The CIA World Factbook Edition 2009 Government

Government type In 36 editions of 36.

Government type was published in 36 editions of the CIA World Factbook, from 1990 to 2025. The 2009 edition carries it in 233 entries, in its Government section. Every entry is shown as that edition published it.

entries in the 2009 edition
233
the first edition with it
1990
the latest edition with it
2025

Published as “Government type” (1997 to 2025), “Type” (1990 to 1995) and “Type of government” (1996).

the entry has the field in that editionnot in that editionthe open editionEach entry below ends in its editions with Government type, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down; choose one in a row to read that edition’s text there.

Entries with Government type in each edition

19902000201020202025

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Africa

56 entries

Algeria

republic

Angola

republic; multiparty presidential regime

Benin

republic

Botswana

parliamentary republic

Burkina Faso

parliamentary republic

Burundi

republic

Cape Verde now Cabo Verde

republic

Cameroon

republic; multiparty presidential regime

Central African Republic

republic

Chad

republic

Comoros

republic

Congo, Democratic Republic of the now Democratic Republic of the Congo

republic

Congo, Republic of the now Republic of the Congo

republic

Cote d'Ivoire

republic; multiparty presidential regime established 1960

note: the government is currently operating under a power-sharing agreement mandated by international mediators

Djibouti

republic

Egypt

republic

Equatorial Guinea

republic

Eritrea

transitional government

note: following a successful referendum on independence for the Autonomous Region of Eritrea on 23-25 April 1993, a National Assembly, composed entirely of the People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, was established as a transitional legislature; a Constitutional Commission was also established to draft a constitution; ISAIAS Afworki was elected president by the transitional legislature; the constitution, ratified in May 1997, did not enter into effect, pending parliamentary and presidential elections; parliamentary elections were scheduled in December 2001, but were postponed indefinitely; currently the sole legal party is the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ)

Swaziland now Eswatini

monarchy

Ethiopia

federal republic

Gabon

republic; multiparty presidential regime

Gambia, The now The Gambia

republic

Ghana

constitutional democracy

Guinea

republic

Guinea-Bissau

republic

Kenya

republic

Lesotho

parliamentary constitutional monarchy

Liberia

republic

Libya

  • Jamahiriya (a state of the masses) in theory,
  • governed by the populace through local councils;
  • in practice,
  • an authoritarian state

Madagascar

republic

Malawi

multiparty democracy

Mali

republic

Mauritania

military junta

Mauritius

parliamentary democracy

Mayotte

NA

Morocco

constitutional monarchy

Mozambique

republic

Namibia

republic

Niger

republic

Nigeria

federal republic

Rwanda

republic; presidential, multiparty system

Saint Helena now Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha

NA

Sao Tome and Principe

republic

Senegal

republic

Seychelles

republic

Sierra Leone

constitutional democracy

Somalia

no permanent national government; transitional, parliamentary federal government

South Africa

republic

Sudan

  • Government of National Unity (GNU) - the National Congress Party (NCP) and Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) formed a power-sharing government under the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA);
  • the NCP, which came to power by military coup in 1989, is the majority partner;
  • the agreement stipulates national elections in 2009

Tanzania

republic

Togo

republic under transition to multiparty democratic rule

Tunisia

republic

Uganda

republic

Western Sahara

  • legal status of territory and issue of sovereignty unresolved;
  • territory contested by Morocco and Polisario Front (Popular Front for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro), which in February 1976 formally proclaimed a government-in-exile of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), led by President Mohamed ABDELAZIZ;
  • territory partitioned between Morocco and Mauritania in April 1976 when Spain withdrew, with Morocco acquiring northern two-thirds;
  • Mauritania, under pressure from Polisario guerrillas, abandoned all claims to its portion in August 1979;
  • Morocco moved to occupy that sector shortly thereafter and has since asserted administrative control;
  • the Polisario's government-in-exile was seated as an Organization of African Unity (OAU) member in 1984;
  • guerrilla activities continued sporadically until a UN-monitored cease-fire was implemented on 6 September 1991 (Security Council Resolution 690) by the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara or MINURSO

