In the world known to man, there are more than 200 states and dependent territories. They have a different political system, differ in territory, cultural and everyday life of the population, and religion. But the main difference in the countries is related to their administrative-territorial structure. On this basis, all states are divided into unitary, federal and confederal. The first category is of greatest interest.
The concept of a unitary state
In a broad sense, a unitary device is understood to mean the form of national-state organization of territories, in which all parts of the country are under the control of one system of government. The territory is also subject to one system of laws, taxes and duties, without privileges and exemptions.
Unitarianism is one of the 3 types of administrative structure and the most "popular". Currently, the list of unitary states includes 85% of all countries and territories in the world. The oldest states of the world ( countries of Europe, Africa and Asia ) have such an administrative organization. It can be fixed normatively, in the Constitution ( Poland, Spain, Greece, Portugal, etc. ), or simply implied.
Types of states by the status of administrative units
Depending on the composition of the regions, all unitary countries are divided into types:
1. Simple - the state consists of regions with one status. For example, Egypt consists of 27 equal provinces, each of which is divided into districts, and those, in turn, into districts.
2. Complex - if the composition has one or more territorial units with a special situation. At the same time, autonomy can be administrative ( another language for communication and legal proceedings ) or political ( law-making law within the region ). Quite often, regions of a country have equal status, and the metropolitan area is in a special position ( Indonesia ).
The list of unitary states with a complex structure includes Spain, Tajikistan, China, Denmark, Finland, and others.
Types of states by way of organizing power
According to the management of the country may be as follows:
1. Centralized - authorities are formed in one way, are in a strict hierarchy and subordination, acting within their powers. Among such states are Kazakhstan, Belarus and China.
2. Decentralized - elected authorities ( officials ) are functioning in the management units of these countries and there is no administrative supervision of grass-roots authorities. The list of unitary states of this type includes rather large entities - Sweden, France, Denmark, Italy, etc.
3. Mixed - the country has a centralized management system, but in some regions with special status, elected officials or bodies operate.
Examples of sovereign countries with a unitary device
The largest hegemons in the world have a federal structure ( Russia, the USA ), but the vast majority of countries with highly developed economies that play a significant role in the international arena still have equal organization. In the 21st century, the list of unitary states is constantly changing, replenished with new members. For example, at the end of the last century, the state of Kosovo arose, and in 2014, the DPR and LPR were organized.
Currently, the number of countries with a unitary device in parts of the world is distributed as follows:
part of the world | number of countries |
Asia | 41 |
Europe | 41 |
Oceania | 12 |
Africa | 49 |
Latin American countries | 28 |
In the list of unitary states of foreign Europe, it is worth stopping at the so-called dwarf countries ( Monaco, Luxembourg, San Marino, Liechtenstein ). They are also unitary, and many believe that there is no regional division in them. This is not entirely true, since Monaco is a city conglomerate resulting from the merger of 4 districts. The administrative boundaries of the districts are preserved in the 21st century. In San Marino (an area of only 61 sq. Km), there are 9 counties, called "castelli". Luxembourg, in turn, is also divided into cantons.
The list of unitary and federal states has 199 positions ( 171 and 28, respectively ), but under the influence of political and economic crises of recent years, this list is likely to change rapidly.