Military: This category includes the entries dealing with a country's military structure, manpower, and expenditures.
Military branches: This entry lists the names of the ground, naval, air, marine, and other defense or security forces.
Military expenditures - dollar figure: This entry gives current military expenditures in US dollars; the figure is calculated by multiplying the estimated defense spending in percentage terms by the gross domestic product (GDP) calculated on an exchange rate basis not purchasing power parity (PPP) terms. However, in the case of Russia, estimates of military expenditures have been made using PPP. Dollar figures for military expenditures should be treated with caution because of different price patterns and accounting methods among nations, as well as wide variations in the strength of their currencies.
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: This entry gives current military expenditures as an estimated percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
Military manpower - availability: This entry gives the total numbers of males and females age 15-49 and assumes that every individual is fit to serve.
Military manpower - fit for military service: This entry gives the number of males and females age 15-49 fit for military service. This is a more refined measure of potential military manpower availability which tries to correct for the health situation in the country and reduces the maximum potential number to a more realistic estimate of the actual number fit to serve.
Military manpower - military age: This entry gives the minimum age at which an individual may volunteer for military service or be subject to conscription.
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: This entry gives the number of draft-age males and females entering the military manpower pool in any given year and is a measure of the availability of draft-age young adults.
Military - note: This entry includes miscellaneous military information of significance not included elsewhere.
Money figures: All money figures are expressed in contemporaneous US dollars unless otherwise indicated.
National holiday: This entry gives the primary national day of celebration - usually independence day.
Nationality: This entry provides the identifying terms for citizens - noun and adjective.
Natural hazards: This entry lists potential natural disasters.
Natural resources: This entry lists a country's mineral, petroleum, hydropower, and other resources of commercial importance.
Net migration rate: This entry includes the figure for the difference between the number of persons entering and leaving a country during the year per 1,000 persons (based on midyear population). An excess of persons entering the country is referred to as net immigration (e.g., 3.56 migrants/1,000 population); an excess of persons leaving the country as net emigration (e.g., -9.26 migrants/1,000 population). The net migration rate indicates the contribution of migration to the overall level of population change. High levels of migration can cause problems such as increasing unemployment and potential ethnic strife (if people are coming in) or a reduction in the labor force, perhaps in certain key sectors (if people are leaving).
People: This category includes the entries dealing with the characteristics of the people and their society.
People - note: This entry includes miscellaneous demographic information of significance not included elsewhere.
Personal Names - Capitalization: The Factbook capitalizes the surname or family name of individuals for the convenience of our users who are faced with a world of different cultures and naming conventions. An example would be President SADDAM Husayn of Iraq. Saddam is his name and Husayn is his father's name. He may be referred to as President SADDAM Husayn or President SADDAM, but not President Husayn. The need for capitalization, bold type, underlining, italics, or some other indicator of the individual's surname is apparent in the following examples: MAO Zedong, Fidel CASTRO Ruz, William Jefferson CLINTON, and TUNKU SALAHUDDIN Abdul Aziz Shah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Hisammuddin Alam Shah. By knowing the surname, a short form without all capital letters can be used with confidence as in President Saddam, President Castro, Chairman Mao, President Clinton, or Sultan Tunku Salahuddin. The same system of capitalization is extended to the names of leaders with surnames that are not commonly used such as Queen ELIZABETH II.
Personal Names - Spelling: The romanization of personal names in the Factbook normally follows the same transliteration system used by the US Board on Geographic Names for spelling place names. At times, however, a foreign leader expressly indicates a preference for, or the media or official documents regularly use, a romanized spelling that differs from the transliteration derived from the US Government standard. In such cases, the Factbook uses the alternative spelling.
Personal Names - Titles: The Factbook capitalizes any valid title (or short form of it) immediately preceding a person's name. A title standing alone is lowercased. Examples: President PUTIN and President CLINTON are chiefs of state. In Russia, the president is chief of state and the premier is the head of the government, while in the US, the president is both chief of state and head of government.
Pipelines: This entry gives the lengths and types of pipelines for transporting products like natural gas, crude oil, or petroleum products.
Political parties and leaders: This entry includes a listing of significant political organizations and their leaders.
Political pressure groups and leaders: This entry includes a listing of organizations with leaders involved in politics, but not standing for legislative election.
Population: This entry gives an estimate from the US Bureau of the Census based on statistics from population censuses, vital statistics registration systems, or sample surveys pertaining to the recent past and on assumptions about future trends. The total population presents one overall measure of the potential impact of the country on the world and within its region. Note: starting with the 1993 Factbook, demographic estimates for some countries (mostly African) have explicitly taken into account the effects of the growing impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. These countries are currently: The Bahamas, Benin, Botswana, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Population below poverty line: National estimates of the percentage of the population lying below the poverty line are based on surveys of sub-groups, with the results weighted by the number of people in each group. Definitions of poverty vary considerably among nations. For example, rich nations generally employ more generous standards of poverty than poor nations.
