Italy (2002) | Austria (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 20 regions (regioni, singular - regione); Abruzzi, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte, Puglia, Sardegna, Sicilia, Toscana, Trentino-Alto Adige, Umbria, Valle d'Aosta, Veneto | 9 states (Bundeslaender, singular - Bundesland); Burgenland, Kaernten, Niederoesterreich, Oberoesterreich, Salzburg, Steiermark, Tirol, Vorarlberg, Wien |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14.1% (male 4,198,569; female 3,954,159)
15-64 years: 67.3% (male 19,334,208; female 19,492,048) 65 years and over: 18.6% (male 4,436,073; female 6,300,568) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 16.4% (male 686,205; female 652,840)
15-64 years: 68.2% (male 2,814,866; female 2,756,777) 65 years and over: 15.4% (male 484,313; female 774,928) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives; beef, dairy products; fish | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber |
Airports | 135 (2001) | 55 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 96
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 34 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15 914 to 1,523 m: 30 under 914 m: 12 (2002) |
total: 24
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: 14 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 38
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 18 (2002) |
total: 31 31
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 27 (2002) |
Area | total: 301,230 sq km
land: 294,020 sq km water: 7,210 sq km note: includes Sardinia and Sicily |
total: 83,858 sq km
land: 82,738 sq km water: 1,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Arizona | slightly smaller than Maine |
Background | Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the city-states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL. 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 European Monetary Union in 1999. Persistent problems include illegal immigration, the ravages of organized crime, corruption, high unemployment, and the low incomes and technical standards of southern Italy compared with the prosperous north. | 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 of that same year declared the country's "perpetual neutrality" as a condition for Soviet military withdrawal. This neutrality, once ingrained as part of the Austrian cultural identity, has been called into question since the Soviet collapse of 1991 and Austria's entry into the European Union in 1995. A prosperous country, Austria entered the European Monetary Union in 1999. |
Birth rate | 8.93 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 9.58 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $504 billion
expenditures: $517 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $53 billion
expenditures: $54 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Rome | Vienna |
Climate | predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south | temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain in lowlands and snow in mountains; cool summers with occasional showers |
Coastline | 7,600 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 1 January 1948 | 1920; revised 1929 (reinstated 1 May 1945) |
Country name | conventional long form: Italian Republic
conventional short form: Italy local long form: Repubblica Italiana local short form: Italia former: Kingdom of Italy |
conventional long form: Republic of Austria
conventional short form: Austria local long form: Republik Oesterreich local short form: Oesterreich |
Currency | euro (EUR); Italian lira (ITL)
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 |
euro (EUR); Austrian schilling (ATS)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by the financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
Death rate | 10.13 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 9.73 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $12.1 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Melvin SEMBLER
embassy: Via Vittorio Veneto 119/A, 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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador William Lee LYONS BROWN, Jr.
embassy: Boltzmanngasse 16, A-1091, Vienna mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [43] (1) 31339-0 FAX: [43] (1) 3100682 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ferdinando SALLEO
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, and San Francisco consulate(s): Detroit |
chief of mission: Ambassador Peter MOSER
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, and New York |
Disputes - international | Croatia and Italy are still trying to resolve bilateral property and ethnic minority rights dating from World War II | minor disputes with Czech Republic and Slovenia continue over nuclear power plants and post-World War II treatment of German-speaking minorities |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1 billion (2002 est.) | ODA, $410 million (2000) |
Economy - overview | 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 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. Rome 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. | Austria, with its well-developed market economy and high standard of living, is closely tied to other EU economies, especially Germany's. Membership in the EU has drawn an influx of foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European market and proximity to EU aspirant economies. Slowing growth in Germany and elsewhere in the world held the economy to only 1.2% growth in 2001 and 0.6% in 2002. To meet increased competition from both EU and Central European countries, Austria will need to emphasize knowledge-based sectors of the economy, continue to deregulate the service sector, and lower its tax burden. |
