machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food-processing
(especially sugar)
Industrial production growth rate: -1.8% (1997 est.)
Electricity-capacity: 52 million kW (1997)
Electricity-production: 177 billion kWh (1997)
Electricity-consumption per capita: 3,431 kWh (1997)
Agriculture-products: grain, sugar beets, sunflower seeds, vegetables;
meat, milk
Exports:
total value: $15.2 billion (1997 est.)
commodities: ferrous and nonferrous metals, chemicals, machinery and
transport equipment, food products
partners: Russia, China, Belarus, Turkey, Germany (1997)
Imports:
total value: $20.2 billion (1997 est.)
commodities: energy, machinery and parts, transportation equipment,
chemicals, plastics and rubber
partners: Russia, Turkmenistan, Belarus, Germany, China
Debt-external: $9.6 billion (including $2.1 billion to Russia)
(yearend 1997 est.)
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $220 million (1993)
note: commitments, 1992-95, $4.5 billion ($4.1 billion drawn)
Currency: on 2 September 1996, Ukraine introduced the long-awaited
hryvnia as its national currency, replacing the karbovanets (in
circulation since 12 November 1992) at a rate of 100,000 karbovantsi
to 1 hryvnia
Exchange rates: hryvnia per US$1-1.9359 (February 1998), 1.8617
(1997), 1.8295 (1996), 1.4731 (1995), 0.3275 (1994), 0.0453 (1993)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications
Telephones: NA
Telephone system: system is unsatisfactory both for business and for
personal use; 3.56 million applications for telephones had not been
satisfied as of January 1991; electronic mail services have been
established in Kiev, Odessa, and Luhans'k by Sprint
domestic: an NMT-450 analog cellular telephone network operates in
Kiev (Kyyiv) and allows direct dialing of international calls through
Kiev's digital exchange
international: calls to other CIS countries are carried by landline or
microwave radio relay; calls to 167 other countries are carried by
satellite or by the 150 leased lines through the Moscow international
gateway switch; satellite earth stations-NA Intelsat, 1 Inmarsat
(Atlantic and Indian Ocean Regions), and NA Intersputnik
Radio broadcast stations: 2 radio broadcast stations of NA type
Radios: 15 million (1990)
Television broadcast stations: at least 2
Televisions: 17.3 million (1992)
@Ukraine:Transportation
Railways:
total: 23,350 km
broad gauge: 23,350 km 1.524-m gauge (8,600 km electrified)
Highways:
total: 172,565 km
paved: 163,937 km (including 1,875 km of expressways); note-these
roads are said to be hard-surfaced, meaning that some are paved and
some are all-weather gravel surfaced
unpaved: 8,628 km (1996 est.)
Waterways: 4,400 km navigable waterways, of which 1,672 km were on the
Pryp''yat' and Dnistr (1990)
Pipelines: crude oil 2,010 km; petroleum products 1,920 km; natural
gas 7,800 km (1992)
Ports and harbors: Berdyans'k, Illichivs'k, Izmayil, Kerch, Kherson,
Kiev (Kyyiv), Mariupol', Mykolayiv, Odesa, Reni
Merchant marine:
total: 202 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,498,653 GRT/1,709,393
DWT
ships by type: barge carrier 3, bulk 13, cargo 122, chemical tanker 2,
combination bulk 1, container 3, multifunction large-load carrier 2,
oil tanker 19, passenger 7, passenger-cargo 4, railcar carrier 2,
refrigerated cargo 6, roll-on/roll-off cargo 13, short-sea passenger 5
note: Ukraine owns an additional 41 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling
515,743 DWT operating under the registries of The Bahamas, Cyprus,
Liberia, Malta, Panama, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (1997
est.)
Airports: 706 (1994 est.)
Airports-with paved runways:
total: 163
over 3,047 m: 14
2,438 to 3,047 m: 55
1,524 to 2,437 m: 34
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 57 (1994 est.)
