Publisher's Synopsis
This is a reference book which contains up-to-date facts and information on 235 countries and territories of the world. It gives individual profiles of the history, politics, environment and economics of development and gives key facts and indicators on literacy, mortality, trade, employment, schooling and health. Statistical tables provide an easy tool to compare economic and social indicators for all countries of the world. In addition to the maps of each country, there is a large fold-out map of the world. As well as the thematic section covering major development issues, more than 20 further "topic" boxes scattered throughout the text cover various subjects such as African cultures before colonisation, the impacts of NAFTA, ethnic groups and classes and the national conflicts in the former USSR and Hong Kong.;The book covers a wide range of developmental issues facing the world at the end of the twentieth century: biodiversity; deforestation; climatic changes; water; indigenous peoples; social models; women; ecology; education; health; childhood; labour; child labour; science and technology; industrialisation; the car; communications; nuclear energy; development; globalisation; transnationals; speculative economy; debt; aid; the UN; refugees; arms.
