Germany

Radio broadcast stations

western - AM 80, FM 470, shortwave 0; eastern - AM 23, FM 17, shortwave 0

Radios

70 million (1991 est.)

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: the region which was formerly West 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 and includes roaming service to many foreign countries; since the reunification of Germany, the telephone system of the eastern region has been upgraded and enjoys many of the advantages of the national system international: satellite earth stations - 14 Intelsat (12 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean), 1 Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), 2 Intersputnik (1 Atlantic Ocean region and 1 Indian Ocean region); 6 submarine cable connections; 2 HF radiotelephone communication centers; tropospheric scatter links

Telephones

44 million

Television broadcast stations

246 (repeaters 6,000); note - there are 15 Russian repeaters in eastern Germany

Televisions

44.8 million (1992 est.)

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

Budget

revenues: $755 billion expenditures: $832.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1995)

Currency

1 deutsche mark (DM) = 100 pfennige

Debt - external

$NA

Economic aid

donor: ODA, $9 billion (1996 est.)

Economy - overview

Germany, the world's third-most powerful economy, is gearing up for the European Economic and Monetary Union in 1999. One key economic priority is meeting the Maastricht criteria for entry into EMU, a goal complicated by record unemployment and stagnating growth. The government has implemented an austerity budget in its attempt to get the deficit down to 3% of GDP as required by Maastricht, but further cuts probably will be necessary and there is little consensus among the parties or elites about next steps toward that end. In recent years business and political leaders have become increasingly concerned about Germany's apparent decline in attractiveness as a business location. They cite the increasing preference of German companies to locate new manufacturing facilities - long the strength of the postwar economy - in foreign countries, including the US, rather than in Germany, so they can be closer to their markets and avoid Germany's high taxes and labor costs. At the same time, Germany faces its own unique problem of bringing its eastern area up to scratch after 45 years of communist rule. Despite substantial progress toward economic integration, the eastern states will continue to rely on the annual subsidy of approximately $100 billion from the western part into the next century. Assistance from the west helped the east to average nearly 8% annual economic growth in 1992-95, even though the overall German economy had averaged less than 2% growth; growth in the east, however, tumbled to 2% in 1996, with unemployment a particularly severe problem.

Electricity - capacity

109.73 million kW (1994)

Electricity - consumption per capita

5,727 kWh (1995 est.)

Electricity - production

529.1 billion kWh (1995)

Exchange rates

deutsche marks (DM) per US$1 - 1.6043 (January 1997), 1.5048 (1996), 1.4331 (1995), 1.6228 (1994), 1.6533 (1993), 1.5617 (1992)

Exports

total value: $501.3 billion (f.o.b., 1996 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 57.7% (France 11.7%, UK 8.1%, Italy 7.6%, Netherlands 7.5%, Belgium-Luxembourg 6.5%, Austria 5.5%), Eastern Europe 8.0%, other West European countries 7.5%, US 7.3%, NICs 5.6%, Japan 2.5%, OPEC 2.2%, China 1.4% (1996 est. for first 10 months)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $1.7 trillion (western: purchasing power parity - $1.56 trillion; eastern: purchasing power parity - $142 billion) (1996 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 1.1% industry: 34.5% services: 64.4% (1995)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $20,400 (western: purchasing power parity - $23,100; eastern: purchasing power parity - $9,000) (1996 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

1.4% (western 1.3%, eastern 2.0%) (1996)

Imports

total value: $430.7 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.) commodities: manufactures 74.2%, agricultural products 9.9%, fuels 6.4%, raw materials 5.9%, other 3.6% (1995) partners : EU 55.5% (France 10.8%, Netherlands 8.6%, Italy 8.4%, Belgium-Luxembourg 6.6%, UK 6.4%, Austria 3.9%), Eastern Europe 8.7%, other West European countries 7.2%, US 6.8%, Japan 5.3%, NICs 5.3%, China 2.4%, OPEC 1.7%, other 7.1% (1995)

Industrial production growth rate

1.3% (1996 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

Inflation rate - consumer price index

1.5% (1996)

Labor force

total: 38.7 million by occupation: industry 41%, agriculture 3%, services 56% (1995)

Unemployment rate

10.8% (western 9.6%, eastern 15.9%) (December 1996)

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

Climate

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

Coastline

2,389 km

Elevation extremes

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

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

Geographic coordinates

51 00 N, 9 00 E

Geography - note

strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea

Irrigated land

4,750 sq km (1993 est.)

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

Land use

arable land : 33% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 15% forests and woodland: 31% other : 20% (1993 est.)

