17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870)
Religions
Roman Catholic (infused with indigenous beliefs), Protestant (mostly Church of the Nazarene)
Roman Catholic 90% (approximately; about one-third practicing), other 10% (includes mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community)
Languages
Portuguese, Crioulo (a blend of Portuguese and West African words)
Italian (official), German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area)
Exports
fuel, shoes, garments, fish, hides
engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals, and nonferrous metals
External Debt
$657,700,000 $
$2,684,000,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
Cape Verdean escudos (CVE) per US dollar - 73.84 (2008 est.), 81.235 (2007), 87.946 (2006), 88.67 (2005), 88.808 (2004)
euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.6689 (2008 est.), 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
0.500%
1.800%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
0
28
Location
Western Africa, group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Senegal
Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia
Area
4,033 km sq
301,340 km sq
Coastline
965 km
7,600 km
Climate
temperate; warm, dry summer; precipitation meager and very erratic
predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south
