Italy is a unitary parliamentary republic in south-central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia along the Alps. To the south it consists of the entirety of the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Sardinia – the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea – and many other smaller islands.

In the early 20th century it was a Fascist nation, although since their loss in World War 2 they have adopted democracy.

Italy has historically always had a very strong economy. In modern times it remains the seventh largest economy in the world and the fourth largest in Europe. It has high levels of freedom for investment and business which attracts foreign companies. The unemployment rate is 8.5% - one of the lowest in the EU. Recent years have seen growth below that of the EU average however, and their debt to GDP ratio is the second highest in Europe sitting just behind Greece.

There are currently 61 million people living in Italy with a fairly high population density. Emigration away from Italy is high, with sizable Italian populations being found in the USA, Libya, Somalia, Brazil and Argentina. Christianity is the dominant religion at 92% with atheism at 6%.