Population growth rate: The average annual percent change in the population, resulting from a surplus (or deficit) of births over deaths and the balance of migrants entering and leaving a country. The rate may be positive or negative. The growth rate is a factor in determining how great a burden would be imposed on a country by the changing needs of its people for infrastructure (e.g., schools, hospitals, housing, roads), resources (e.g., food, water, electricity), and jobs. Rapid population growth can be seen as threatening by neighboring countries.
Ports and harbors: This entry lists the major ports and harbors selected on the basis of overall importance to each country. This is determined by evaluating a number of factors (e.g., dollar value of goods handled, gross tonnage, facilities, military significance).
Radio broadcast stations: This entry includes the total number of AM,FM, and shortwave broadcast stations.
Radios: This entry gives the total number of radio receivers.
Railways: This entry includes the total route length of the railway network and component parts by gauge: broad, dual, narrow, standard, and other.
Reference maps: This section includes world, regional, and special or current interest maps.
Religions: This entry includes a rank ordering of religions by adherents starting with the largest group and sometimes includes the percent of total population.
Sex ratio: This entry includes the number of males for each female in five age groups - at birth, under 15 years, 15-64 years, 65 years and over, and for the total population. Sex ratio at birth has recently emerged as an indicator of certain kinds of sex discrimination in some countries. For instance, high sex ratios at birth in some Asian countries are now attributed to sex-selective abortion and infanticide due to a strong preference for sons. This will affect future marriage patterns and fertility patterns. Eventually it could cause unrest among young adult males who are unable to find partners.
Suffrage: This entry gives the age at enfranchisement and whether the right to vote is universal or restricted.
Telephone numbers: All telephone numbers in the Factbook consist of the country code in brackets, the city or area code (where required) in parentheses, and the local number. The one component that is not presented is the international access code, which varies from country to country. For example, an international direct dial telephone call placed from the US to Madrid, Spain, would be as follows:
011 [34] (1) 577-xxxx, where
011 is the international access code for station-to-station calls
(01 is for calls other than station-to-station calls),
[34] is the country code for Spain,
(1) is the city code for Madrid,
577 is the local exchange, and
xxxx is the local telephone number.
An international direct dial telephone call placed from another country to the US would be as follows:
international access code + [1] (202) 939-xxxx, where
[1] is the country code for the US,
(202) is the area code for Washington, DC,
939 is the local exchange, and
xxxx is the local telephone number.
Telephone system: This entry includes a brief characterization of the system with details on the domestic and international components. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry:
Africa ONE - a fiber-optic submarine cable link encircling the continent of Africa.
Arabsat - Arab Satellite Communications Organization (Riyadh, SaudiArabia).
Autodin - Automatic Digital Network (US Department of Defense).
CB - citizen's band mobile radio communications.
cellular telephone system - the telephones in this system are radio transceivers, with each instrument having its own private radio frequency and sufficient radiated power to reach the booster station in its area (cell), from which the telephone signal is fed to a regular telephone exchange.
Central American Microwave System - a trunk microwave radio relay system that links the countries of Central America and Mexico with each other.
coaxial cable - a multichannel communication cable consisting of a central conducting wire, surrounded by and insulated from a cylindrical conducting shell; a large number of telephone channels can be made available within the insulated space by the use of a large number of carrier frequencies.
Comsat - Communications Satellite Corporation (US).
DSN - Defense Switched Network (formerly Automatic Voice Network orAutovon); basic general-purpose, switched voice network of the DefenseCommunications System (US Department of Defense).
Eutelsat - European Telecommunications Satellite Organization (Paris).
fiber-optic cable - a multichannel communications cable using a thread of optical glass fibers as a transmission medium in which the signal (voice, video, etc.) is in the form of a coded pulse of light.
GSM - a global system for mobile (cellular) communications devised by the Groupe Special Mobile of the pan-European standardization organization, Conference Europeanne des Posts et Telecommunications (CEPT) in 1982.
HF - high-frequency; any radio frequency in the 3,000- to 30,000-kHz range.
Inmarsat - International Mobile Satellite Organization (London); provider of global mobile satellite communications for commercial, distress, and safety applications at sea, in the air, and on land.
Intelsat - International Telecommunications Satellite Organization(Washington, DC).
Intersputnik - International Organization of Space Communications(Moscow); first established in the former Soviet Union and the EastEuropean countries, it is now marketing its services worldwide withearth stations in North America, Africa, and East Asia.
landline - communication wire or cable of any sort that is installed on poles or buried in the ground.
Marecs - Maritime European Communications Satellite used in theInmarsat system on lease from the European Space Agency.
