Swaziland (2002) | Greece (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni | 51 prefectures (nomoi, singular - nomos) and 1 autonomous region*; Achaia, Agion Oros* (Mt. Athos), Aitolia kai Akarnania, 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 45.5% (male 254,573; female 256,677)
15-64 years: 51.9% (male 281,645; female 301,071) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 12,027; female 17,612) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 14.3% (male 789,637/female 742,535)
15-64 years: 66.7% (male 3,565,237/female 3,570,630) 65 years and over: 19% (male 895,384/female 1,142,867) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples, sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep | wheat, corn, barley, sugar beets, olives, tomatoes, wine, tobacco, potatoes; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 18 (2001) | 81 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 66
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 15 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 9 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 17
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2002) |
total: 15
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 12 (2007) |
Area | total: 17,363 sq km
land: 17,203 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total: 131,940 sq km
land: 130,800 sq km water: 1,140 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | slightly smaller than Alabama |
Background | Autonomy for the Swazis of southern Africa was guaranteed by the British in the late 19th century; independence was granted 1968. Student and labor unrest during the 1990s have pressured the monarchy (one of the oldest on the continent) to grudgingly allow political reform and greater democracy. | Greece achieved 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. In World War II, Greece was first invaded by Italy (1940) and subsequently occupied by Germany (1941-44); fighting endured in a protracted civil war between supporters of the king and Communist rebels. Following the latter's defeat 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. The 1974 democratic elections and a referendum created a parliamentary republic and abolished the monarchy. In 1981 Greece joined the EC (now the EU); it became the 12th member of the euro zone in 2001. |
Birth rate | 39.59 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 9.62 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $448 million
expenditures: $506.9 million, including capital expenditures of $147 million (FY01/02 ) |
revenues: $99.13 billion
expenditures: $106.7 billion (2006 est.) |
Capital | Mbabane; note - Lobamba is the royal and legislative capital | name: Athens
geographic coordinates: 37 59 N, 23 44 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Climate | varies from tropical to near temperate | temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 13,676 km |
Constitution | none; constitution of 6 September 1968 was suspended 12 April 1973; a new constitution was promulgated 13 October 1978, but was not formally presented to the people; since then a few more outlines for a constitution have been compiled under the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC), but so far none have been accepted | 11 June 1975; amended March 1986 and April 2001 |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Swaziland
conventional short form: Swaziland |
conventional long form: Hellenic Republic
conventional short form: Greece local long form: Elliniki Dhimokratia local short form: Ellas or Ellada former: Kingdom of Greece |
Currency | lilangeni (SZL) | - |
Death rate | 23.26 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.33 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $336 million (2001 est.) | $81.05 billion (2006 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James D. McGEE
embassy: Central Bank Building, Warner Street, Mbabane mailing address: P. O. Box 199, Mbabane telephone: [268] 404-6441 through 404-6445 FAX: [268] 404-5959 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel V. SPECKHARD
embassy: 91 Vasilisis Sophias Avenue, 10160 Athens mailing address: PSC 108, APO AE 09842-0108 telephone: [30] (210) 721-2951 FAX: [30] (210) 645-6282 consulate(s) general: Thessaloniki |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mary Madzandza KANYA
chancery: 3400 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 362-6683 FAX: [1] (202) 244-8059 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Alexandros P. MALLIAS
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, San Francisco, Tampa consulate(s): Atlanta, Houston, New Orleans |
Disputes - international | Swaziland continues to press South Africa into ceding ethnic Swazi lands in Kangwane region of KwaZulu-Natal province that were long ago part of the Swazi Kingdom | Greece and Turkey continue discussions to resolve their complex maritime, air, territorial, and boundary disputes in the Aegean Sea; Cyprus question with Turkey; Greece rejects the use of the name Macedonia or Republic of Macedonia; the mass migration of unemployed Albanians still remains a problem for developed countries, chiefly Greece and Italy |
