Country:  Vatican City
- Geography
Total area: 0.438 km2; land area: 0.438 km2
 
Comparative area: about 0.7 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
 
Land boundary: 3.2 km with Italy
 
Coastline: none--landlocked
 
Maritime claims: none--landlocked
 
Climate: temperate; mild, rainy winters (September to mid-May) with
hot, dry summers (May to September)
 
Terrain: low hill
 
Natural resources: none
 
Land use: 0% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 0% meadows and pastures; 0%
forest and woodland; 100% other
 
Environment: urban
 
Note: landlocked; enclave of Rome, Italy; world's smallest state;
outside the Vatican City, 13 buildings in Rome and Castel Gandolfo
(the pope's summer residence) enjoy extraterritorial rights
 
- People
Population: 774 (July 1990), growth rate 0.5% (1990)
 
Nationality: no noun or adjectival forms
 
Ethnic divisions: primarily Italians but also many other nationalities
 
Religion: Roman Catholic
 
Language: Italian, Latin, and various other languages
 
Literacy: 100%
 
Labor force: about 1,500; Vatican City employees divided into three
categories--executives, office workers, and salaried employees
 
Organized labor: Association of Vatican Lay Workers, 1,800 members (1987)
 
- Government
Long-form name: State of the Vatican City; note--the Vatican City is the
physical seat of the Holy See which is the central government of the Roman
Catholic Church
 
Type: monarchical-sacerdotal state
 
Capital: Vatican City
 
Independence: 11 February 1929 (from Italy)
 
Constitution: Apostolic Constitution of 1967 (effective 1 March 1968)
 
National holiday: Installation Day of the Pope (John Paul II),
22 October (1978); note--Pope John Paul II was elected on 16 October 1978
 
Executive branch: pope
 
Legislative branch: unicameral Pontifical Commission
 
Judicial branch: none; normally handled by Italy
 
Leaders:
Chief of State and Head of Government--Pope JOHN PAUL II (Karol
WOJTYLA; since 16 October 1978)
 
Political parties and leaders: none
 
Suffrage: limited to cardinals less than 80 years old
 
Elections:
Pope--last held 16 October 1978 (next to be held after the death of
the current pope);
results--Karol Wojtyla was elected for life by the College of Cardinals
 
Communists: NA
 
Other political or pressure groups: none (exclusive of influence
exercised by church officers)
 
Member: IAEA, INTELSAT, ITU, IWC--International Wheat Council, UPU,
WIPO, WTO; permanent observer status at FAO, OAS, UN, and UNESCO
 
Diplomatic representation: Apostolic Pro-Nuncio Archbishop Pio LAGHI;
3339 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 333-7121;
US--Ambassador Thomas P. MELADY; Embassy at Villino Pacelli,
Via Aurelia 294, 00165 Rome (mailing address is APO New York 09794);
telephone p396o 639-0558
 
Flag: two vertical bands of yellow (hoist side) and white with the crossed
keys of St. Peter and the papal tiara centered in the white band
 
- Economy
Overview: The economy is supported financially by contributions (known as
Peter's pence) from Roman Catholics throughout the world, the sale of postage
stamps, tourist mementos, fees for admission to museums, and the sale of
publications.
 
Budget: revenues $57 million; expenditures $113.7 million, including
capital expenditures of $NA (1986)
 
Electricity: 5,000 kW standby capacity (1989); power supplied by Italy
 
Industries: printing and production of a small amount of mosaics and
staff uniforms; worldwide banking and financial activities
 
Currency: Vatican lira (plural--lire);
1 Vatican lira (VLit) = 100 centesimi
 
Exchange rates: Vatican lire (VLit) per US$1--1,262.5 (January 1990),
1,372.1 (1989), 1,301.6 (1988), 1,296.1 (1987), 1,490.8 (1986), 1,909.4 (1985);
note--the Vatican lira is at par with the Italian lira which circulates freely
 
Fiscal year: calendar year
 
- Communications
Railroads: 850 m, 750 mm gauge (links with Italian network near the Rome
station of St. Peter's)
 
Highways: none; all city streets
 
Telecommunications: stations--3 AM, 4 FM, no TV; 2,000-line automatic
telephone exchange; no communications satellite systems
 
- Defense Forces
Note: defense is the responsibility of Italy; Swiss Papal Guards are
posted at entrances to the Vatican City