to return there, for fear of
persecution." The UN established the Office of the UN High Commissioner
for Refugees (UNHCR) in 1950 to handle refugee matters worldwide. The
UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East
(UNRWA) has a different, operational definition for a Palestinian
refugee: "a person whose normal place of residence was Palestine during
the period 1 June 1946 to 15 May 1948 and who lost both home and means
of livelihood as a result of the 1948 conflict." However, UNHCR also
assists some 400,000 Palestinian refugees not covered under the UNRWA
definition. The term "internally displaced person" is not specifically
covered in the UN Convention; it is used to describe people who have
fled their homes for reasons similar to refugees, but who remain within
their own national territory and are subject to the laws of that state.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated
that in December 2003 there was a global population of 9.7 million
refugees and as many as 25 million IDPs.

Religions
This entry is an ordered listing of religions by adherents starting
with the largest group and sometimes includes the percent of total
population.

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold
This entry gives the dollar value for the stock of all financial assets
that are available to the central monetary authority for use in meeting
a country's balance of payments needs as of the end-date of the period
specified. This category includes not only foreign currency and gold,
but also a country's holdings of Special Drawing Rights in the
International Monetary Fund, and its reserve position in the Fund.

Sex ratio
This entry includes the number of males for each female in five age
groups - at birth, under 15 years, 15-64 years, 65 years and over, and
for the total population. Sex ratio at birth has recently emerged as an
indicator of certain kinds of sex discrimination in some countries. For
instance, high sex ratios at birth in some Asian countries are now
attributed to sex-selective abortion and infanticide due to a strong
preference for sons. This will affect future marriage patterns and
fertility patterns. Eventually it could cause unrest among young adult
males who are unable to find partners.

Suffrage
This entry gives the age at enfranchisement and whether the right to
vote is universal or restricted.

Telephone numbers
All telephone numbers in the Factbook consist of the count