Italy (2004) | Uruguay (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 16 regions (regioni, singular - regione) and 4 autonomous regions* (regioni autonome, singular - regione autonoma); Abruzzo, 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 | 19 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Artigas, Canelones, Cerro Largo, Colonia, Durazno, Flores, Florida, Lavalleja, Maldonado, Montevideo, Paysandu, Rio Negro, Rivera, Rocha, Salto, San Jose, Soriano, Tacuarembo, Treinta y Tres |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 14% (male 4,181,946; female 3,935,565)
15-64 years: 66.9% (male 19,590,497; female 19,256,747) 65 years and over: 19.1% (male 4,608,479; female 6,484,243) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
24.39% (male 419,932; female 399,605) 15-64 years: 62.61% (male 1,038,785; female 1,064,891) 65 years and over: 13% (male 180,130; female 256,762) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives; beef, dairy products; fish | wheat, rice, barley, corn, sorghum; livestock; fish |
Airports | 134 (2003 est.) | 64 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 96
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 32 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 30 under 914 m: 12 (2004 est.) |
total:
15 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 38
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 18 (2004 est.) |
total:
49 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 31 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 301,230 sq km
land: 294,020 sq km water: 7,210 sq km note: includes Sardinia and Sicily |
total:
176,220 sq km land: 173,620 sq km water: 2,600 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Arizona | slightly smaller than the state of Washington |
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 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 European 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. | A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement, the Tupamaros, launched in the late 1960s, led Uruguay's president to agree to military control of his administration in 1973. By the end of the year the rebels had been crushed, but the military continued to expand its hold throughout the government. Civilian rule was not restored until 1985. Uruguay's political and labor conditions are among the freest on the continent. |
Birth rate | 9.05 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 17.36 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $668 billion
expenditures: $703.1 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003) |
revenues:
$4 billion expenditures: $4.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2000 est.) |
Capital | Rome | Montevideo |
Climate | predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south | warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown |
Coastline | 7,600 km | 660 km |
Constitution | passed 11 December 1947; effective 1 January 1948; amended many times | 27 November 1966, effective February 1967, suspended 27 June 1973, new constitution rejected by referendum 30 November 1980; two constitutional reforms approved by plebiscite 26 November 1989 and 7 January 1997 |
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:
Oriental Republic of Uruguay conventional short form: Uruguay local long form: Republica Oriental del Uruguay local short form: Uruguay former: Banda Oriental, Cisplatine Province |
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 |
Uruguayan peso (UYU) |
Death rate | 10.21 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 9.03 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $868.5 billion NA (2003) | $8 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Melvin F. 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 Christopher C. ASHBY embassy: Lauro Muller 1776, Montevideo 11100 mailing address: APO AA 34035 telephone: [598] (2) 408-777, 203-6061 FAX: [598] (2) 48 86 11 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Sergio VENTO
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 Hugo FERNANDEZ Faingold chancery: 2715 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 331-1313 through 1316 FAX: [1] (202) 331-8142 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1 billion (2002 est.) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $NA |
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, 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. | Uruguay's economy is characterized by an export-oriented agricultural sector, a well-educated workforce, relatively even income distribution, and high levels of social spending. After averaging growth of 5% annually in 1996-98, in 1999-2000 the economy suffered from lower demand in Argentina and Brazil, which together account for about half of Uruguay's exports. Despite the severity of the trade shocks, Uruguay's financial indicators remained more stable than those of its neighbors, a reflection of its solid reputation among investors and its investment-grade sovereign bond rating - one of only two in Latin America. Challenges for the government of President Jorge BATLLE include expanding Uruguay's trade ties beyond its MERCOSUR trade partners and reducing the costs of public services. GDP fell by 1.1% in 2000 and will grow by perhaps 1.5% in 2001. |
Electricity - consumption | 289.1 billion kWh (2001) | 5.89 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 556 million kWh (2001) | 215 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 48.93 billion kWh (2001) | 800 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 258.8 billion kWh (2001) | 5.704 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
3.86% hydro: 95.44% nuclear: 0% other: 0.7% (1999) |
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:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Cerro Catedral 514 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 | water pollution from meat packing/tannery industry; inadequate solid/hazardous waste disposal |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, 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: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban |
Ethnic groups | Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south) | white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%, Amerindian, practically nonexistent |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999) | Uruguayan pesos per US dollar - 12.5610 (January 2001), 12.0996 (2000), 11.3393 (1999), 10.4719 (1998), 9.4418 (1997), 7.9718 (1996) |
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 four-party government coalition includes Forza Italia, National Alliance, Northern League, and Union of Christian Democrats and Democrats of the Center |
chief of state:
President Jorge BATLLE (since 1 March 2000) and Vice President Luis HIERRO (since 1 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Jorge BATLLE (since 1 March 2000) and Vice President Luis HIERRO (since 1 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president with parliamentary approval elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 31 October 1999 with run-off election on 28 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Jorge BATLLE elected president; percent of vote - Jorge BATLLE 52% in a runoff against Tabare VAZQUEZ 44% |
Exports | 456,600 bbl/day (2001) | $2.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals and nonferrous metals | meat, rice, leather products, vehicles, dairy products, wool, electricity |
Exports - partners | Germany 13.8%, France 12.3%, US 8.5%, Spain 7%, UK 6.9% (2003) | MERCOSUR partners 45%, EU 20%, US 7% (1999 est.) |
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 |
nine equal horizontal stripes of white (top and bottom) alternating with blue; there is a white square in the upper hoist-side corner with a yellow sun bearing a human face known as the Sun of May and 16 rays alternately triangular and wavy |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.55 trillion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $31 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2.2%
industry: 28.9% services: 68.9% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
10% industry: 28% services: 62% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $26,700 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9,300 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.4% (2003 est.) | -1.1% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 42 50 N, 12 50 E | 33 00 S, 56 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location dominating central Mediterranean as well as southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe | - |
Heliports | 4 (2003 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 479,688 km
paved: 479,688 km (including 6,621 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1999) |
total:
8,983 km paved: 8,085 km unpaved: 898 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.1%
highest 10%: 26.6% (2000) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
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 | 2.158 million bbl/day (2001) | $3.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | engineering products, chemicals, transport equipment, energy products, minerals and nonferrous metals, textiles and clothing; food, beverages and tobacco | road vehicles, electrical machinery, metal manufactures, heavy industrial machinery, crude petroleum |
Imports - partners | Germany 17.9%, France 11.2%, Netherlands 5.8%, Spain 4.8%, UK 4.7%, Belgium 4.3%, US 4% (2003) | MERCOSUR partners 43%, EU 20%, US 11% (1999 est.) |
Independence | 17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870) | 25 August 1825 (from Brazil) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.5% (2003) | -2.1% (2000 est.) |
Industries | tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics | food processing, electrical machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, textiles, chemicals, beverages |
Infant mortality rate | total: 6.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
14.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.7% (2003 est.) | 4.8% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CDB, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC | CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMOGIP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 7 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 26,980 sq km (1998 est.) | 7,700 sq km (1997 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 Court (judges are nominated by the president and elected for 10-year terms by the General Assembly) |
Labor force | 24.15 million (2003 est.) | 1.5 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 5%, industry 32%, services 63% (2001) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
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:
1,564 km border countries: Argentina 579 km, Brazil 985 km |
Land use | arable land: 27.79%
permanent crops: 9.53% other: 62.68% (2001) |
arable land:
7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 77% forests and woodland: 6% other: 10% (1997 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) | Spanish, Portunol, or Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the Brazilian frontier) |
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 | based on Spanish civil law system; 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 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 13 May 2001 (next to be held May 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - House of Liberties 172 (Forza Italia 77, National Alliance 47, UDC 31, Lega Padana 17), Olive Tree 108 (Democrats of the Left 63, Daisy Alliance 35, Greens 10), Per le Autonomie 10, other 25; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - House of Liberties 337 (Forza Italia 176, National Alliance 97, UDC 36, Northern League 28), Olive Tree 214 (Democrats of the Left 135, Daisy Alliance 79), Rifondazione Communista 11, other 68 |
bicameral General Assembly or Asamblea General consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (30 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (99 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators - last held 31 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); Chamber of Representatives - last held 31 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Encuentro Progresista 12, Colorado Party 10, Blanco 7, New Sector/Space Coalition 1; Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Encuentro Progresista 40, Colorado Party 33, Blanco 22, New Sector/Space Coalition 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.54 years
male: 76.61 years female: 82.66 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
75.44 years male: 72.11 years female: 78.96 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.6% male: 99% female: 98.3% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.3% male: 96.9% female: 97.7% (1995 est.) |
