expenditures. These figures are calculated on an exchange rate basis,
i.e., not in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms.
Capital: This entry gives the location of the seat of government.
Climate: This entry includes a brief description of typical weather
regimes throughout the year.
Coastline: This entry gives the total length of the boundary between
the land area (including islands) and the sea.
Communications: This category deals with the means of exchanging
information and includes the telephone, radio, television, and
Internet service provider entries.
Communications - note: This entry includes miscellaneous
communications information of significance not included elsewhere.
Constitution: This entry includes the dates of adoption, revisions,
and major amendments.
Country map: Most versions of the Factbook provide a country map in
color. The maps were produced from the best information available at
the time of preparation. Names and/or boundaries may have changed
subsequently.
Country name: This entry includes all forms of the country's name
approved by the US Board on Geographic Names (Italy is used as an
example): conventional long form (Italian Republic), conventional
short form (Italy), local long form (Repubblica Italiana), local short
form (Italia), former (Kingdom of Italy), as well as the abbreviation.
Also see the Terminology note.
Currency: This entry identifies the national medium of exchange and
its basic subunit.
Data code: This entry gives the official US Government digraph that
precisely identifies every land entity without overlap, duplication,
or omission. AF, for example, is the data code for Afghanistan. This
two-letter country code is a standardized geopolitical data element
promulgated in the Federal Information Processing Standards
Publication (FIPS) 10-4 by the National Institute of Standards and
Technology at the US Department of Commerce and maintained by the
Office of the Geographer and Global Issues at the US Department of
State. The data code is used to eliminate confusion and
incompatibility in the collection, processing, and dissemination of
area-specific data and is particularly useful for interchanging data
between databases. [2]Appendix F cross-references various country data
codes and [3]Appendix G cross-references various hydrographic data
codes.
Data codes - country: This information is presented in [4]Appendix F:
Cross-Reference List of Country Data Codes which includes the US
Government approved Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS)
codes, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) codes,
and Internet codes for land entities.
Data codes - hydrographic: This information is presented in
[5]Appendix G: Cross-Reference List of Hydrographic Data Codes which
includes the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) codes,
Aeronautical Chart and Information Center (ACIC; now a part of the
National Imagery and Mapping Agency or NIMA) codes, and Defense
Intelligence Agency (DIA) codes for hydrographic entities. The US
Government has not yet approved a standard for hydrographic data codes
similar to the FIPS 10-4 standard for country data codes.
Date of information: In general, information available as of 1 January
2000, was used in the preparation of this edition.
Death rate: This entry gives the average annual number of deaths
during a year per 1,000 population at midyear; also known as crude
death rate. The death rate, while only a rough indicator of the
mortality situation in a country, accurately indicates the current
mortality impact on population growth. This indicator is significantly
affected by age distribution, and most countries will eventually show
a rise in the overall death rate, in spite of continued decline in
mortality at all ages, as declining fertility results in an aging
population.
Debt - external: This entry gives the total amount of public foreign
financial obligations.
Dependency status: This entry describes the formal relationship
between a particular nonindependent entity and an independent state.
Dependent areas: This entry contains an alphabetical listing of all
nonindependent entities associated in some way with a particular
independent state.
Diplomatic representation: The US Government has diplomatic relations
with 184 independent states, including 181 of the 188 UN members
(excluded UN members are Bhutan, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, former
Yugoslavia, and the US itself). In addition, the US has diplomatic
relations with 3 independent states that are not in the UN - Holy See,
Switzerland, and Tuvalu.
Diplomatic representation from the US: This entry includes the chief
of mission, embassy address, mailing address, telephone number, FAX
number, branch office locations, consulate general locations, and
consulate locations.
Diplomatic representation in the US: This entry includes the chief of
the foreign mission, chancery address, telephone number, FAX number,
consulate general locations, consulate locations, honorary consulate
general locations, and honorary consulate locations.
Disputes - international: This entry includes a wide variety of
situations that range from traditional bilateral boundary disputes to
unilateral claims of one sort or another. Information regarding
disputes over international terrestrial and maritime boundaries has
been reviewed by the US Department of State. References to other
situations involving borders or frontiers may also be included, such
as resource disputes, geopolitical questions, or irredentist issues;
however, inclusion does not necessarily constitute official acceptance
or recognition by the US Government.
