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NOTES AND DEFINITIONS
There have been some significant changes in this edition. A schema or Guide to Country Profiles has been added. The new maps and flags accompanying each country profile are in color. The country name Zaire has been officially changed to Democratic Republic of the Congo. Congo is now referred to as Republic of the Congo. New reference maps of the United States, Ethnolinguistic Groups in Afghanistan, and Central Africa have been included. Introduction is a new category with two entries—Current issues and Historical perspective that now appear in only a few country profiles, but will be added to all countries in the future. The Area—comparative entry was separated from the Area entry. The lowest point and highest point information has been removed from the Terrain entry and put into a new entry called Elevation extremes. The former Environment entry has been replaced by three new entries—Natural hazards, Environment—current issues, and Environment—international agreements. US diplomatic representation has been renamed Diplomatic representation from the US in order to parallel the Diplomatic representation in the US entry. The former Airports entry has been split into three separate entries—Airports, Airports—with paved runways, and Airports—with unpaved runways. The Defense category has been renamed Military. The Branches entry has been renamed Military branches. The former Manpower availability entry has been replaced by four new entries—Military manpower—military age, Military manpower—availability, Military manpower—fit for military service, and Military manpower—reaching military age annually. The former Defense expenditures entry has been replaced by two new entries—Military expenditures—dollar figure, and Military expenditures—percent of GDP. Transnational Issues is a new category that now includes only two existing entries (Illicit drugs and Disputes—international) but additional entries will be considered in the future.
Abbreviations: This information is included in Appendix A: Abbreviations which includes all abbreviations and acronyms used in the Factbook with their expansions.
Administrative divisions: This entry generally gives the numbers, designatory terms, and first-order administrative divisions as approved by the US Board on Geographic Names (BGN). Changes that have been reported but not yet acted on by BGN are noted.
Age structure: This entry provides the distribution of the population according to age. Information is included by sex and age group (0-14 years, 15-64 years, 65 years and over). The age structure of a population will affect a country's investment pattern. Countries with young populations (high percentage under age 15) need to invest more in schools, while countries with older populations (high percentage ages 65 and over) need to invest more in the health sector. The age structure can also be used to help predict potential political issues. For example, the rapid growth of a young adult population unable to find employment can lead to unrest.
Agriculture—products: This entry is a rank ordering of major crops and products starting with the most important.
Airports: This entry gives the total number of airports. The runway(s) may be paved (concrete or asphalt surfaces) or unpaved (grass, dirt, sand, or gravel surfaces), but must be usable. Not all airports have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control.
Airports—with paved runways: This entry gives the total number of airports with paved runways (concrete or asphalt surfaces). For airports with more than one runway, only the longest runway is included according to the following five groups—(1) over 3,047 m, (2) 2,438 to 3,047 m, (3) 1,524 to 2,437 m, (4) 914 to 1,523 m, and (5) under 914 m. Not all airports have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control. Only airports with usable runways are included in this listing.
Airports—with unpaved runways: This entry gives the total number of airports with unpaved runways (grass, dirt, sand, or gravel surfaces). For airports with more than one runway, only the longest runway is included according to the following five groups—(1) over 3,047 m, (2) 2,438 to 3,047 m, (3) 1,524 to 2,437 m, (4) 914 to 1,523 m, and (5) under 914 m. Not all airports have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control. Only airports with usable runways are included in this listing.