Electricity - consumption | 283.74 billion kWh (2000) | 54.764 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 484 million kWh (2000) | 15.11 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 44.831 billion kWh (2000) | 13.809 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 257.41 billion kWh (2000) | 60.285 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 80%
hydro: 17% nuclear: 0% other: 3% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 28%
hydro: 69% nuclear: 0% other: 3% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) de Courmayeur 4,748 m (a secondary peak of Mont Blanc) |
lowest point: Neusiedler See 115 m
highest point: Grossglockner 3,798 m |
Environment - current issues | 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 | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, 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, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south) | German 88%, non-nationals 9.3% (includes Croatians, Slovenes, Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, Roma), naturalized 2% (includes those who have lived in Austria at least three generations) |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Italian lire per US dollar - 1,688.7 (January 1999), 1,736.2 (1998), 1,703.1 (1997) | euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); Austrian schillings per US dollar - 11.86 (January 1999), 12.91 (1999), 12.379 (1998), 12.204 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Carlo Azeglio CIAMPI (since 13 May 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the president of the Council of Ministers) Silvio BERLUSCONI (since 10 June 2001) 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; election last held 13 May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2006); prime minister appointed by the president and confirmed by Parliament election results: Carlo Azeglio CIAMPI elected president; percent of electoral college vote - 70% note: a five-party government coalition includes Forza Italia, National Alliance, Northern League, Democratic Christian Center, United Christian Democrats |
chief of state: President Thomas KLESTIL (since 8 July 1992)
head of government: Chancellor Wolfgang SCHUESSEL (OeVP)(since 4 February 2000); Vice Chancellor Herbert HAUPT (since 28 February 2003) 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; presidential election last held 19 April 1998 (next to be held in the spring of 2004); chancellor traditionally chosen by the president from the plurality party in the National Council; in the case of the current coalition, the chancellor was chosen from another party after the plurality party failed to form a government; vice chancellor chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor election results: Thomas KLESTIL reelected president; percent of vote - Thomas KLESTIL 63%, Gertraud KNOLL 14%, Heide SCHMIDT 11%, Richard LUGNER 10%, Karl NOWAK 2% note: government coalition - OeVP and FPOe |
Exports | $259.2 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | $70 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
Exports - commodities | engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals and nonferrous metals | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel; textiles, foodstuffs |
Exports - partners | EU 53.8% (Germany 14.5%, France 12.2%, UK 6.7%, Spain 6.1%), US 9.7% (2001) | EU 63% (Germany 35%, Italy 9%, France 5%), Switzerland 5%, US 5%, Hungary 4% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | 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
note: inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in 1797 |
three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and red |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.438 trillion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $226 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2%
industry: 30% services: 68% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 2%
industry: 33% services: 65% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $25,000 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $27,700 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.4% (2002 est.) | 0.6% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 42 50 N, 12 50 E | 47 20 N, 13 20 E |
Geography - note | strategic location dominating central Mediterranean as well as southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe | 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 |
Heliports | 4 (2002) | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 668,669 km
paved: 668,669 km (including 6,460 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2001) |
total: 133,361 km
paved: 133,361 km (including 1,613 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 27% (2000) |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 23% (1995) |
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 | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine destined for Western Europe |
Imports | $238.2 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) | $74 billion c.i.f. (2001) |
Imports - commodities | engineering products, chemicals, transport equipment, energy products, minerals and nonferrous metals, textiles and clothing; food, beverages and tobacco | machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | EU 56.5% (Germany 17.7%, France 11.1%, Netherlands 6.2%, UK 5.1%), US 4.9% (2001) | EU 68% (Germany 42%, Italy 7%, France 5%), US 6%, Switzerland 3%, Hungary 2% (2000) |
Independence | 17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870) | 1156 (from Bavaria) |
Industrial production growth rate | -2.8% (2002) | 3.8% (2001 est.) |