Economic aid - donor: This entry refers to net official development
assistance (ODA) from OECD nations to developing countries and
multilateral organizations. ODA is defined as financial assistance
that is concessional in character, has the main objective to promote
economic development and welfare of the less developed countries
(LDCs), and contains a grant element of at least 25%. The entry does
not cover other official flows (OOF) or private flows.
Economic aid - recipient: This entry, which is subject to major
problems of definition and statistical coverage, refers to the net
inflow of Official Development Finance (ODF) to recipient countries.
The figure includes assistance from the World Bank, the IMF, and other
international organizations and from individual nation donors. Formal
commitments of aid are included in the data. Omitted from the data are
grants by private organizations. Aid comes in various forms including
outright grants and loans. The entry thus is the difference between
new inflows and repayments.
Economy: This category includes the entries dealing with the size,
development, and management of productive resources, i.e., land,
labor, and capital.
Economy - overview: This entry briefly describes the type of economy,
including the degree of market orientation, the level of economic
development, the most important natural resources, and the unique
areas of specialization. It also characterizes major economic events
and policy changes in the most recent 12 months and may include a
statement about one or two key future macroeconomic trends.
Electricity - consumption: This entry consists of total electricity
generated annually plus imports and minus exports, expressed in
kilowatt hours. The discrepancy between the amount of electricity
generated and/or imported and the amount consumed and/or exported is
accounted for as loss in transmission and distribution.
Electricity - exports: This entry is the total exported electricity in
kilowatt hours.
Electricity - imports: This entry is the total imported electricity in
kilowatt hours.
Electricity - production: This entry is the annual electricity
generated expressed in kilowatt hours. The discrepancy between the
amount of electricity generated and/or imported and the amount
consumed and/or exported is accounted for as loss in transmission and
distribution.
Electricity - production by source: This entry indicates the
percentage share of annual electricity production of each energy
source. These are fossil fuel, hydro, nuclear, and other (solar,
geothermal, and wind).
Elevation extremes: This entry includes both the highest point and the
lowest point.
Entities: Some of the independent states, dependencies, areas of
special sovereignty, and governments included in this publication are
not independent, and others are not officially recognized by the US
Government. "Independent state" refers to a people politically
organized into a sovereign state with a definite territory.
"Dependencies" and "areas of special sovereignty" refer to a broad
category of political entities that are associated in some way with an
independent state. "Country" names used in the table of contents or
for page headings are usually the short-form names as approved by the
US Board on Geographic Names and may include independent states,
dependencies, and areas of special sovereignty, or other geographic
entities. There are a total of 267 separate geographic entities in The
World Factbook that may be categorized as follows:
INDEPENDENT STATES
191 Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antigua and
Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, The
Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize,
Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil,
Brunei, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon,
Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China,
Colombia, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the
Congo, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech
Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador,
Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia,
Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, The Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana,
Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy
See, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq,
Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya,
Kiribati, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia,
Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania,
Luxembourg, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Madagascar,
Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritania,
Mauritius, Mexico, Federated States of Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco,
Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, NZ,
Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama,
Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal,
Qatar, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and
Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia and Montenegro, Seychelles,
Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia,
South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden,
Switzerland, Syria, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tonga,
Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda,
Ukraine, UAE, UK, US, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela,
Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe
OTHER
1 Taiwan
DEPENDENCIES AND AREAS OF SPECIAL SOVEREIGNTY
6 Australia - Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos
(Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald
Islands, Norfolk Island
2 China - Hong Kong, Macau
2 Denmark - Faroe Islands, Greenland
16 France - Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island, French
Guiana, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands,
Glorioso Islands, Guadeloupe, Juan de Nova Island, Martinique,
Mayotte, New Caledonia, Reunion, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Tromelin
Island, Wallis and Futuna
2 Netherlands - Aruba, Netherlands Antilles
3 New Zealand - Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau
3 Norway - Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard
15 UK - Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British
Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey,
Jersey, Isle of Man, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, South
Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands
14 US - American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis
Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island,
Northern Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands,
Wake Island
MISCELLANEOUS
6 Antarctica, Gaza Strip, Paracel Islands, Spratly Islands, West
Bank, Western Sahara
OTHER ENTITIES
5 oceans - Arctic Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Pacific
Ocean, Southern Ocean
1 World
267 total
Environment - current issues: This entry lists the most pressing and
important environmental problems. The following terms and
abbreviations are used throughout the entry:
acidification - the lowering of soil and water pH due to acid
precipitation and deposition; this process disrupts ecosystem nutrient
flows and may kill freshwater fish and plants dependent on more
neutral or alkaline conditions (see acid rain).