Marisat - satellites of the Comsat Corporation that participate in theInmarsat system.
Medarabtel - the Middle East Telecommunications Project of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) providing a modern telecommunications network, primarily by microwave radio relay, linking Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen; it was initially started in Morocco in 1970 by the Arab Telecommunications Union (ATU) and was known at that time as the Middle East Mediterranean Telecommunications Network.
microwave radio relay - transmission of long distance telephone calls and television programs by highly directional radio microwaves that are received and sent on from one booster station to another on an optical path.
NMT - Nordic Mobile Telephone; an analog cellular telephone system that was developed jointly by the national telecommunications authorities of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden).
Orbita - a Russian television service; also the trade name of a packet-switched digital telephone network.
radiotelephone communications - the two-way transmission and reception of sounds by broadcast radio on authorized frequencies using telephone handsets.
PanAmSat - PanAmSat Corporation (Greenwich, CT).
satellite communication system - a communication system consisting of two or more earth stations and at least one satellite that provides long distance transmission of voice, data, and television; the system usually serves as a trunk connection between telephone exchanges; if the earth stations are in the same country, it is a domestic system.
satellite earth station - a communications facility with a microwave radio transmitting and receiving antenna and required receiving and transmitting equipment for communicating with satellites.
satellite link - a radio connection between a satellite and an earth station permitting communication between them, either one-way (down link from satellite to earth station - television receive-only transmission) or two-way (telephone channels).
SHF - super-high-frequency; any radio frequency in the 3,000- to 30,000-MHz range.
shortwave - radio frequencies (from 1.605 to 30 MHz) that fall above the commercial broadcast band and are used for communication over long distances.
Solidaridad - geosynchronous satellites in Mexico's system of international telecommunications in the Western Hemisphere.
Statsionar - Russia's geostationary system for satellite telecommunications.
submarine cable - a cable designed for service under water.
TAT - Trans-Atlantic Telephone; any of a number of high-capacity submarine coaxial telephone cables linking Europe with North America.
telefax - facsimile service between subscriber stations via the public switched telephone network or the international Datel network.
telegraph - a telecommunications system designed for unmodulated electric impulse transmission.
telex - a communication service involving teletypewriters connected by wire through automatic exchanges.
tropospheric scatter - a form of microwave radio transmission in which the troposphere is used to scatter and reflect a fraction of the incident radio waves back to earth; powerful, highly directional antennas are used to transmit and receive the microwave signals; reliable over-the-horizon communications are realized for distances up to 600 miles in a single hop; additional hops can extend the range of this system for very long distances.
trunk network - a network of switching centers, connected by multichannel trunk lines.
UHF - ultra-high-frequency; any radio frequency in the 300- to 3,000-MHz range.
VHF - very-high-frequency; any radio frequency in the 30- to 300-MHz range.
Telephones - main lines in use: This entry gives the total number of main telephone lines in use.
Telephones - mobile cellular: This entry gives the total number of mobile cellular telephones in use.
Television - broadcast stations: This entry gives the total number of separate broadcast stations plus any repeater stations.
Televisions: This entry gives the total number of television sets.
Terminology: Due to the highly structured nature of the Factbook database, some collective generic terms have to be used. For example, the word Country in the Country name entry refers to a wide variety of dependencies, areas of special sovereignty, uninhabited islands, and other entities in addition to the traditional countries or independent states. Military is also used as an umbrella term for various civil defense, security, and defense activities in many entries. The Independence entry includes the usual colonial independence dates and former ruling states as well as other significant nationhood dates such as the traditional founding date or the date of unification, federation, confederation, establishment, or state succession that are not strictly independence dates. Dependent areas have the nature of their dependency status noted in this same entry.
Terrain: This entry contains a brief description of the topography.
Total fertility rate: This entry gives a figure for the average number of children that would be born per woman if all women lived to the end of their childbearing years and bore children according to a given fertility rate at each age. The total fertility rate is a more direct measure of the level of fertility than the crude birth rate, since it refers to births per woman. This indicator shows the potential for population growth in the country. High rates will also place some limits on the labor force participation rates for women. Large numbers of children born to women indicate large family sizes that might limit the ability of the families to feed and educate their children.
Transnational Issues: This category includes only two entries at the present time - Disputes - international and Illicit drugs - that deal with current issues going beyond national boundaries.
Transportation: This category includes the entries dealing with the means for movement of people and goods.
Transportation - note: This entry includes miscellaneous transportation information of significance not included elsewhere.
Unemployment rate: This entry contains the percent of the labor force that is without jobs. Substantial underemployment might be noted.
United Nations System: This information is presented in [9]Appendix B: United Nations System as a chart, table, or text (depending on the version of the Factbook) that shows the organization of the UN in detail.
Waterways: This entry gives the total length and individual names of navigable rivers, canals, and other inland bodies of water.