Zambia

republic

Zimbabwe

parliamentary democracy

Antarctic Region

1 entry

Antarctica

Antarctic Treaty Summary - the Antarctic Treaty, signed on 1 December 1959 and entered into force on 23 June 1961, establishes the legal framework for the management of Antarctica; the 32nd Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting was held in Baltimore, MD, USA in April 2009; at these periodic meetings, decisions are made by consensus (not by vote) of all consultative member nations; by May 2009, there were 47 treaty member nations: 28 consultative and 19 non-consultative; consultative (decision-making) members include the seven nations that claim portions of Antarctica as national territory (some claims overlap) and 21 non-claimant nations; the US and Russia have reserved the right to make claims; the US does not recognize the claims of others; Antarctica is administered through meetings of the consultative member nations; decisions from these meetings are carried out by these member nations (with respect to their own nationals and operations) in accordance with their own national laws; the years in parentheses indicate when a consultative member-nation acceded to the Treaty and when it was accepted as a consultative member, while no date indicates the country was an original 1959 treaty signatory; claimant nations are - Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, NZ, Norway, and the UK. Nonclaimant consultative nations are - Belgium, Brazil (1975/1983), Bulgaria (1978/1998) China (1983/1985), Ecuador (1987/1990), Finland (1984/1989), Germany (1979/1981), India (1983/1983), Italy (1981/1987), Japan, South Korea (1986/1989), Netherlands (1967/1990), Peru (1981/1989), Poland (1961/1977), Russia, South Africa, Spain (1982/1988), Sweden (1984/1988), Ukraine (1992/2004), Uruguay (1980/1985), and the US; non-consultative members, with year of accession in parentheses, are - Austria (1987), Belarus (2006), Canada (1988), Colombia (1989), Cuba (1984), Czech Republic (1962/1993), Denmark (1965), Estonia (2001), Greece (1987), Guatemala (1991), Hungary (1984), North Korea (1987), Monaco (2008), Papua New Guinea (1981), Romania (1971), Slovakia (1962/1993), Switzerland (1990), Turkey (1996), and Venezuela (1999); note - Czechoslovakia acceded to the Treaty in 1962 and separated into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993; Article 1 - area to be used for peaceful purposes only; military activity, such as weapons testing, is prohibited, but military personnel and equipment may be used for scientific research or any other peaceful purpose; Article 2 - freedom of scientific investigation and cooperation shall continue; Article 3 - free exchange of information and personnel, cooperation with the UN and other international agencies; Article 4 - does not recognize, dispute, or establish territorial claims and no new claims shall be asserted while the treaty is in force; Article 5 - prohibits nuclear explosions or disposal of radioactive wastes; Article 6 - includes under the treaty all land and ice shelves south of 60 degrees 00 minutes south and reserves high seas rights; Article 7 - treaty-state observers have free access, including aerial observation, to any area and may inspect all stations, installations, and equipment; advance notice of all expeditions and of the introduction of military personnel must be given; Article 8 - allows for jurisdiction over observers and scientists by their own states; Article 9 - frequent consultative meetings take place among member nations; Article 10 - treaty states will discourage activities by any country in Antarctica that are contrary to the treaty; Article 11 - disputes to be settled peacefully by the parties concerned or, ultimately, by the ICJ; Articles 12, 13, 14 - deal with upholding, interpreting, and amending the treaty among involved nations; other agreements - some 200 recommendations adopted at treaty consultative meetings and ratified by governments include - Agreed Measures for Fauna and Flora (1964) which were later incorporated into the Environmental Protocol; Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (1972); Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (1980); a mineral resources agreement was signed in 1988 but remains unratified; the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty was signed 4 October 1991 and entered into force 14 January 1998; this agreement provides for the protection of the Antarctic environment through six specific annexes: 1) environmental impact assessment, 2) conservation of Antarctic fauna and flora, 3) waste disposal and waste management, 4) prevention of marine pollution, 5) area protection and management and 6) liability arising from environmental emergencies; it prohibits all activities relating to mineral resources except scientific research; a permanent Antarctic Treaty Secretariat was established in 2004 in Buenos Aires, Argentina

