Cameroon (2004) | Laos (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 10 provinces; Adamaoua, Centre, Est, Extreme-Nord, Littoral, Nord, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Ouest | 16 provinces (khoueng, singular and plural), 1 municipality* (kampheng nakhon, singular and plural), and 1 special zone** (khetphiset, singular and plural); Attapu, Bokeo, Bolikhamxai, Champasak, Houaphan, Khammouan, Louangnamtha, Louangphabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan*, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun**, Xekong, Xiangkhoang |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42% (male 3,416,086; female 3,334,904)
15-64 years: 54.8% (male 4,425,246; female 4,370,329) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 233,506; female 283,607) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
42.75% (male 1,212,577; female 1,196,795) 15-64 years: 53.94% (male 1,494,927; female 1,544,851) 65 years and over: 3.31% (male 85,632; female 101,185) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cocoa, cotton, rubber, bananas, oilseed, grains, root starches; livestock; timber | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
Airports | 47 (2003 est.) | 51 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 11
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total:
8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 36
1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 9 (2004 est.) |
total:
43 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 25 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 475,440 sq km
land: 469,440 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
total:
236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than California | slightly larger than Utah |
Background | The former French Cameroon and part of British Cameroon merged in 1961 to form the present country. Cameroon has generally enjoyed stability, which has permitted the development of agriculture, roads, and railways, as well as a petroleum industry. Despite movement toward democratic reform, political power remains firmly in the hands of an ethnic oligarchy. | In 1975 the communist Pathet Lao took control of the government, ending a six-century-old monarchy. Initial closer ties to Vietnam and socialization were replaced with a gradual return to private enterprise, an easing of foreign investment laws, and the admission into ASEAN in 1997. |
Birth rate | 35.08 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.442 billion
expenditures: $1.941 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues:
$211 million expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
Capital | Yaounde | Vientiane |
Climate | varies with terrain, from tropical along coast to semiarid and hot in north | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
Coastline | 402 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 20 May 1972 approved by referendum; 2 June 1972 formally adopted; revised January 1996 | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Cameroon
conventional short form: Cameroon former: French Cameroon |
conventional long form:
Lao People's Democratic Republic conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States | kip (LAK) |
Death rate | 15.34 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.236 billion (2003 est.) | $2.46 billion (1998 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador George McDade STAPLES
embassy: Rue Nachtigal, Yaounde mailing address: P. O. Box 817, Yaounde; pouch: American Embassy, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2520 telephone: [237] 223-05-12, 222-25-89, 222-17-94, 223-40-14 FAX: [237] 223-07-53 branch office(s): Douala |
chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affairs Karen Brevard STEWART embassy: 19 Rue Bartholonie, B. P. 114, Vientiane mailing address: American Embassy, Box V, APO AP 96546 telephone: [856] (21) 212581, 212582, 212585 FAX: [856] (21) 212584 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jerome MENDOUGA
chancery: 2349 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-8790 FAX: [1] (202) 387-3826 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador VANG Rattanavong chancery: 2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6416 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4923 |
Disputes - international | ICJ ruled in 2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime boundary but the parties formed a Joint Border Commission to resolve differences bilaterally and have commenced with demarcation in less-contested sections of the boundary, starting in Lake Chad in the north; the ICF ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, however, implementation of the decision is delayed due to imprecisely defined coordinates, the unresolved Bakasi allocation, and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River; Nigeria initially rejected cession of the Bakasi Peninsula; Lake Chad Commission continues to urge signatories Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria to ratify delimitation treaty over the lake region, which remains the site of armed clashes among local populations and militias | parts of the border with Thailand are indefinite |
Economic aid - recipient | on 23 January 2001, the Paris Club agreed to reduce Cameroon's debt of $1.3 billion by $900 million; debt relief now totals $1.26 billion | $345 million (1999 est.) |
Economy - overview | Because of its oil resources and favorable agricultural conditions, Cameroon has one of the best-endowed primary commodity economies in sub-Saharan Africa. Still, it faces many of the serious problems facing other underdeveloped countries, such as a top-heavy civil service and a generally unfavorable climate for business enterprise. Since 1990, the government has embarked on various IMF and World Bank programs designed to spur business investment, increase efficiency in agriculture, improve trade, and recapitalize the nation's banks. In June 2000, the government completed an IMF-sponsored, three-year structural adjustment program; however, the IMF is pressing for more reforms, including increased budget transparency, privatization, and poverty reduction programs. International oil and cocoa prices have considerable impact on the economy. | The government of Laos - one of the few remaining official communist states - began decentralizing control