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Glossary -- Portugal
- Conto
- See escudo.
- Council of Europe
- Founded in 1949 to foster parliamentary democracy, social and
economic progress, and unity among its member states. Membership is
limited to those European countries that respect the rule of law
and the fundamental human rights and freedoms of all those living
within their boundaries. As of 1988, its membership consisted of
twenty-one West European countries.
- d'Hondt method
- also known as the highest-average method of determining the
allocation of seats to political parties after an election. It was
devised by the Belgian Victor d'Hondt to be used in electoral
systems based on proportional representation. In addition to
Portugal, the method has been adopted by Austria, Belgium, Finland,
and Switzerland. Under this method, voters do not choose a
candidate but vote for a party, each of which has published a list
of candidates. The party winning the most votes in a constituency
is awarded the area's first seat, which goes to the candidate at
the top of the winning party's list. The total vote of this party
is then divided by two, and this amount is compared with the totals
of other parties. The party with the greatest number of votes at
this point receives the next seat to be awarded. Each time a party
wins a seat, its total is divided by the number of seats it has won
plus one. This process continued until all the seats in a
constituency are awarded. The d'Hondt method slightly favors large
parties. Because there is no minimum threshold for winning a seat,
however, small parties can also elect representatives.
- escudo
- Basic Portuguese currency unit, consists of 100 centavos. 1,000
escudos are a conto. The exchange rate averaged 27.5 escudos = US$1
in 1975; 53.0 escudos = US$1 in 1980; 170.4 escudos = US$1 in 1985;
144.0 escudos = US$1 in 1988; 157.5 escudos = US$1 in 1989; 142.5
escudos = US$1 in 1990; 144.5 escudos = US$1 in 1991; and 135.0
escudos = US$1 in 1992.
- European Community (EC--also commonly
called the Community)
- The EC comprises three communities: the European Coal and Steel
Community (ECSC), the European Economic Community (EEC), and the
European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM). Each community is a
legally distinct body, but since 1967 they have shared common
governing institutions. The EC forms more than a framework for free
trade and economic cooperation: the signatories to the treaties
governing the communities have agreed in principle to integrate
their economies and ultimately to form a political union. Belgium,
France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and the Federal
Republic of Germany (West Germany) are charter members of the EC.
Britain, Denmark, and Ireland joined on January 1, 1973; Greece
became a member on January 1, 1981; and Portugal and Spain entered
on January 1, 1986.
- European Currency Unit (ECU)
- Instituted in 1979, the ECU is the unit of account of the EC
(q.v.). The value of the ECU is determined by the value of
a basket that includes the currencies of all EC member states. In
establishing the value of the basket, each member's currency
receives a share that reflects the relative strength and importance
of the member's economy. On September 30, 1992, one ECU was
equivalent to US$1.40.
- European Economic Community (EEC)
- See EC.
- European Free Trade Association
(EFTA)
- Founded in 1961, EFTA aims at supporting free trade among its
members and increasing the liberalization of trade on a global
basis, but particularly within Western Europe. In 1988 the
organization's member states were Austria, Finland, Iceland,
Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland.
- Gross domestic product (GDP)
- The total value of goods and services produced by the domestic
economy during a given period, usually one year. Obtained by adding
the value contributed by each sector of the economy in the form of
profits, compensation to employees, and depreciation (consumption
of capital). Most GDP usage in this book was based on GDP at factor
cost. Real GDP is the value of GDP when inflation has been taken
into account.
- Gross national product (GNP)
- Obtained by adding GDP (q.v.) and the income received
from abroad by residents less payments remitted abroad to
nonresidents. GNP valued at market prices was used in this book.
Real GNP is the value of GNP when inflation has been taken into
account.
- International Monetary Fund
(IMF)
- Established along with the World Bank (q.v.) in 1945,
the IMF is a specialized agency affiliated with the United Nations
(UN) that takes responsibility for stabilizing international
exchange rates and payments. The main business of the IMF is the
provision of loans to its members when they experience balance-of-
payment difficulties. These loans often carry conditions that
require substantial internal economic adjustments by the
recipients.
- liberation theology
- An activist movement led by Roman Catholic clergy who trace
their inspiration to Vatican Council II (1965), where some church
procedures were liberalized, and the Second Latin American Bishops'
Conference in Medellín (1968), which endorsed greater direct
efforts to improve the lot of the poor. Advocates of liberation
theology--sometimes referred to as "liberationists"--work mainly
through Christian Base Communities (Comunidades Eclesiásticas de
Base--CEBs). Members of CEBS meet in small groups to reflect on
scripture and discuss its meaning in their lives. They are
introduced to a radical interpretation of the Bible, one that
employs Marxist terminology to analyze and condemn the wide
disparities between the wealthy elite and the impoverished masses
in most underdeveloped countries. This reflection often leads
members to organize to improve their living standards through
cooperatives and civic improvement projects.
- Organisation for Economic Co-
operation and Development (OECD)
- Established in 1961 to replace the Organisation for European
Economic Co-operation, the OECD is an international organization
composed of the industrialized market economy countries (twenty-
four full members as of 1988). It seeks to promote economic and
social welfare in member countries, as well as in developing
countries, by providing a forum in which to formulate and to
coordinate policies.
- rotativismo
- The alternation of political factions at regular intervals with
little or no change to the political system as a whole.
- single market
- The Single European Act of 1987 committed the European
Community (EC) to gradually reduce restrictions so that by the end
of 1992 the EC constituted a single market in which the free
movement of goods, persons, and capital was guaranteed.
- VAT
- Value-added tax. A tax applied to the additional value created
at a given stage of production and calculated as a percentage of
the difference between the product value at that stage and the cost
of all materials and services purchased as inputs. The VAT is the
primary form of indirect taxation applied in the EEC
(q.v.), and it is the basis of each country's contribution
to the community budget.
- Western European Union (WEU)
- Founded in 1948 to facilitate West European cooperation in
economic, social, cultural, and defense matters. Reactivated in
1984 to concentrate on the defense and disarmament concerns of its
nine members (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the
Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and Britain), the WEU is headed by a
council consisting of its members' ministers of foreign affairs and
defense. The council meets twice a year; lower-level WEU entities
meet with greater frequency.
- World Bank
- Informal name used to designate a group of four affiliated
international institutions: the International Bank for
Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International
Development Association (IDA), the International Finance
Corporation (IFC), and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency
(MIGA). The IBRD, established in 1945, has the primary purpose of
providing loans to developing countries for productive projects.
The IDA, a legally separate loan fund administered by the staff of
the IBRD, was set up in 1960 to furnish credits to the poorest
developing countries on much easier terms than those of
conventional IBRD loans. The IFC, founded in 1956, supplements the
activities of the IBRD through loans and assistance designed
specifically to encourage the growth of productive private
enterprises in less developed countries. The president and certain
senior officers of the IBRD hold the same positions in the IFC. The
four institutions are owned by the governments of the countries
that subscribe their capital. To participate in the World Bank
group, member states must first belong to the IMF (q.v.).
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