Greece (2003) | Lesotho (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 51 prefectures (nomoi, singular - nomos)and 1 autonomous region*; Agion Oros* (Mt. Athos), Achaia, Aitolia kai Akarmania, Argolis, Arkadia, Arta, Attiki, Chalkidiki, Chanion, Chios, Dodekanisos, Drama, Evros, Evrytania, Evvoia, Florina, Fokidos, Fthiotis, Grevena, Ileia, Imathia, Ioannina, Irakleion, Karditsa, Kastoria, Kavala, Kefallinia, Kerkyra, Kilkis, Korinthia, Kozani, Kyklades, Lakonia, Larisa, Lasithi, Lefkas, Lesvos, Magnisia, Messinia, Pella, Pieria, Preveza, Rethynnis, Rodopi, Samos, Serrai, Thesprotia, Thessaloniki, Trikala, Voiotia, Xanthi, Zakynthos | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14.7% (male 811,080; female 761,728)
15-64 years: 67% (male 3,578,320; female 3,557,800) 65 years and over: 18.3% (male 866,425; female 1,090,636) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 37.7% (male 353,554; female 349,092)
15-64 years: 56.8% (male 516,017; female 541,694) 65 years and over: 5.5% (male 41,735; female 59,867) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, corn, barley, sugar beets, olives, tomatoes, wine, tobacco, potatoes; beef, dairy products | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock |
Airports | 79 (note - new Athens airport at Spata opened in March 2001) (2002) | 28 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 66
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 15 1,524 to 2,437 m: 19 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 10 (2002) |
total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2002) |
Area | total: 131,940 sq km
land: 130,800 sq km water: 1,140 sq km |
total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Alabama | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | 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, most 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). | Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody South African military intervention. Constitutional reforms have since restored political stability; peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002. |
Birth rate | 9.79 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 27.26 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $45 billion
expenditures: $47.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
revenues: $76 million
expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (FY 99/00 est.) |
Capital | Athens | Maseru |
Climate | temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers |
Coastline | 13,676 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 11 June 1975; amended March 1986 and April 2001 | 2 April 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form: Hellenic Republic
conventional short form: Greece local long form: Elliniki Dhimokratia local short form: Ellas or Ellada former: Kingdom of Greece |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
Currency | euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) |
Death rate | 9.86 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 24.58 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $63.4 billion (2002 est.) | $735 million (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas J. MILLER
embassy: 91 Vasilissis Sophias Avenue, 101 60 Athens mailing address: PSC 108, APO AE 09842-0108 telephone: [30] (210) 721-2951 FAX: [30] (210) 645-6282 consulate(s) general: Thessaloniki |
chief of mission: Ambassador Robert G. LOFTIS
embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 312666 FAX: [266] 310116 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Yeoryious SAVVAIDES
chancery: 2221 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-1300 FAX: [1] (202) 939-1324 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco consulate(s): Atlanta, Houston, and New Orleans |
chief of mission: Ambassador Molelekeng E. RAPOLAKI
chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815 |
Disputes - international | Greece and Turkey have resumed discussions to resolve their complex maritime, air, territorial, and boundary disputes in the Aegean Sea; Cyprus question with Turkey; dispute with The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia over its name | none |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA $4.4 million |
Economic aid - recipient | $5.4 billion from EU | $41.5 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | Greece has a mixed capitalist economy with the public sector accounting for half of GDP and with per capita GDP 70% of the leading euro-zone economies. Tourism provides 15% of GDP. Immigrants make up nearly one-fifth of the work force, mainly in menial jobs. Greece is a major beneficiary of EU aid, equal to about 3.3% of GDP. The economy has improved steadily with economic growth averaging 4% since 1997, exceeding EU growth by more than 1 percentage point. Remaining challenges include the reduction of the public debt, inflation, and unemployment; and further restructuring of the economy, including privatizing several state enterprises, undertaking pension and other reforms, and minimizing bureaucratic inefficiencies. The Olympic Games will be held in Athens in mid-2004. | Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho relies on remittances from miners employed in South Africa and customs duties from the Southern Africa Customs Union for the majority of government revenue, but the government has strengthened its tax system to reduce dependency on customs duties. Completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, also generating royalties for Lesotho. As the number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years, a small manufacturing base has developed based on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. The economy is still primarily based on subsistence agriculture, especially livestock, although drought has decreased agricultural activity. The extreme inequality in the distribution of income remains a major drawback. Lesotho has signed an Interim Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility with the IMF. |
