Get a "snapshot" of the world...

Town Compass® presents the CIA World Factbook 2005.

The United States has carried on foreign intelligence activities since the days of George Washington, but only since World War II have they been coordinated on a government-wide basis. The CIA World Factbook is one of three programs that have highlighted the development of coordinated basic intelligence since that time.

The World Factbook includes information on 271 countries, territories and other areas, with full-color maps and flags.

What's new:

• Recent confirmation that the United Kingdom Government administers the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia on Cyprus as dependencies (and not as lease areas like the US Guantanamo Bay Naval Station in Cuba) has required a changing of their status and their addition to the Factbook as new entities.
• The European Union has been included as an "Other" entity. The European Union continues to accrue more nation-like characteristics for itself and so a separate listing was deemed appropriate. A fuller explanation may be found under the European Union Preliminary statement.
• The World Factbook now features five new fields. In the Economy category, entries have been added for Current account balance, Investment (gross fixed), Public debt, and Reserves of foreign exchange and gold. The Transnational issues category has a new Refugees and internally displaced persons entry.
• Revision of some individual country maps is continued in this edition. Several regional maps have also been updated to reflect boundary changes and place name spelling changes.

• Flag Graphic

• Map Image

• Background, including a Historical Summary

• Geography, including Location, Geographic Coordinates, Area, Comparative Area, Land Boundaries, Coastline, Maritime Claims, Climate, Terrain, Elevation Extremes, Natural Resources, Land Use, Irrigated Land, Natural Hazards, Current Environment Issues, International Environment Agreements, and General Notes

• People, including Population, Age Structure, Median Age, Population Growth Rate, Birth Rate, Death Rate, Net Migration Rate, Sex Ratio, Infant Mortality Rate, Life Expectancy at Birth, Total Fertility Rate, HIV/AIDS Adult Prevalence Rate, People Living With HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS Deaths, Nationality, Ethnic Groups, Religions, Languages, Literacy, and General Notes

• Government, including Country Name, Government Type, Capital, Administrative Divisions, Dependent Areas, Independence, National Holiday, Constitution, Legal System, Suffrage, Executive Branch, Legislative Branch, Judicial Branch, Political Parties/Leaders, Political Pressure Groups/Leaders, International Organization Participation, Diplomatic Representation in the US, Diplomatic Representation from the US, and Flag Description

• Economy, including Overview, GDP, GDP Real Growth Rate, Per Capita GDP, GDP Composition by Sector, Population below Poverty Line, Household Income/Consumption by Percentage Share, Distribution of Family Income, Consumer Price Inflation Rate, Labor Force, Labor Force by Occupation, Unemployment Rate, Budget, Agriculture Products, Industries, Industrial Production Growth Rate, Electricity Production, Electricity Production by Source, Electricity Consumption, Electricity Exports, Electricity Imports, Oil Production, Oil Consumption, Oil Exports, Oil Imports, Proven Oil Reserves, Natural Gas Production, Natural Gas Consumption, Natural Gas Exports, Natural Gas Imports, Proven Natural Gas Reserves, Exports, Commodities Exports, Export Partners, Imports, Commodities Imports, Import Partners, External Debt, Economic Aid (Recipient/Donor), Currency, Currency Code, Exchange Rates, and Fiscal Year

• Communications, including Main Telephone Lines in Use, Mobile Cellular Telephones, Telephone System, Radio Broadcast Stations, Television Broadcast Stations, Internet Country Code, Internet Service Providers/Hosts, and Internet Users

• Transportation, including Railways, Highways, Waterways, Pipelines, Ports/Harbors, Merchant Marine, Airports, Airports with Paved Runways, Airports with Unpaved Runways, and Heliports

• Military, including Military Branches, Military Age, Manpower Availability, Manpower Fit for Military Service, Manpower Reaching Military Age Annually, Military Expenditures, and Military Expenditures as Percent of GDP

• Transnational Issues, including International Disputes and Illicit Drugs