Weights and measures: This information is presented in [10]Appendix E: Weights and Measures and includes mathematical notations (mathematical powers and names), metric interrelationships (prefix; symbol; length, weight, or capacity; area; volume), and standard conversion factors.
Years: All year references are for the calendar year (CY) unless indicated as fiscal year (FY). The calendar year is an accounting period of 12 months from 1 January to 31 December. The fiscal year is an accounting period of 12 months other than 1 January to 31 December.
Note: Information for the US and US dependencies was compiled from material in the public domain and does not represent Intelligence Community estimates.
______________________________________________________________________
@Appendix A: Abbreviations
ABEDA Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa
ACC Arab Cooperation Council
ACCT Agence de Cooperation Culturelle et Technique; see Agency for Cultural and Technical Cooperation; changed name in 1996 to Agence de la francophonie or Agency for the French-Speaking Community
ACP Group African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States
AfDB African Development Bank
AFESD Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development
AG Andean Group; see Andean Community of Nations (CAN)
Air Pollution Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution
Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides Protocol to the 1979 Convention onLong-Range Transboundary Air Pollution Concerning the Control ofEmissions of Nitrogen Oxides or Control of Emissions of NitrogenOxides or Their Transboundary Fluxes
Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants Protocol to the 1979Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution on PersistentOrganic Pollutants
Air Pollution-Sulphur 85 Protocol to the 1979 Convention on Long-RangeTransboundary Air Pollution on the Reduction of Sulphur Emissions orTheir Transboundary Fluxes by at Least 30%
Air Pollution-Sulphur 94 Protocol to the 1979 Convention on Long-RangeTransboundary Air Pollution on Further Reduction of Sulphur Emissions
Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds Protocol to the 1979Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution Concerning theControl of Emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds or TheirTransboundary Fluxes
AL Arab League
ALADI Asociacion Latinoamericana de Integracion; see Latin AmericanIntegration Association (LAIA)
AMF Arab Monetary Fund
AMU Arab Maghreb Union
Ancom Andean Common Market; see Andean Community of Nations (CAN)
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty
ANZUS Australia-New Zealand-United States Security Treaty
APEC Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
Arabsat Arab Satellite Communications Organization
AsDB Asian Development Bank
ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations
Autodin Automatic Digital Network
BAD Banque Africaine de Developpement; see African Development Bank(AfDB)
BADEA Banque Arabe de Developpement Economique en Afrique; see Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (ABEDA)
BCIE Banco Centroamericano de Integracion Economico; see Central American Bank for Economic Integration (BCIE)
BDEAC Banque de Developpment des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale; see Central African States Development Bank (BDEAC)
Benelux Benelux Economic Union
BID Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo; see Inter-American Development Bank (IADB)
Biodiversity Convention on Biological Diversity
BIS Bank for International Settlements
BOAD Banque Ouest-Africaine de Developpement; see West AfricanDevelopment Bank (WADB)
BSEC Black Sea Economic Cooperation Zone
C Commonwealth
CACM Central American Common Market
CAEU Council of Arab Economic Unity
CAN Andean Community of Nations
Caricom Caribbean Community and Common Market
CB citizen's band mobile radio communications
CBSS Council of the Baltic Sea States
CCC Customs Cooperation Council
CDB Caribbean Development Bank
CE Council of Europe
CEAO Communaute Economique de l'Afrique de l'Ouest; see West AfricanEconomic Community (CEAO)
CEEAC Communaute Economique des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale; see Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC)
CEI Central European Initiative
CEMA Council for Mutual Economic Assistance; also known as CMEA orComecon
CEPGL Communaute Economique des Pays des Grands Lacs; see Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries (CEPGL)
CERN Conseil Europeenne pour la Recherche Nucleaire; see European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)
CG Contadora Group
c.i.f. cost, insurance, and freight
CIS Commonwealth of Independent States
CITES see Endangered Species
Climate Change United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Kyoto Protocol to the United NationsFramework Convention on Climate Change
CMEA Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CEMA); also known asComecon
COCOM Coordinating Committee on Export Controls
Comecon Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CEMA); also known asCMEA
Comsat Communications Satellite Corporation
CP Colombo Plan
CSCE Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe; see Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
CY calendar year
DC developed country
Desertification United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification inThose Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification,Particularly in Africa
DSN Defense Switched Network
DWT deadweight ton
EADB East African Development Bank
EAPC Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council
EBRD European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
EC European Community; see European Union (EU)
ECA Economic Commission for Africa
ECAFE Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East; see Economic andSocial Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
ECE Economic Commission for Europe
ECLA Economic Commission for Latin America; see Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)