Airports-with unpaved runways:
total: 543
over 3,047 m: 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m: 16
914 to 1,523 m: 37
under 914 m: 476 (1994 est.)
@Ukraine:Military
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Internal
Troops, National Guard, Border Troops
Military manpower-military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower-availability:
males age 15-49: 12,431,318 (1998 est.)
Military manpower-fit for military service:
males: 9,733,193 (1998 est.)
Military manpower-reaching military age annually:
males: 367,160 (1998 est.)
Military expenditures-dollar figure: 1.71 billion hryvni (Ukrainian
Government's forecast for 1998); note - conversion of defense
expenditures into US dollars using the current exchange rate could
produce misleading results
Military expenditures-percent of GDP: NA%
@Ukraine:Transnational Issues
Disputes-international: dispute with Romania over continental shelf of
the Black Sea under which significant gas and oil deposits may exist;
agreed in 1997 to two-year negotiating period, after which either
party can refer dispute to the International Court of Justice; has
made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to
do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation; certain
territory of Moldova and Ukraine-including Bessarabia and Northern
Bukovina-are considered by Bucharest as historically a part of
Romania; this territory was incorporated into the former Soviet Union
following the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1940
Illicit drugs: limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly
for CIS consumption; limited government eradication program; used as
transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs to Western
Europe and Russia
______________________________________________________________________
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
@United Arab Emirates:Geography
Location: Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman and the Persian
Gulf, between Oman and Saudi Arabia
Geographic coordinates: 24 00 N, 54 00 E
Map references: Middle East
Area:
total: 82,880 sq km
land: 82,880 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area-comparative: slightly smaller than Maine
Land boundaries:
total: 867 km
border countries: Oman 410 km, Saudi Arabia 457 km
Coastline: 1,318 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: desert; cooler in eastern mountains
Terrain: flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling sand dunes of
vast desert wasteland; mountains in east
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal Yibir 1,527 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 2%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 98% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 50 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: frequent sand and dust storms
Environment-current issues: lack of natural freshwater resources being
overcome by desalination plants; desertification; beach pollution from
oil spills
Environment-international agreements:
party to: Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine
Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Law of the Sea
Geography-note: strategic location along southern approaches to Strait
of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil
@United Arab Emirates:People
Population: 2,303,088 (July 1998 est.)
note: includes 1,561,840 non-nationals (July 1998 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 32% (male 372,413; female 356,834)
15-64 years: 66% (male 995,798; female 535,014)
65 years and over: 2% (male 29,169; female 13,860) (July 1998 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.78% (1998 est.)
Birth rate: 18.61 births/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Death rate: 3.06 deaths/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Net migration rate: 2.25 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.86 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 2.1 male(s)/female (1998 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 14.77 deaths/1,000 live births (1998 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 74.93 years
male: 73.5 years
female: 76.44 years (1998 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.56 children born/woman (1998 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Emirian(s)
adjective: Emirian
Ethnic groups: Emiri 19%, other Arab and Iranian 23%, South Asian 50%,
other expatriates (includes Westerners and East Asians) 8% (1982)
note: less than 20% are UAE citizens (1982)
Religions: Muslim 96% (Shi'a 16%), Christian, Hindu, and other 4%
Languages: Arabic (official), Persian, English, Hindi, Urdu
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write but definition of
literacy not available
total population: 79.2%
male: 78.9%
female: 79.8% (1995 est.)