Location

Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark

Map references

Europe

Maritime claims

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

Natural hazards

NA

Natural resources

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

Terrain

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

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

Constitution

23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990

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

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires James D. BINDENAGEL embassy : Deichmanns Aue 29, 53170 Bonn mailing address: APO AE 09080, PSC 117, Bonn telephone: [49] (228) 3391

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Juergen CHROBOG chancery : 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-4000

Executive branch

chief of state : President Roman HERZOG (since 1 July 1994) head of government: Chancellor Dr. Helmut KOHL (since 4 October 1982) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president upon the proposal of the chancellor elections: president elected by the Federal Convention including members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of members elected by the Land Parliaments for a five-year term; election last held 23 May 1994 (next to be held NA 1999); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; election last held 16 October 1994 (next to be held NA 1998) election results: Roman HERZOG elected president; percent of Federal Convention vote - NA; Dr. Helmut KOHL reelected chancellor; percent of Federal Assembly - NA

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)

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

Government type

federal republic

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

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

Judicial branch

Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht, half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat

Legal system

civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch

bicameral chamber (no official name for the two chambers as a whole) consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (656 seats usually, but 672 for the 1994 term; elected by direct 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 (68 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 16 October 1994 (next to be held by NA 1998); Federal Council - last held NA ( next to be held NA) election results: Federal Assembly - percent of vote by party - CDU 34.2%, SPD 36.4%, Alliance 90/Greens 7.3%, CSU 7.3%, FDP 6.9%, PDS 4.4%, Republicans 1.9%; seats by party - CDU 244, SPD 252, Alliance 90/Greens 49, CSU 50, FDP 47, PDS 30; Federal Council - current composition - votes by party - SPD-led states 41, CDU-led states 27

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

National holiday

German Unity Day (Day of Unity), 3 October (1990)

Political parties and leaders

Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Helmut KOHL, chairman]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Theo WAIGEL, chairman]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Wolfgang GERHARDT, chairman]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Oskar LAFONTAINE, chairman]; Alliance '90/Greens [Gunda ROESTEL, Juergen TRITTIN, cochairpersons]; Party of Democratic Socialism or PDS [Lothar BISKY, chairman]; Republikaner [Rolf SCHLIERER, chairman]; National Democratic Party or NPD [Ellen-Doris SCHERER]; Communist Party or DKP [Rolf PRIEMER and Heinz STEHR, cochairpersons]

Political pressure groups and leaders

employers' organizations, expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Military branches

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

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$42.8 billion (1995)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

1.5% (1995)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 20,918,653 (1997 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males: 17,939,494 (1997 est.)

Military manpower - military age

18 years of age

Military manpower - reaching military age annually

males: 450,147 (1997 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 16% (male 6,652,245; female 6,315,479) 15-64 years: 68% (male 28,649,361; female 27,498,980) 65 years and over: 16% (male 4,772,547; female 8,183,153) (July 1997 est.)

Birth rate

8.98 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Death rate

10.82 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)

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)

Infant mortality rate

5.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)

Languages

German

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 76.81 years male: 73.64 years female: 80.16 years (1997 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (1977 est.) male: NA% female : NA%

Nationality

noun : German(s) adjective: German

Net migration rate

1.87 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Population

82,071,765 (July 1997 est.)

Population growth rate

0% (1997 est.)

Religions

Protestant 38%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 1.7%, unaffiliated or other 26.3%

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: 0.58 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (1997 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.24 children born/woman (1997 est.)

Disputes - international

none

Illicit drugs

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

Airports

613 (1996 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total : 544 over 3,047 m: 13 2,438 to 3,047 m: 63 1,524 to 2,437 m: 69 914 to 1,523 m: 51 under 914 m: 348 (1996 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total : 69 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m : 55 (1996 est.)

Heliports

65 (1996 est.)

Highways

total: 639,800 km paved: 504,800 km (including 11,013 km of expressways) unpaved : 135,000 km all-weather, graveled (1993 est.)

Merchant marine

total : 450 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,402,437 GRT/6,649,382 DWT ships by type: cargo 184, chemical tanker 15, combination bulk 3, combination ore/oil 1, container 195, liquefied gas tanker 8, multifunction large-load carrier 6, oil tanker 12, passenger 4, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 4, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8, short-sea passenger 8 (1996 est.) note : includes ships from the former East Germany and West Germany

Pipelines

crude oil 3,644 km; petroleum products 3,946 km; natural gas 97,564 km (1988)

Ports and harbors

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

Railways

total: 43,966 km standard gauge : 43,531 km 1.435-m; 40,355 km are owned by Deutsche Bahn AG (DB); 17,015 km of the DB system are electrified and 16,941 km are double- or more-tracked narrow gauge: 389 km 1.000-m gauge (DB operates 146 km of 1.000-m gauge); 7 km 0.900-m gauge; 39 km 0.750-m gauge note : in addition to the DB system there are 54 privately-owned industrial or excursion railways, ranging in route length from 2 km to 632 km, with a total length of 3,465 km (1995)

Waterways

western - 5,222 km, of which almost 70% are usable by craft of 1,000-metric-ton capacity or larger; major rivers include the Rhine and Elbe; Kiel Canal is an important connection between the Baltic Sea and North Sea; eastern - 2,319 km (1988)