ECLAC Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
ECO Economic Cooperation Organization
ECOSOC Economic and Social Council
ECOWAS Economic Community of West African States
ECS European Coal and Steel Community; see European Union (EU)
ECWA Economic Commission for Western Asia; see Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA)
EEC European Economic Community; see European Union (EU)
EFTA European Free Trade Association
EIB European Investment Bank
EMU European Monetary Union
Endangered Species Convention on the International Trade in EndangeredSpecies of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES)
Entente Council of the Entente
Environmental Modification Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques
ESA European Space Agency
ESCAP Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
ESCWA Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia
est. estimate
EU European Union
Euratom European Atomic Energy Community; see European Community (EC)
Eutelsat European Telecommunications Satellite Organization
Ex-Im Export-Import Bank of the United States
FAO Food and Agriculture Organization
FAX facsimile
f.o.b. free on board
FLS Front Line States
FRG Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany); used for information dated before 3 October 1990 or CY91
FSU former Soviet Union
FY fiscal year
FYROM The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
FZ Franc Zone
G-2 Group of 2
G-3 Group of 3
G-5 Group of 5
G-6 Group of 6 (not to be confused with the Big Six)
G-7 Group of 7
G-8 Group of 8
G-9 Group of 9
G-10 Group of 10
G-11 Group of 11
G-15 Group of 15
G-19 Group of 19
G-24 Group of 24
G-30 Group of 30
G-33 Group of 33
G-77 Group of 77
GATT General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade; subsumed by the World Trade Organization (WTrO) on 1 January 1995
GCC Gulf Cooperation Council
GDP gross domestic product
GDR German Democratic Republic (East Germany); used for information dated before 3 October 1990 or CY91
GNP gross national product
GRT gross register ton
GWP gross world product
Hazardous Wastes Basel Convention on the Control of TransboundaryMovements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal
HF high-frequency
IADB Inter-American Development Bank
IAEA International Atomic Energy Agency
IBEC International Bank for Economic Cooperation
IBRD International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (WorldBank)
ICAO International Civil Aviation Organization
ICC International Chamber of Commerce
ICEM Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration; see International Organization for Migration (IOM)
ICFTU International Confederation of Free Trade Unions; see WorldConfederation of Labor (WCL)
ICJ International Court of Justice (World Court)
ICM Intergovernmental Committee for Migration; see InternationalOrganization for Migration (IOM)
ICRC International Committee of the Red Cross
ICRM International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
IDA International Development Association
IDB Islamic Development Bank
IEA International Energy Agency
IFAD International Fund for Agricultural Development
IFC International Finance Corporation
IFCTU International Federation of Christian Trade Unions
IFRCS International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
IGAD Inter-Governmental Authority on Development
IGADD Inter-Governmental Authority on Drought and Development
IHO International Hydrographic Organization
IIB International Investment Bank
ILO International Labor Organization
IMCO Intergovernmental Maritime Consultative Organization; seeInternational Maritime Organization (IMO)
IMF International Monetary Fund
IMO International Maritime Organization
Inmarsat International Mobile Satellite Organization
InOC Indian Ocean Commission
Intelsat International Telecommunications Satellite Organization
Interpol International Criminal Police Organization
Intersputnik International Organization of Space Communications
IOC International Olympic Committee
IOM International Organization for Migration
ISO International Organization for Standardization
ITU International Telecommunication Union
kHz kilohertz
km kilometer
kW kilowatt
kWh kilowatt hour
LAES Latin American Economic System
LAIA Latin American Integration Association
LAS League of Arab States; see Arab League (AL)
Law of the Sea United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOS)
LDC less developed country
LLDC least developed country
London Convention see Marine Dumping
LORCS League of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies; see International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCS)
LOS see Law of the Sea
m meter
Marecs Maritime European Communications Satellite
Marine Dumping Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping Wastes and Other Matter
Marine Life Conservation Convention on Fishing and Conservation ofLiving Resources of theHigh Seas
MARPOL see Ship Pollution
Medarabtel Middle East Telecommunications Project of the InternationalTelecommunications Union
Mercosur Mercado Comun del Cono Sur; see Southern Cone Common Market
MHz megahertz
MINURSO United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara
MINUGUA United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala
MIPONUH United Nations Civilian Police Mission in Haiti
MONUA United Nations Observer Mission in Angola
MONUC United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
NA not available
NACC North Atlantic Cooperation Council; see Euro-Atlantic PartnershipCouncil (EAPC)
NAM Nonaligned Movement
NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization
NC Nordic Council
NEA Nuclear Energy Agency
NEGL negligible
NIB Nordic Investment Bank
NIC newly industrializing country; see newly industrializing economy(NIE)
NIE newly industrializing economy
nm nautical mile
NMT Nordic Mobile Telephone
NSG Nuclear Suppliers Group
Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapons Tests in theAtmosphere, in Outer Space, and Under Water
NZ New Zealand
OAPEC Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries
OAS Organization of American States
OAU Organization of African Unity
ODA official development assistance
OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
OECS Organization of Eastern Caribbean States
OIC Organization of the Islamic Conference
ONUSAL United Nations Observer Mission in El Salvador
OOF other official flows
OPANAL Organismo para la Proscripcion de las Armas Nucleares en la America Latina y el Caribe; see Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean
OPCW Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
OPEC Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
OSCE Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
Ozone Layer Protection Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer
PCA Permanent Court of Arbitration
PDRY People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen]; used for information dated before 22 May 1990 or CY91
PFP Partnership for Peace
Ramsar see Wetlands
RG Rio Group
SAARC South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation
SACU Southern African Customs Union
SADC Southern African Development Community
SADCC Southern African Development Coordination Conference; see Southern African Development Community (SADC)
SELA Sistema Economico Latinoamericana; see Latin American EconomicSystem (LAES)
SFRY Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia; dissolved 5 December 1991
SHF super-high-frequency
Ship Pollution Protocol of 1978 Relating to the InternationalConvention for the Prevention of Pollution From Ships, 1973 (MARPOL)
Sparteca South Pacific Regional Trade and Economic CooperationAgreement
SPC South Pacific Commission
SPF South Pacific Forum
sq km square kilometer
sq mi square mile
TAT Trans-Atlantic Telephone
Tropical Timber 83 International Tropical Timber Agreement, 1983
Tropical Timber 94 International Tropical Timber Agreement, 1994
UAE United Arab Emirates
UDEAC Union Douaniere et Economique de l'Afrique Centrale; see Central African Customs and Economic Union (UDEAC)
UEMOA Union Economique et Monetaire Ouest Africaine; see West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU)
UHF ultra-high-frequency
UK United Kingdom
UN United Nations
UNAMIR United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda
UNAMSIL United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone
UNAVEM III United Nations Angola Verification Mission III
UNCRO United Nations Confidence Restoration Operation in Croatia
UNCTAD United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
UNDOF United Nations Disengagement Observer Force
UNDP United Nations Development Program
UNEP United Nations Environment Program
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific, and CulturalOrganization
UNFICYP United Nations Peace-keeping Force in Cyprus
UNFPA United Nations Fund for Population Activities; see UN PopulationFund (UNFPA)
UNHCR United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
UNICEF United Nations Children's Fund
UNIDO United Nations Industrial Development Organization
UNIFIL United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
UNIKOM United Nations Iraq-Kuwait Observation Mission
UNITAR United Nations Institute for Training and Research
UNMIH United Nations Mission in Haiti
UNMIBH United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina
UNMIK United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo
UNMOGIP United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan
UNMOP United Nations Mission of Observers in Prevlaka
UNMOT United Nations Mission of Observers in Tajikistan
UNMOVIC United Nations Monitoring and Verification Commission
UNOMIG United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia
UNOMIL United Nations Observer Mission in Liberia
UNOMOZ United Nations Operation in Mozambique
UNOMSIL United Nations Mission of Observers in Sierra Leone
UNOMUR United Nations Observer Mission Uganda-Rwanda
UNOSOM II United Nations Operation in Somalia II
UNPREDEP United Nations Preventive Deployment Force
UNPROFOR United Nations Protection Force
UNRISD United Nations Research Institute for Social Development
UNRWA United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East
UNSCOM United Nations Special Commission for the Elimination of Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction; see United Nations Monitoring and Verification Commission (UNMOVIC)
UNSMIH United Nations Support Mission in Haiti
UNTAC United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia
UNTAES United Nations Transitional Administration in Eastern Slavonia,Baranja, and Western Sirmium
UNTAET United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor
UNTSO United Nations Truce Supervision Organization
UNU United Nations University
UPU Universal Postal Union
US United States
USSR Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Soviet Union); used for information dated before 25 December 1991
USSR/EE Union of Soviet Socialist Republics/Eastern Europe
VHF very-high-frequency
VSAT very small aperture terminal
WADB West African Development Bank
WAEMU West African Economic and Monetary Union
WCL World Confederation of Labor
WCO World Customs Organization; see Customs Cooperation Council
Wetlands Convention on Wetlands of International Importance EspeciallyAs Waterfowl Habitat
WEU Western European Union
WFC World Food Council
WFP World Food Program
WFTU World Federation of Trade Unions
Whaling International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling
WHO World Health Organization
WIPO World Intellectual Property Organization
WMO World Meteorological Organization
WP Warsaw Pact
WTO see WToO for World Tourism Organization or WTrO for World TradeOrganization
WToO World Tourism Organization
WTrO World Trade Organization
Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen]; used for information dated before 22 May 1990 or CY91
ZC Zangger Committee
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@Appendix B: United Nations System
[Appendix B of the 1998 CIA World Factbook is a graphic depiction of the structure of the United Nations. It is not included in the Project Gutenberg edition.]
