The three types of finished intelligence are: basic, current, and estimative. Basic intelligence provides the fundamental and factual reference material on a country or issue. Current intelligence reports on new developments. Estimative intelligence judges probable outcomes. The three are mutually supportive: basic intelligence is the foundation on which the other two are constructed; current intelligence continually updates the inventory of knowledge; and estimative intelligence revises overall interpretations of country and issue prospects for guidance of basic and current intelligence. The World Factbook, The President's Daily Brief, and the National Intelligence Estimates are examples of the three types of finished intelligence.
The United States has carried on foreign intelligence activities since the days of George Washington but only since World War II have they been coordinated on a government-wide basis. Three programs have highlighted the development of coordinated basic intelligence since that time: (1) the Joint Army Navy Intelligence Studies (JANIS), (2) the National Intelligence Survey (NIS), and (3) The World Factbook.
During World War II, intelligence consumers realized that the production of basic intelligence by different components of the US Government resulted in a great duplication of effort and conflicting information. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 brought home to leaders in Congress and the executive branch the need for integrating departmental reports to national policymakers. Detailed and coordinated information was needed not only on such major powers as Germany and Japan, but also on places of little previous interest. In the Pacific Theater, for example, the Navy and Marines had to launch amphibious operations against many islands about which information was unconfirmed or nonexistent. Intelligence authorities resolved that the United States should never again be caught unprepared.
In 1943, Gen. George B. Strong (G-2), Adm. H. C. Train (Office of Naval Intelligence - ONI), and Gen. William J. Donovan (Director of the Office of Strategic Services - OSS) decided that a joint effort should be initiated. A steering committee was appointed on 27 April 1943 that recommended the formation of a Joint Intelligence Study Publishing Board to assemble, edit, coordinate, and publish the Joint Army Navy Intelligence Studies (JANIS). JANIS was the first interdepartmental basic intelligence program to fulfill the needs of the US Government for an authoritative and coordinated appraisal of strategic basic intelligence. Between April 1943 and July 1947, the board published 34 JANIS studies. JANIS performed well in the war effort, and numerous letters of commendation were received, including a statement from Adm. Forrest Sherman, Chief of Staff, Pacific Ocean Areas, which said, "JANIS has become the indispensable reference work for the shore-based planners."
The need for more comprehensive basic intelligence in the postwar world was well expressed in 1946 by George S. Pettee, a noted author on national security. He wrote in The Future of American Secret Intelligence (Infantry Journal Press, 1946, page 46) that world leadership in peace requires even more elaborate intelligence than in war. "The conduct of peace involves all countries, all human activities - not just the enemy and his war production."
The Central Intelligence Agency was established on 26 July 1947 and officially began operating on 18 September 1947. Effective 1 October 1947, the Director of Central Intelligence assumed operational responsibility for JANIS. On 13 January 1948, the National Security Council issued Intelligence Directive (NSCID) No. 3, which authorized the National Intelligence Survey (NIS) program as a peacetime replacement for the wartime JANIS program. Before adequate NIS country sections could be produced, government agencies had to develop more comprehensive gazetteers and better maps. The US Board on Geographic Names (BGN) compiled the names; the Department of the Interior produced the gazetteers; and CIA produced the maps.
The Hoover Commission's Clark Committee, set up in 1954 to study the structure and administration of the CIA, reported to Congress in 1955 that: "The National Intelligence Survey is an invaluable publication which provides the essential elements of basic intelligence on all areas of the world. There will always be a continuing requirement for keeping the Survey up-to-date." The Factbook was created as an annual summary and update to the encyclopedic NIS studies. The first classified Factbook was published in August 1962, and the first unclassified version was published in June 1971. The NIS program was terminated in 1973 except for the Factbook, map, and gazetteer components. The 1975 Factbook was the first to be made available to the public with sales through the US Government Printing Office (GPO). The Factbook was first made available on the Internet in June 1997. The year 2019 marks the 72nd anniversary of the establishment of the Central Intelligence Agency and the 76th year of continuous basic intelligence support to the US Government by The World Factbook and its two predecessor programs.
1992
Twenty new successor state entries replace those of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia. New countries are respectively: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan; and Bosnia and Hercegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovenia. Number of nations in the Factbook rises to 188.
1993
Czechoslovakia's split necessitates new Czech Republic and Slovakia entries. New Eritrea entry added after it secedes from Ethiopia. Substantial enhancements made to Geography section.
