IDPs: 220,000-240,000 (displaced from Abkhazia and South Ossetia)
(2007)
Illicit drugs:
limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for domestic
consumption; used as transshipment point for opiates via Central
Asia to Western Europe and Russia
page last updated on November 11, 2009
======================================================================
@Germany (Europe)
Introduction ::Germany
Background:
As Europe's largest economy and second most populous nation (after
Russia), Germany is a key member of the continent's economic,
political, and defense organizations. European power struggles
immersed Germany in two devastating World Wars in the first half of
the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious
Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945.
With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in
1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern
German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself
in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC, which
became the EU, and NATO, while the Communist GDR was on the front
line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the
end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since
then, Germany has expended considerable funds to bring Eastern
productivity and wages up to Western standards. In January 1999,
Germany and 10 other EU countries introduced a common European
exchange currency, the euro.
Geography ::Germany
Location:
Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between
the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark
Geographic coordinates:
51 00 N, 9 00 E
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 357,022 sq km
country comparison to the world: 62
land: 348,672 sq km
water: 8,350 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Montana
Land boundaries:
total: 3,621 km
border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646
km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577
km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km
Coastline:
2,389 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:
temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers;
occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind
Terrain:
lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m
Natural resources:
coal, lignite, natural gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium,
potash, salt, construction materials, timber, arable land
Land use:
arable land: 33.13%
permanent crops: 0.6%
other: 66.27% (2005)
Irrigated land:
4,850 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
188 cu km (2005)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 38.01 cu km/yr (12%/68%/20%)
per capita: 460 cu m/yr (2001)
Natural hazards:
flooding
Environment - current issues:
emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to
air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions,
is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and
industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste
disposal; government established a mechanism for ending the use of
nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU
commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the
EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85,
Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources,
Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83,
Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to
the Baltic Sea
People ::Germany
Population:
82,329,758 (July 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 16
Age structure:
0-14 years: 13.7% (male 5,768,366/female 5,470,516)
15-64 years: 66.1% (male 27,707,761/female 26,676,759)
65 years and over: 20.3% (male 7,004,805/female 9,701,551) (2009
est.)
Median age:
total: 43.8 years
male: 42.6 years
female: 45.2 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate:
-0.053% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 211
Birth rate:
8.18 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 220
Death rate:
10.9 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 47
Net migration rate:
2.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
Urbanization:
urban population: 74% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 0.1% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 3.99 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 210
male: 4.41 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 3.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 79.26 years
country comparison to the world: 32
male: 76.26 years
female: 82.42 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.41 children born/woman (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 195
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.1% (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 123
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
53,000 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 64
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
fewer than 500 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 85
Nationality:
noun: German(s)
adjective: German
Ethnic groups:
German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Greek,
Italian, Polish, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish)
Religions:
Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or
other 28.3%
Languages:
German
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (2003 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 16 years
male: 16 years
female: 16 years (2006)
Education expenditures:
4.6% of GDP (2004)
country comparison to the world: 82
People - note:
second most populous country in Europe after Russia
Government ::Germany
Country name:
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany
conventional short form: Germany
local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland
local short form: Deutschland
former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich
Government type:
federal republic
Capital:
name: Berlin
geographic coordinates: 52 31 N, 13 24 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:
16 states (Laender, singular - Land); Baden-Wurttemberg, Bayern
(Bavaria), Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen,
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania),
Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony), Nordrhein-Westfalen (North
Rhine-Westphalia), Rheinland-Pfalz (Rhineland-Palatinate), Saarland,
Sachsen (Saxony), Sachsen-Anhalt (Saxony-Anhalt),
Schleswig-Holstein, Thuringen (Thuringia); note - Bayern, Sachsen,
and Thuringen refer to themselves as free states (Freistaaten,
singular - Freistaat)
Independence:
18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones
of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in 1945 following
World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany)
proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French
zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7
October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; West Germany and
East Germany unified 3 October 1990; all four powers formally
relinquished rights 15 March 1991
National holiday:
Unity Day, 3 October (1990)
Constitution:
23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united
Germany 3 October 1990
Legal system:
civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of
legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Horst KOEHLER (since 1 July 2004)
head of government: Chancellor Angela MERKEL (since 22 November 2005)
cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by
the president on the recommendation of the chancellor
elections: president elected for a five-year term (eligible for a
second term) by a Federal Convention, including all members of the
Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the
state parliaments; election last held 23 May 2004 (next scheduled
for 23 May 2009); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the
Federal Assembly for a four-year term; Bundestag vote for Chancellor
last held 22 November 2005 (next will follow the national elections
to be held by 27 September 2009)
election results: Horst KOEHLER elected president; received 604
votes of the Federal Convention against 589 for Gesine SCHWAN;
Angela MERKEL elected chancellor; vote by Federal Assembly 397 to
202 with 12 abstentions
Legislative branch:
bicameral legislature consists of the Federal Council or Bundesrat
(69 votes; state governments sit in the Council; each has three to
six votes in proportion to population and are required to vote as a
block)and the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (622 seats; members
elected by popular vote for a four-year term under a system of
personalized proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the
national vote or three direct mandates to gain proportional
representation and caucus recognition)
elections: Bundestag - last held on 27 September 2009 (next to be
held no later than autumn 2013); note - there are no elections for
the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the
state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the
potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election
election results: Bundestag - percent of vote by party - CDU/CSU
33.8%, SPD 23%, FDP 14.6%, Left 11.9%, Greens 10.7%, other 6%; seats
by party - CDU/CSU 239, SPD 146, FDP 93, Left 76, Greens 68
Judicial branch:
Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the
judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat)
Political parties and leaders:
Alliance '90/Greens [Claudia ROTH and Cem OZDEMIR]; Christian
Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or
CSU [Horst SEEHOFER]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido
WESTERWELLE]; Left Party or Die Linke [Lothar BISKY and Oskar
LAFONTAINE]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Franz MUENTEFERING]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
other: business associations and employers' organizations;
religious, trade unions, immigrant, expellee, and veterans groups
International organization participation:
ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council
(observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CDB, CE,
CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G-20, G-5, 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, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW,
OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), SICA
(observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIL, UNMIS,
UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCO, WEU, WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Klaus SCHARIOTH
chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone: [1] (202) 298-4000
FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los
Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires John KOENIG
embassy: Pariser Platz 2, 10117 Berlin; note - new embassy opened 4
July 2008
mailing address: PSC 120, Box 1000, APO AE 09265, Clayallee 170,
14195 Berlin
telephone: [49] (030) 2385174
FAX: [49] (030) 8305-1215
consulate(s) general: Duesseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg,
Leipzig, Munich
Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold; these
colors have played an important role in German history and can be
traced back to the medieval banner of the Holy Roman Emperor - a
black eagle with red claws and beak on a gold field
Economy ::Germany
Economy - overview:
The German economy - the fifth largest economy in the world in PPP
terms and Europe's largest - began to contract in the second quarter
of 2008 as the strong euro, high oil prices, tighter credit markets,
and slowing growth abroad took their toll on Germany's
export-dependent economy. At just 1% in 2008, GDP growth is expected
to be negative in 2009. Recent stimulus and lender relief efforts
will make demands on Germany's federal budget and undercut plans to
balance its budget by 2011. The reforms launched by the former
government of Chancellor Gerhard SCHOEDER, deemed necessary due to
chronically high unemployment and low average growth, led to strong
growth in 2007, while unemployment in 2008 fell below 8%, a new
post-reunification low. Germany's aging population, combined with
high chronic unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a
level exceeding contributions, but higher government revenues from
the cyclical upturn in 2006-07 and a 3% rise in the value-added tax
cut Germany's budget deficit to within the EU's 3% debt limit in
2007. The current government of Chancellor Angela MERKEL has
initiated other reform measures, such as a gradual increase in the
mandatory retirement age from 65 to 67 and measures to increase
female participation in the labor market. The modernization and
integration of the eastern German economy - where unemployment still
exceeds 30% in some municipalities - continues to be a costly
long-term process, with annual transfers from west to east amounting
to roughly $80 billion. While corporate restructuring and growing
capital markets have set strong foundations to help Germany meet the
longer-term challenges of European economic integration and
globalization, Germany's export-oriented economy has proved a
disadvantage in the context of weak global demand.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$2.925 trillion (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 6
$2.887 trillion (2007 est.)
$2.817 trillion (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):
$3.673 trillion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
1.3% (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 167
2.5% (2007 est.)
3.2% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$35,500 (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
$35,000 (2007 est.)
$34,200 (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 0.9%
industry: 30.1%
services: 69.1% (2008 est.)
Labor force:
43.6 million (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 2.4%
industry: 29.7%
services: 67.8% (2005)
Unemployment rate:
7.8% (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 106
9% (2007 est.)
note: this is the International Labor Organization's estimated rate
for international comparisons; Germany's Federal Employment Office
estimated a seasonally adjusted rate of 10.8%
Population below poverty line:
11% (2001 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 22.1% (2000)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
27 (2006)
country comparison to the world: 123
30 (1994)
Investment (gross fixed):
19.2% of GDP (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 121
Budget:
revenues: $1.591 trillion
expenditures: $1.591 trillion (2008 est.)
