Italy

• predominantly Mediterranean;
• Alpine in far north;
• hot, dry in south

• 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

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.)

noun:

Italian(s)

adjective:

Italian

conventional long form:

Italian Republic

conventional short form:

Italy

local long form:

Repubblica Italiana

local short form:

Italia

former:

Kingdom of Italy

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

• 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

• based on civil law system;
• appeals treated as new trials;
• judicial review under certain conditions in Constitutional Court;
• has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

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)

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

• Center-Left Union Coalition [Romano PRODI]: Ulivo Alliance (including Democrats of the Left or DS [Piero FASSINO]; Daisy-Democracy is Freedom or DL [Francesco RUTELLI]);
• 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]

• 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)

AfDB, AsDB, 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, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

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 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

• 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

agriculture:

5%

industry:

32%

services:

63% (2001)

lowest 10%:

2.3%

highest 10%:

26.8% (2000)

• fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives;
• beef, dairy products;
• fish

• engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals;
• food, beverages and tobacco;
• minerals, and nonferrous metals

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

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)

total:

484,688 km

paved:

484,688 km (includes 6,621 km of expressways) (2004)

• 18-27 year of age for voluntary military service;
• conscription abolished January 2005;
• women may serve in any military branch;
• 10-month service obligation, with a reserve obligation to age 45 (Army and Air Force) or 39 (Navy) (2006)

males age 18-49:

13,491,260

females age 18-49:

12,886,033 (2005 est.)

males age 18-49:

10,963,513

females age 18-49:

10,452,189 (2005 est.)

males age 18-49:

286,344

females age 18-49:

270,099 (2005 est.)

• 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