1994
Two new appendices address Selected International Environmental Agreements. The gross domestic product (GDP) of most developing countries changed to a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis rather than an exchange rate basis. Factbook size up to 512 pages.
1995
The GDP of all countries now presented on a PPP basis. New appendix lists estimates of GDP on an exchange rate basis. Communications category split; "Railroads," "Highways," "Inland waterways," "Pipelines," "Merchant marine," and "Airports" entries now make up a new Transportation category. The World Factbook is first produced on CD-ROM.
1996
Maps accompanying each entry now present more detail. Flags also introduced for nearly all entities. Various new entries appear under Geography and Communications. Factbook abbreviations consolidated into a new Appendix A. Two new appendices present a Cross-Reference List of Country Data Codes and a Cross-Reference List of Hydrogeographic Data Codes. Geographic coordinates added to Appendix H, Cross-Reference List of Geographic Names. Factbook size expands by 95 pages in one year to reach 652.
1997
The World Factbook introduced onto the Internet. A special printed edition prepared for the CIA's 50th anniversary. A schema or Guide to Country Profiles introduced. New color maps and flags now accompany each country profile. Category headings distinguished by shaded backgrounds. Number of categories expanded to nine with the addition of an Introduction (for only a few countries) and Transnational Issues (which includes "Disputes-international" and "Illicit drugs").
1998
The Introduction category with two entries, "Current issues" and "Historical perspective," expanded to more countries. Last year for the production of CD-ROM versions of the Factbook.
1999
"Historical perspective" and "Current issues" entries in the Introduction category combined into a new "Background" statement. Several new Economy entries introduced. A new physical map of the world added to the back-of-the-book reference maps.
2000
A new "country profile" added on the Southern Ocean. The Background statements dramatically expanded to over 200 countries and possessions. A number of new Communications entries added.
2001
Background entries completed for all 267 entities in the Factbook. Several new HIV/AIDS entries introduced under the People category. Revision begun on individual country maps to include elevation extremes and a partial geographic grid. Weights and Measures appendix deleted.
2002
New entry on "Distribution of Family income - Gini index" added. Revision of individual country maps continued (process still ongoing).
2003
In the Economy category, petroleum entries added for "oil production," "consumption," "exports," "imports," and "proved reserves," as well as "natural gas proved reserves."
2004
Bi-weekly updates launched on The World Factbook website. Additional petroleum entries included for "natural gas production," "consumption," "exports," and "imports." In the Transportation category, under "Merchant marine," subfields added for foreign-owned vessels and those registered in other countries. Descriptions of the many forms of government mentioned in the Factbook incorporated into the Definitions and Notes.
2005
In the People category, a "Major infectious diseases" field added for countries deemed to pose a higher risk for travelers. In the Economy category, entries included for "Current account balance," "Investment," "Public debt," and "Reserves of foreign exchange and gold." The Transnational issues category expanded to include "Refugees and internally displaced persons." Size of the printed Factbook reaches 702 pages.
2006
In the Economy category, national GDP figures now presented at Official Exchange Rates (OER) in addition to GDP at purchasing power parity (PPP). Entries in the Transportation section reordered; "Highways" changed to "Roadways," and "Ports and harbors" to "Ports and terminals."
2007
In the Government category, the "Capital" entry significantly expanded with up to four subfields, including new information having to do with time. The subfields consist of the name of the capital itself, its geographic coordinates, the time difference at the capital from coordinated universal time (UTC), and, if applicable, information on daylight saving time (DST). Where appropriate, a special note is added to highlight those countries with multiple time zones. A "Trafficking in persons" entry added to the Transnational issues category. A new appendix, Weights and Measures, (re)introduced to the online version of the Factbook.
2008
In the Geography category, two fields focus on the increasingly vital resource of water: "Total renewable water resources" and "Freshwater withdrawal." In the Economy category, three fields added for: "Stock of direct foreign investment - at home," "Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad," and "Market value of publicly traded shares." Concise descriptions of all major religions included in the Definitions and Notes. Responsibility for printing of The World Factbook turned over to the Government Printing Office.
2009
The online Factbook site completely redesigned with many new features. In the People category, two new fields provide information on education in terms of opportunity and resources: "School Life Expectancy" and "Education expenditures." Additionally, the "Urbanization" entry expanded to include all countries. In the Economy category, five fields added: "Central bank discount rate," "Commercial bank prime lending rate," "Stock of narrow money," "Stock of broad money," and "Stock of domestic credit."
