Congo, Republic of the (2002) | Italy (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 commune*; Bouenza, Brazzaville*, Cuvette, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha | 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42.4% (male 630,985; female 622,024)
15-64 years: 54.3% (male 783,238; female 823,882) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 39,369; female 58,950) (2002 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products | fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives; beef, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 33 (2001) | 132 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2002) |
total: 101
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 32 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15 914 to 1,523 m: 34 under 914 m: 13 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 27
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 11 (2002) |
total: 31
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 19 (2007) |
Area | total: 342,000 sq km
land: 341,500 sq km water: 500 sq km |
total: 301,230 sq km
land: 294,020 sq km water: 7,210 sq km note: includes Sardinia and Sicily |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Montana | slightly larger than Arizona |
Background | Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a democratically elected government installed in 1992. A brief civil war in 1997 restored former Marxist President SASSOU-NGUESSO. | 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. |
Birth rate | 37.91 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 8.54 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $870 million
expenditures: $970 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
revenues: $845.2 billion
expenditures: $928.2 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Brazzaville | 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 |
Climate | tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to October); constantly high temperatures and humidity; particularly enervating climate astride the Equator | predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south |
Coastline | 169 km | 7,600 km |
Constitution | constitution approved by referendum in January 2002 | passed 11 December 1947, effective 1 January 1948; amended many times |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of the Congo
conventional short form: Congo (Brazzaville) local long form: Republique du Congo local short form: none former: Middle Congo, Congo/Brazzaville, Congo |
conventional long form: Italian Republic
conventional short form: Italy local long form: Repubblica Italiana local short form: Italia former: Kingdom of Italy |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States | - |
Death rate | 16.1 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.5 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $5 billion (1999 est.) | $1.957 trillion (30 June 2006 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Robin R. SANDERS
embassy: NA mailing address: NA telephone: [243] (88) 43608 note: the embassy is temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (US Embassy Kinshasa, 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa) |
chief of mission: Ambassador Ronald P. SPOGLI
embassy: Via Vittorio Veneto 121, 00187-Rome mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100, APO AE 09624 telephone: [39] (06) 46741 FAX: [39] (06) 488-2672, 4674-2356 consulate(s) general: Florence, Milan, Naples |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Serge MOMBOULI
chancery: 4891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1860 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Giovanni CASTELLANETA
chancery: 3000 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 612-4400 FAX: [1] (202) 518-2151 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco consulate(s): Detroit |
Disputes - international | most of the Congo River boundary with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite (no agreement has been reached on the division of the river or its islands, except in the Stanley Pool/Pool Malebo area) | Italy's long coastline and developed economy entices tens of thousands of illegal immigrants from southeastern Europe and northern Africa |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1 billion (2002 est.) |
Economic aid - recipient | $159.1 million (1995) (1995) | - |
Economy - overview | The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts, an industrial sector based largely on oil, support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings, contributing to a shortage of revenues. The 12 January 1994 devaluation of Franc Zone currencies by 50% resulted in inflation of 61% in 1994, but inflation has subsided since. Economic reform efforts continued with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. The reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. However, economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. Given a fragile peace, agreements with the IMF and the World Bank, and general international support for reconstruction and development, prospects for structural reform and 4% growth in 2002-03 appear strong. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 406.9 million kWh (1999) | 307.1 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 1.109 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 126 million kWh (1999) | 50.26 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 302 million kWh (1999) | 278.5 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 1%
hydro: 99% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Berongou 903 m |
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) de Courmayeur 4,748 m (a secondary peak of Mont Blanc) |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
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
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans and other 3%
note: Europeans estimated at 8,500, mostly French, before the 1997 civil war; may be half that in 1998, following the widespread destruction of foreign businesses in 1997 |
Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south) |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second seven-year term); election last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO reelected president; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO 89.4%, Joseph Kignoumbi Kia MBOUNGOU 2.7% |
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 |
Exports | $2.6 billion f.o.b. (2001) | 521,400 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum 90%, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds | engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals, and nonferrous metals |
Exports - partners | US 20.9%, South Korea 15.5%, China 6.7%, Germany 3.2% (2000) | Germany 13.2%, France 11.7%, US 7.6%, Spain 7.3%, UK 6.1% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.5 billion (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 10%
industry: 48% services: 42% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 1.9%
industry: 28.9% services: 69.2% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.2% (2001 est.) | 1.9% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 00 S, 15 00 E | 42 50 N, 12 50 E |
Geography - note | about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or along the railroad between them | strategic location dominating central Mediterranean as well as southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe |
Heliports | - | 5 (2007) |
Highways | total: 12,800 km
paved: 1,242 km unpaved: 11,558 km (1996) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.3%
highest 10%: 26.8% (2000) |
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 |
Imports | $725 million f.o.b. (2001) | 2.182 million bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs | engineering products, chemicals, transport equipment, energy products, minerals and nonferrous metals, textiles and clothing; food, beverages, and tobacco |
Imports - partners | France 20.5%, US 9.8%, Italy 7.5%, Belgium 3.8% (2000) | Germany 16.7%, France 9.2%, Netherlands 5.6%, China 5.2%, Belgium 4.2%, Spain 4.1% (2006) |