@United Arab Emirates:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: United Arab Emirates
conventional short form: none
local long form: Al Imarat al Arabiyah al Muttahidah
local short form: none
former: Trucial States
abbreviation: UAE
Data code: TC
Government type: federation with specified powers delegated to the UAE
federal government and other powers reserved to member emirates
National capital: Abu Dhabi
Administrative divisions: 7 emirates (imarat, singular-imarah); Abu
Zaby (Abu Dhabi), 'Ajman, Al Fujayrah, Ash Shariqah (Sharjah), Dubayy
(Dubai), Ra's al Khaymah, Umm al Qaywayn
Independence: 2 December 1971 (from UK)
National holiday: National Day, 2 December (1971)
Constitution: 2 December 1971 (made permanent in 1996)
Legal system: federal court system introduced in 1971; all emirates
except Dubayy (Dubai) and Ra's al Khaymah have joined the federal
system; all emirates have secular and Islamic law for civil, criminal,
and high courts
Suffrage: none
Executive branch:
chief of state: President ZAYID bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan (since 2
December 1971), ruler of Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi) (since 6 August 1966)
and Vice President MAKTUM bin Rashid al-Maktum (since 8 October 1990),
ruler of Dubayy (Dubai)
head of government: Prime Minister MAKTUM bin Rashid al-Maktum (since
8 October 1990), ruler of Dubayy (Dubai); Deputy Prime Minister SULTAN
bin Zayid Al Nuhayyan (since 20 November 1990)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
note: there is also a Federal Supreme Council (FSC) which is composed
of the seven emirate rulers; the council is the highest constitutional
authority in the UAE; establishes general policies and sanctions
federal legislation, Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi) and Dubayy (Dubai) rulers
have effective veto power; meets four times a year
elections: president and vice president elected by the FSC (a group of
seven electors) for five-year terms; election last held NA October
1996 (next to be held NA 2001); prime minister and deputy prime
minister appointed by the president
election results: ZAYID bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan reelected president;
percent of FSC vote - NA, but believed to be unanimous; MAKTUM bin
Rashid al-Maktum elected vice president; percent of FSC vote-NA, but
believed to be unanimous
Legislative branch: unicameral Federal National Council or Majlis
al-Ittihad al-Watani (40 seats; members appointed by the rulers of the
constituent states to serve two-year terms)
elections: none
note: reviews legislation, but cannot change or veto
Judicial branch: Union Supreme Court, judges appointed by the
president
Political parties and leaders: none
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF,
CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol,
IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Muhammad bin Husayn al-SHAALI
chancery: Suite 700, 1255 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20037
telephone: [1] (202) 955-7999
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador David C. LITT
embassy: Al-Sudan Street, Abu Dhabi
mailing address: P. O. Box 4009, Abu Dhabi; American Embassy Abu
Dhabi, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-6010 (pouch);
note-work week is Saturday through Wednesday
telephone: [971] (2) 436691, 436692
FAX: [971] (2) 434771
consulate(s) general: Dubai
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white,
and black with a thicker vertical red band on the hoist side
@United Arab Emirates:Economy
Economy-overview: The UAE has an open economy with one of the world's
highest per capita incomes and with a sizable annual trade surplus.
Its wealth is based on oil and gas output (about 33% of GDP), and the
fortunes of the economy fluctuate with the prices of those
commodities. Since 1973, the UAE has undergone a profound
transformation from an impoverished region of small desert
principalities to a modern state with a high standard of living. At
present levels of production, oil and gas reserves should last for
over 100 years. The UAE Government is encouraging increased
privatization within the economy, and industrial development is
expected to pick up in 1997-98.
GDP: purchasing power parity-$54.2 billion (1997 est.)
GDP-real growth rate: 5% (1997 est.)
GDP-per capita: purchasing power parity-$24,000 (1997 est.)
GDP-composition by sector:
agriculture: 3%
industry: 55%
services: 42% (1996 est.)
Inflation rate-consumer price index: 3.6% (1997 est.)
Labor force:
total: 1.05 million (1996 est.)
by occupation: services 65%, industry and commerce 30%, agriculture 5%
(1996 est.)
note: 75% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national
(July 1998 est.)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget:
revenues: $5.1 billion
expenditures: $5.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $294
million (1997 est.)
Industries: petroleum, fishing, petrochemicals, construction
materials, some boat building, handicrafts, pearling
Industrial production growth rate: 6.1% (1995 est.)