Public debt:
66% of GDP (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 20
65.8% of GDP (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.7% (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 31
2.3% (2007 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
3% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 93
5% (31 December 2007)
note: this is the European Central Bank's rate on the marginal
lending facility, which offers overnight credit to banks in the euro
area
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
5.97% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 133
5.96% (31 December 2007)
Stock of money:
$NA
note: see entry for the European Union for money supply in the euro
area; the European Central Bank (ECB) controls monetary policy for
the 16 members of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU); individual
members of the EMU do not control the quantity of money and quasi
money circulating within their own borders
Stock of quasi money:
$NA
Stock of domestic credit:
$5.019 trillion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 5
$4.457 trillion (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 8
$2.106 trillion (31 December 2007)
$1.638 trillion (31 December 2006)
Agriculture - products:
potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs,
poultry
Industries:
among the world's largest and most technologically advanced
producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery,
vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages,
shipbuilding, textiles
Industrial production growth rate:
0.1% (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 131
Electricity - production:
593.4 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 8
Electricity - consumption:
547.3 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7
Electricity - exports:
61.7 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Electricity - imports:
41.67 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Oil - production:
150,800 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 46
Oil - consumption:
2.569 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7
Oil - exports:
582,900 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 26
Oil - imports:
2.777 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 6
Oil - proved reserves:
276 million bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 55
Natural gas - production:
16.36 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 32
Natural gas - consumption:
95.79 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7
Natural gas - exports:
12.68 billion cu m (2008)
country comparison to the world: 16
Natural gas - imports:
91.99 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 3
Natural gas - proved reserves:
175.6 billion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 46
Current account balance:
$243.6 billion (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 2
$263.1 billion (2007 est.)
Exports:
$1.498 trillion (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 2
$1.35 trillion (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities:
machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs,
textiles
Exports - partners:
France 9.7%, US 7.1%, UK 6.7%, Netherlands 6.6%, Italy 6.4%, Austria
5.4%, Belgium 5.2%, Spain 4.4%, Poland 4% (2008)
Imports:
$1.232 trillion (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 3
$1.079 trillion (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals
Imports - partners:
Netherlands 12.5%, France 8.3%, Belgium 7.5%, China 6.2%, Italy
5.7%, UK 5.4%, Austria 4.3%, Russia 4.2%, US 4.2% (2008)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$138 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 11
$136.2 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external:
$5.158 trillion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 3
$5.155 trillion (31 December 2007)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$1.027 trillion (31 December 2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 5
$1.002 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$1.407 trillion (31 December 2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
$1.249 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)
Exchange rates:
euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.6827 (2008 est.), 0.7345 (2007),
0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004)
Communications ::Germany
Telephones - main lines in use:
51.5 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 3
Telephones - mobile cellular:
107.245 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 8
Telephone system:
general assessment: Germany has one of the world's most
technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of
intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly
backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to
World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the
western part
domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic
telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic
cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic
satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available,
expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign
countries
international: country code - 49; Germany's international service is
excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable
facilities as well as earth stations in the Inmarsat, Intelsat,
Eutelsat, and Intersputnik satellite systems (2001)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 51, FM 787, shortwave 4 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:
373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995)
Internet country code:
.de
Internet hosts:
23.796 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 3
Internet users:
61.973 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 6
Transportation ::Germany
Airports:
550 (2009)
country comparison to the world: 13
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 330
over 3,047 m: 13
2,438 to 3,047 m: 52
1,524 to 2,437 m: 58
914 to 1,523 m: 72
under 914 m: 135 (2009)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 220
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 33
under 914 m: 184 (2009)
Heliports:
25 (2009)
Pipelines:
gas 24,364 km; oil 3,379 km; refined products 3,843 km (2008)
Railways:
total: 41,896 km
country comparison to the world: 6
standard gauge: 41,641 km 1.435-m gauge (20,053 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 75 km 1.000-m gauge (75 km electrified); 24 km 0.750-m
gauge (24 km electrified) (2008)
Roadways:
total: 644,480 km
country comparison to the world: 11
paved: 644,480 km (includes 12,400 km of expressways)
note: includes local roads (2006)
Waterways:
7,467 km
country comparison to the world: 19
note: Rhine River carries most goods; Main-Danube Canal links North
Sea and Black Sea (2008)
Merchant marine:
total: 393
country comparison to the world: 26
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 43, chemical tanker 13, container
284, liquefied gas 5, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 27, petroleum
tanker 11, roll on/roll off 3
foreign-owned: 11 (China 2, Cyprus 2, Denmark 1, Finland 4,
Netherlands 1, Sweden 1)