Italy Location:
Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia
Population:
57,715,625 (July 2002 est.)
Government type:
republic
Capital:
Rome
Administrative divisions:
20 regions (regioni, singular - regione); Abruzzi, 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
Independence:
17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870)
National holiday:
Republic Day, 2 June (1946)
Constitution:
1 January 1948
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
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25)
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 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. Rome 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.
Holidays, culture, etc.
6 January, Epiphany
25 April, Liberation Day
1 May, May Day
Sunday nearest 2 June, Republic Day
15 August, Assumption of the Virgin Mary
1 November, All Saints Day
Sunday nearest 4 November, WWI Victory
8 December, Immaculate Conception
26 December, St. Stephen?s Day