Electricity-capacity: 5.29 million kW (1995)
Electricity-production: 18 billion kWh (1995)
Electricity-consumption per capita: 6,155 kWh (1995)
Agriculture-products: dates, vegetables, watermelons; poultry, eggs,
dairy products; fish
Exports:
total value: $33.2 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.)
commodities: crude oil 66%, natural gas, reexports, dried fish, dates
partners: Japan 38%, South Korea 7%, Singapore 7%, India 6%, Oman 4%,
Iran 3% (1996)
Imports:
total value: $23.5 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.)
commodities: manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment,
chemicals, food
partners: US 10%, Japan 9%, UK 8%, Italy 6%, South Korea 6%, India 6%
(1996)
Debt-external: $14 billion (1996 est.)
Economic aid: $NA
Currency: 1 Emirian dirham (Dh) = 100 fils
Exchange rates: Emirian dirhams (Dh) per US$1-3.6710 (fixed rate)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications
Telephones: 677,793 (1993 est.)
Telephone system: modern system consisting of microwave radio relay
and coaxial cable; key centers are Abu Dhabi and Dubai
domestic: microwave radio relay and coaxial cable
international: satellite earth stations-3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean
and 2 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; submarine cables to Qatar, Bahrain,
India, and Pakistan; tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; microwave radio
relay to Saudi Arabia
Radio broadcast stations: AM 8, FM 3, shortwave 0
Radios: 545,000 (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 12
Televisions: 170,000 (1993 est.)
@United Arab Emirates:Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways:
total: 4,835 km
paved: 4,835 km
unpaved: 0 km (1996 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 830 km; natural gas, including natural gas
liquids, 870 km
Ports and harbors: 'Ajman, Al Fujayrah, Das Island, Khawr Fakkan,
Mina' Jabal 'Ali, Mina' Khalid, Mina' Rashid, Mina' Saqr, Mina' Zayid,
Umm al Qaywayn
Merchant marine:
total: 67 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 945,320 GRT/1,592,164 DWT
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 18, chemical tanker 3, container 7,
liquefied gas tanker 1, livestock carrier 1, oil tanker 27,
refrigerated cargo 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 6 (1997 est.)
Airports: 40 (1997 est.)
Airports-with paved runways:
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 4 (1997 est.)
Airports-with unpaved runways:
total: 18
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 8
under 914 m: 5 (1997 est.)
Heliports: 2 (1997 est.)
@United Arab Emirates:Military
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary (includes
Federal Police Force)
Military manpower-military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower-availability:
males age 15-49: 791,770 (1998 est.)
note: includes non-nationals
Military manpower-fit for military service:
males: 425,373 (1998 est.)
Military manpower-reaching military age annually:
males: 22,040 (1998 est.)
Military expenditures-dollar figure: $1.59 billion (1994)
Military expenditures-percent of GDP: 4.3% (1994)
@United Arab Emirates:Transnational Issues
Disputes-international: location and status of boundary with Saudi
Arabia is not final, de facto boundary reflects 1974 agreement; no
defined boundary with most of Oman, but Administrative Line in far
north; claims two islands in the Persian Gulf occupied by Iran: Lesser
Tunb (called Tunb as Sughra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e
Kuchek in Persian by Iran) and Greater Tunb (called Tunb al Kubra in
Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg in Persian by Iran); claims
island in the Persian Gulf jointly administered with Iran (called Abu
Musa in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Abu Musa in Persian by Iran)-over
which Iran has taken steps to exert unilateral control since 1992,
including access restrictions and a military build-up on the island;
the UAE has garnered significant diplomatic support in the region in
protesting these Iranian actions
Illicit drugs: growing role as heroin transshipment and
money-laundering center due to its proximity to southwest Asian
producing countries and the bustling free trade zone in Dubai
______________________________________________________________________
UNITED KINGDOM
@United Kingdom:Geography
Location: Western Europe, islands including the northern one-sixth of
the island of Ireland between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North
Sea, northwest of France
Geographic coordinates: 54 00 N, 2 00 W
Map references: Europe
Area:
total: 244,820 sq km
land: 241,590 sq km
water: 3,230 sq km
note: includes Rockall and Shetland Islands
Area-comparative: slightly smaller than Oregon
Land boundaries:
total: 360 km
border countries: Ireland 360 km
Coastline: 12,429 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: as defined in continental shelf orders or in
accordance with agreed upon boundaries
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the
North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days are overcast
Terrain: mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling
plains in east and southeast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Fenland -4 m
highest point: Ben Nevis 1,343 m
Natural resources: coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron
ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica
Land use:
arable land: 25%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 46%
forests and woodland: 10%
other: 19% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 1,080 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment-current issues: sulfur dioxide emissions from power plants
contribute to air pollution; some rivers polluted by agricultural
wastes and coastal waters polluted because of large-scale disposal of
sewage at sea
Environment-international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine
Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography-note: lies near vital North Atlantic sea lanes; only 35 km
from France and now linked by tunnel under the English Channel;
because of heavily indented coastline, no location is more than 125 km
from tidal waters
@United Kingdom:People
Population: 58,970,119 (July 1998 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 19% (male 5,832,086; female 5,530,679)
15-64 years: 65% (male 19,304,762; female 19,032,024)
65 years and over: 16% (male 3,807,710; female 5,462,858) (July 1998
est.)
