What do you think?
Rate this book
The CIA World Factbook 2014
From Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, The CIA World Factbook 2014 offers complete and up-to-date information on the world's nations. This comprehensive guide is packed with detailed information on the politics, populations, military expenditures, and economics of 2014.
For each country, The CIA World Factbook 2014 includes: Detailed maps with new geopolitical data Statistics on the population of each country, with details on literacy rates, HIV prevalence, and age structure New data on military expenditures and capabilities Information on each country's climate and natural hazards Details on prominent political parties, and contact information for diplomatic consultation Facts on transportation and communication infrastructure And much more!Also included are appendixes with useful abbreviations, international environmental agreements, international organizations and groups, weight and measure conversions, and more. Originally intended for use by government officials, this is a must-have resource for students, travelers, journalists, and businesspeople with a desire to know more about their world.
For each country, The CIA World Factbook 2014 includes: Detailed maps with new geopolitical data Statistics on the population of each country, with details on literacy rates, HIV prevalence, and age structure New data on military expenditures and capabilities Information on each country's climate and natural hazards Details on prominent political parties, and contact information for diplomatic consultation Facts on transportation and communication infrastructure And much more!Also included are appendixes with useful abbreviations, international environmental agreements, international organizations and groups, weight and measure conversions, and more. Originally intended for use by government officials, this is a must-have resource for students, travelers, journalists, and businesspeople with a desire to know more about their world.
- GenresReference
5139 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2013
11 people are currently reading
35 people want to read
About the author
Central Intelligence Agency
1,741 books93 followersThe Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the U.S. Government, tasked with gathering, processing and analyzing national security information from around the world, primarily through the use of human intelligence (HUMINT). As one of the principal members of the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC), the CIA reports to the Director of National Intelligence and is primarily focused on providing intelligence for the President and his Cabinet.
Unlike the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which is a domestic security service, CIA has no law enforcement function and is mainly focused on overseas intelligence gathering, with only limited domestic collection. Though it is not the only U.S. government agency specializing in HUMINT, CIA serves as the national manager for coordination and deconfliction of HUMINT activities across the entire intelligence community. Moreover, CIA is the only agency authorized by law to carry out and oversee covert action on behalf of the President, unless the President determines that another agency is better suited for carrying out such action. It can, for example, exert foreign political influence through its tactical divisions, such as the Special Activities Division.
Before the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act, CIA Director concurrently served as the head of the Intelligence Community; today these functions and authorities reside with the Director of National Intelligence. Despite transferring some of its powers to the DNI, the CIA has grown in size as a result of the September 11 terrorist attacks. In 2013, The Washington Post reported that in fiscal year 2010, the CIA had the largest budget of all IC agencies, exceeding previous estimates.
The CIA has increasingly expanded its roles, including covert paramilitary operations. One of its largest divisions, the Information Operations Center (IOC), has shifted focus from counter-terrorism to offensive cyber-operations. While the CIA has had some recent accomplishments, such as locating Osama bin Laden and taking part in the successful Operation Neptune Spear, it has also been involved in controversial programs such as extraordinary rendition and enhanced interrogation techniques.
Unlike the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which is a domestic security service, CIA has no law enforcement function and is mainly focused on overseas intelligence gathering, with only limited domestic collection. Though it is not the only U.S. government agency specializing in HUMINT, CIA serves as the national manager for coordination and deconfliction of HUMINT activities across the entire intelligence community. Moreover, CIA is the only agency authorized by law to carry out and oversee covert action on behalf of the President, unless the President determines that another agency is better suited for carrying out such action. It can, for example, exert foreign political influence through its tactical divisions, such as the Special Activities Division.
Before the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act, CIA Director concurrently served as the head of the Intelligence Community; today these functions and authorities reside with the Director of National Intelligence. Despite transferring some of its powers to the DNI, the CIA has grown in size as a result of the September 11 terrorist attacks. In 2013, The Washington Post reported that in fiscal year 2010, the CIA had the largest budget of all IC agencies, exceeding previous estimates.