Industries | tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics | construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 5.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 4.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.4% (2002) | 1.8% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CDB, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 93 (Italy and Holy See) (2000) | 37 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 26,980 sq km (1998 est.) | 457 sq km (2000 est.) |
Judicial branch | 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) | Supreme Judicial Court or Oberster Gerichtshof; Administrative Court or Verwaltungsgerichtshof; Constitutional Court or Verfassungsgerichtshof |
Labor force | 23.6 million (2001 est.) | 4.3 million (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 63%, industry 32%, agriculture 5% (2001) | services 67%, industry and crafts 29%, agriculture and forestry 4% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | 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 |
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 |
Land use | arable land: 28.07%
permanent crops: 9.25% other: 62.68% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 16.89%
permanent crops: 0.99% other: 82.12% (1998 est.) |
Languages | 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) | German |
Legal system | based on civil law system; appeals treated as new trials; judicial review under certain conditions in Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | 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 |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of the Senate or Senato della Repubblica (315 seats elected by popular vote of which 232 are directly elected and 83 are elected by regional proportional representation; in addition, there are a small number of senators-for-life including former presidents of the republic; members serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; 475 are directly elected, 155 by regional proportional representation; members serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 13 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 13 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - House of Liberties 177 (Forza Italia 82, National Alliance 46, CCD-CDU 29, Northern League 17, others 3), Olive Tree 128 (Democrats of the Left 62, Daisy Alliance 42, Sunflower Alliance 16, Italian Communist Party 3, independents 5), non-affiliated with either coalition 10, senators for life 9; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - House of Liberties 367 (Forza Italia 189, National Alliance 96, CCD-CDU 40, Northern League 30, others 12), Olive Tree 248 (Democrats of the Left 138, Daisy Alliance 76, Sunflower Alliance 18, Italian Communist Party 9, independents 7), non-affiliated with either coalition 15 |
bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung consists of Federal Council or Bundesrat (64 members; members represent each of the states on the basis of population, but with each state having at least three representatives; members serve a four- 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 24 November 2002 (next to be held in the fall of 2006) election results: National Council - percent of vote by party - OeVP 42.3%, SPOe 36.9%, FPOe 10.2%, Greens 9%; seats by party - OeVP 79, SPOe 69, FPOe 19, Greens 16 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.25 years
male: 76.08 years female: 82.63 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 78 years
male: 74.85 years female: 81.31 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% (1998) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia | Central Europe, north of Italy and Slovenia |
Map references | Europe | Europe |
Maritime claims | continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 467 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 8,499,248 GRT/10,383,988 DWT
ships by type: bulk 45, cargo 41, chemical tanker 91, combination ore/oil 4, container 24, liquefied gas 37, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger 15, petroleum tanker 80, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 70, short-sea passenger 27, specialized tanker 12, vehicle carrier 16 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Croatia 1, Denmark 4, France 1, Greece 3, Man, Isle of 1, Monaco 7, Netherlands 6, Norway 1, Panama 2, Spain 1, Switzerland 1, Taiwan 15, Turkey 1, United Kingdom 6, United States 12 (2002 est.) |
total: 10 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 46,563 GRT/59,278 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 6, combination bulk 1, container 2 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Carabinieri | Land Forces (KdoLdSK), Air Forces (KdoLuSK) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $20.2 billion (2002) | $1,497.1 million (FY01/02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.64% (2002) | 0.8% (FY01/02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 14,184,307 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 2,092,623 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 12,157,753 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,728,191 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | 19 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 304,369 (2002 est.) | males: 50,580 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Republic Day, 2 June (1946) | National Day, 26 October (1955); note - commemorates the State Treaty restoring national sovereignty and the end of occupation and the passage of the law on permanent neutrality |
Nationality | noun: Italian(s)
adjective: Italian |
noun: Austrian(s)
adjective: Austrian |
Natural hazards | regional risks include landslides, mudflows, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding; land subsidence in Venice | landslides; avalanches; earthquakes |
