Background Notes - US Department of State                   
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/
The note includes facts about the land, people, history, government, political conditions, economy and foreign relations of the countries.

BBC Country Profiles
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/country_profiles/default.stm
Full profiles provide an instant guide to history, politics and economic background of countries and territories, and background on key institutions.

CIA World Factbook
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html
Containing profiles of countries on the geography, people, government, economy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues.

Country Studies by Library of Congress
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cshome.html
The Country Studies Series offers a comprehensive analysis of the historical setting, socio-economic, political, national security, and institutions of countries throughout the world.

CountryReports.org
http://www.countryreports.org/
Offering country information on customs and culture, history, geography, economy, population and government.

CountryRisk.com
http://www.countryrisk.com
Guide to country analysis resources on the Web.

Economist Country Briefings
http://www.economist.com/countries/
Access to selection of contents from Economist Intelligence Unit's country data and information.

Eldis - Regional and country profiles
http://www.eldis.org/country/index.htm
Provides country profiles on Africa South of Sahara, Middle East & North Africa, East Asia & Pacific, South Asia, and Latin American & Caribbean.

Foreign & Commonwealth Office (UK) Country Profiles
http://www.fco.gov.uk/
Prepared by the FCO to provide a general overview of the country concerned.  This includes information on a country's recent history, political developments, relations with the international community and bilateral political and commercial relations with the UK.

Infoplease Countries of the World
http://www.infoplease.com/countries.html
Each country profile provides information on geography, maps, flags, history, government, area, population, capital, languages, ethnicity, religion, and economy, etc.

National Geographic Places Directory
http://www3.nationalgeographic.com/places/directory.html
The directory contains quick facts about the country plus video clips produced by National Geographic.

UNEP Environment Knowledge Hub
http://ekh.unep.org/?q=front_page
The Country Profiles offer maps, development indicators, environmental data and descriptions of environmental data, policy, legislation and institutions.

UNFPA Country Profiles for Population and Reproductive Health
http://www.unfpa.org/profile/
Covers the areas of socio-economic health, adolescent reproductive health, gender equality, and reproductive health commodity security.