Population growth rate: 0.25% (1998 est.)
Birth rate: 12.01 births/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Death rate: 10.72 deaths/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Net migration rate: 1.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female (1998 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 5.87 deaths/1,000 live births (1998 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.19 years
male: 74.57 years
female: 79.96 years (1998 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.7 children born/woman (1998 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Briton(s), British (collective plural)
adjective: British
Ethnic groups: English 81.5%, Scottish 9.6%, Irish 2.4%, Welsh 1.9%,
Ulster 1.8%, West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and other 2.8%
Religions: Anglican 27 million, Roman Catholic 9 million, Muslim 1
million, Presbyterian 800,000, Methodist 760,000, Sikh 400,000, Hindu
350,000, Jewish 300,000 (1991 est.)
note: the UK does not include a question on religion in its census
Languages: English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales),
Scottish form of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of
schooling
total population: 99% (1978 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA%
@United Kingdom:Government
Country name:
conventional long form: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland
conventional short form: United Kingdom
abbreviation: UK
Data code: UK
Government type: constitutional monarchy
National capital: London
Administrative divisions: 47 counties, 7 metropolitan counties, 26
districts, 9 regions, and 3 islands areas; England-39 counties, 7
metropolitan counties*; Avon, Bedford, Berkshire, Buckingham,
Cambridge, Cheshire, Cleveland, Cornwall, Cumbria, Derby, Devon,
Dorset, Durham, East Sussex, Essex, Gloucester, Greater London*,
Greater Manchester*, Hampshire, Hereford and Worcester, Hertford,
Humberside, Isle of Wight, Kent, Lancashire, Leicester, Lincoln,
Merseyside*, Norfolk, Northampton, Northumberland, North Yorkshire,
Nottingham, Oxford, Shropshire, Somerset, South Yorkshire*, Stafford,
Suffolk, Surrey, Tyne and Wear*, Warwick, West Midlands*, West Sussex,
West Yorkshire*, Wiltshire; Northern Ireland - 26 districts; Antrim,
Ards, Armagh, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Banbridge, Belfast,
Carrickfergus, Castlereagh, Coleraine, Cookstown, Craigavon, Down,
Dungannon, Fermanagh, Larne, Limavady, Lisburn, Londonderry,
Magherafelt, Moyle, Newry and Mourne, Newtownabbey, North Down, Omagh,
Strabane; Scotland-9 regions, 3 islands areas*; Borders, Central,
Dumfries and Galloway, Fife, Grampian, Highland, Lothian, Orkney*,
Shetland*, Strathclyde, Tayside, Western Isles*; Wales-8 counties;
Clwyd, Dyfed, Gwent, Gwynedd, Mid Glamorgan, Powys, South Glamorgan,
West Glamorgan
note: The Statesman's Yearbook claims that England has 35 counties and
Wales 9 counties