and encouraging private enterprise in 1986. The results, starting from an extremely low base, were striking - growth averaged 7% during 1988-97. Reform efforts subsequently slowed, and GDP growth dropped an average of 3 percentage points. Because Laos depends heavily on its trade with Thailand, it was damaged by the regional financial crisis beginning in 1997. Government mismanagement deepened the crisis, and from June 1997 to June 1999 the Lao kip lost 87% of its value. Laos' foreign exchange problems peaked in September 1999 when the kip fell from 3,500 kip to the dollar to 9,000 kip to the dollar in a matter of weeks. Now that the currency has stabilized, however, the government seems content to let the current situation persist, despite limited government revenue and foreign exchange reserves. A landlocked country with a primitive infrastructure, Laos has no railroads, a rudimentary road system, and limited external and internal telecommunications. Electricity is available in only a few urban areas. Subsistence agriculture accounts for half of GDP and provides 80% of total employment. For the foreseeable future the economy will continue to depend on aid from the IMF and other international sources; Japan is currently the largest bilateral aid donor; aid from the former USSR/Eastern Europe has been cut sharply. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.36 billion kWh (2001) | 173.6 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 705 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 142 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 3.613 billion kWh (2001) | 792 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
2.78% hydro: 97.22% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Fako (on Mount Cameroon) 4,095 m |
lowest point:
Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
Environment - current issues | water-borne diseases are prevalent; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; poaching; overfishing | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Cameroon Highlanders 31%, Equatorial Bantu 19%, Kirdi 11%, Fulani 10%, Northwestern Bantu 8%, Eastern Nigritic 7%, other African 13%, non-African less than 1% | Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong ("Meo") and the Yao (Mien) 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999) | kips per US dollar - 7,578.00 (December 2000), 7,102.03 (1999), 3,298.33 (1998), 1,259.98 (1997), 921.02 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Paul BIYA (since 6 November 1982)
head of government: Prime Minister Ephraim INONI (since 8 Dec 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from proposals submitted by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 11 October 2004 (next to be held NA October 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Paul BIYA reelected; percent of vote - Paul BIYA 70.9%, John FRU NDI 17.4%, Adamou Ndam NJOYA 4.5%, Garga Haman ADJI 3.7% |
chief of state:
President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphandon (since 26 February 1998) and Vice President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since NA March 2001) head of government: Prime Minister BOUNGNANG Volachit (since NA March 2001); Deputy Prime Ministers THONGLOUN Sisolit (since NA March 2001), SOMSAVAT Lengsavat (since 26 February 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 21 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); prime minister appointed by the president with the approval of the National Assembly for a five-year term election results: KHAMTAI Siphandon elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil and petroleum products, lumber, cocoa beans, aluminum, coffee, cotton | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin |
Exports - partners | Spain 21.9%, Italy 13.4%, France 10.8%, Netherlands 10.6%, US 7.5%, China 4.4% (2003) | Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), red, and yellow with a yellow five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $27.75 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 42.6%
industry: 19.8% services: 37.6% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
51% industry: 22% services: 27% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,800 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.2% (2003 est.) | 4% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 6 00 N, 12 00 E | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
Geography - note | sometimes referred to as the hinge of Africa; throughout the country there are areas of thermal springs and indications of current or prior volcanic activity; Mount Cameroon, the highest mountain in Sub-Saharan west Africa, is an active volcano | landlocked |
Highways | total: 34,300 km
paved: 4,288 km unpaved: 30,012 km (1999 est.) |
total:
14,000 km paved: 3,360 km unpaved: 10,640 km (1991) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.9%
highest 10%: 36.6% (1996) |
lowest 10%:
4.2% highest 10%: 26.4% (1992) |
Illicit drugs | - | world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation in 1999 - 21,800 hectares, a 16% decrease over 1998; estimated potential production in 1999 - 140 metric tons, about the same as in 1998); potential heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamine produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis |
Imports | NA (2001) | $540 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery, electrical equipment, transport equipment, fuel, food | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel |
Imports - partners | France 21.9%, Nigeria 9.5%, Japan 6.8%, US 5.7%, China 4.9%, Germany 4.3% (2003) | Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong |
Independence | 1 January 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship) | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.2% (1999 est.) | 7.5% (1999 est.) |
Industries | petroleum production and refining, food processing, light consumer goods, textiles, lumber | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 69.18 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 73.16 deaths/1,000 live births female: 65.09 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.3% (2003 est.) | 33% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, C, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 330 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,250 sq km (1993 est.)
