, and less developed countries
(LDCs); these countries are in political and economic transition and
may well be grouped differently in the near future; this group of 27
countries consists of Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia
and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia,
Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, The Former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia,
Serbia and Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Ukraine, Uzbekistan; this group is identical to the IMF group
"countries in transition" except for the IMF's inclusion of Mongolia
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Four Dragons
the four small Asian less developed countries (LDCs) that have
experienced unusually rapid economic growth; also known as the Four
Tigers; this group consists of Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore,
Taiwan; these countries are included in the IMF's "advanced economies"
group
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Four Tigers
another term for the Four Dragons; see Four Dragons
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Franc Zone (FZ)
note - also known as Conference des Ministres des Finances des Pays de
la Zone Franc
address - c/o Banque de France, Service de la Zone Franc, 39 Rue des
Croix des Petits Champs, F-75001 Paris, France
telephone - [33] (1) 42 92 42 92
FAX - [33] (1) 42 96 04 23
established - NA 1964
aim - to form a monetary union among countries whose currencies are
linked to the French franc
members - (16) Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African
Republic, Chad, Comoros, Republic of the Congo, Cote d'Ivoire,
Equatorial Guinea, France, Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal,
Togo; note - France includes metropolitan France, the four overseas
departments of France (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique,
Reunion), the two territorial collectivities of France (Mayotte, Saint
Pierre and Miquelon), and the three overseas territories of France
(French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna)
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Front Line States (FLS)
established to achieve black majority rule in South Africa; has since
gone out of existence; members included Angola, Botswana, Mozambique,
Namibia, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe
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General