allies in 1945, Austria's status remained unclear for a decade. A State Treaty signed in 1955 ended the occupation, recognized Austria's independence, and forbade unification with Germany. A constitutional law that same year declared the country's "perpetual neutrality" as a condition for Soviet military withdrawal. The Soviet Union's collapse in 1991 and Austria's entry into the European Union in 1995 have altered the meaning of this neutrality. A prosperous, democratic country, Austria entered the EU Economic Monetary Union in 1999. | Greece achieved its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1829. During the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, it gradually added neighboring islands and territories with Greek-speaking populations. Following the defeat of communist rebels in 1949, Greece joined NATO in 1952. A military dictatorship, which in 1967 suspended many political liberties and forced the king to flee the country, lasted seven years. Democratic elections in 1974 and a referendum created a parliamentary republic and abolished the monarchy; Greece joined the European Community or EC in 1981 (which became the EU in 1992). |
Birth rate | 8.69 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 9.83 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $154.3 billion
expenditures: $158.3 billion (2006 est.) |
revenues:
$45 billion expenditures: $47.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
Capital | name: Vienna
geographic coordinates: 48 12 N, 16 22 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 |
Athens |
Climate | temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain and some snow in lowlands and snow in mountains; moderate summers with occasional showers | temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 13,676 km |
Constitution | 1920; revised 1929; reinstated 1 May 1945 | 11 June 1975; amended March 1986 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Austria
conventional short form: Austria local long form: Republik Oesterreich local short form: Oesterreich |
conventional long form:
Hellenic Republic conventional short form: Greece local long form: Elliniki Dhimokratia local short form: Ellas or Ellada former: Kingdom of Greece |
Currency | - | drachma (GRD); euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Greece (which entered the European Monetary Union on 1 January 2001) at a fixed rate of 340.750 drachmae per euro and will replace the local currency for all transactions in 2002 |
Death rate | 9.84 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 9.73 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $594.3 billion (October 2006 est.) | $57 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Susan R. McCAW
embassy: Boltzmanngasse 16, A-1090, Vienna mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [43] (1) 31339-0 FAX: [43] (1) 3100682 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador R. Nicholas BURNS embassy: 91 Vasilissis Sophias Boulevard, 10160 Athens mailing address: PSC 108, APO AE 09842-0108 telephone: [30] (1) 721-2951 FAX: [30] (1) 645-6282 consulate(s) general: Thessaloniki |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Eva NOWOTNY
chancery: 3524 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008-3035 telephone: [1] (202) 895-6700 FAX: [1] (202) 895-6750 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Alexandros PHILON chancery: 2221 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-5800 FAX: [1] (202) 939-5824 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco consulate(s): Atlanta, Houston, and New Orleans |
Disputes - international | in 2006, Austrian public protests for the Czech Republic to close the Temelin nuclear power plant resulted in a parliamentary motion threatening international legal action | complex maritime, air, and territorial disputes with Turkey in Aegean Sea; Cyprus question with Turkey; dispute with The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia over its name |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $681 million (2004) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $5.4 billion from EU (1997 est.) |
Economy - overview | Austria, with its well-developed market economy and high standard of living, is closely tied to other EU economies, especially Germany's. The Austrian economy also benefits greatly from strong commercial relations, especially in the banking and insurance sectors, with central, eastern, and southeastern Europe. The economy features a large service sector, a sound industrial sector, and a small, but highly developed agricultural sector. Membership in the EU has drawn an influx of foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European market and proximity to the new EU economies. The outgoing government has successfully pursued a comprehensive economic reform program, aimed at streamlining government and creating a more competitive business environment, further strengthening Austria's attractiveness as an investment location. It has implemented effective pension reforms; however, lower taxes in 2005-06 led to a small budget deficit in 2006. Weak domestic consumption and slow growth in Europe held the economy to growth rates below 3% in 2002-05. Due to higher growth across Europe, Austria grew 3.3 percent in 2006. To meet increased competition - especially from new EU members and Central European countries - Austria will need to continue restructuring, emphasizing knowledge-based sectors of the economy, and encouraging greater labor flexibility and greater labor participation by its aging population. | Greece has a mixed capitalist economy with the public sector accounting for about half of GDP. Tourism is a key industry, providing a large portion of GDP and foreign exchange earnings. Greece is a major beneficiary of EU aid, equal to about 4% of GDP. The economy has improved steadily over the last few years, as the government has tightened policy in the run-up to Greece's entry into the EU's Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) on 1 January 2001. In particular, Greece has cut its budget deficit to below 1% of GDP and tightened monetary policy, with the result that inflation fell from 20% in 1990 to 3.1% in 2000. Major challenges remaining include the reduction of unemployment and further restructuring of the economy, including the privatization of some leading state enterprises. Growth, 3.8% in 2000, may fall off to 3%-3.5% in 2001. |