Economic aid - recipient | $104 million (2001) | $8 billion annually from EU (2000-06); Greece will receive about $3.8 billion per year between 2007-13 under the EU's Community Support Funds IV |
Economy - overview | In this small landlocked economy, subsistence agriculture occupies more than 80% of the population. Manufacturing features a number of agroprocessing factories. Mining has declined in importance in recent years: diamond mines have shut down because of the depletion of easily accessible reserves; high-grade iron ore deposits were depleted by 1978; and health concerns have cut world demand for asbestos. Exports of soft drink concentrate, sugar, and wood pulp are the main earners of hard currency. Surrounded by South Africa, except for a short border with Mozambique, Swaziland is heavily dependent on South Africa from which it receives nine-tenths of its imports and to which it sends more than two-thirds of its exports. Remittances from the Southern African Customs Union and Swazi workers in South African mines substantially supplement domestically earned income. The government is trying to improve the atmosphere for foreign investment. Overgrazing, soil depletion, drought, and sometimes floods persist as problems for the future. Prospects for 2002 are strengthened by the country's status as a beneficiary of the US African Growth and Opportunity Act initiative. | Greece has a capitalist economy with the public sector accounting for about 40% of GDP and with per capita GDP at least 75% of the leading euro-zone economies. Tourism provides 15% of GDP. Immigrants make up nearly one-fifth of the work force, mainly in agricultural and unskilled jobs. Greece is a major beneficiary of EU aid, equal to about 3.3% of annual GDP. The Greek economy grew by nearly 4.0% per year between 2003 and 2006, due partly to infrastructural spending related to the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, and in part to an increased availability of credit, which has sustained record levels of consumer spending. Greece violated the EU's Growth and Stability Pact budget deficit criteria of no more than 3% of GDP from 2001 to 2005, but finally appears on track to meet that criteria in 2006. Public debt, inflation, and unemployment are above the euro-zone average, but are falling. The Greek Government continues to grapple with cutting government spending, reducing the size of the public sector, and reforming the labor and pension systems, in the face of often vocal opposition from the country's powerful labor unions and the general public. |
Electricity - consumption | 900.66 million kWh (2000) | 54.31 billion kWh (2005 est.) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 1.836 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 564 million kWh
note: supplied by South Africa (2000) |
5.616 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 362 million kWh (2000) | 56.13 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 56%
hydro: 44% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Great Usutu River 21 m
highest point: Emlembe 1,862 m |
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Olympus 2,917 m |
Environment - current issues | limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil degradation; soil erosion | air pollution; water pollution |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Desertification, Law of the Sea |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, 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 Dumping, 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 |
Ethnic groups | African 97%, European 3% | population: Greek 93%, other (foreign citizens) 7% (2001 census)
note: percents represent citizenship, since Greece does not collect data on ethnicity |
Exchange rates | emalangeni per US dollar - 11.5808 (January 2002), 8.4933 (2001), 6.9056 (2000), 6.1087 (1999), 5.4807 (1998), 4.6032 (1997); note - the Swazi lilangeni is at par with the South African rand; emalangeni is the plural form of lilangeni | euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986)
head of government: Prime Minister Sibusiso Barnabas DLAMINI (since 9 August 1996) cabinet: Cabinet recommended by the prime minister and confirmed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Karolos PAPOULIAS (since 12 March 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Konstandinos (Kostas) KARAMANLIS (since 7 March 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by parliament for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 8 February 2005 (next to be held by February 2010); according to the Greek Constitution, presidents may only serve two terms; president appoints leader of the party securing plurality of vote in election to become prime minister and form a government election results: Karolos PAPOULIAS elected president; number of parliamentary votes, 279 out of 300 |
Exports | $702 million f.o.b. (2001) | 119,200 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn, refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit | food and beverages, manufactured goods, petroleum products, chemicals, textiles |