Independence | 15 August 1960 (from France) | 17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 1.5% (2006 est.) |
Industries | petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes | tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics |
Infant mortality rate | 97.91 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 5.72 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2001 est.) | 2.1% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CCC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | 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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 27,500 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | 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) |
Labor force | NA | 24.64 million (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture: 5%
industry: 32% services: 63% (2001) |
Land boundaries | total: 5,504 km
border countries: Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon 1,903 km |
total: 1,932.2 km
border countries: Austria 430 km, France 488 km, Holy See (Vatican City) 3.2 km, San Marino 39 km, Slovenia 232 km, Switzerland 740 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.5%
permanent crops: 0.13% other: 99.37% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 26.41%
permanent crops: 9.09% other: 64.5% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo has the most users) | 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) |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law | based on civil law system; appeals treated as new trials; judicial review under certain conditions in Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (66 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the National Assembly (137 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 11 July 2002 (next to be held NA July 2007); National Assembly - last held 27 May and 26 June 2002 (next to be held by NA May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 56, other 10; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 83, UDR 6, UPADS 3, other 45 |
bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of the Senate or Senato della Repubblica (315 seats; members elected by proportional vote with the winning coalition in each region receiving 55% of seats from that region; to serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; members elected by popular vote with the winning national coalition receiving 54% of chamber seats; to serve five-year terms)
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 47.71 years
male: 44.27 years female: 51.24 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 79.94 years
male: 77.01 years female: 83.07 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 74.9% male: 83.1% female: 67.2% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.4% male: 98.8% female: 98% (2001 census) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and Gabon | Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 200 NM | territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
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) |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, Navy, Gendarmerie, National Police | Army (Esercito Italiano, EI), Navy (Marina Militare Italiana, MMI), Air Force (Aeronautica Militare Italiana, AMI), Carabinieri Corps (Corpo dei Carabinieri, CC) (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $84 million (FY01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.8% (FY01) | 1.8% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 702,048 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 356,388 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 32,350 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 15 August (1960) | Republic Day, 2 June (1946) |
Nationality | noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Congolese or Congo |
noun: Italian(s)
adjective: Italian |
Natural hazards | seasonal flooding | regional risks include landslides, mudflows, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding; land subsidence in Venice |
Natural resources | petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, natural gas, hydropower | coal, mercury, zinc, potash, marble, barite, asbestos, pumice, fluorspar, feldspar, pyrite (sulfur), natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 2.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 25 km | gas 17,589 km; oil 1,136 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | the most important of the many parties are the Democratic and Patriotic Forces or FDP (an alliance of Convention for Alternative Democracy, Congolese Labor Party or PCT, Liberal Republican Party, National Union for Democracy and Progress, Patriotic Union for the National Reconstruction, and Union for the National Renewal) [Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, president]; Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development or MCDDI [Michel MAMPOUYA]; Pan-African Union for Social Development or UPADS [Martin MBERI]; Rally for Democracy and Social Progress or RDPS [Jean-Pierre Thystere TCHICAYA, president]; Rally for Democracy and the Republic or RDR [Raymond Damasge NGOLLO]; Union for Democracy and Republic or UDR [leader NA]; Union of Democratic Forces or UFD [Sebastian EBAO] | Center-Left 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]
Center-Right 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 non-allied 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Congolese Trade Union Congress or CSC; General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students or UGEEC; Revolutionary Union of Congolese Women or URFC; Union of Congolese Socialist Youth or UJSC | Italian manufacturers and merchants associations (Confindustria, Confcommercio); organized farm groups (Confcoltivatori, Confagricoltura); Roman Catholic Church; three major trade union confederations (Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro or CGIL [Guglielmo EPIFANI] which is left wing, Confederazione Italiana dei Sindacati Lavoratori or CISL [Savino PEZZOTTA], which is Roman Catholic centrist, and Unione Italiana del Lavoro or UIL [Luigi ANGELETTI] which is lay centrist) |
Population | 2,958,448
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.) |
58,147,733 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.18% (2002 est.) | 0.01% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Brazzaville, Impfondo, Ouesso, Oyo, Pointe-Noire | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 3 (2001) | AM about 100, FM about 4,600, shortwave 9 (1998) |
Radios | 341,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 894 km
narrow gauge: 894 km 1.067-m gauge (2000 est.) |
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) |
Religions | Christian 50%, animist 48%, Muslim 2% | Roman Catholic 90% (approximately; about one-third regularly attend services), other 10% (includes mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.064 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.025 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.715 male(s)/female total population: 0.959 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25) |
Telephone system | general assessment: services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out-of-order
domestic: primary network consists of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22,000 (1998) | 25.049 million (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3,300 (1998) | 71.5 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 358 (plus 4,728 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin | mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands |
Total fertility rate | 4.94 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.29 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 7% (2006 est.) |
Waterways | 1,120 km
note: the Congo and Ubangi (Oubangui) rivers provide 1,120 km of commercially navigable water transport; other rivers are used for local traffic only |
2,400 km
note: used for commercial traffic; of limited overall value compared to road and rail (2006) |