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: 356,910 sq km
land : 349,520 sq km
water: 7,390 sq km
note: includes the formerly separate Federal Republic of Germany, the German Democratic Republic, and Berlin, following formal unification on 3 October 1990

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:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone : 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm, tropical foehn wind; high relative humidity

Terrain: lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south

Elevation extremes:
lowest point : Freepsum Lake -2 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,962 m

Natural resources: iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel

Land use:
arable land :34%
permanent crops: 1%
other : 65% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 4,850 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: NA

Environment - current issues: emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries and lead emissions from vehicle exhausts (the result of continued use of leaded fuels) contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; heavy pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified : Air Pollution-Sulphur 94

Geography - note: strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea

Population:83,251,851 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 15.4% (male 6,568,699; female 6,227,148)
15-64 years: 67.6% (male 28,606,964; female 27,695,539)
65 years and over: 17% (male 5,546,140; female 8,607,361) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate:0.26% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 8.99 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 10.36 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: 3.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth : 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over:0.64 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 4.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population:77.78 years
male: 74.64 years
female: 81.09 years (2002 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.39 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Nationality:
noun : German(s)
adjective: German

Ethnic groups: German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, Italians 0.7%, Greeks 0.4%, Poles 0.4%, other 4.6% (made up largely of people fleeing the war in the former Yugoslavia)

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% (1977 est.)
male: NA%
female : NA%

Country name:
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany
conventional short form: Germany
local long form : Bundesrepublik Deutschland
local short form: Deutschland

Data code: GM

Government type: federal republic

National capital: Berlin
note: the shift from Bonn to Berlin will take place over a period of years, with Bonn retaining many administrative functions and several ministries even after parliament moves in 1999

Administrative divisions: 16 states (laender, singular - land); Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen

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; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October 1990; all four power rights formally relinquished 15 March 1991

National holiday: German Unity Day (Day of Unity), 3 October (1990)

Constitution: 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 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 Johannes RAU (since 1 July 1999)
head of government:Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER (since 27 October 1998)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president upon the proposal of the chancellor
elections:president elected for a five-year 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 1999 (next to be held 23 May 2004); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; election last held 27 September 1998 (next to be held 22 September 2002)
election results: Johannes RAU elected president; percent of Federal Convention vote - 57.6%; Gerhard SCHROEDER elected chancellor; percent of Federal Assembly - 52.7%

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (656 seats usually, but 666 for the 1998 term; note - the number of seats will be reduced to 598 for 2002 elections; elected by popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain representation; members serve four-year terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments are directly represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block)
elections: Federal Assembly - last held 27 September 1998 (next to be held 22 September 2002); 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: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - SPD 40.9%, Alliance '90/Greens 6.7%, CDU/CSU 35.1%, FDP 6.2%, PDS 5.1%; seats by party - SPD 294, Alliance '90/Greens 47, CDU/CSU 245, FDP 43, PDS 37; Federal Council - current composition - NA

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 Fritz KUHN]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Edmund STOIBER, chairman]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE, chairman]; Party of Democratic Socialism or PDS [Gregor GYSI]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Gerhard SCHROEDER, chairman]

Political pressure groups and leaders:employers' organizations; expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups

International organization participation: AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CDB non-regional), CE, CERN, EBRD, ECE, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, 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, MTCR, NACC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNOMIG, UPU, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Wolfgang Friedrich ISHINGER
chancery : 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone: [1] (202) 298-4000
FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, Seattle
consulate(s): Wellington (American Samoa)

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel R. COATS
embassy : Deichmanns Aue 29, 53170 Bonn
mailing address: APO AE 09080, PSC 117, Bonn
telephone: [49] (228) 3391
FAX: [49] (228) 339-2663
branch office : Berlin
consulate(s) general: Dusseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold

Economy - overview: Germany's affluent and technologically powerful economy turned in a relatively weak performance throughout much of the 1990s. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy continues to be a costly long-term problem, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $70 billion. Germany's ageing population, combined with high unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions from workers. Structural rigidities in the labor market - including strict regulations on laying off workers and the setting of wages on a national basis - have made unemployment a chronic problem. Business and income tax cuts introduced in 2001 did not spare Germany from the impact of the downturn in international trade, and domestic demand faltered as unemployment began to rise. The government expects growth to gain pace in the second half of 2002, but to fall short of 1% for the year again. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are setting the foundations that could allow Germany to meet the long-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization, particularly if labor market rigidities are addressed.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $2.174 trillion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 0.6% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $26,200 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 1%
industry: 28%
services: 71% (2000)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 2.4% (2001)

Labor force:
total:41.9 million (2001)
by occupation: industry 33.4%, agriculture 2.8%, services 63.8% (1999)

Unemployment rate: 9.4% (2001)

Budget:
revenues: $802 billion
expenditures: $825 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)

Industries: western: among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages; eastern: metal fabrication, chemicals, brown coal, shipbuilding, machine building, food and beverages, textiles, petroleum refining

Industrial production growth rate: 0.2% (2001 est.)

Electricity - capacity: 109.73 million kW (1994)

Electricity - production: 537.328 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 501.716 billion kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: western: potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbage; cattle, pigs, poultry; eastern: wheat, rye, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, fruit; pork, beef, chicken, milk, hides

Exports:
total value: $560.7 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
commodities: manufactures 88.2% (including machines and machine tools, chemicals, motor vehicles, iron and steel products), agricultural products 5.0%, raw materials 2.3%, fuels 1.0%, other 3.5% (1995)
partners: EU 56% (France 11%, UK 8%, Italy 8%, Netherlands 6%, Belgium/Luxembourg 5%), US 10%, Japan 2% (2000)

Imports:
total value: $472.9 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
commodities: manufactures 74.2%, agricultural products 9.9%, fuels 6.4%, raw materials 5.9%, other 3.6% (1995)
partners :EU 52% (France 10%, Netherlands 9%, Italy 7%, UK 7%, Belgium/Luxembourg 5%), US 9%, Japan 5% (2000)

Debt - external: $NA

Economic aid:
donor: ODA, $5.6 billion (1998)

Currency: 1 deutsche mark (DM) = 100 pfennige; euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries

Exchange rates: 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); deutsche marks per US dollar - 1.69 (January 1999), 1.7597 (1998), 1.7341 (1997)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones:50.9 million (March 2001)

Telephone system: 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 is being rapidly 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: 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)

Radios: 77.8 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions:51.4 million (1998)

Railways:
total:44,000 km (including at least 20,300 km electrified); most routes are double- or multiple-track Highways:
total:656,140 km
paved: 650,891 km (including 11,400 km of expressways)
unpaved : 5,249 km (all-weather) (1998 est.)

Waterways: 7,500 km
note: major rivers include the Rhine and Elbe; Kiel Canal is an important connection between the Baltic Sea and North Sea (1999)

Pipelines: crude oil 2,240 km (2001)

Ports and harbors: Berlin, Bonn, Brake, Bremen, Bremerhaven, Cologne, Dresden, Duisburg, Emden, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Kiel, Lubeck, Magdeburg, Mannheim, Rostock, Stuttgart

Merchant marine:
total : 388 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,758,942 GRT/7,132,525 DWT
ships by type: cargo 132, chemical tanker 10, container 219, liquefied gas 3, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 7, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 7
note : includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Chile 1, Finland 5, Iceland 1, Netherlands 3, Switzerland 1 (2002 est.)

Airports: 625 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways:
total : 325
over 3,047 m: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 55
1,524 to 2,437 m: 65
914 to 1,523 m:67
under 914 m: 127 (2001)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total : 300
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m:5
914 to 1,523 m : 51 ]
under 914 m: 238 (2001)

Heliports: 59 (2001)

Military branches: Army, Navy (includes Naval Air Arm), Air Force, Medical Corps, Border Police, Coast Guard

Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 20,854,329 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males: 17,734,977 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 482,318 (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:$38.8 billion (2002)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:1.38% (2002)

Disputes - international: none

Illicit drugs: source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs