Western Carolina University - Research Guide for Country Information

General Information

The World Factbook (U.S. CIA) – Online and in print at the Reference Desk Prex 3.15

Background Notes (U.S. State Dept.) Online and in print GOV REF S1.123:
Encyclopaedia Britannica – Choose two countries and get side-by-side comparisons about land, people, economy, and more.

Constitution Finder (University of Richmond)
This database contains "constitutions, charters, amendments, and other related documents" of nations around the world.

Country Studies/Area Handbook
Covers ninety-two countries "describing and analyzing its political, economic, social, and national security systems and institutions, and examining the interrelationships of those systems and the ways they are shaped by cultural factors."

Portals to the World
Provided by the Library of Congress, this site "offers links to selective and authoritative electronic resources arranged by country or geographic regions, with links for each, sorted in a wide range of broad categories.

Project Visa
Visa and embassy information for all countries.

The Europa World Year Book. (Annual)
REF JN 1 .E82

BBCNews: Country Profiles
Concise information on countries, territories, and selected international organizations. Includes an overview, history, political events, statistics, biographies, picture of the flag, audio of each country's national anthem, and more.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/country_profiles/default.stm

Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments
http://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2077.html

Foreign Government Resources on the Web (University of Michigan)
http://www.lib.umich.edu/government-documents-center/explore/browse/foreign-governments/255/search/

GlobalEDGE: International Business Resource Desk
An outline of the business climate, political structure, history, and statistical data for more than 190 countries. Includes regional and country specific links in addition to a general overview of each geographic area.
http://globaledge.msu.edu/ibrd/ibrd.asp

Nation Master
Contains over 335 statistical data sets on most countries of the world. Provides the option of creating graphs in order to compare different nations.
http://www.nationmaster.com/index.php

Latin America and Caribbean Contemporary Record. (Annual)
WCU General F 1401 .L3253

World Quality of Life Indicators. (Biennial)
WCU General HN 25 .W67

Foreign Governments

Electronic Embassy
This website contains contact information for most foreign embassies in Washington DC with related resources for embassy staff.

Foreign Governments (Northwestern University)
Alphabetically organized countries of the world from Albania to Zambia; this site includes links to government information, publications, maps, and much more.

Foreign Government Resources on the Web (University of Michigan)
A one-stop resource for links to foreign governments, constitutions, embassies, and statistics.

Foreign Information by Country (University of Colorado at Boulder)
Alphabetically organized by country, this website contains information on the country's health, diplomatic relations, and peacekeeping & military information. Also available are links to databases with articles on various issues pertaining to the country.

Governments on the WWW (Gunnar Anzinger)
Comprehensive database of governmental institutions on the World Wide Web: parliaments, ministries, offices, law courts, embassies, city councils, public broadcasting corporations, central banks, multi-governmental institutions etc.

The Military Balance. (Annual)
REF UA 15 .L65

Political Handbook of the World. (Annual)
REF JF 37 .P5

International Organizations

International Government Information & Data (Northwestern University)
This megasite has links to various international organizations dealing with economic development, environmental issues, education, labor issues, etc. in developed and developing countries. News releases, publications and documents are also available, some in full-text.

Non-Governmental Organizations

Non-Governmental Organizations
Includes links to some principal organizations like Amnesty International, Global Exchange, Global Youth Connect, Green Net, the National Peace Corps Association, and more.

Non-Governmental Organizations Research Guide (Duke University)
Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) are not directly affiliated with any national government but often have a significant impact on the social, economic and political activity of the country or region involved. Duke University's website is a comprehensive guide to selected NGOs and includes data by subject such as Women's Rights, Human Rights, Statistics, and Environment.

United Nations

United Nations Data
Provides key human development indicators for the countries of the world; also includes statistical information related to numerous subject areas such as agriculture, communication, education, health, and more.

Model UN Research (Stanford University)
Resource includes a seven-step strategy for model UN research, information about resolutions, and links to related sites.

UN System of Organizations
Alphabetic list of websites of the United Nations System of Organizations, which includes specialized agencies like the International Court of Justice, ILO, IMF, UNDP, UNICEF, WHO, WTO, World Bank, and many more.

UN Millennium Development Goals
The Eight Millennium Development goals set by the UN which includes "halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education, all by the target date of 2015".

International Statistics

U.S. Census Bureau
- International Programs Center (IPC)
The IPC, part of the Population Division of the US Bureau of the Census, conducts demographic and socioeconomic studies and strengthens statistical development around the world.
- The World Factbook of Criminal Justice Systems
This factbook provides statistical and narrative descriptions of the criminal justice systems of selected countries around the world.

UN Agencies
- InfoNation
An easy-to-use, two-step database that allows you to view and compare the most up-to-date statistical data for the Member States of the United Nations.
- Population Information Network
Makes international, regional and national population information, particularly information available from United Nations sources, available to the international community.
- UN Statistics Division
Includes statistics on population, housing, energy, environment, trade, etc.

Other Sources
Canadian Statistics
This website provides statistical information on "Canada's people, economy, and governments", and covers a wide variety of topics from agriculture to wholesale trade.

Eurostat (European Union)
This site is a complete tool box to access the EU statistical information in no more than 2 clicks. The Eurostat website provides the latest and the most complete statistical information on the EU and the Euro-zone.

NGOs: Statistical Data Sources (Duke University)
Non-Governmental Organizations provide important and hard-to-find data on regions and countries on a broad range of topics.

Economics & Finance

Balance of Payment Statistics: Country Tables. (Annual)
REF HJ 101 .G68

International Financial Statistics Yearbook. (Annual)
REF HG 61 .I57

World Development Indicators. (Annual)
REF HC 59.15 .W656

World Economic Situation and Prospects. (Annual)
REF HC 59 .A16912

Education

International Handbook of Universities and Other Institutions of Higher Education.
REF L 900 .I5

The Europa World of Learning. (Annual)
REF AS 2 .W6 (Library receives every other year.)

World Education Encyclopedia. 3v.
REF LB 15 .W87

Law

Martindale-Hubbell International Law Digest. (Annual)
REF KF 190 .M332

Social

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. (CD-ROM, Annual)
WCU General JC 571 .C68 2001 & 2002

The Encyclopedia of Aging. 2v.
REF HQ 1061 .E53 2001

International Handbook on Alcohol and Culture.
REF HV 5035 .I57 1995

International Handbook on Services For the Elderly.
REF HV 1451 .I547 1994