Location | Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Argentina and Brazil |
Map references | Europe | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 475 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 8,970,017 GRT/10,354,685 DWT
by type: bulk 39, cargo 40, chemical tanker 106, combination ore/oil 2, container 23, liquefied gas 43, livestock carrier 2, multi-functional large load carrier 1, passenger 13, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 74, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 62, short-sea/passenger 31, specialized tanker 11, vehicle carrier 23 foreign-owned: Denmark 4, France 3, Greece 5, Japan 1, Isle of Man 1, Monaco 22, Netherlands 4, Panama 2, Switzerland 2, Taiwan 10, United Kingdom 5, United States 13 registered in other countries: 144 (2004 est.) |
total:
2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 7,752 GRT/5,228 DWT ships by type: petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force (Aeronautica Militare Italiana, AMI), Carabinieri | Army, Navy (includes Naval Air Arm, Coast Guard, Marines), Air Force, Police (Coracero Guard, Grenadier Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $28,182.8 million (2003) | $172 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (2003) | 0.9% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 14,408,392 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
817,535 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 12,279,516 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
661,777 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 285,601 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Republic Day, 2 June (1946) | Independence Day, 25 August (1825) |
Nationality | noun: Italian(s)
adjective: Italian |
noun:
Uruguayan(s) adjective: Uruguayan |
Natural hazards | regional risks include landslides, mudflows, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding; land subsidence in Venice | seasonally high winds (the pampero is a chilly and occasional violent wind which blows north from the Argentine pampas), droughts, floods; because of the absence of mountains, which act as weather barriers, all locations are particularly vulnerable to rapid changes in weather fronts |
Natural resources | coal, mercury, zinc, potash, marble, barite, asbestos, pumice, fluorospar, feldspar, pyrite (sulfur), natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, arable land | arable land, hydropower, minor minerals, fisheries |
Net migration rate | 2.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -0.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 17,335 km; oil 1,136 km (2004) | - |
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; Democrats of the Left or DS [Piero FASSINO]; Forza Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; Green Federation [Alfonso Pecoraro SCANIO]; Italian Communist Party or PdCI [Armando COSSUTTA]; Italian Renewal or RI [Lamberto DINI]; merged with PPI and I Democratici to form La Margherita (or The Daisy Alliance); Italian Social Democrats or SDI [Enrico BOSELLI]; Lega Padana [Roberto BERNARDELLI]; National Alliance or AN [Gianfranco FINI]; Northern League or NL [Umberto BOSSI]; Socialist Movement-Tricolor Flame or MS-Fiamma [Luca ROMAGNOLI]; South Tyrol People's Party or SVP (German speakers) [Elmar Pichler ROLLE]; Sunflower Alliance (includes Green Federation, Italian Social Democrats); The Daisy Alliance (includes Italian Popular Party, Italian Renewal, Union of Democrats for Europe, The Democrats) [Francesco RUTELLI]; The Democrats [Arturo PARISI]; The Radicals (formerly Pannella Reformers and Autonomous List) [Marco PANNELLA]; Union of Democrats for Europe or UDEUR [Clemente MASTELLA]; Union of Christian and Center Democrats or UDC [Marco FOLLINI] | Colorado Party [Jorge BATLLE]; National Party or Blanco [Alberto VOLONTE]; New Sector/Space Coalition or Nuevo Espacio [Rafael MICHELINI]; Progressive Encounter in the Broad Front or Encuentro Progresista [Tabare VAZQUEZ] |
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 [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) | NA |
Population | 58,057,477 (July 2004 est.) | 3,360,105 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.09% (2004 est.) | 0.78% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Augusta (Sicily), Bagnoli, Bari, Brindisi, Gela (Sicily), Genoa, La Spezia, Livorno, Milazzo (Sicily), Naples, Porto Foxi, Porto Torres (Sardinia), Salerno, Savona, Taranto, Trieste, Venice | Fray Bentos, Montevideo, Nueva Palmira, Paysandu, Punta del Este, Colonia, Piriapolis |
Radio broadcast stations | AM about 100, FM about 4,600, shortwave 9 (1998) | AM 94, FM 115, shortwave 14 (seven are inactive) (1998) |
Radios | - | 1.97 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 19,507 km (11,651 km electrified)
standard gauge: 18,070 km 1.435-m gauge (11,375 km electrified) narrow gauge: 123 km 1.000-m gauge (88 km electrified); 1,314 km 0.950-m gauge (188 km electrified) (2003) |
total:
2,073 km standard gauge: 2,073 km 1.435-m gauge (2000) |
Religions | predominately Roman Catholic with mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community | Roman Catholic 66% (less than one-half of the adult population attends church regularly), Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, nonprofessing or other 31% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25) | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
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: country code - 39; 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:
some modern facilities domestic: most modern facilities concentrated in Montevideo; new nationwide microwave radio relay network international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 26.596 million (2003) | 850,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 55.918 million (2003) | 300,000 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 358 (plus 4,728 repeaters) (1995) | 26 (plus ten low-power repeaters for the Montevideo station) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands | mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland |
Total fertility rate | 1.27 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 8.6% (2003 est.) | 14% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 2,400 km
note: used for commercial traffic; of limited overall value compared to road and rail (2004) |
1,600 km ( used by coastal and shallow-draft river craft) |