Compare Italy (2008) - Kuwait (2005)

Compare Italy (2008) z Kuwait (2005)

	Italy (2008)	Kuwait (2005)

Administrative divisions	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	5 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Ahmadi, Al Farwaniyah, Al 'Asimah, Al Jahra', Hawalli
Age structure	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.)	0-14 years: 27.2% (male 323,382/female 311,700) 15-64 years: 70.1% (male 1,045,589/female 591,243) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 40,439/female 23,295) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives; beef, dairy products; fish	practically no crops; fish
Airports	132 (2007)	7 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	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)	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 31 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 19 (2007)	total: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 301,230 sq km land: 294,020 sq km water: 7,210 sq km note: includes Sardinia and Sicily	total: 17,820 sq km land: 17,820 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Arizona	slightly smaller than New Jersey
Background	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 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.	Britain oversaw foreign relations and defense for the ruling Kuwaiti AL-SABAH dynasty from 1899 until independence in 1961. Kuwait was attacked and overrun by Iraq on 2 August 1990. Following several weeks of aerial bombardment, a US-led, UN coalition began a ground assault on 23 February 1991 that liberated Kuwait in four days. Kuwait spent more than $5 billion to repair oil infrastructure damaged during 1990-91.
Birth rate	8.54 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	21.88 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $976 billion expenditures: $1.029 trillion (2007 est.)	revenues: $35.82 billion expenditures: $19.53 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Capital	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	Kuwait
Climate	predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south	dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters
Coastline	7,600 km	499 km
Constitution	passed 11 December 1947, effective 1 January 1948; amended many times	approved and promulgated 11 November 1962
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: State of Kuwait conventional short form: Kuwait local long form: Dawlat al Kuwayt local short form: Al Kuwayt
Death rate	10.5 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	2.42 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$2.345 trillion (30 June 2007)	$15.02 billion (2004 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	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	chief of mission: Ambassador Richard LEBARON embassy: Bayan, Area 14, Al-Masjed Al-Aqsa Street (near the Bayan palace), Kuwait City mailing address: P. O. Box 77 Safat 13001 Kuwait; or PSC 1280 APO AE 09880-9000 telephone: [965] 539-5307, 5308 FAX: [965] 538-0282
Diplomatic representation in the US	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	chief of mission: Ambassador SALIM Abdallah al-Jabir al-Sabah chancery: 2940 Tilden Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-0702 FAX: [1] (202) 364-2868
Disputes - international	Italy's long coastline and developed economy entices tens of thousands of illegal immigrants from southeastern Europe and northern Africa	Kuwait and Saudi Arabia continue negotiating a joint maritime boundary with Iran; no maritime boundary exists with Iraq in the Persian Gulf
Economic aid - donor	ODA, $1 billion (2002 est.)	-
Economic aid - recipient	-	NA (2001)
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. But the leadership faces a severe economic constraint: Italy's official debt remains above 100% of GDP, and the government has found it difficult to bring the budget deficit down to a level that would allow a rapid decrease in that debt. The economy continues to grow by less than the euro-zone average and growth is expected to decelerate from 1.9% in 2006 and 2007 to under 1.5% in 2008 as the euro-zone and world economies slow.	Kuwait is a small, rich, relatively open economy with proved crude oil reserves of about 96 billion barrels - 10% of world reserves. Petroleum accounts for nearly half of GDP, 95% of export revenues, and 80% of government income. Kuwait's climate limits agricultural development. Consequently, with the exception of fish, it depends almost wholly on food imports. About 75% of potable water must be distilled or imported. Kuwait continues its discussions with foreign oil companies to develop fields in the northern part of the country.