Arctic Region

3 entries

Greenland

parliamentary democracy within a constitutional monarchy

Iceland

constitutional republic

Svalbard

NA

Asia

22 entries

Afghanistan

Islamic republic

Armenia

republic

Azerbaijan

republic

Bangladesh

parliamentary democracy

Bhutan

constitutional monarchy

China

Communist state

Georgia

republic

India

federal republic

Japan

a parliamentary government with a constitutional monarchy

Kazakhstan

republic; authoritarian presidential rule, with little power outside the executive branch

Korea, North now North Korea

Communist state one-man dictatorship

Korea, South now South Korea

republic

Kyrgyzstan

republic

Maldives

republic

Mongolia

parliamentary

Nepal

federal democratic republic

Pakistan

federal republic

Russia

federation

Sri Lanka

republic

Tajikistan

republic

Turkmenistan

republic; authoritarian presidential rule, with little power outside the executive branch

Uzbekistan

republic; authoritarian presidential rule, with little power outside the executive branch

Central America and the Caribbean

29 entries

Anguilla

NA

Antigua and Barbuda

constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of government and a Commonwealth realm

Aruba

parliamentary democracy

Bahamas, The now The Bahamas

constitutional parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Barbados

parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Belize

parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

British Virgin Islands

NA

Cayman Islands

parliamentary democracy

Costa Rica

democratic republic

Cuba

Communist state

Dominica

parliamentary democracy

Dominican Republic

democratic republic

El Salvador

republic

Grenada

parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Guatemala

constitutional democratic republic

Haiti

republic

Honduras

democratic constitutional republic

Jamaica

constitutional parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Montserrat

NA

Netherlands Antilles

parliamentary

Nicaragua

republic

Panama

constitutional democracy

Puerto Rico

commonwealth

Saint Kitts and Nevis

parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Saint Lucia

parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Trinidad and Tobago

parliamentary democracy

Turks and Caicos Islands

NA

Virgin Islands

NA

Europe

48 entries

Albania

emerging democracy

Andorra

  • parliamentary democracy (since March 1993) that retains as its chiefs of state a coprincipality;
  • the two princes are the president of France and bishop of Seo de Urgel, Spain, who are represented locally by coprinces' representatives

Austria

federal republic

Belarus

republic in name, although in fact a dictatorship

Belgium

federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy

Bosnia and Herzegovina

emerging federal democratic republic

Bulgaria

parliamentary democracy

Croatia

presidential/parliamentary democracy

Czech Republic now Czechia

parliamentary democracy

Denmark

constitutional monarchy

Estonia

parliamentary republic

Faroe Islands

NA

Finland

republic

France

republic

Germany

federal republic

Gibraltar

NA

Greece

parliamentary republic

Guernsey

parliamentary democracy

Holy See (Vatican City)

ecclesiastical

Hungary

parliamentary democracy

Ireland

republic, parliamentary democracy

Isle of Man

parliamentary democracy

Italy

republic

Jersey

parliamentary democracy

Kosovo

republic

Latvia

parliamentary democracy

Liechtenstein

constitutional monarchy

Lithuania

parliamentary democracy

Luxembourg

constitutional monarchy

Malta

republic

Moldova

republic

Monaco

constitutional monarchy

Montenegro

republic

Netherlands

constitutional monarchy

Macedonia now North Macedonia

parliamentary democracy

Norway

constitutional monarchy

Poland

republic

Portugal

republic; parliamentary democracy

Romania

republic

San Marino

republic

Serbia

republic

Slovakia

parliamentary democracy

Slovenia

parliamentary republic

Spain

parliamentary monarchy

Sweden

constitutional monarchy

Switzerland

formally a confederation but similar in structure to a federal republic

Ukraine

republic

United Kingdom

constitutional monarchy and Commonwealth realm

Middle East

15 entries

Bahrain

constitutional monarchy

Cyprus

republic

note: a separation of the two ethnic communities inhabiting the island began following the outbreak of communal strife in 1963; this separation was further solidified after the Turkish intervention in July 1974 that followed a Greek junta-supported coup attempt gave the Turkish Cypriots de facto control in the north; Greek Cypriots control the only internationally recognized government; on 15 November 1983 Turkish Cypriot "President" Rauf DENKTASH declared independence and the formation of a "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus" ("TRNC"), which is recognized only by Turkey