acid rain characterized as containing harmful levels of sulfur
dioxide; acid rain is damaging and potentially deadly to the earth's
fragile ecosystems; acidity is measured using the pH scale where 7 is
neutral, values greater that 7 are considered alkaline, and anything
measured below 5.6 is considered acid precipitation; note - a pH of
2.4 (the acidity of vinegar) has been measured in rainfall in New
England.
asbestos a naturally occurring soft fibrous mineral commonly used in
fireproofing materials and considered to be highly carcinogenic.
biodiversity - also biological diversity; many species, diverse in
form and function, at the genetic, organism, community, and ecosystem
level; loss of biodiversity reduces an ecosystem's ability to recover
from natural or man-induced disruption.
catchments assemblages used to capture and retain rainwater and
runoff; an important water management technique in areas with limited
freshwater resources, such as Gibraltar.
DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) a colorless, odorless
insecticide that has toxic effects on most animals; the use of DDT was
banned in the US in 1972.
defoliants chemicals which cause plants to lose their leaves
artificially; often used in agricultural practices for weed control,
and may have detrimental impacts on human and ecosystem health.
deforestation the destruction of vast areas of forest (e.g.,
unsustainable forestry practices, agricultural and range land
clearing, and the over exploitation of wood products for use as fuel)
without planting new growth.
desertification - the spread of desert-like conditions in arid or
semi-arid areas, due to overgrazing, loss of agriculturally productive
soils, or climate change.
dredging - in general, the practice of deepening an existing waterway;
more specifically, a technique used for collecting bottom-dwelling
marine organisms (e.g., shellfish) or harvesting coral, often causing
significant destruction of reef and ocean-floor ecosystems.
driftnet fishing done with a net, miles in extent, that is generally
anchored to a boat and left to float with the tide; often results in
an over harvesting and waste of large populations of non-commercial
marine species (by-catch) by its effect of "sweeping the ocean clean".
ecosystems ecological units comprised of complex communities of
organisms and their specific environments.
effluents waste materials, such as smoke or sewage, which are
released into the environment, subsequently polluting it.
endangered species a species that is threatened with extinction
either by direct hunting or habitat destruction.
freshwater - water with very low soluble mineral content; sources
include lakes, streams, rivers, glaciers, and underground aquifers.
groundwater - water sources found below the surface of the earth often
in naturally occurring reservoirs in permeable rock strata; the source
for wells and natural springs.
Highlands Water Project a series of dams constructed jointly by
Lesotho and South Africa to redirect Lesotho's abundant water supply
into a rapidly growing area in South Africa; while it is the largest
infrastructure project in southern Africa, it is also the most costly
and controversial; objections to the project include claims that it
forces people from their homes, submerges farmlands, and squanders
economic resources.
Inuit Circumpolar Conference (ICC) represents the 125,000 Inuits of
Russia, Alaska, Canada, and Greenland in international environmental
issues; a panel convenes every three years to determine the focus of
the ICC; the most current concerns are longrange transport of
pollutants, sustainable development, and climate change.
metallurgical plants industries which specialize in the science,
technology, and processing of metals; these plants produce highly
concentrated and toxic wastes which can contribute to pollution of
ground water and air when not properly disposed.
noxious substances injurious, very harmful to living beings.
overgrazing the grazing of animals on plant material faster than it
can naturally regrow leading to the permanent loss of plant cover, a
common effect of too many animals grazing limited range land.
ozone shield a layer of the atmosphere composed of ozone gas (O3)
that resides approximately 25 miles above the Earth's surface and
absorbs solar ultraviolet radiation that can be harmful to living
organisms.
