L
Latin American Economic System (LAES)
note - also known as Sistema Economico Latinoamericana (SELA) established - 17 October 1975 aim - to promote economic and social development through regional cooperation members - (27) Argentina, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Secretaria General Iberoamericana (SEGIB), Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela
Latin American Integration Association (LAIA)
note - also known as Asociacion Latinoamericana de Integracion (ALADI)
established - 12 August 1980; effective - 18 March 1981 aim - to
promote freer regional trade members - (12) Argentina, Bolivia,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru,
Uruguay, Venezuela observers - (26) China, Corporacion Andina de
Fomento, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, EC, El Salvador, Guatemala,
Honduras, Inter-American Development Bank, Inter-American Institute for
Cooperation on Agriculture, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Latin America
Economic System, Nicaragua, Organization of American States, Panama,
Pan-American Health Organization, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain,
Switzerland, Ukraine, United Nations Development Program, United
Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
League of Arab States (LAS)
note - also known as Arab League (AL) established - 22 March 1945 aim - 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 observers - (3) Eritrea, India, Venezuela
least developed countries (LLDCs)
that subgroup of the less developed countries (LDCs) initially identified by the UN General Assembly in 1971 as having no significant economic growth, per capita GDPs normally less than $1,000, and low literacy rates; also known as the undeveloped countries; the 42 LLDCs are: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Kiribati, Laos, Lesotho, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Rwanda, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Yemen
less developed countries (LDCs)
the bottom group in the hierarchy of developed countries (DCs), former
USSR/Eastern Europe (former USSR/EE), and less developed countries
(LDCs); mainly countries and dependent areas with low levels of output,
living standards, and technology; per capita GDPs are generally below
$5,000 and often less than $1,500; however, the group also includes a
number of countries with high per capita incomes, areas of advanced
technology, and rapid rates of growth; includes the advanced developing
countries, developing countries, Four Dragons (Four Tigers), least
developed countries (LLDCs), low-income countries, middle-income
countries, newly industrializing economies (NIEs), the South, Third
World, underdeveloped countries, undeveloped countries; the 172 LDCs
are: Afghanistan, Algeria, American Samoa, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua
and Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, The Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh,
Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, British
Virgin Islands, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia,
Cameroon, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad,
Chile, China, Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, Colombia, Comoros,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cook Islands,
Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Cyprus, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican
Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea,
Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Fiji, French Guiana, French Polynesia,
Gabon, The Gambia, Gaza Strip, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greenland, Grenada,
Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana,
Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Isle of Man,
Jamaica, Jersey, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, North Korea, South Korea,
Kuwait, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Macau, Madagascar,
Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Martinique,
Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Federated States of Micronesia,
Mongolia, Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal,
Netherlands Antilles, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Niue,
Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Oman, Palau, Pakistan,
Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Pitcairn
Islands, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Reunion, Rwanda, Saint Helena, Saint Kitts
and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saint Vincent and
the Grenadines, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal,
Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Sri
Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syria, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand,
Togo, Tokelau, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turks and Caicos
Islands, Tuvalu, UAE, Uganda, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam,
Virgin Islands, Wallis and Futuna, West Bank, Western Sahara, Yemen,
Zambia, Zimbabwe; note - similar to the new International Monetary Fund
(IMF) term "developing countries" which adds Malta, Mexico, South
Africa, and Turkey but omits in its recently published statistics
American Samoa, Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Cayman
Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, Cook Islands, Cuba, Eritrea,
Falkland Islands, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gaza Strip,
Gibraltar, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guernsey, Isle of Man,
Jersey, North Korea, Macau, Martinique, Mayotte, Montserrat, Nauru, New
Caledonia, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau,
Pitcairn Islands, Puerto Rico, Reunion, Saint Helena, Saint Pierre and
Miquelon, Tokelau, Tonga, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Virgin
Islands, Wallis and Futuna, West Bank, Western Sahara
low-income countries
another term for those less developed countries with below-average per capita GDPs; see less developed countries (LDCs)