global $dbh;

    $countries = array();
    $term = '';

    if (isset($_GET['term'])) {
        $term = trim(strip_tags($_GET['term']));
    }

    if (isset($term)) {
        $stmt = $dbh->prepare("SELECT name FROM countries WHERE name LIKE CONCAT('%', :term, '%') ORDER BY name ASC");
        $stmt->bindParam(':term', $term, PDO::PARAM_STR);
        if ($stmt->execute()) {
            while ($row = $stmt->fetch()) {
                $countries[] = $row['name'];
            }
        }
    }

    echo json_encode($countries);