Country name
conventional long form: Italian Republic
conventional short form: Italy
local long form: Repubblica Italiana
local short form: Italia
former: Kingdom of Italy

Data code IT

Government type republic

National 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)

National holiday Anniversary of the Republic, 2 June (1946)

Constitution 1 January 1948

Legal system based on civil law system, with ecclesiastical law influence; appeals treated as trials de novo; 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)

Executive branch
chief of state: President Oscar Luigi SCALFARO (since 28 May 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the president of the Council of Ministers) Romano PRODI (since 18 May 1996)
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; election last held 25 May 1992 (next to be held NA 1999); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: Oscar Luigi SCALFARO elected president; percent of electoral college vote - NA

Legislative branch bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of the Senate or Senato della Repubblica (326 seats, 315 popularly elected of which 232 are directly elected and 83 by regional proportional representation, 11 appointed senators-for-life; members serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; 475 are directly elected, 155 by regional proportional representation; members serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 21 April 1996 (next to be held by NA April 2001); Chamber of Deputies - last held 21 April 1996 (next to be held by NA April 2001)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Olive Tree 157, Freedom Alliance 116, Northern League 27, Refounded Communists 10, regional lists 3, Social Movement-Tricolor Flames 1, Panella Reformers 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Olive Tree 284, Freedom Alliance 246, Northern League 59, Refounded Communists 35, Southern Tyrol List 3, Autonomous List 2, other 1

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)

Political parties and leaders
Olive Tree (Ulivo): Democratic Party of the Left or PDS [Massimo D'ALEMA]; Greens (Verdi) [Luigi MANCONI]; Italian Renewal or RI [Lamberto DINI]; Italian Popular Party or PPI [Franco MARINI - elected 12 January 1997]
Freedom Pole: Forza Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; National Alliance or AN [Gianfranco FINI]; Christian Democratic Center or CCD [Clemente MASTELLA]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Rocco BUTTIGLIONE]
other: Northern League or NL [Umberto BOSSI]; Communism Refoundation or RC [Fausto BERTINOTTI]; Italian Social Movement-Tricolor Flame or MSI-Fiamma Tricolore [Pino RAUTI]; Pannella-Sgarbi's List (Lista Pannella-Sgarbi) [Marco PANNELLA]; Italian Socialists or SI (also called Radical Party or PR) [Ottaviano DEL TURCO]; Autonomous List (a group of minor parties); Southern Tyrols List or SVP (German speakers)

Political pressure groups and leaders the Roman Catholic Church; three major trade union confederations (Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro or CGIL which is PDS-dominated, Confederazione Italiana dei Sindacati Lavoratori or CISL which is centrist, and Unione Italiana del Lavoro or UIL which is center-right); Italian manufacturers and merchants associations (Confindustria, Confcommercio); organized farm groups (Confcoltivatori, Confagricoltura)

International organization participation AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CE (observer), CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 7, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINUGUA, MINURSO, MTCR, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMOGIP, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US
chief of mission: Ambassador Ferdinando SALLEO
chancery: 1601 Fuller Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 and 2700 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 328-5500 (year 2000) - (202)612-4400 (year 2006)
FAX: [1] (202) 518-2151
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco
consulate(s): Detroit and New Orleans

Diplomatic representation from the US
chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas M. FOGLIETTA
embassy: Via Veneto 119/A, 00187-Rome
mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100, APO AE 09624
telephone: [39] (6) 46741
FAX: [39] (6) 488-2672
consulate(s) general: Florence, Milan, Naples

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

NOTE: The information regarding Italy on this page is re-published from the 1998 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Italy Government 1998 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Italy Government 1998 should be addressed to the CIA.