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@Appendix C: International Organizations and Groups
advanced developing countries another term for those less developed countries (LDCs) with particularly rapid industrial development; see newly industrializing economies (NIEs) _________________________________________________________________
advanced economies a new term used by the International Monetary FUND (IMF) for the top group in its hierarchy of advanced economies, countries in transition, and developing countries; recently published IMF statistics include the following 28 advanced economies: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Luxembourg, Netherlands, NZ, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, UK, US; note - this group would presumably also cover the following seven smaller countries of Andorra, Bermuda, Faroe Islands, Holy See, Liechtenstein, Monaco, and San Marino which are included in the more comprehensive group of "developed countries" _________________________________________________________________
African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States (ACP Group) address - Avenue Georges Henri 451, B-1200 Brussels, Belgium telephone - [32] (2) 743 06 00 FAX - [32] (2) 735 55 73 established - 6 June 1975 aim - to manage their preferential economic and aid relationship with the EU members - (71) Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Zambia, Zimbabwe _________________________________________________________________
African Development Bank (AfDB) note - also known as Banque Africaine de Developpement (BAD) address - 01 BP 1387, Abidjan 01, Cote d'Ivoire telephone - [225] 20 44 44 FAX - [225] 21 77 53 established - 4 August 1963 aim - to promote economic and social development regional members - (53) Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe nonregional members - (25) Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Kuwait, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE, UK, US _________________________________________________________________
Agence de Cooperation Culturelle et Technique (ACCT) see Agency for the French-speaking Community (ACCT) _________________________________________________________________
Agence de la francophonie (ACCT) see Agency for the French-speaking Community (ACCT) _________________________________________________________________
Agency for Cultural and Technical Cooperation (ACCT) see Agency for the French-speaking Community (ACCT); acronym from Agence de Cooperation Culturelle et Technique _________________________________________________________________
Agency for the French-Speaking Community (ACCT) note - formerly Agency for Cultural and Technical Cooperation address - 13 Quai Andre-Citroen, F-75015 Paris, France telephone - [33] (1) 44 37 33 00 FAX - [33] (1) 45 79 14 98 established - 20 March 1970 name changed - 1996 aim - to promote cultural and technical cooperation among French-speaking countries members - (41) Belgium, Benin, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, France, Gabon, Guinea, Haiti, Laos, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Moldova, Monaco, Niger, Romania, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Switzerland, Togo, Tunisia, Vanuatu, Vietnam associate members - (5) Egypt, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, Morocco, Saint Lucia participating governments - (2) New Brunswick (Canada), Quebec (Canada) _________________________________________________________________
Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL) note - acronym from Organismo para la Proscripcion de las Armas Nucleares en la America Latina y el Caribe (OPANAL) address - Temistocles 78, Col Polanco, CP 011560, Mexico City 5 DF, Mexico telephone - [52] (5) 280 4923, 280 5064, 280 2715 FAX - [52] (5) 280 2965 established - 14 February 1967 under the Treaty of Tlatelolco effective - 25 April 1969 on the 11th ratification of the treaty aim - to encourage the peaceful uses of atomic energy and prohibit nuclear weapons members - (32) Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela _________________________________________________________________
Andean Community of Nations (CAN) note - formerly known as the Andean Group (AG), the Andean Parliament, and most recently as the Andean Common Market (Ancom) address - c/o General Secretariat of the Andean Community, Paseo de la Republica 3895, Casilla 18-1177, Lima 18, Peru telephone - [51] (1) 221 2222 FAX - [51] (1) 221 3329 established - 26 May 1969; present name established 1 October 1992 effective - 16 October 1969 aim - to promote harmonious development through economic integration members - (5) Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela associate member - (1) Panama _________________________________________________________________
Andean Group (AG) see Andean Community of Nations (CAN) _________________________________________________________________
Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (ABEDA) note - also known as Banque Arabe de Developpement Economique en Afrique (BADEA) address - Abdel Rahman El Mahdi Avenue, P. O. Box 2640, Khartoum, Sudan telephone - [249] (11) 770498, 773646, 773709 FAX - [249] (11) 770600 established - 18 February 1974 effective - 16 September 1974 aim - to promote economic development members - (17 plus the Palestine Liberation Organization) Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, UAE, Palestine Liberation Organization; note - these are all the members of the Arab League excluding Comoros, Djibouti, Somalia, Yemen _________________________________________________________________
Arab Cooperation Council (ACC) established - 16 February 1989 aim - to promote economic cooperation and integration, possibly leading to an Arab Common Market members - (4) Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Yemen _________________________________________________________________
Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD) address - P. O. Box 21923, Safat 13080, Kuwait telephone - [965] 4844500 FAX - [965] 4815750, 4815760, 4815770 established - 16 May 1968 aim - to promote economic and social development members - (21 plus the Palestine Liberation Organization) Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt (suspended from 1979 to 1988), Iraq (suspended 1993), Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia (suspended 1993), Sudan (suspended 1993), Syria, Tunisia, UAE, Yemen, Palestine Liberation Organization _________________________________________________________________