Electricity - consumption	307.1 billion kWh (2005)	30.16 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	1.109 billion kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	50.26 billion kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	278.5 billion kWh (2005)	32.43 billion kWh (2002)
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: Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: unnamed location 306 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	limited natural fresh water resources; some of world's largest and most sophisticated desalination facilities provide much of the water; air and water pollution; desertification
Environment - international agreements	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	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping
Ethnic groups	Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south)	Kuwaiti 45%, other Arab 35%, South Asian 9%, Iranian 4%, other 7%
Exchange rates	euros per US dollar - 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003)	Kuwaiti dinars per US dollar - 0.2947 (2004), 0.298 (2003), 0.3039 (2002), 0.3067 (2001), 0.3068 (2000)
Executive branch	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) note - PRODI resigns after no confidence vote in the Senate on 24 January 2008, but retains his office until new prime minister is named; when men named by President NAPOLITANO cannot form a government acceptable to Parliament, NAPOLITANO dissolves parliament and calls for new elections on April 13 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	chief of state: Amir JABIR al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah (since 31 December 1977); Crown Prince SAAD al-Abdullah al-Salim al-Sabah head of government: Prime Minister SABAH al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah (since 13 July 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior NAWWAF al-Ahmad al-Sabah (since 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers JABIR MUBARAK al-Hamad al-Sabah (since 2001) and Muhammad Dayfallah al-SHARAR (since 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister and approved by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the monarch
Exports	521,400 bbl/day (2004)	1.97 million bbl/day (2003)
Exports - commodities	engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals, and nonferrous metals	oil and refined products, fertilizers
Exports - partners	Germany 13.2%, France 11.7%, US 7.6%, Spain 7.3%, UK 6.1% (2006)	Japan 20.5%, South Korea 13.7%, US 12.4%, Singapore 11.3%, Taiwan 9.9% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 April - 31 March
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; inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in 1797	three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a black trapezoid based on the hoist side; design, which dates to 1961, based on the Arab revolt flag of World War I
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 1.9% industry: 28.8% services: 69.3% (2007 est.)	agriculture: 0.4% industry: 60.5% services: 39.1% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $21,300 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	1.9% (2007 est.)	6.8% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	42 50 N, 12 50 E	29 30 N, 45 45 E
Geography - note	strategic location dominating central Mediterranean as well as southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe	strategic location at head of Persian Gulf
Heliports	5 (2007)	3 (2004 est.)
Highways	-	total: 4,450 km paved: 3,587 km unpaved: 863 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2.3% highest 10%: 26.8% (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	2.182 million bbl/day (2004)	NA
Imports - commodities	engineering products, chemicals, transport equipment, energy products, minerals and nonferrous metals, textiles and clothing; food, beverages, and tobacco	food, construction materials, vehicles and parts, clothing
Imports - partners	Germany 16.7%, France 9.2%, Netherlands 5.6%, China 5.2%, Belgium 4.2%, Spain 4.1% (2006)	US 12.9%, Germany 11.9%, Japan 7.9%, UK 5.5%, Saudi Arabia 5.5%, Italy 5%, France 4.5%, China 4.1% (2004)
Independence	17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870)	19 June 1961 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	1.3% (2007 est.)	-5% (2002 est.)
Industries	tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics	petroleum, petrochemicals, cement, shipbuilding and repair, desalination, food processing, construction materials
Infant mortality rate	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.)	total: 9.95 deaths/1,000 live births male: 10.96 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.7% (2007 est.)	2.3% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	ADB (nonregional members), AfDB, Arctic Council (observer), 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, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC	ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, BDEAC, CAEU, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNITAR, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	27,500 sq km (2003)	60 sq km (1998 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)	High Court of Appeal
Labor force	24.86 million (2007 est.)	1.42 million note: non-Kuwaitis represent about 80% of the labor force (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 5% industry: 32% services: 63% (2001)	agriculture NA, industries 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: 462 km border countries: Iraq 240 km, Saudi Arabia 222 km
Land use	arable land: 26.41% permanent crops: 9.09% other: 64.5% (2005)	arable land: 0.73% permanent crops: 0.11% other: 99.16% (2001)
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)	Arabic (official), English widely spoken
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 Islamic law significant in personal matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	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 9-10 April 2006 (next to be held 13 April 2008); Chamber of Deputies - last held 9-10 April 2006 (next to be held in May 2011) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - The Union 159 (DS 62, DL 39, RC 27, Together with the Union 11, other 20), House of Freedoms 156 (FI 79, AN 41, UDC 21, LEGA 13, other 2); Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - The Union 349 (DS and DL 218, RC 41, Rose in the Fist 18, Italy of Values 20, PdCI 16, Greens Federation 16, UDEUR 14, other 6), House of Freedoms 281 (FI 134, AN 72, Union of Christian and Center Democrats 39, LEGA 23, other 13)	unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Umma (50 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 6 July 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - Islamists 21, government supporters 14, liberals 3, and independents 12; note - all cabinet ministers are also ex officio members of the National Assembly