2010
Weekly updates inaugurated on the The World Factbook website. The dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles results in two new listings: Curacao and Sint Maarten. In the Communications category, a "Broadcast media" field replaces the former "Radio broadcast stations" and "TV broadcast stations" entries. In the Geography section, under "Natural hazards," a Volcanism subfield added for countries with historically active volcanoes. In the Government category, a new "National anthems" field introduced. Concise descriptions of all major Legal systems incorporated into the Definitions and Notes. In order to facilitate comparisons over time, dozens of the entries in the Economy category expanded to include two (and in some cases three) years' worth of data.
2011
The People section expanded to People and Society, incorporating ten new fields. The Economy category added "Taxes and other revenues" and "Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)," while the Government section introduced "International law organization participation" and "National symbols." A new African nation, South Sudan, brings the total number of countries in The World Factbook to 195.
2012
A new Energy category introduced with 23 energy-related fields. Several distinctive features added to The World Factbook website: 1) playable audio files in the Government section for the National Anthems entry, 2) online graphics in the form of a Population Pyramid feature in the People and Society category's Age Structure field, and 3) a Users Guide enabling visitors to navigate the Factbook more easily and efficiently. A new and distinctive Map of the World Oceans highlights an expanded array of regional and country maps. Size of the printed Factbook's 50th anniversary edition reaches 847 pages.
2013
In the People and Society section five fields introduced: "Demographic profile," "Mother's mean age at first birth," "Contraceptive prevalence rate," "Dependency ratios," and "Child labor - children ages 5-14." In the Transnational Issues category, a new stateless persons subfield embedded under the "Refugees and internally displaced persons" entry. In the Economy section two fields added: "GDP - composition by end use" and "Gross national saving." In the Government category the "Judicial branch" entry revised and expanded to include three new subfields: highest court(s), judge selection and term of office, and subordinate courts.
2014
In the Transportation category, the "Ports and terminals" field substantially expanded with subfields for major seaport(s), river port(s), lake port(s), oil/gas terminal(s), LNG terminal(s), dry bulk cargo port(s), container port(s), and cruise/ferry port(s). In the Geography section, the "Land boundaries entry" revised for all countries, including the total country border length as well as the border lengths for all neighboring countries.
2015
In the Government category, the first part of the "Legislative branch" field thoroughly revised, expanded, and updated for all countries under a new description heading. This subentry includes the legislative structure, the formal name(s), the number of legislative seats, the types of voting constituencies and voting systems, and the member term of office. In the Geography category, the "Land use" entry expanded to include agricultural land, forest land, and other uses. Area Comparison Maps introduced online for about half of the world’s countries. These graphics show the size of a country in relation to a part of the United States. (More maps to follow as they become available.)
2016
In the Government section for all countries, a new "Citizenship" field added to describe policies related to the acquisition of citizenship and to the recognition of dual citizenship. Also, under the "Country name" entry, etymologies (historical origins) added to explain how countries acquired their names. In the Energy section, an "Electricity access" field introduced with subfields summarizing total access to electricity within an country, as well as for urban and rural populations. In the Transportation category, an expansive National air transport system field presents info on the number of registered air carriers, number of operating aircraft, annual passenger traffic, and annual freight traffic.
2017
In the Government category, the "Constitution" entry revised and expanded with new subfields for history and amendments. Information on piracy moved from the Transportation category to a new "Maritime threats" field in the Military and Security category. In the Transportation section, the "Merchant marine" entry revised to not only include the total number of ships, but also the major types: bulk carrier, container ship, general cargo, oil tanker, and other. A new "Population distribution" field added to both the Geography and People and Society categories. The Government Printing Office discontinued printing The Word Factbook, but annual online editions may be downloaded from the Factbook site.
2018
One-Page Country Summaries introduced for selected countries in the Factbook; more to follow in the future. The Summaries highlight key information from lengthier World Factbook entries and are intended for use by teachers, students, travelers, researchers, news reporters, or anyone with an interest in geography. Dozens of additional area comparison maps added; about two-thirds of country entries now include these popular maps. In the Communications category, a "Broadband - fixed subscriptions" entry now included.
2019
The Factbook's World entry acquires many new Top Ten listings including those for the largest forests, largest deserts, longest mountain ranges, and climate extremes (Top Ten driest, wettest, coldest, and hottest places on earth). Also in the World entry, seven new continent area comparison maps compare their size to that of the US. In each of the five ocean entries, under the Economy section, a "Maritime fisheries" field includes info on major fishing regions, total tonnage caught, and principal fish catches.