Arab League (AL) note - also known as League of Arab States (LAS) address - Midan Attahrir, Tahrir Square, P. O. Box 11642, Cairo, Egypt telephone - [20] (2) 750 511 FAX - [20] (2) 740 331 established - 22 March 1945 aim - to promote economic, social, political, and military cooperation members - (21 plus the Palestine Liberation Organization) Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, UAE, Yemen, Palestine Liberation Organization _________________________________________________________________
Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) address - 27 Avenue Okba Agdal, Rabat, Morocco telephone - [212] (7) 77 26 82, 77 26 76, 77 26 68 FAX - [212] (7) 77 26 93 established - 17 February 1989 aim - to promote cooperation and integration among the Arab states of northern Africa members - (5) Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Tunisia _________________________________________________________________
Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) address - P. O. Box 2818, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates telephone - [971] (2) 215000, 328500 FAX - [971] (2) 326454 established - 27 April 1976 effective - 2 February 1977 aim - to promote Arab cooperation, development, and integration in monetary and economic affairs members - (20 plus the Palestine Liberation Organization) Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, UAE, Yemen, Palestine Liberation Organization _________________________________________________________________
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) address - APEC Secretariat, 438 Alexandra Road, 14-00 Alexandra Point, 14th Floor 01/04, Singapore 119958, Singapore telephone - [65] 276 1880 FAX - [65] 276 1775 established - 7 November 1989 aim - to promote trade and investment in the Pacific basin members - (21) Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, NZ, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, US, Vietnam observers - (3) Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Pacific Economic Cooperation Conference, South Pacific Forum _________________________________________________________________
Asian Development Bank (AsDB) address - 6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong, 0401 METRO Manila, Philippines telephone - [63] (2) 711 3851 FAX - [63] (2) 741 7961, 631 6816 established - 19 December 1966 aim - to promote regional economic cooperation regional members - (41) Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, Cambodia, China, Cook Islands, Fiji, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Mongolia, Nauru, Nepal, NZ, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vietnam nonregional members - (16) Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, UK, US _________________________________________________________________
Asociacion Latinoamericana de Integracion (ALADI) see Latin American Integration Association (LAIA) _________________________________________________________________
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) note - the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) consists of the 9 ASEAN members, 2 observers, 2 consultative partners, and 8 dialogue partners: Australia, Canada, EU, India, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, US address - 70 A Jalan Sisingamangaraja, Jakarta 12110, Indonesia telephone - [62] (21) 7262991, 7243372 FAX - [62] (21) 7398234, 7243504 established - 8 August 1967 aim - to encourage regional economic, social, and cultural cooperation among the non-Communist countries of Southeast Asia members - (10) Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam observer - (1) Papua New Guinea consultative partners - (2) China, Russia _________________________________________________________________
Australia Group established - 1984 aim - to consult on and coordinate export controls related to chemical and biological weapons members - (28) Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, NZ, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, US; note - may now include only 23 countries observer - (1) Singapore _________________________________________________________________
Australia-New Zealand-United States Security Treaty (ANZUS) address - c/o Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Bag 8, Queen Victoria Terrace, Canberra ACT 2600, Australia telephone - [61] (6) 261 91 11 FAX - [61] (6) 261 21 51 established - 1 September 1951 effective - 29 April 1952 aim - to implement a trilateral mutual security agreement, although the US suspended security obligations to NZ on 11 August 1986; Australia and the US continue to hold annual meetings members - (3) Australia, NZ, US _________________________________________________________________
Banco Centroamericano de Integracion Economico (BCIE) see Central American Bank for Economic Integration (BCIE) _________________________________________________________________
Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID) see Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) _________________________________________________________________
Bank for International Settlements (BIS) address - Centralbahnplatz 2, CH-4002 Basel, Switzerland telephone - [41] (61) 280 80 80 FAX - [41] (61) 280 91 00, 280 81 00 established - 20 January 1930 effective - 17 March 1930 aim - to promote cooperation among central banks in international financial settlements members - (45) Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, UK, US, Yugoslavia (suspended) _________________________________________________________________
Banque Africaine de Developpement (BAD) see African Development Bank (AfDB) _________________________________________________________________
Banque Arabe de Developpement Economique en Afrique (BADEA) see Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (ABEDA) _________________________________________________________________
Banque de Developpement des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale (BDEAC) see Central African States Development Bank (BDEAC) _________________________________________________________________
Banque Ouest-Africaine de Developpement (BOAD) see West African Development Bank (WADB) _________________________________________________________________