Electricity - consumption | 60.25 billion kWh (2005 est.) | 43.343 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 17.73 billion kWh (2005 est.) | 1.65 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 20.4 billion kWh (2005 est.) | 1.811 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 61.02 billion kWh (2005 est.) | 46.432 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
89.6% hydro: 9.72% nuclear: 0% other: 0.68% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Neusiedler See 115 m
highest point: Grossglockner 3,798 m |
lowest point:
Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Olympus 2,917 m |
Environment - current issues | some forest degradation caused by air and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of agricultural chemicals; air pollution results from emissions by coal- and oil-fired power stations and industrial plants and from trucks transiting Austria between northern and southern Europe | air pollution; water pollution |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, 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 signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Austrians 91.1%, former Yugoslavs 4% (includes Croatians, Slovenes, Serbs, and Bosniaks), Turks 1.6%, German 0.9%, other or unspecified 2.4% (2001 census) | Greek 98%, other 2%
note: the Greek Government states there are no ethnic divisions in Greece |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) | drachmae per US dollar - 380.21 (December 2000), 365.40 (2000), 305.65 (1999), 295.53 (1998), 273.06 (1997), 240.71 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Heinz FISCHER (since 8 July 2004)
head of government: Chancellor Alfred GUSENBAUER (SPOe) (since 11 January 2007); Vice Chancellor Wilhelm MOLTERER (OeVP) (since 11 January 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor elections: president elected by direct popular vote for a six-year term (eligible for a second term); presidential election last held 25 April 2004 (next to be held in April 2010); chancellor formally chosen by the president but determined by the coalition parties forming a parliamentary majority; vice chancellor chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor election results: Heinz FISCHER elected president; percent of vote - Heinz FISCHER 52.4%, Benita FERRERO-WALDNER 47.6% note: government coalition - SPOe and OeVP |
chief of state:
President Konstandinos (Kostis) STEPHANOPOULOS (since 10 March 1995) head of government: Prime Minister Konstandinos SIMITIS (since 19 January 1996) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; election last held 8 February 2000 (next to be held by NA March 2005); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Konstandinos STEPHANOPOULOS reelected president; percent of Parliament vote - 90% |
Exports | 34,680 bbl/day (2004) | $15.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs | manufactured goods, food and beverages, petroleum products |
Exports - partners | Germany 30.2%, Italy 9%, US 5.9%, Switzerland 4.7% (2006) | EU 49% (Germany 15%, Italy 13%, UK 6%), US 6% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and red | nine equal horizontal stripes of blue alternating with white; there is a blue square in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a white cross; the cross symbolizes Greek Orthodoxy, the established religion of the country |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $181.9 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.6%
industry: 30.6% services: 67.8% (2006 est.) |
agriculture:
8.3% industry: 27.3% services: 64.4% (1998) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $17,200 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.3% (2006 est.) | 3.8% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 47 20 N, 13 20 E | 39 00 N, 22 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; strategic location at the crossroads of central Europe with many easily traversable Alpine passes and valleys; major river is the Danube; population is concentrated on eastern lowlands because of steep slopes, poor soils, and low temperatures elsewhere | strategic location dominating the Aegean Sea and southern approach to Turkish Straits; a peninsular country, possessing an archipelago of about 2,000 islands |
Heliports | 1 (2007) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Highways | - | total:
117,000 km paved: 107,406 km (including 470 km of expressways) unpaved: 9,594 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.3%
highest 10%: 22.5% (2004) |
lowest 10%:
3% highest 10%: 25.3% (1993 est.) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine destined for Western Europe; increasing consumption of European-produced synthetic drugs | a gateway to Europe for traffickers smuggling cannabis and heroin from the Middle East and Southwest Asia to the West and precursor chemicals to the East; some South American cocaine transits or is consumed in Greece |
Imports | 157,500 bbl/day (2005) | $33.9 billion (c.i.f., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs | manufactured goods, foodstuffs, fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Germany 45.5%, Italy 7%, Switzerland 4.5%, Netherlands 4.1% (2006) | EU 66% (Italy 15%, Germany 15%, France 9%, UK 6%) (1999) |
Independence | 976 (Margravate of Austria established); 17 September 1156 (Duchy of Austria founded); 11 August 1804 (Austrian Empire proclaimed); 12 November 1918 (republic proclaimed) | 1829 (from the Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.7% (2006 est.) | 7% (2000 est.) |
Industries | construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, metals, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism | tourism; food and tobacco processing, textiles; chemicals, metal products; mining, petroleum |
Infant mortality rate | total: 4.54 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.56 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
6.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.4% (2006 est.) | 3.1% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT (observer), AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, EU, FAO, G- 6, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNOMIG, UPU, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 27 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (2003) | 13,140 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Judicial Court or Oberster Gerichtshof; Administrative Court or Verwaltungsgerichtshof; Constitutional Court or Verfassungsgerichtshof | Supreme Judicial Court; Special Supreme Tribunal; all judges appointed for life by the president after consultation with a judicial council |
Labor force | 3.52 million (2006 est.) | 4.32 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 3%
industry: 27% services: 70% (2005 est.) |
industry 21%, agriculture 20%, services 59% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,562 km
border countries: Czech Republic 362 km, Germany 784 km, Hungary 366 km, Italy 430 km, Liechtenstein 35 km, Slovakia 91 km, Slovenia 330 km, Switzerland 164 km |
total:
1,210 km border countries: Albania 282 km, Bulgaria 494 km, Turkey 206 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 228 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.59%
permanent crops: 0.85% other: 82.56% (2005) |
arable land:
19% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 41% forests and woodland: 20% other: 12% (1993 est.) |
Languages | German (official nationwide) 88.6%, Turkish 2.3%, Serbian 2.2%, Croatian (official in Burgenland) 1.6%, other (includes Slovene,official in Carinthia, and Hungarian, official in Burgenland) 5.3% (2001 census) | Greek 99% (official), English, French |
Legal system | civil law system with Roman law origin; judicial review of legislative acts by the Constitutional Court; separate administrative and civil/penal supreme courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on codified Roman law; judiciary divided into civil, criminal, and administrative courts |
Legislative branch | bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung consists of Federal Council or Bundesrat (62 seats; members chosen by state parliaments with each state receiving 3 to 12 members according to its population; to serve a five- or six-year term) and the National Council or Nationalrat (183 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: National Council - last held 1 October 2006 (next scheduled for the fall of 2010) election results: National Council - percent of vote by party - SPOe 35.3%, OeVP 34.3%, Greens 11.1%, FPOe 11.0%, BZOe 4.1%, other 4.2%; seats by party - SPOe 68, OeVP 66, Greens 21, FPOe 21, BZOe 7 |
unicameral Parliament or Vouli ton Ellinon (300 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: elections last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held by NA April 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - PASOK 43.8%, ND 42.7%, KKE 5.5%, Coalition of the Left and Progress 3.2%; seats by party - PASOK 158, ND 125, KKE 11, Coalition of the Left and Progress 6 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.21 years
male: 76.32 years female: 82.26 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
78.59 years male: 76.03 years female: 81.32 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: NA female: NA |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95% male: 98% female: 93% (1991 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, north of Italy and Slovenia | Southern Europe, bordering the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea, between Albania and Turkey |
Map references | Europe | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation territorial sea: 6 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 31,705 GRT/40,627 DWT
by type: cargo 5, container 2 foreign-owned: 2 (Netherlands 2) registered in other countries: 4 (Cyprus 1, Malta 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 2) (2007) |
total:
780 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 25,564,988 GRT/44,761,916 DWT ships by type: bulk 272, cargo 55, chemical tanker 22, combination bulk 5, combination ore/oil 6, container 51, liquefied gas 5, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 14, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 255, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 20, short-sea passenger 63, specialized tanker 5, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: South Korea 1, UK 4 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Land Forces (KdoLdSK), Air Forces (KdoLuSK) | Hellenic Army, Hellenic Navy, Hellenic Air Force, National Guard, Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $6.12 billion (FY99/00 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (2005 est.) | 4.91% (FY99/00 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
2,673,539 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
2,040,227 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 21 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
77,976 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | National Day, 26 October (1955); note - commemorates the passage of the law on permanent neutrality | Independence Day, 25 March (1821) |
Nationality | noun: Austrian(s)
adjective: Austrian |
noun:
Greek(s) adjective: Greek |
Natural hazards | landslides; avalanches; earthquakes | severe earthquakes |
Natural resources | oil, coal, lignite, timber, iron ore, copper, zinc, antimony, magnesite, tungsten, graphite, salt, hydropower | bauxite, lignite, magnesite, petroleum, marble, hydropower potential |
Net migration rate | 1.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 1.96 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 2,722 km; oil 663 km; refined products 149 km (2006) | crude oil 26 km; petroleum products 547 km |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for the Future of Austria or BZOe [Peter WESTENTHALER]; Austrian People's Party or OeVP [Wilhelm MOLTERER]; Freedom Party of Austria or FPOe [Heinz Christian STRACHE]; Social Democratic Party of Austria or SPOe [Alfred GUSENBAUER]; The Greens [Alexander VAN DER BELLEN] | Coalition of the Left and Progress (Synaspismos) [Nikolaos KONSTANDOPOULOS]; Communist Party of Greece or KKE [Aleka PAPARIGA]; New Democracy or ND (conservative) [Konstandinos KARAMANLIS]; Panhellenic Socialist Movement or PASOK [Konstandinos SIMITIS] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Austrian Trade Union Federation (nominally independent but primarily Social Democratic) or OeGB; Federal Economic Chamber; OeVP-oriented Association of Austrian Industrialists or IV; Roman Catholic Church, including its chief lay organization, Catholic Action; three composite leagues of the Austrian People's Party or OeVP representing business, labor, and farmers and other non-government organizations in the areas of environment and human rights | NA |
Population | 8,199,783 (July 2007 est.) | 10,623,835 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 5.9% (2004) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.077% (2007 est.) | 0.21% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Alexandroupolis, Elefsis, Irakleion (Crete), Kavala, Kerkyra, Chalkis, Igoumenitsa, Lavrion, Patrai, Peiraiefs (Piraeus), Thessaloniki, Volos |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 65 (plus several hundred repeaters), shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 26, FM 88, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | - | 5.02 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 6,383 km
standard gauge: 5,924 km 1.435-m gauge (3,772 km electrified) narrow gauge: 371 km 1.000-m gauge; 88 km 0.760-m gauge (25 km electrified) (2006) |
total:
2,548 km standard gauge: 1,565 km 1.435-m gauge (36 km electrified; 23 km double track) narrow gauge: 961 km 1.000-m gauge; 22 km 0.750-m gauge (a rack-type railway for steep grades) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 73.6%, Protestant 4.7%, Muslim 4.2%, other 3.5%, unspecified 2%, none 12% (2001 census) | Greek Orthodox 98%, Muslim 1.3%, other 0.7% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.012 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.692 male(s)/female total population: 0.953 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: highly developed and efficient
domestic: fixed-line subscribership has been in decline since the mid-1990s with mobile-cellular subscribership elipsing it by the late 1990s; the fiber-optic net is very extensive; all telephone applications and Internet services are available international: country code - 43; satellite earth stations - 15; in addition, there are about 600 VSATs (very small aperture terminals) (2007) |
general assessment:
adequate, modern networks reach all areas; good mobile telephone and international service domestic: microwave radio relay trunk system; extensive open wire connections; submarine cable to offshore islands international: tropospheric scatter; 8 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3.564 million (2006) | 5.431 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 9.255 million (2006) | 937,700 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 10 (plus more than 1,000 repeaters) (2001) | 36 (plus 1,341 low-power repeaters); also two stations in the US Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (1995) |
Terrain | in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping | mostly mountains with ranges extending into the sea as peninsulas or chains of islands |
Total fertility rate | 1.37 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.33 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.9% (2006 est.) | 11.3% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 358 km (2007) | 80 km
note: system consists of three coastal canals including the Corinth Canal (6 km) which crosses the Isthmus of Corinth connecting the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf and shortens the sea voyage from the Adriatic to Peiraiefs (Piraeus) by 325 km; there are also three unconnected rivers |