Electricity - consumption | 48.8 billion kWh (2001) | 40 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 1.062 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 3.562 billion kWh (2001) | 40 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) |
Electricity - production | 49.79 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 94.5%
hydro: 3.8% nuclear: 0% other: 1.7% (2001) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Olympus 2,917 m |
lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m
highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution; water pollution | population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa |
Environment - international 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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | Greek 98%, other 2%
note: the Greek Government states there are no ethnic divisions in Greece |
Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.06 (2002), 1.12 (2001), 365.4 (2000), 305.65 (1999), 295.53 (1998)
note: in January 2001, the drachma became a participating currency within the Eurosystem, and the euro market rate became applicable to all transactions |
maloti per US dollar - 10.54 (2002), 8.61 (2001), 6.94 (2000), 6.11 (1999), 5.53 (1998) |
Executive branch | 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 February 2005); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Konstandinos STEPHANOPOULOS reelected president; percent of Parliament vote - 90% |
chief of state: King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995, while his father was in exile
head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998) cabinet: Cabinet elections: none; according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution, which came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to determine who is next in the line of succession, who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age, and may even depose the monarch |
Exports | 84,720 bbl/day (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | food and beverages, manufactured goods, petroleum products, chemicals, textiles | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) |
Exports - partners | Germany 10.4%, Italy 8.5%, UK 6.3%, Bulgaria 5.4%, US 5.3%, Cyprus 4.7% (2002) | US 97.5%, Canada 0.9%, France 0.6% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | 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 | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the upper half is white, bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a green triangle in the corner |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $203.3 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5.106 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 8.1%
industry: 22.3% services: 69.3% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 20%
industry: 46% services: 34% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $19,100 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2002 est.) | 4% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 39 00 N, 22 00 E | 29 30 S, 28 30 E |
Geography - note | strategic location dominating the Aegean Sea and southern approach to Turkish Straits; a peninsular country, possessing an archipelago of about 2,000 islands | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level |
Heliports | 7 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 117,000 km
paved: 107,406 km (including 470 km of expressways) unpaved: 9,594 km (1999 est.) |
total: 5,940 km
paved: 1,087 km unpaved: 4,853 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 25.3% (1993 est.) |
lowest 10%: 0.9%
highest 10%: 43.4% |
Illicit 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; money laundering related to drug trafficking and organized crime | - |
Imports | 468,300 bbl/day (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, transport equipment, fuels, chemicals | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (2000) |
Imports - partners | Germany 12.2%, Italy 11.5%, Russia 7.4%, South Korea 6%, France 5.7%, Netherlands 5.6%, US 4.7%, Belgium 4.3%, UK 4.1% (2002) | Hong Kong 51.9%, China 25%, France 3.9% (2002) |
Independence | 1829 (from the Ottoman Empire) | 4 October 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7% (2000 est.) | 15.5% (1999) |
Industries | tourism; food and tobacco processing, textiles; chemicals, metal products; mining, petroleum | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 6.12 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 86.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 91.28 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.6% (2002 est.) | 10% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, EU, FAO, G- 6, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UPU, WCO, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 27 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 14,220 sq km (1998 est.) | 10 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Judicial Court; Special Supreme Tribunal; all judges appointed for life by the president after consultation with a judicial council | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court |
Labor force | 4.37 million (2002 est.) | 838,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 20%, agriculture 20%, services 59% (2000 est.) | 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa |
Land boundaries | total: 1,228 km
border countries: Albania 282 km, Bulgaria 494 km, Turkey 206 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 246 km |
total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 km |
Land use | arable land: 22.12%
permanent crops: 8.47% other: 69.41% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 10.71%
permanent crops: 0% other: 89.29% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Greek 99% (official), English, French | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa |
Legal system | based on codified Roman law; judiciary divided into civil, criminal, and administrative courts | based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | 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 May 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; note - seats by party as of January 2002 - PASOK 156, ND 122, KKE 11, Coalition of the Left and Progress 6, independents 5 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 80 to 120 in the May 2002 election
elections: last held 25 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 54%, BNP 21%, LPC 7%, other 18%; seats by party - LCD 76, BNP 21, LPC 5, other 18 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.89 years
male: 76.32 years female: 81.65 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 36.94 years
male: 36.76 years female: 37.13 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.5% male: 98.6% female: 96.5% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84.8% male: 74.5% female: 94.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Europe, bordering the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea, between Albania and Turkey | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 6 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 813 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 29,173,608 GRT/51,184,723 DWT
ships by type: bulk 289, cargo 59, chemical tanker 32, combination bulk 6, combination ore/oil 4, container 47, liquefied gas 7, passenger 14, petroleum tanker 281, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 18, short-sea passenger 49, specialized tanker 4, vehicle carrier 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Ireland 1, Japan 1, Liberia 1, Norway 1, Panama 2, Russia 1, Saudi Arabia 1, United Kingdom 1 (2002 est.) |
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Military - note | - | the Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs |
Military branches | Hellenic Army, Hellenic Navy, Hellenic Air Force, Police, National Guard | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; including Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $6.12 billion (FY99/00 est.) | $34 million (1999) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.91% (FY99/00 est.) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,662,208 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 459,723 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,026,409 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49: 250,560 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 21 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 74,650 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 25 March (1821) | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) |
Nationality | noun: Greek(s)
adjective: Greek |
noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
Natural hazards | severe earthquakes | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | bauxite, lignite, magnesite, petroleum, marble, hydropower potential | water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals |
Net migration rate | 1.96 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -0.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 1,531 km; oil 108 km (2003) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Coalition of the Left and Progress (Synaspismos) [Nikolaos KONSTANTOPOULOS]; Communist Party of Greece or KKE [Aleka PAPARIGA]; New Democracy or ND (conservative) [Konstandinos KARAMANLIS]; Panhellenic Socialist Movement or PASOK [Konstandinos SIMITIS] | Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Tseliso MAKHAKHE]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justine Metsing LEKHANYA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Phebe MOTEBANO, chairwoman; Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; Lesotho People's Congress or LPC [Kelebone MAOPE]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Charles MOFELI]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP and Setlamo Alliance [Vincent MALEBO]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Chief Peete Nkoebe PEETE]; Sefate Democratic Party or SDP [Bofihla NKUEBE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 10,665,989 (July 2003 est.) | 1,861,959
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 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 49% (1999) |
Population growth rate | 0.19% (2003 est.) | 0.19% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Alexandroupolis, Elefsis, Irakleion (Crete), Kavala, Kerkyra, Chalkis, Igoumenitsa, Lavrion, Patrai, Peiraiefs (Piraeus), Thessaloniki, Volos | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 26, FM 88, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | total: 2,571 km (764 km electrified)
standard gauge: 1,565 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 961 km 1.000-m gauge; 22 km 0.750-m gauge dual gauge: 23 km combined 1.435-m and 1.000-m gauges (three rail system) (2002) |
total: 2.6 km; note - owned by, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa
narrow gauge: 2.6 km 1.067-m gauge (1995) |
Religions | Greek Orthodox 98%, Muslim 1.3%, other 0.7% | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
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: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | 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) |
general assessment: rudimentary system
domestic: consists of a few landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 5.431 million (1997) | 22,200 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 937,700 (1997) | 21,600 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 36 (plus 1,341 low-power repeaters); also two stations in the US Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (1995) | 1 (2000) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with ranges extending into the sea as peninsulas or chains of islands | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.35 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.52 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.3% (2002 est.) | 45% (2002) |
Waterways | 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 |
none |