The Government of Italy
Overview
- Capital: Rome
- Administrative regions: 20 regions (5 with special autonomous status)
- Government & legal system: Parliamentary republic; civil law system. (government site)
- Head of state / government: Sergio Mattarella, President (ceremonial); Giorgia Meloni, Prime Minister (head of government) (official page)
- Official language(s): Italian (official); German, French, Slovenian, and Ladin co-official regionally
- National Day: June 2 (Festa della Repubblica, Republic Day, 1946)
- Independence: March 17, 1861 (Unification of Italy) — not a colonial-independence case
- Other official holidays: Liberation Day (Apr 25), Ferragosto (Aug 15)
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (official site)
- Regional / international memberships: United Nations/ UN, European Union/ EU, North Atlantic Treaty Organization/ NATO, G7, G20, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development/ OECD, Council of Europe
- Visa / entry requirements: Schengen visa rules apply for non-EU/EEA visitors. (visa info)
- Currency: Euro (EUR, shared currency) — Italy’s euro coins carry national designs (the Vitruvian Man, the Colosseum, the Birth of Venus); banknotes use common EU designs rather than country-specific imagery.
- Flag symbolism: Vertical green-white-red tricolor (Il Tricolore) — green represents the country’s plains and hills (and hope), white represents the snow-capped Alps (and faith), red represents the blood shed in the wars of independence (and charity).
