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| Geography |
| Landlocked; enclave in Rome, Italy; world's smallest state; beyond the territorial boundary of Vatican City, the Lateran Treaty of 1929 grants the Holy See extraterritorial authority over 23 sites in Rome and five outside of Rome, including the Pontifical Palace at Castel Gandolfo (the Pope's summer residence) |
| Location: | Southern Europe, an enclave of Rome (Italy) |
| Geographic coordinates: | 41 54 N, 12 27 E |
| Area: | total: 0.44 sq km land: 0.44 sq km water: 0 sq km
Size comparison: about 0.7 times the size of The National Mall in Washington, DC |
| Land Boundaries: | total: 3.2 km border countries: Italy 3.2 km |
| Coastline: | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Maritime claims: | none (landlocked) |
| Climate: | temperate; mild, rainy winters (September to May) with hot, dry summers (May to September) |
| Terrain: | urban; low hill |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: unnamed location 19 m highest point: unnamed elevation 75 m |
| Natural resources: | none |
| Land use: | arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (urban area) (2005) |
| Irrigated land: | 0 sq km |
| Natural hazards: | NA |
| Current Environment Issues: | NA |
| International Environment Agreements: | party to: Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution, Environmental Modification |
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| People |
| Population: | 832 (July 2011 est.) |
| Age structure: | |
| Median age: | |
| Population growth rate: | 0.004% (2011 est.) |
| Birth rate: | |
| Death rate: | |
| Net migration rate: | |
| Sex ratio: | |
| Infant mortality rate: | |
| Life expectancy at birth: | |
| Total fertility rate: | |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | NA |
| Nationality: | noun: none adjective: none |
| Ethnic groups: | Italians, Swiss, other |
| Religions: | Roman Catholic |
| Languages: | Italian, Latin, French, various other languages |
| Literacy: | [definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% |
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| Government |
| Country name: | conventional long form: The Holy See (State of the Vatican City) conventional short form: Holy See (Vatican City) local long form: Santa Sede (Stato della Citta del Vaticano) local short form: Santa Sede (Citta del Vaticano) |
| Government type: | ecclesiastical |
| Capital: | name: Vatican City geographic coordinates: 41 54 N, 12 27 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 |
| Administrative divisions: | none |
| Independence: | 11 February 1929 (from Italy); note - the three treaties signed with Italy on 11 February 1929 acknowledged, among other things, the full sovereignty of the Vatican and established its territorial extent; however, the origin of the Papal States, which over centuries varied considerably in extent, may be traced back to 754 |
| National holiday: | Election Day of Pope BENEDICT XVI, 19 April (2005) |
| Constitution: | Fundamental Law promulgated by Pope JOHN PAUL II 26 November 2000, effective 22 February 2001 (replaced the first Fundamental Law of 1929) |
| Legal system: | religious legal system based on canon (religious) law |
| Suffrage: | limited to cardinals less than 80 years old |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: Pope BENEDICT XVI (since 19 April 2005) head of government: Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio BERTONE (since 15 September 2006) cabinet: Pontifical Commission for the State of Vatican City appointed by the pope (For more information visit the World Leaders website ) elections: pope elected for life by the College of Cardinals; election last held on 19 April 2005 (next to be held after the death of the current pope); secretary of state appointed by the pope election results: Joseph RATZINGER elected Pope BENEDICT XVI |
| Legislative branch: | unicameral Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State |
| Judicial branch: | there are three tribunals responsible for civil and criminal matters within Vatican City; three other tribunals rule on issues pertaining to the Holy See note: judicial duties were established by the Motu Proprio, papal directive, of Pope PIUS XII on 1 May 1946 |
| Political parties and leaders: | none |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | none (exclusive of influence exercised by church officers) |
| International organization participation: | IAEA, Interpol, IOM (observer), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, Schengen Convention (de facto member), UN (observer), UNCTAD, UNHCR, Union Latina (observer), UNWTO (observer), UPU, WIPO, WTO (observer) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Apostolic Nuncio (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Monsignor Jean-Francois LANTHEAUME chancery: 3339 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 333-7121 FAX: [1] (202) 337-4036 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Miguel Humberto DIAZ embassy: Villa Domiziana, Via delle Terme Deciane 26, 00153 Rome mailing address: PSC 833, Box 66, APO AE 09624 telephone: [39] (06) 4674-3428 FAX: [39] (06) 575-3411 |
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| Economy |
| The Holy See is supported financially by a variety of sources, including investments, real estate income, and donations from Catholic individuals, dioceses, and institutions; these help fund the Roman Curia (Vatican bureaucracy), diplomatic missions, and media outlets. The separate Vatican City State budget includes the Vatican museums and post office and is supported financially by the sale of stamps, coins, medals, and tourist mementos; by fees for admission to museums; and by publications sales. Moreover, an annual collection taken up in dioceses and direct donations go to a non-budgetary fund known as Peter's Pence, which is used directly by the Pope for charity, disaster relief, and aid to churches in developing nations. The incomes and living standards of lay workers are comparable to those of counterparts who work in the city of Rome. |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | GDP (purchasing power parity): $NA |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | |
| GDP - real growth rate: | |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | |
| GDP - composition by sector: | |
| Labor force: | NA |
| Labor force - by occupation: | note: essentially services with a small amount of industry; nearly all dignitaries, priests, nuns, guards, and the approximately 3,000 lay workers live outside the Vatican |
| Unemployment rate: | |
| Population below poverty line: | NA% |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | |
| Budget: | revenues: $355.5 million expenditures: $356.8 million (2008) |
| Agriculture - products: | |
| Industries: | printing; production of coins, medals, postage stamps; mosaics and staff uniforms; worldwide banking and financial activities |
| Industrial production growth rate: | |
| Electricity - production: | NA kWh |
| Electricity - consumption: | NA kWh |
| Electricity - imports: | NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Italy; a small portion of electricity is self-produced from solar panels |
| Exports: | |
| Exports - commodities: | |
| Imports: | |
| Imports - commodities: | |
| Debt - external: | |
| Exchange rates: | euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.755 (2010) 0.7198 (2009) 0.6827 (2008) 0.7345 (2007) 0.7964 (2006) |
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| Communications |
| Telephones in use: | 5,120 (2005) country comparison to the world: 211 |
| Cellular Phones in use: | |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: automatic digital exchange domestic: connected via fiber optic cable to Telecom Italia network international: country code - 39; uses Italian system |
| Radio broadcast stations: | |
| Television broadcast stations: | |
| Internet country code: | .va |
| Internet hosts: | 68 (2010) |
| Internet users: | |
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| Transportation |
| Roadways: | |
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| Military |
| Defense is the responsibility of Italy; ceremonial and limited security duties performed by Pontifical Swiss Guard |
| Military branches: | Pontifical Swiss Guard Corps (Corpo della Guardia Svizzera Pontificia) (2010) |
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