poaching the illegal killing of animals or fish, a great concern with
respect to endangered or threatened species.
pollution the contamination of a healthy environment by manmade
waste.
potable water water that is drinkable, safe to be consumed.
salination - the process through which fresh (drinkable) water becomes
salt (undrinkable) water; hence, desalination is the reverse process.
siltation occurs when water channels and reservoirs become clotted
with silt and mud, a side effect of deforestation and soil erosion.
slashandburn agriculture - a rotating cultivation technique in which
trees are cut down and burned in order to clear land for temporary
agriculture; the land is used until its productivity declines at which
point a new plot is selected and the process repeats; this practice is
sustainable while population levels are low and time is permitted for
regrowth of natural vegetation; conversely, where these conditions do
not exist, the practice can have disastrous consequences for the
environment .
soil degradation damage to the land's productive capacity because of
poor agricultural practices such as the excessive use of pesticides
and fertilizers, soil compaction from heavy equipment, or erosion of
top soil, eventually resulting in reduced ability to produce
agricultural products.
soil erosion - the removal of soil by the action of water or wind,
compounded by poor agricultural practices, deforestation, overgrazing,
and desertification.
ultraviolet (UV) radiation - a portion of the electromagnetic energy
emitted by the sun and naturally filtered in the upper atmosphere by
the ozone layer; UV radiation can be harmful to living organisms and
has been linked to increasing rates of skin cancer in humans.
water-born diseases those in which the bacteria survive in, and is
transmitted through, water; always a serious threat in areas with an
untreated water supply.
Environment - international agreements: This entry separates country
participation in international environmental agreements into two
levels - party to and signed but not ratified. Agreements are listed
in alphabetical order by the abbreviated form of the full name.
Environmental agreements: This information is presented in [6]Appendix
D: Selected International Environmental Agreements, which includes the
name, abbreviation, date opened for signature, date entered into
force, objective, and parties by category.
Ethnic groups: This entry provides a rank ordering of ethnic groups
starting with the largest and normally includes the percent of total
population.
Exchange rates: This entry provides the official value of a country's
monetary unit at a given date or over a given period of time, as
expressed in units of local currency per US dollar and as determined
by international market forces or official fiat.
Executive branch: This entry includes several subfields. Chief of
state includes the name and title of the titular leader of the country
who represents the state at official and ceremonial functions but may
not be involved with the day-to-day activities of the government. Head
of government includes the name and title of the top administrative
leader who is designated to manage the day-to-day activities of the
government. Cabinet includes the official name for this body of
high-ranking advisers and the method for selection of members.
Elections includes the nature of election process or accession to
power, date of the last election, and date of the next election.
Election results includes the percent of vote for each candidate in
the last election. In the UK, the monarch is the chief of state, and
the prime minister is the head of government. In the US, the president
is both the chief of state and the head of government.
Exports: This entry provides the total US dollar amount of exports on
an f.o.b. (free on board) basis.
Exports - commodities: This entry provides a rank ordering of exported
products starting with the most important; it sometimes includes the
percent of total dollar value.
Exports - partners: This entry provides a rank ordering of trading
partners starting with the most important; it sometimes includes the
percent of total dollar value.
Fiscal year: This entry identifies the beginning and ending months for
a country's accounting period of 12 months, which often is the
calendar year but which may begin in any month. All yearly references
are for the calendar year (CY) unless indicated as a noncalendar
fiscal year (FY).
Flag description: This entry provides a written flag description
produced from actual flags or the best information available at the
time the entry was written. The flags of independent states are used
by their dependencies unless there is an officially recognized local
flag. Some disputed and other areas do not have flags.
Flag graphic: Most versions of the Factbook include a color flag at
the beginning of the country profile. The flag graphics were produced
from actual flags or the best information available at the time of
preparation. The flags of independent states are used by their
dependencies unless there is an officially recognized local flag. Some
disputed and other areas do not have flags.
GDP: This entry gives the gross domestic product (GDP) or value of all
final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year. GDP
dollar estimates in the Factbook are derived from purchasing power
parity (PPP) calculations. See the note on GDP methodology for more
information.