note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); High Court of Justice (consists of 9 judges and 6 substitute judges, elected by the National Assembly) | People's Supreme Court (the president of the People's Supreme Court is elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the National Assembly Standing Committee; the vice president of the People's Supreme Court and the judges are appointed by the National Assembly Standing Committee) |
Labor force | 6.49 million NA (2003) | 1 million - 1.5 million |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 70%, industry and commerce 13%, other 17% | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 4,591 km
border countries: Central African Republic 797 km, Chad 1,094 km, Republic of the Congo 523 km, Equatorial Guinea 189 km, Gabon 298 km, Nigeria 1,690 km |
total:
5,083 km border countries: Burma 235 km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km, Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km |
Land use | arable land: 12.81%
permanent crops: 2.58% other: 84.61% (2001) |
arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 3% forests and woodland: 54% other: 40% (1993 est.) |
Languages | 24 major African language groups, English (official), French (official) | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
Legal system | based on French civil law system, with common law influence; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (180 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - the president can either lengthen or shorten the term of the legislature)
elections: last held 23 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - RDCP 133, SDF 21, UDC 5, other 21 note: the constitution calls for an upper chamber for the legislature, to be called a Senate, but it has yet to be established |
unicameral National Assembly (99 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - by presidential decree, on 27 October 1997, the number of seats increased from 85 to 99)
elections: last held 21 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LPRP or LPRP-approved (independent, non-party members) 99 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 47.95 years
male: 47.1 years female: 48.83 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
53.48 years male: 51.58 years female: 55.44 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 79% male: 84.7% female: 73.4% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 57% male: 70% female: 44% (1999 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
Map references | Africa | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 50 nm | none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 169,593 GRT/357,023 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1 (2004 est.) |
total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,370 GRT/3,000 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry), Air Force | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes riverine element), Air Force, National Police Department |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $189.2 million (2003) | $55 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (2003) | 4.2% (FY96/97) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 3,898,944 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,319,537 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,979,151 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
710,627 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 184,054 (2004 est.) | males:
64,437 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Republic Day (National Day), 20 May (1972) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
Nationality | noun: Cameroonian(s)
adjective: Cameroonian |
noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian |
Natural hazards | volcanic activity with periodic releases of poisonous gases from Lake Nyos and Lake Monoun volcanoes | floods, droughts, and blight |
Natural resources | petroleum, bauxite, iron ore, timber, hydropower | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 90 km; liquid petroleum gas 9 km; oil 1,120 km (2004) | petroleum products 136 km |
Political parties and leaders | Cameroonian Democratic Union or UDC [Adamou NDAM NJOYA]; Democratic Rally of the Cameroon People or RDCP [Paul BIYA]; Movement for the Defense of the Republic or MDR [Dakole DAISSALA]; Movement for the Liberation and Development of Cameroon or MLDC [leader Marcel YONDO]; Movement for the Youth of Cameroon or MYC [Dieudonne TINA]; National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Maigari BELLO BOUBA]; Social Democratic Front or SDF [John FRU NDI]; Union of Cameroonian Populations or UPC [Augustin Frederic KODOCK] | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Southern Cameroon National Council [Ayamba Ette OTUN]; Human Rights Defense Group [Albert MUKONG, president] | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 |
Population | 16,063,678
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2004 est.) |
5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 48% (2000 est.) | 46.1% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.97% (2004 est.) | 2.48% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bonaberi, Douala, Garoua, Kribi, Tiko | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 3 (2002) | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | - | 730,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 1,008 km
narrow gauge: 1,008 km 1.000-m gauge (2003) |
0 km |
Religions | indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian 40%, Muslim 20% | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 20 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: available only to business and government
domestic: cable, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter international: country code - 237; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
general assessment:
service to general public is poor but improving, with over 20,000 telephones currently in service and an additional 48,000 expected by 2001; the government relies on a radiotelephone network to communicate with remote areas domestic: radiotelephone communications international: satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 110,900 (2002) | 25,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.077 million (2003) | 4,915 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 4 (1999) |
Terrain | diverse, with coastal plain in southwest, dissected plateau in center, mountains in west, plains in north | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
Total fertility rate | 4.55 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 30% (2001 est.) | 5.7% (1997 est.) |
Waterways | navigation mainly on Benue River; limited during rainy season (2004) | 4,587 km approximately
note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m |