Natural resources | mercury, potash, marble, sulfur, natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, coal, arable land | iron ore, oil, timber, magnesite, lead, coal, lignite, copper, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 1.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 2.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 1,703 km; petroleum products 2,148 km; natural gas 19,400 km | crude oil 777 km; natural gas 840 km (1999) |
Political parties and leaders | Center-Left Olive Tree Coalition [Francesco RUTELLI] - Democrats of the Left, Daisy Alliance (including Italian Popular Party, Italian Renewal, Union of Democrats for Europe, The Democrats), Sunflower Alliance (including Green Federation, Italian Democratic Socialists), Italian Communist Party; Center-Right Freedom House Coalition [Silvio BERLUSCONI] (formerly House of Liberties and Freedom Alliance) - Forza Italia, National Alliance, The Whiteflower Alliance (includes Christian Democratic Center, United Christian Democrats), Northern League; Christian Democratic Center or CCD [Marco FOLLINI]; Communist Party or PdCI [Oliviero DILIBERTO]; Democrats of the Left or DS [Piero FASSINO]; Forza Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; Green Federation [Alfonso Pecoraro SCANIO]; Italian Communist Party or PdCI [Oliviero DILIBERTO]; Italian Popular Party or PPI [Pierluigi CASTAGNETTI]; Italian Renewal or RI [Lamberto DINI]; Italian Social Democrats or SDI [Enrico BOSELLI]; Socialist Movement-Tricolor Flame or MS-Fiamma [Pino RAUTI]; National Alliance or AN [Gianfranco FINI]; Northern League or NL [Umberto BOSSI]; Southern Tyrols People's Party or SVP (German speakers) [Siegfried BRUGGER]; Sunflower Alliance (includes Green Federation, Italian Social Democrats); The Daisy Alliance (includes Italian Popular Party, Italian Renewal, Union of Democrats for Europe, The Democrats); The Democrats [Arturo PARISI]; The Radicals (formerly Pannella Reformers and Autonomous List) [Marco PANNELLA]; The Whiteflower Alliance (includes Christian Democratic Center, United Christian Democrats); Union of Democrats for Europe or UDEUR [Clemente MASTELLA]; United Christian Democrats or CDU [Rocco BUTTIGLIONE] | Austrian People's Party or OeVP [Wolfgang SCHUESSEL]; Freedom Party of Austria or FPOe [Susanne RIESS-PASSER]; Social Democratic Party of Austria or SPOe [Alfred GUSENBAUER]; The Greens Alternative or GA [Alexander VAN DER BELLEN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | 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 [Sergio COFFERATI] 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 [Pietro LARIZZA] which is lay centrist) | Austrian Trade Union Federation (primarily Socialist) or OeGB; Federal Economic Chamber; OeVP-oriented League of Austrian Industrialists or VOeI; 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 |
Population | 57,715,625 (July 2002 est.) | 8,169,929 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.05% (2002 est.) | 0.23% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Augusta (Sicily), Bagnoli, Bari, Brindisi, Gela, Genoa, La Spezia, Livorno, Milazzo, Naples, Porto Foxi, Porto Torres (Sardinia), Salerno, Savona, Taranto, Trieste, Venice (2001) | Enns, Krems, Linz, Vienna |
Radio broadcast stations | AM about 100, FM about 4,600, shortwave 9 (1998) | AM 2, FM 160 (plus several hundred repeaters), shortwave 1 (2001) |
Radios | 50.5 million (1997) | 6.08 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 19,786 km
standard gauge: 18,761 km 1.435-m gauge (11,251 km electrified) narrow gauge: 113 km 1.000-m gauge (113 km electrified); 912 km 0.950-m gauge (192 km electrified) (2001) |
total: 6,095.2 km (3,643.3 km electrified)
standard gauge: 5,564.2 km 1.435-m gauge (3,521.2 km electrified) narrow gauge: 33.9 km 1.000-m gauge (28.1 km electrified); 497.1 km 0.760-m gauge (94 km electrified) (2001 est.) |
Religions | predominately Roman Catholic with mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community | Roman Catholic 78%, Protestant 5%, Muslim and other 17% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25) | 18 years of age; universal; compulsory for presidential elections |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern, well developed, fast; fully automated telephone, telex, and data services
domestic: high-capacity cable and microwave radio relay trunks international: 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; 21 submarine cables |
general assessment: highly developed and efficient
domestic: there are 48 main lines for every 100 persons; the fiber optic net is very extensive; all telephone applications and Internet services are available international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Eutelsat; in addition, there are about 600 VSAT (very small aperture terminals) (2002) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 25 million (1999) | 4 million (consisting of 3,600,000 analog main lines plus 400,000 Integrated Services Digital Network connections); in addition, there are 100,000 Asymmetric Digital Services lines (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 20.5 million (1999) | 6 million (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 358 (plus 4,728 repeaters) (1995) | 45 (plus more than 1,000 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands | in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping |
Total fertility rate | 1.19 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.4 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.1% (2002 est.) | 4.8% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 2,400 km
note: serves various types of commercial traffic, although of limited overall value (2002) |
358 km (1999) |