Exports - partners | South Africa 72%, EU 12%, UK 6%, Mozambique 4%, US 4% (1999) | Germany 11.5%, Italy 11.4%, Bulgaria 6.5%, UK 6.1%, Cyprus 5.5%, Turkey 5.2%, France 4.5%, US 4.5%, Spain 4.1% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in yellow; centered in the red band is a large black and white shield covering two spears and a staff decorated with feather tassels, all placed horizontally | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.6 billion (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 10%
industry: 43% services: 47% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 3.3%
industry: 20.8% services: 75.9% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,200 (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (2001 est.) | 4.3% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 26 30 S, 31 30 E | 39 00 N, 22 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa | strategic location dominating the Aegean Sea and southern approach to Turkish Straits; a peninsular country, possessing an archipelago of about 2,000 islands |
Heliports | - | 9 (2007) |
Highways | total: 3,800 km
paved: 1,064 km unpaved: 2,736 km (2002) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.5%
highest 10%: 26% (2000 est.) |
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 | $850 million f.o.b. (2001) | 550,400 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals | machinery, transport equipment, fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | South Africa 89%, EU 5%, Japan 2%, Singapore 2% (2000) | Germany 12.6%, Italy 11.5%, Russia 7.1%, France 5.9%, Netherlands 5.2%, South Korea 4.2% (2006) |
Independence | 6 September 1968 (from UK) | 1829 (from the Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.7% (FY95/96) | 2% (2006 est.) |
Industries | mining (coal), wood pulp, sugar, soft drink concentrates, textile and apparel | tourism, food and tobacco processing, textiles, chemicals, metal products; mining, petroleum |
Infant mortality rate | 109.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 5.34 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.87 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.5% (2001 est.) | 3.2% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, EU, FAO, G- 6, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIS, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 (2001) | - |
Irrigated land | 690 sq km (1998 est.) | 14,530 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | High Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed by the monarch | Supreme Judicial Court; Special Supreme Tribunal; all judges appointed for life by the president after consultation with a judicial council |
Labor force | NA | 4.89 million (2006 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | agriculture: 12%
industry: 20% services: 68% (2004 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 535 km
border countries: Mozambique 105 km, South Africa 430 km |
total: 1,228 km
border countries: Albania 282 km, Bulgaria 494 km, Turkey 206 km, Macedonia 246 km |
Land use | arable land: 9.77%
permanent crops: 0.7% other: 89.53% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 20.45%
permanent crops: 8.59% other: 70.96% (2005) |
Languages | English (official, government business conducted in English), siSwati (official) | Greek 99% (official), other 1% (includes English and French) |
Legal system | based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on codified Roman law; judiciary divided into civil, criminal, and administrative courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Libandla, an advisory body, consists of the Senate (30 seats - 10 appointed by the House of Assembly and 20 appointed by the monarch; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (65 seats - 10 appointed by the monarch and 55 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 16 and 24 October 1998 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: House of Assembly - balloting is done on a nonparty basis; candidates for election are nominated by the local council of each constituency and for each constituency the three candidates with the most votes in the first round of voting are narrowed to a single winner by a second round |
unicameral Parliament or Vouli ton Ellinon (300 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: elections last held 16 September 2007 (next to be held by 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - ND 41.8%, PASOK 38.1%, KKE 8.2%, Synaspismos 5%, LAOS 3.8%, other 3.1%; seats by party - ND 152, PASOK 102, KKE 22, Synaspismos 14, LAOS 10 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 37 years
male: 36.35 years female: 37.66 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 79.38 years
male: 76.85 years female: 82.06 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 78.3% male: 78% female: 78.4% (1999 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96% male: 97.8% female: 94.2% (2001 census) |