Iran

theocratic republic

Iraq

parliamentary democracy

Israel

parliamentary democracy

Jordan

constitutional monarchy

Kuwait

constitutional emirate

Lebanon

republic

Oman

monarchy

Qatar

emirate

Saudi Arabia

monarchy

Syria

republic under an authoritarian military-dominated regime

Turkey now Turkiye

republican parliamentary democracy

United Arab Emirates

federation with specified powers delegated to the UAE federal government and other powers reserved to member emirates

Yemen

republic

North America

5 entries

Bermuda

parliamentary; self-governing territory

Canada

a parliamentary democracy, a federation, and a Commonwealth realm

Mexico

federal republic

Saint Pierre and Miquelon

NA

United States

Constitution-based federal republic; strong democratic tradition

Oceania

25 entries

American Samoa

NA

Australia

federal parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Cook Islands

self-governing parliamentary democracy

Fiji

republic

French Polynesia

NA

Guam

NA

Kiribati

republic

Marshall Islands

  • constitutional government in free association with the US;
  • the Compact of Free Association entered into force 21 October 1986 and the Amended Compact entered into force in May 2004

Micronesia, Federated States of now Federated States of Micronesia

  • constitutional government in free association with the US;
  • the Compact of Free Association entered into force 3 November 1986 and the Amended Compact entered into force May 2004

Nauru

republic

New Caledonia

NA

New Zealand

parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Niue

self-governing parliamentary democracy

Norfolk Island

NA

Northern Mariana Islands

commonwealth; self-governing with locally elected governor, lieutenant governor, and legislature

Palau

constitutional government in free association with the US; the Compact of Free Association entered into force 1 October 1994

Papua New Guinea

constitutional parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Pitcairn Islands

NA

Samoa

parliamentary democracy

Solomon Islands

parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Tokelau

NA

Tonga

constitutional monarchy

Tuvalu

a parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

Vanuatu

parliamentary republic

Wallis and Futuna

NA

South America

13 entries

Argentina

republic

Bolivia

republic; note - the new constitution defines Bolivia as a "Social Unitarian State"

Brazil

federal republic

Chile

republic

Colombia

republic; executive branch dominates government structure

Ecuador

republic

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

NA

Guyana

republic

Paraguay

constitutional republic

Peru

constitutional republic

Suriname

constitutional democracy

Uruguay

constitutional republic

Venezuela

federal republic

Southeast Asia

16 entries

Brunei

constitutional sultanate

Burma now Burma (Myanmar)

military junta

Cambodia

multiparty democracy under a constitutional monarchy

Christmas Island

NA

Cocos (Keeling) Islands

NA

Hong Kong

limited democracy

Indonesia

republic

Laos

Communist state

Macau

limited democracy

Malaysia

constitutional monarchy

note: nominally headed by paramount ruler (commonly referred to as the King) and a bicameral Parliament consisting of a nonelected upper house and an elected lower house; all Peninsular Malaysian states have hereditary rulers (commonly referred to as sultans) except Melaka and Pulau Pinang (Penang); those two states along with Sabah and Sarawak in East Malaysia have governors appointed by government; powers of state governments are limited by federal constitution; under terms of federation, Sabah and Sarawak retain certain constitutional prerogatives (e.g., right to maintain their own immigration controls)

Philippines

republic

Singapore

parliamentary republic

Taiwan

multiparty democracy

Thailand

constitutional monarchy

Timor-Leste

republic

Vietnam

Communist state

Cite this page

Central Intelligence Agency. The World Factbook 2009, “Government type”, all entries. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/fields/government-type/2009.

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