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 79.94 years male: 77.01 years female: 83.07 years (2007 est.)	total population: 77.03 years male: 76.01 years female: 78.1 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98.4% male: 98.8% female: 98% (2001 census)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83.5% male: 85.1% female: 81.7% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia	Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia
Map references	Europe	Middle East
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation	territorial sea: 12 nm
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)	total: 39 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,319,082 GRT/3,768,828 DWT by type: bulk carrier 3, container 6, liquefied gas 5, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 20 registered in other countries: 19 (2005)
Military branches	Army (Esercito Italiano, EI), Navy (Marina Militare Italiana, MMI), Air Force (Aeronautica Militare Italiana, AMI), Carabinieri Corps (Corpo dei Carabinieri, CC) (2005)	Land Forces, Navy, Air Force (includes Air Defense Force), National Guard (2002)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$2,584.5 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.8% (2005 est.)	5.3% (2004)
National holiday	Republic Day, 2 June (1946)	National Day, 25 February (1950)
Nationality	noun: Italian(s) adjective: Italian	noun: Kuwaiti(s) adjective: Kuwaiti
Natural hazards	regional risks include landslides, mudflows, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding; land subsidence in Venice	sudden cloudbursts are common from October to April and bring heavy rain, which can damage roads and houses; sandstorms and dust storms occur throughout the year, but are most common between March and August
Natural resources	coal, mercury, zinc, potash, marble, barite, asbestos, pumice, fluorspar, feldspar, pyrite (sulfur), natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, arable land	petroleum, fish, shrimp, natural gas
Net migration rate	2.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	14.96 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	gas 18,863 km; oil 1,258 km (2007)	gas 169 km; oil 540 km; refined products 57 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Center-Left Union Coalition [Romano PRODI]: Ulivo Alliance (including Democrats of the Left or DS [Piero FASSINO] (along with the DL merged into the Democratic Party or PD); Daisy-Democracy is Freedom or DL [Francesco RUTELLI] (along with the DS merged into the Democratic Party or PD)); 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]	none; formation of political parties is illegal
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 [Raffaele BONANNO], which is Roman Catholic centrist, and Unione Italiana del Lavoro or UIL [Luigi ANGELETTI] which is lay centrist)	several political groups act as de facto parties: Bedouins, merchants, Sunni and Shi'a activists, and secular leftists and nationalists
Population	58,147,733 (July 2007 est.)	2,335,648 note: includes 1,291,354 non-nationals (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	NA
Population growth rate	0.01% (2007 est.)	3.44% note: this rate reflects a return to pre-Gulf crisis immigration of expatriates (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Ash Shu'aybah, Ash Shuwaykh, Mina' 'Abd Allah, Mina' al Ahmadi, Mina' Su'ud
Radio broadcast stations	AM about 100, FM about 4,600, shortwave 9 (1998)	AM 6, FM 11, shortwave 1 (1998)
Railways	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	Roman Catholic 90% (approximately; about one-third regularly attend services), other 10% (includes mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community)	Muslim 85% (Sunni 70%, Shi'a 30%), Christian, Hindu, Parsi, and other 15%
Sex ratio	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.)	at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.77 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.74 male(s)/female total population: 1.52 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25)	adult males who have been naturalized for 30 years or more or have resided in Kuwait since before 1920 and their male descendants at age 21 note: only 10% of all citizens are eligible to vote; in 1996, naturalized citizens who do not meet the pre-1920 qualification but have been naturalized for 30 years were eligible to vote for the first time
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; 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	general assessment: the quality of service is excellent domestic: new telephone exchanges provide a large capacity for new subscribers; trunk traffic is carried by microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and open-wire and fiber-optic cable; a cellular telephone system operates throughout Kuwait, and the country is well supplied with pay telephones international: country code - 965; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; linked to Bahrain, Qatar, UAE via the Fiber-Optic Gulf (FOG) cable; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean), and 2 Arabsat
Telephones - main lines in use	25.049 million (2005)	486,900 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	71.5 million (2005)	1.42 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations	358 (plus 4,728 repeaters) (1995)	13 (plus several satellite channels) (1997)
Terrain	mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands	flat to slightly undulating desert plain
Total fertility rate	1.29 children born/woman (2007 est.)	2.97 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	6.7% (2007 est.)	2.2% (2004 est.)
Waterways	2,400 km note: used for commercial traffic; of limited overall value compared to road and rail (2006)	-

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