Location | Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa | Southern Europe, bordering the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea, between Albania and Turkey |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | - | total: 824 ships (1000 GRT or over) 33,654,384 GRT/57,898,789 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 246, cargo 66, carrier 1, chemical tanker 52, combination ore/oil 1, container 43, liquefied gas 6, passenger 11, passenger/cargo 109, petroleum tanker 269, roll on/roll off 19, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 49 (Belgium 16, Cyprus 5, Italy 1, South Korea 2, UK 15, US 10) registered in other countries: 2,324 (Antigua and Barbuda 3, Bahamas 214, Barbados 11, Belgium 4, Bermuda 3, Cambodia 5, Cayman Islands 23, China 1, Comoros 8, Cyprus 292, Denmark 4, Dominica 8, Egypt 8, Georgia 7, Gibraltar 8, Honduras 1, Hong Kong 30, Isle of Man 48, Italy 13, Jamaica 8, Lebanon 2, Liberia 311, Maldives 1, Malta 448, Marshall Islands 226, Norway 6, Panama 505, Philippines 3, Portugal 4, Russia 1, Sao Tome and Principe 1, Saudi Arabia 2, Sierra Leone 1, Singapore 14, Slovakia 4, St Kitts and Nevis 2, St Vincent and The Grenadines 81, UAE 3, UK 6, Uruguay 1, Venezuela 3, unknown 8) (2007) |
Military branches | Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (Army), Royal Swaziland Police Force | Hellenic Army (Ellinikos Stratos, ES), Hellenic Navy (Ellinikos Polemiko Navtiko, EPN), Hellenic Air Force (Elliniki Polimiki Aeroporia, EPA) (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $20 million (FY01/02) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.75% (FY00/01) | 4.3% (2005 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 253,510 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 146,805 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 September (1968) | Independence Day, 25 March (1821) |
Nationality | noun: Swazi(s)
adjective: Swazi |
noun: Greek(s)
adjective: Greek |
Natural hazards | drought | severe earthquakes |
Natural resources | asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc | lignite, petroleum, iron ore, bauxite, lead, zinc, nickel, magnesite, marble, salt, hydropower potential |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 2.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 1,166 km; oil 94 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | political parties are banned by the constitution - the following are considered political associations - Imbokodvo National Movement or INM [leader NA]; Ngwane National Libertatory Congress or NNLC [Obed DLAMINI, president]; People's United Democratic Movement or PUDEMO [Mario MASUKU, president]; Swaziland National Front or SWANAFRO [Elmond SHONGWE, president] | Coalition of the Left and Progress (Synaspismos) [Alekos ALAVANOS]; Communist Party of Greece or KKE [Aleka PAPARIGA]; New Democracy or ND (conservative) [Konstandinos KARAMANLIS]; Panhellenic Socialist Movement or PASOK [Yiorgos PAPANDREOU]; Popular Orthodox Rally or LAOS [Yeoryios KARATZAFERIS] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | General Confederation of Greek Workers or GSEE [Ioannis PANAGOPOULOS]; Federation of Greek Industries or SEV [Odysseas KYRIAKOPOULOS]; Civil Servants Confederation or ADEDY [Spyros PAPASPYROS] |
Population | 1,123,605
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.) |
10,706,290 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.63% (2002 est.) | 0.163% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 2 plus 4 repeaters, shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 26, FM 88, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 170,000 (1999) | - |
Railways | total: 297 km
narrow gauge: 297 km 1.067-m gauge note: includes 71 km which are not in use (2001) |
total: 2,571 km
standard gauge: 1,565 km 1.435-m gauge (764 km electrified) 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) (2006) |
Religions | Zionist (a blend of Christianity and indigenous ancestral worship) 40%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 10%, Anglican, Bahai, Methodist, Mormon, Jewish and other 30% | Greek Orthodox 98%, Muslim 1.3%, other 0.7% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.063 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.998 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.783 male(s)/female total population: 0.962 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: a somewhat modern but not an advanced system
domestic: system consists of carrier-equipped, open-wire lines and low-capacity, microwave radio relay international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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: country code - 30; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 optical telecommunications submarine cable that provides links to Europe, Middle East, and Asia; a number of smaller submarine cables provide connectivity to various parts of Europe, the Middle East, and Cyprus; tropospheric scatter; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 38,500 (2001) | 6.185 million (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 45,000 (2001) | 11.098 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 5 plus 7 relay stations (2001) | 36 (plus 1,341 repeaters); also 2 stations in the US Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (1995) |
Terrain | mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains | mostly mountains with ranges extending into the sea as peninsulas or chains of islands |
Total fertility rate | 5.77 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.35 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 34% (2000 est.) | 9.2% (2006 est.) |
Waterways | none | 6 km
note: Corinth Canal (6 km) crosses the Isthmus of Corinth; shortens sea voyage by 325 km (2007) |