Chad (2001) | Laos (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 14 prefectures (prefectures, singular - prefecture); Batha, Biltine, Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti, Chari-Baguirmi, Guera, Kanem, Lac, Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mayo-Kebbi, Moyen-Chari, Ouaddai, Salamat, Tandjile | 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:
47.73% (male 2,091,724; female 2,064,514) 15-64 years: 49.46% (male 2,035,099; female 2,271,389) 65 years and over: 2.81% (male 101,579; female 142,773) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.5% (male 1,233,659; female 1,219,872)
15-64 years: 54.2% (male 1,543,246; female 1,591,419) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 86,375; female 102,609) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, sorghum, millet, peanuts, rice, potatoes, manioc (tapioca); cattle, sheep, goats, camels | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
Airports | 50 (2000 est.) | 51 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
7 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
43 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 11 (2000 est.) |
total: 42
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 26 (2002) |
Area | total:
1.284 million sq km land: 1,259,200 sq km water: 24,800 sq km |
total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than three times the size of California | slightly larger than Utah |
Background | Chad, part of France's African holdings until 1960, endured three decades of ethnic warfare as well as invasions by Libya before a semblance of peace was finally restored in 1990. The government eventually suppressed or came to terms with most political-military groups, settled a territorial dispute with Libya on terms favorable to Chad, drafted a democratic constitution, and held multiparty presidential and National Assembly elections in 1996 and 1997 respectively. In 1998 a new rebellion broke out in northern Chad, which continued to escalate throughout 2000. Despite movement toward democratic reform, power remains in the hands of a northern 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 | 48.28 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 37.39 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$198 million expenditures: $218 million, including capital expenditures of $146 million (1998 est.) |
revenues: $211 million
expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
Capital | N'Djamena | Vientiane |
Climate | tropical in south, desert in north | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | passed by referendum 31 March 1995 | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Chad conventional short form: Chad local long form: Republique du Tchad local short form: Tchad |
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 | 15.4 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.71 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $1 billion (1999 est.) | $2.53 billion (1999) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Christopher E. GOLDTHWAIT embassy: Avenue Felix Eboue, N'Djamena mailing address: B. P. 413, N'Djamena telephone: [235] (51) 70-09, (51) 90-52, (51) 92-33 FAX: [235] (51) 56-54 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Douglas A. HARTWICK
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 Hassaballah Abdelhadi Ahmat SOUBIANE chancery: 2002 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 462-4009 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1937 |
chief of mission: Ambassador PHANTHONG Phommahaxay
chancery: 2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6416 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4923 |
Disputes - international | delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, has been completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria | demarcation of boundaries with Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam is nearing completion, but with Thailand, several areas including Mekong River islets, remain in dispute; ongoing disputes with Thailand and Vietnam over squatters |
Economic aid - recipient | $238.3 million (1995); note - $125 million committed by Taiwan (August 1997); $30 million committed by African Development Bank | $345 million (1999 est.) |
Economy - overview | Landlocked Chad's economic development suffers from its geographic remoteness, drought, lack of infrastructure, and political turmoil. About 85% of the population depends on agriculture, including the herding of livestock. Of Africa's Francophone countries, Chad benefited least from the 50% devaluation of their currencies in January 1994. Financial aid from the World Bank, the African Development Fund, and other sources is directed largely at the improvement of agriculture, especially livestock production. The World Bank's decision to back the Doba oil field development and the Chad-Cameroon pipeline will add Chad to the group of already booming West African oil exporters. However, the rank and file may not benefit much from the oil development projects. | 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% in 1988-2001 except during the short-lived drop caused by the Asian financial crisis beginning in 1997. Despite this high growth rate, Laos remains a country with a primitive infrastructure; it 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. The economy will continue to benefit from aid from the IMF and other international sources and from new foreign investment in food-processing and mining. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (1999) | 690.6 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 400 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 142 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 90 million kWh (1999) | 1.02 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 2%
hydro: 98% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Djourab Depression 160 m highest point: Emi Koussi 3,415 m |
lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water; improper waste disposal in rural areas contributes to soil and water pollution; desertification | 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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
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 | Muslims, commonly referred to as "northerners" or "gorane" (Arabs, Toubou, Hadjerai, Fulbe, Kotoko, Kanembou, Baguirmi, Boulala, Zaghawa, and Maba); non-Muslims, commonly referred to as "southerners" (Sara, Ngambaye, Mbaye, Goulaye, Moundang, Moussei, Massa) including nonindigenous 150,000 (of whom 1,000 are French)
note: ethnicity and regional background more commonly used to identify Chadians than religious affiliation |
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 - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1996); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro | kips per US dollar - 9,467.00 (December 2001), 8,954.58 (2001), 7,887.64 (2000), 7,102.03 (1999), 3,298.33 (1998), 1,259.98 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY (since 4 December 1990) head of government: Prime Minister Nagoum YAMASSOUM (since 13 December 1999) cabinet: Council of State, members appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote to serve five-year term; if no candidate receives at least 50% of the total vote, the two candidates receiving the most votes must stand for a second round of voting; last held 20 May 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY elected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Idriss DEBY 63%, Ngarlegy YORONGAR 16%, Saleh KEBZABO 7% note: government coalition - MPS, UNDR, and URD |
chief of state: President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphandon (since 26 February 1998) and Vice President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since 27 March 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister BOUNGNANG Volachit (since 27 March 2001); First Deputy Prime Minister Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since NA May 2002), Deputy Prime Minister THONGLOUN Sisolit (since 27 March 2001), and Deputy Prime Minister 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 24 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); 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 | $172 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $325 million (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, cattle, textiles | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin |
Exports - partners | Portugal 38%, Germany 12%, Thailand, Costa Rica, South Africa, France (1999) | Thailand 20%, France 7.5%, Germany 5.9%, UK 4.1%, Belgium 4% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; similar to the flag of Romania; also similar to the flags of Andorra and Moldova, both of which have a national coat of arms centered in the yellow band; design was based on the flag of France | 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 - $8.1 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9.2 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
40% industry: 14% services: 46% (1998) |
agriculture: 53%
industry: 22% services: 25% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,630 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | 5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 19 00 E | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; Lake Chad is the most significant water body in the Sahel | landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand |
Highways | total:
33,400 km paved: 267 km unpaved: 33,133 km (1996) |
total: 14,000 km
paved: 3,360 km unpaved: 10,640 km (1991) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 31% (1997) |
Illicit drugs | - | world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation in 2002 - 23,200 hectares, a 5% increase over 2001; estimated potential production in 2002 - 180 metric tons, a 10% decrease from 2001); potential heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamine produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis; growing methamphetamine abuse problem |
Imports | $223 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $540 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transportation equipment, industrial goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs, textiles | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel |
Imports - partners | France 40%, Cameroon 13%, Nigeria 12%, India 5% (1999) | Thailand 52%, Singapore 3.9%, Japan 1.6%, Hong Kong 1.5%, China 0.8% (2000) |
Independence | 11 August 1960 (from France) | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (1995) | 7.5% (1999 est.) |
Industries | cotton textiles, meatpacking, beer brewing, natron (sodium carbonate), soap, cigarettes, construction materials | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 95.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 90.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2000 est.) | 10% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 140 sq km (1993 est.) | 1,640 sq km
note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; Magistrate Courts | 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 | NA | 2.4 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 85% (subsistence farming, herding, and fishing) | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
5,968 km border countries: Cameroon 1,094 km, Central African Republic 1,197 km, Libya 1,055 km, Niger 1,175 km, Nigeria 87 km, Sudan 1,360 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:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 36% forests and woodland: 26% other: 35% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 3.47%
permanent crops: 0.23% other: 96.3% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Arabic (official), Sara and Sango (in south), more than 100 different languages and dialects | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and Chadian customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (125 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); replaces the Higher Transitional Council or the Conseil Superieur de Transition
elections: National Assembly - last held in two rounds on 5 January and 23 February 1997 (next to be held in late 2001); in the first round of voting some candidates won clear victories by receiving 50% or more of the vote; where that did not happen, the two highest scoring candidates stood for a second round of voting election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MPS 65, URD 29, UNDR 15, RDP 3, others 13 |
unicameral National Assembly (109 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - total number of seats increased from 99 to 109 for the 2002 election)
elections: last held 24 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LPRP or LPRP-approved (independent, non-party members) 109 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
50.88 years male: 48.86 years female: 52.98 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 53.88 years
male: 51.95 years female: 55.87 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write French or Arabic total population: 48.1% male: 62.1% female: 34.7% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 57% male: 70% female: 44% (1999 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, south of Libya | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
Map references | Africa | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | - | total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Armed Forces (includes Ground Force, Air Force, and Gendarmerie), Republican Guard, Rapid Intervention Force, Police, Rural and Nomadic Guard (GNNT) | Lao People's Army (LPA; including Riverine Force), Air Force, National Police Department |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $39 million (FY96) | $55 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.5% (FY96) | 4.2% (FY96/97) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,814,578 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,365,027 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
949,997 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 734,945 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
82,003 (2001 est.) |
males: 64,437 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 11 August (1960) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
Nationality | noun:
Chadian(s) adjective: Chadian |
noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)
adjective: Lao or Laotian |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds occur in north; periodic droughts; locust plagues | floods, droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum (unexploited but exploration under way), uranium, natron, kaolin, fish (Lake Chad) | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products 136 km |
Political parties and leaders | National Union for Development and Renewal or UNDR [Saleh KEBZABO]; Patriotic Salvation Movement or MPS [Mahamat Saleh AHMAT, chairman] (originally in opposition but now the party in power and the party of the president); Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Lal Mahamat CHOUA]; Union for Renewal and Democracy or URD [Gen. Wadal Abdelkader KAMOUGUE] | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 |
Population | 8,707,078 (July 2001 est.) | 5,777,180 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 64% (1995 est.) | 40% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.29% (2001 est.) | 2.47% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 5 (1998) | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 1.67 million (1997) | 730,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km (2001) |
Religions | Muslim 50%, Christian 25%, indigenous beliefs (mostly animism) 25% | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 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: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
primitive system domestic: fair system of radiotelephone communication stations international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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 | 7,000 (1997) | 25,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 4,915 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 4 (1999) |
Terrain | broad, arid plains in center, desert in north, mountains in northwest, lowlands in south | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
Total fertility rate | 6.56 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.03 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 5.7% (1997 est.) |
Waterways | 2,000 km | 4,587 km approximately
note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m |