UNGEGN DIVISIONS

The Group of Experts is composed of experts from various linguistic/geographical divisions that have been established at the UN Conferences on the Standardization of Geographical Names. Countries decide for themselves the division(s) to which they wish to belong; some belong to more than one division. A Division Chair is selected within a division and he/she is encouraged to stimulate activities in the standardization of geographical names within the division, through technical meetings, correspondence, etc.

As of the year 2007, there are 23 divisions that guide the work of UNGEGN during and between its sessions. Some divisions are not currently very active, and individuals interested in initiating activities are encouraged to consult the UNGEGN Secretariat (zewoldi@un.org) to find points of contact within their divisions.

To provide names of current division chairs or to have divisional material posted to the UNGEGN site, please contact the UNGEGN Secretariat (zewoldi@un.org).

1. Africa Central Division
   Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe
   (Acting Chair: Mr. Michel Simeu Kamdem, Cameroon)
2. Africa East Division
   Botswana, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Sudan, Swaziland, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe
   (Chair: Mrs. Nivo Ratovoarison, Madagascar) (Secretary: Mr. Charles Mwangi, Kenya) (Rapporteur: Mr. Solomon Kebede Mammo, Ethiopia)
3. Africa South Division
   Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe
   (Chair: )
4. Africa West Division
   Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, C�te d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo
   (Chair: Mr. Claude Obin Tapsoba, Burkina Faso)
   (Vice-Chair: Mr. Ebrima L. Ceesay, Gambia)
   (Secretary: Mr. Mohamed Hassimiou Fofana, Guinea)
   RAPPORT FINAL DE L'ATELIER DE SENSIBILISATION SUR LA GESTION DES NOMS DE LIEUX, Ouagadougou, 4 - 8 ao�t 2008
5. Arabic Division
   Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Morocco, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen
   (Chair: Eng. Ahmed Mohamed Kamel, Egypt) (Vice-Chair: Eng. Mohamed El Bechir Chok, Tunisia, Vice-Chair: Mr. Mohammed Al-Shahrani, Saudi Arabia) (Reporter: Mr. Yousef Issa Ibrahim, Qatar) (Editor: Mr. Ibrahim Az-zoqurti, Jordan)
   Website: http://www.adegn.org/
   Arabic Romanization System
   Report of the fourth Arab Conference on Geographical Names (Arabic, English)
6. Asia East Division (other than China)
   Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Japan, Republic of Korea
   (Acting Chair: Mr. Ki-Suk Lee, Republic of Korea)
7. Asia South-East and Pacific South-West Division
   Australia, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, United States, Vanuatu, Viet Nam
   (Chair: Mr. Abdul Kadir Bin Taib, Malaysia)
8. Asia South-West Division (other than Arabic)
   Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Islamic Republic of Iran, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Turkey
   (Chair: Mr. Yahya Djamour, Iran)
9. Baltic Division
   Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania
   (Chair: Ms. Aule Kikas, Estonia)
   Website: http://www.eki.ee/knn/ungegn/index.htm
10. Celtic Division
    France, Ireland
    (Chair: )
11. China Division
    China
    (Chair: Mr. LIU, Boaquan, China)
12. Dutch- and German-speaking Division
    Austria, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, South Africa, Suriname, Switzerland
    (Chair: Ms. Kathleen Van Doren, Belgium)
    Website: http://141.74.33.52/dgsd/
13. East Central and South-East Europe Division
    Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Montenegro, Poland, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey, Ukraine
    (Chair: Mr. Željko Hećimović, Croatia)
    Website: http://ungegn.cgi.hr/
14. Eastern Europe, Northern and Central Asia Division
    Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Russian Federation, Ukraine, Uzbekistan
    (Chair: Mr. V. Boginsky, Russian Federation)
15. East Mediterranean Division (other than Arabic)
    Cyprus, Israel
    (Chair: Mr. Naftali Kadmon, Israel)
16. French-speaking Division
    Belgium, Benin, Cameroon, Canada, C�te d'Ivoire, Djibouti, France, Guinea, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Mali, Monaco, Romania, Sao Tome and Principe, Switzerland
    (Chair: Mr. Pierre Jaillard, France) (Secretary: Ms. Danielle Turcotte, Canada)
    Website: http://www.divisionfrancophone.org
17. India Division
    Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan
    (Chair: )
18. Latin America Division
    Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Spain, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela
    (Chair: Ms. Susana Rodriguez Ramos, Mexico)
    Website: http://www.genung-dal.org.mx
19. Norden Division
    Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden
    (Chair: Dr. Peder Gammeltoft, Denmark) (Vice-Chair: Mr. John Jensen, Denmark)
    Website: http://nordendivision.nfi.ku.dk/
20. Portuguese-speaking Division
    Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, Sao Tome and Principe, Timor-Leste
    (Chair: Mr. José Elias Mucombo, Mozambique; Vice-Chair: Ms. Moema Augusto, Brazil; Secretary: Angola)
    Website: http://www.dlpng.ibge.gov.br
21. Romano-Hellenic Division
    Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, France, Greece, Holy See, Italy, Luxembourg, Moldova, Monaco, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey
    (Interim contact: Mr. Andrea Cantile, Italy)
22. United Kingdom Division
    Guyana, Jamaica, South Africa, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, New Zealand
    (Chair: Mr. David Munro, United Kingdom)
23. USA/Canada Division
    Canada, United States
    (Co-Chairs: Mr. Lou Yost, United States; Ms. Jocelyne Revie, Canada)

• The number of linguistic/geographical divisions and their composition may be revised, if necessary.
• A country shall decide for itself the division to which it wishes to belong. A country may be a member of another division provided the nature of its participation does not change the linguistic/geographical character of the division(s) concerned. An experts may be invited to attend meetings of other divisions in the capacity of observer or consultant.
• Each division, if composed of more than one sovereign State, shall select, by methods of its own choosing, an experts to represent the division (Division Chairman) as a whole at the meetings of the Group of Experts.
• In order to guarantee the continuity of work, each division having more than one sovereign State shall select an alternative representative; the divisional representative shall act in close contact with his alternate.
• The divisional representative shall stimulate activities in the standardization of geographical names within his division by all appropriate means (correspondence with national bodies on the standardization of geographical names and national surveying and mapping agencies; organization of meetings of the divisional experts).
• The divisional representative shall be responsible for ensuring that the work of the Group of Experts and its potential for technical assistance are brought to the attention of the individual countries in his division and for reporting to the United Nations any special problems in his division.
• To discuss technical and procedural matters, a division may organize regional meetings during United Nations conferences on the standardization of geographical names and meetings of the Group of Experts, or at any other appropriate time.