Greece

Country Summary

2022 population pyramid

Introduction

Background

Greece achieved independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1830 and became a kingdom. In 1974, it became a parliamentary republic and abolished the monarchy. In 1981, Greece joined the EU.

Geography

Area

total: 131,957 sq km

land: 130,647 sq km

water: 1,310 sq km

Climate

temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers

Natural resources

lignite, petroleum, iron ore, bauxite, lead, zinc, nickel, magnesite, marble, salt, hydropower potential

People and Society

Population

10,533,871 (2022 est.)

Ethnic groups

Greek 91.6%, Albanian 4.4%, other 4% (2011 est.)

Languages

Greek (official) 99%, other (includes English and French) 1%

Religions

Greek Orthodox 81-90%, Muslim 2%, other 3%, none 4-15%, unspecified 1% (2015 est.)

Population growth rate

-0.34% (2022 est.)

Government

Government type

parliamentary republic

Capital

name: Athens

Executive branch

chief of state: President Ekaterini SAKELLAROPOULOU (since 13 March 2020)

head of government: Prime Minister Kyriakos MITSOTAKIS (since 8 July 2019)

Legislative branch

description: unicameral Hellenic Parliament or Vouli ton Ellinon (300 seats; 280 members in multi-seat constituencies and 12 members in a single nationwide constituency directly elected by open party-list proportional representation vote; 8 members in single-seat constituencies elected by simple majority vote; members serve up to 4 years);  note - only parties surpassing a 3% threshold are entitled to parliamentary seats; parties need 10 seats to become formal parliamentary groups but can retain that status if the party participated in the last election and received the minimum 3% threshold

Economy

Economic overview

tourism- and shipping-based EU economy; clientelism economic culture and systemic corruption; new structural reforms for fiscal solvency; high public debts and unemployment; increasing Chinese port control; oil and gas disputes with Turkey

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

$292.4 billion (2020 est.)

Real GDP per capita

$27,300 (2020 est.)

Agricultural products

maize, olives, wheat, milk, peaches/nectarines, oranges, tomatoes, grapes, milk, potatoes

Industries

tourism, food and tobacco processing, textiles, chemicals, metal products; mining, petroleum

Exports

$59.02 billion (2020 est.)

Exports - partners

Italy 10%, Germany 7%, Turkey 5%, Cyprus 5%, Bulgaria 5% (2019)

Exports - commodities

refined petroleum, packaged medicines, aluminum plating, computers, cotton (2019)

Imports

$71.76 billion (2020 est.)

Imports - partners

Germany 11%, China 9%, Italy 8%, Iraq 7%, Russia 6%, Netherlands 5% (2019)

Imports - commodities

crude petroleum, refined petroleum, packaged medicines, cars, ships (2019)

Exchange rates

euros (EUR) per US dollar -


Page last updated: Monday, July 18, 2022