# National Capability Framework

> An open, emerging standard for classifying the capabilities of nations: 288 capabilities in 73 capability groups, across nine domains and the three classical dimensions of national power. Version 0.2, published under CC BY 4.0.

The Framework classifies capabilities; it does not measure them. Nations are the unit of analysis,
observed against each capability, so an observation is a nation-capability pair. A capability is the
capacity to act, distinct from resources (inputs), performance (results), power (capacity realised
through will and opportunity) and outcomes (downstream effects).

The classification holds 288 capabilities in 73 capability groups, nine
domains and three dimensions. The levels run dimension, domain, capability group, capability. Every
capability carries an identifier, so work built on the Framework can be compared and combined.

## Structure

- Hard Power (hard): Critical Technology, Strategic Infrastructure, National Security
- Soft Power (soft): Human Capital, Information & Influence, Governance & Integrity
- Economic Power (econ): Financial Strength, Production & Innovation, Trade & Investment

## Pages

- [Framework](https://www.nationalcapability.org/): the whole classification, as a grid, a list or plain text.
- [Nations](https://www.nationalcapability.org/nations): the 197 nations of the reference set, with population, GDP and
  who governed each territory between 1500 and 2020.
- [About](https://www.nationalcapability.org/about): why the framework exists, what it classifies and observes, and for whom.
- [Changelog](https://www.nationalcapability.org/changelog): what changed at each release, with the release documents.

## Data

- [framework.json](https://www.nationalcapability.org/framework.json): every node — dimensions, domains, capability groups,
  capabilities and the indicator seed — with identifiers, descriptions and parents.
- [lineage.json](https://www.nationalcapability.org/lineage.json): the 197 nation-territories, with how each was
  governed at twenty snapshots from 1500 to 2020.
- [PDF](https://www.nationalcapability.org/national-capability-framework.pdf): the framework and the case for it, on four
  A3 landscape pages.

## Citation

Brothers, P. (2026) National Capability Framework, v0.2. https://www.nationalcapability.org