This four volume directory was published for the IVth World Parks Congress held in Caracas, Venezuela, in February 1992, by the World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC) and IUCN in cooperation with the British Petroleum Company p.l.c. This is the first time a world-wide survey of protected area systems has been compiled by WCMC. It is organized into national accounts, each comprising a description of the national protected areas system, accompanied by a summary list and map of protected areas. The directory aims to provide extensive background information on the protected area systems of the world, and to stimulate the continual process of review and update of information on protected areas.