1986 Edition

Agriculture

important producer of fruits and vegetables; main crops — cereals, potatoes, olives; 95% self-sufficient; food shortages— fats, meat, fish, and eggs

Aid

donor — ODA and OOF economic aid commitments (1970-83), $8.9 billion

Airfields

148 total, 141 usable; 84 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m, 34 with runways 2,4403,659 m, 38 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Area

300km C.gli Mediterranean Sea Sc« ref ionil map V Land 301,223 km2; slightly larger than Arizona; 50% cultivated, 21% forest, 17% meadow and pasture, 9% waste or urban; 3% unused but potentially productive

Branches

executive— President empowered to dissolve Parliament and call national election; he is also Commander of the Armed Forces and presides over the Supreme Defense Council; otherwise, authority to govern invested in Council of Ministers; bicameral legislature — popularly elected Parliament (315member Senate, 630-member Chamber of Deputies); independent judicial establishment

Army, Navy, Air Force

Capital

Rome

Civil air

132 major transport aircraft

Coast line

515 km People

Coastline

4,996 km People

Communists

1,673,751 members (1983)

Crude steel

24 million metric tons produced (1984), 420 kg per capita

Elections

national election for Parliament held every five years (most recent, June 1983); provincial and municipal elections held every five years with some out of phase; regional elections every five years (held June 1980) Political parties and leaders: Christian Democratic Party (DC), Ciriaco DeMita (political secretary); Communist Party (PCI), Alessandro Natta (secretary general); Socialist Party (PSI), Bettino Craxi (party secretary); Social Democratic Party (PSDI), Franco Nicolazzi (party secretary); Liberal Party (PLI), Alfredo Biondi (secretary general); Italian Social Movement (MSI), Giorgio Almirante (national secretary); Republican Party (PRI), Giovanni Spadolini (political secretary)

Electric power

51,868,000 kW capacity (1985); 183.377 billion kWh produced (1985), 3,209 kWh per capita

Ethnic divisions

primarily Italian but population includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and of Albanian-Italians in the south

1 major indigenous ethnic groups; no single tribe more than 20% of population; most important are Agni, Baoule, Krou, Senoufou, Mandingo; approximately 2 million foreign Africans, mostly Burkinabe; about 70,000 to 75,000 nonAfricans (30,000 French and 25,000 to 30,000 Lebanese)

Exports

$73.4 billion (f.o.b., 1984); principal items — textiles, chemicals, footwear

Fiscal year

calendar year Communications

Fishing

catch 478,350 metric tons (1983); exports $94 million (1984), imports $709 million (1984)

GDP

$348.4 billion (1984), $6,096 per capita; 63.5% private consumption, 18.0% gross fixed investment, 20.0% government, —2.1% net foreign balance, 0.7% change in stocks; 1984 growth rate -2.6% (1980 constant prices) Ivory Coast

Government leaders

Francesco COSSIGA, President (since July 1985); Bettino CRAXI, Premier (since August 1983)

Highways

294,410 km total; autos — trade 5,900 km, state highways 45,170 km, provincial highways 101,680 km, communal highways 141,660 km; 260,500 km concrete, bituminous, or stone block, 26,900 km gravel and crushed stone, 7,010 km earth

Imports

$84.3 billion (c.i.f., 1984); principal items — petroleum machinery and transport equipment, foodstuffs, ferrous and nonferrous metals, wool, cotton

Infant mortality rate

11.3/1,000(1984)

Inland waterways

1,600 km for various types of commercial traffic

Labor force

23,083,000 (1984); 30.5% industry, 10.5% agriculture, 48.6% services (1984); 10.4% unemployment (1984)

Land boundaries

1,702 km Water

3,227 km Water

Language

Italian; parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region (for example, Bolzano) are predominantly German speaking; significant French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region; Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area

French (official), over 60 native dialects; Dioula most widely spoken

Legal system

based on civil law system, with ecclesiastical law influence; constitution came into effect 1 January 1948; judicial review under certain conditions in Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Life expectancy

73

Limits of territorial waters (claimed)

12 nm

12 nm (200 nm exclusive economic zone)

Literacy

93%

Major industries

machinery and transportation equipment, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles

Major trade partners

(1981) 44% EC (16% FRG, 13% France, 6% UK, 4% Switzerland), 13% OPEC (3% Libya), 8% US, 4% USSR, 3% Eastern Europe

Member of

ADB, ASSIMER, CCC, Council of Europe, DAC, EC, ECOWAS, EIB, ELDO, EMS, ESRO, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IDE— Inter-American Development Bank, IFAD, IEA, IFC, IHO, ILO, International Lead and Zinc Study Group, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOOC, IPU, IRC, ITC, ITU, NATO, OAS (observer), OECD, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG Economy

Military budget

for fiscal year ending 31 December 1984, $9.6 billion; about 4.7% of central government budget Gulf of Guinea See region*! map VII Land 322,463 km2; slightly larger than New Mexico; 52% grazing, fallow, and waste; 40% forest and wood; 8% cultivated; 322 km of lagoons and connecting canals extend eastwest along eastern part of the coast

Military manpower

males 15-49, 14,206,000; 11,976,000 fit for military service; 462,000 reach military age (18) annually

Monetary conversion rate

1,785.4 lire=US$l (October 1985)

National holiday

Anniversary of the Republic, 2 June

Nationality

noun — Italian(s); adjective — Italian

noun — Ivorian(s); adjective — Ivorian

Natural resources

mercury, potash, marble, sulfur, dwindling natural gas reserves, fish

Official name

Italian Republic

Organized labor

40-45% (est.) of labor force Government

Other political or pressure groups

the Vatican; three major trade union confederations (CGIL — Communist dominated, CISL — Christian Democratic, and UIL — Social Democratic, Socialist, and Republican); Italian manufacturers association (Confindustria); organized farm groups

Pipelines

crude oil, 1,703 km; refined products, 2,148 km; natural gas, 16,660 km

Political subdivisions

constitution provides for establishment of 20 regions; five with special statutes (Sicilia, Sardegna, TrentinoAlto Adige, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, and Valle d'Aosta) have been functioning for some time, and the remaining 15 regions with regular statutes were instituted on 1 April 1972; 95 provinces, 8,081 communes

Population

57,226,000 (July 1986), average annual growth rate 0.2%

10,500,000 (July 1986), average annual growth rate 4.0%

Ports

9 major, 1 1 secondary, 40 minor

Railroads

20,085 km total; 16,140 km 1.435meter government-owned standard gauge, 8,812 km electrified; 3,945 km privately owned — 2,100 km 1.435-meter standard gauge, 1,155 km electrified, and 1,845 km 0. 950-meter narrow gauge, 380 km electrified

Religion

almost 100% nominally Roman Catholic

63% indigenous, 25% Muslim, 12% Christian

Shortages

coal, fuels, minerals

Suffrage

universal over age 18 (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25)

Telecommunications

well engineered, well constructed, and efficiently operated; 23 million telephones (40. 4 per lOOpopl.); 140 AM, 1,837 FM, 1,367 TV stations; 20 submarine cables; 2 communication satellite ground stations with a total of 6 antennas Defense Forces

Type

republic

Voting strength

(1983 election) 32.5% DC, 30.5% PCI, 11.3% PSI, 6.6% MSI, 5.2% PRI, 4.0% PSDI, 3.0% PLI