ven 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 year 2004 marks the 57th anniversary of the
establishment of the Central Intelligence Agency and the 61st year of
continuous basic intelligence support to the US Government by The World
Factbook and its two predecessor programs.

This page was last updated on 9 December, 2004

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In general, information available as of 1 January, 2004 was used in the
preparation of this edition.

The World Factbook is prepared by the Central Intelligence Agency for
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and content are designed to meet their specific requirements.
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