The CIA has increasingly expanded its roles, including covert paramilitary operations. One of its largest divisions, the Information Operations Center (IOC), has shifted focus from counter-terrorism to offensive cyber-operations. While the CIA has had some recent accomplishments, such as locating Osama bin Laden and taking part in the successful Operation Neptune Spear, it has also been involved in controversial programs such as extraordinary rendition and enhanced interrogation techniques.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 22, 2019
Everything the CIA writes is done with an agenda in mind. It's spin: its goal is to convince the reader that the U.S. must be ever ready to intervene all over the world, and that the U.S. (and CIA) have done no wrong.
If you want accurate history of the countries of the world where the CIA and U.S. military have intervened (nearly everywhere), you won't find it here.
A tip of the truth starts to emerge in books such as:
Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA, Tim Weiner
Back on the CIA factbook itself, don't rely on what you read. For instance, the CIA gives navigable waterways' total length per country, showing Vietnam with more than the U.S., and the sum of all countries' totals less than a quarter of their world total. They seem to be lying about the U.S. total at least. cia.gov/library/publications/resource... [or search for navigable waterways]
In Search of Enemies: A CIA Story, John R. Stockwell
JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters, James W. Douglass
Paradise in Ashes: A Guatemalan Journey of Courage, Terror, and Hope, Beatriz Manz
Joel Andreas' Addicted to War:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
General Smedley Butler's War is a Racket:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Sara Miles' La Verdadera Guerra
(links to two of her English-language articles after clicking "war" at:)
https://www.goodreads.com/trivia/deta...
Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent, Eduardo Galeano
If you want accurate history of the countries of the world where the CIA and U.S. military have intervened (nearly everywhere), you won't find it here.
A tip of the truth starts to emerge in books such as:
Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA, Tim Weiner
Back on the CIA factbook itself, don't rely on what you read. For instance, the CIA gives navigable waterways' total length per country, showing Vietnam with more than the U.S., and the sum of all countries' totals less than a quarter of their world total. They seem to be lying about the U.S. total at least. cia.gov/library/publications/resource... [or search for navigable waterways]
In Search of Enemies: A CIA Story, John R. Stockwell
JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters, James W. Douglass
Paradise in Ashes: A Guatemalan Journey of Courage, Terror, and Hope, Beatriz Manz
Joel Andreas' Addicted to War:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
General Smedley Butler's War is a Racket:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Sara Miles' La Verdadera Guerra
(links to two of her English-language articles after clicking "war" at:)
https://www.goodreads.com/trivia/deta...
Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent, Eduardo Galeano
December 4, 2013
This is a great source of information about countries throughout the world. One gets information about a myriad areas--geography, people and society, government, economy, energy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues.
One example: Djibouti. Geography--between Eritrea and Somalia in Eastern Africa.. People and society (just an example or two)--ethnic groups include dominantly Somali and Afar, only 8% of the population is 55 or over. Economy--gross domestic product per capita=$2,700, 181st in rank among all countries. Communications--land line telephones are # 193 among all countries and number of cell phones ran 181st. Transportation--three airports have paved runways; another ten do not.
There are other features, too. Appendices at the end of the book enumerate international organizations and groups (such as the African Union, NATO, and the like), a listing of international environmental agreements (such as the Kyoto Protocol on climate change), weights and measures, and reference maps.
A lot of information, allowing one to compare countries across the planet. Great resource.
One example: Djibouti. Geography--between Eritrea and Somalia in Eastern Africa.. People and society (just an example or two)--ethnic groups include dominantly Somali and Afar, only 8% of the population is 55 or over. Economy--gross domestic product per capita=$2,700, 181st in rank among all countries. Communications--land line telephones are # 193 among all countries and number of cell phones ran 181st. Transportation--three airports have paved runways; another ten do not.
There are other features, too. Appendices at the end of the book enumerate international organizations and groups (such as the African Union, NATO, and the like), a listing of international environmental agreements (such as the Kyoto Protocol on climate change), weights and measures, and reference maps.
A lot of information, allowing one to compare countries across the planet. Great resource.
October 24, 2015
The American Central Intelligence Agency issues an annual report of facts about every nation in the world. This factbook lists information on a wide variety of topics including government and resources. This 2014 volume is a handy resource to have.
October 7, 2016
It's a Very Good Source for Information, But some Data is Older than 2014, I'm Waiting for a new Edition with New & Updated data.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews