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Compare Guernsey (2003) - Laos (2005)
Compare Guernsey (2003) z Laos (2005)
| Guernsey (2003) | Laos (2005) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (British crown dependency); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 10 parishes including Saint Peter Port, Saint Sampson, Vale, Castel, Saint Saviour, Saint Pierre du Bois, Torteval, Forest, Saint Martin, Saint Andrew | 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, Louangphrabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan (Vientiane)*, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun**, Xekong, Xiangkhoang |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 15.8% (male 5,216; female 5,061)
15-64 years: 66.8% (male 21,433; female 21,835) 65 years and over: 17.4% (male 4,705; female 6,568) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 41.6% (male 1,300,094/female 1,289,227)
15-64 years: 55.2% (male 1,693,494/female 1,737,196) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 88,744/female 108,386) (2005 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | tomatoes, greenhouse flowers, sweet peppers, eggplant, fruit; Guernsey cattle | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
| Airports | 2 (2002) | 44 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 35
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 78 sq km
land: 78 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Alderney, Guernsey, Herm, Sark, and some other smaller islands |
total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
| Area - comparative | about one-half the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Utah |
| Background | The island of Guernsey and the other Channel Islands represent the last remnants of the medieval Dukedom of Normandy, which held sway in both France and England. The islands were the only British soil occupied by German troops in World War II. | Laos was under the control of Siam (Thailand) from the late 18th century until the late 19th century when it became part of French Indochina. The Franco-Siamese Treaty of 1907 defined the current Lao border with Thailand. 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, a liberalization of foreign investment laws, and the admission into ASEAN in 1997. |
| Birth rate | 9.43 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 35.99 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $381.3 million
expenditures: $368.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $284.3 million
expenditures: $416.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
| Capital | Saint Peter Port | Vientiane |
| Climate | temperate with mild winters and cool summers; about 50% of days are overcast | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
| Coastline | 50 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
| Country name | conventional long form: Bailiwick of Guernsey
conventional short form: Guernsey |
conventional long form: Lao People's Democratic Republic
conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none |
| Currency | British pound (GBP); note - there is also a Guernsey pound | - |
| Death rate | 9.84 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 11.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Debt - external | $NA | $2.49 billion (2001) |
| Dependency status | British crown dependency | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (British crown dependency) | chief of mission: Ambassador Patricia M. HASLACH
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 | none (British crown dependency) | 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 | none | Southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Laos and Thailand pledge to complete demarcation of boundaries in 2005, while ongoing disputes over squatters and boundary encroachment by Thailand including Mekong River islets persist; in 2004 Cambodian-Laotian boundary commission agrees to re-erect missing markers in two adjoining provinces; concern among Mekong Commission members that China's construction of dams on the Mekong River will affect water levels |
| Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $243 million (2001 est.) |
| Economy - overview | Financial services - banking, fund management, insurance, etc. - account for about 55% of total income in this tiny Channel Island economy. Tourism, manufacturing, and horticulture, mainly tomatoes and cut flowers, have been declining. Light tax and death duties make Guernsey a popular tax haven. The evolving economic integration of the EU nations is changing the rules of the game under which Guernsey operates. | 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 6% in 1988-2004 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. The government has sponsored major improvements in the road system. 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. In late 2004, Laos gained Normal Trade Relations status with the US, allowing Laos-based producers to face lower tariffs on their exports; this may help spur growth. |
| Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 3.036 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 400 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 125 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | NA kWh | 3.56 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 0%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Sark 114 m |
lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
| Environment - current issues | NA | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most 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, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | UK and Norman-French descent | Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% |
| Exchange rates | Guernsey pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998); note - the Guernsey pound is at par with the British pound | kips per US dollar - 10,820 (2004), 10,569 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002), 8,954.6 (2001), 7,887.6 (2000) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952)
head of government: Lieutenant Governor and Commander-in-Chief Lt. Gen. Sir John FOLEY (since NA 2000) and Bailiff de Vic Graham CAREY (since NA 1999) cabinet: Advisory and Finance Committee appointed by the Assembly of the States elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor appointed by the monarch; bailiff appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphadon (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 Bouasone BOUPHAVANH (since 3 October 2003) Deputy Prime Minister Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since 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 in 2007); prime minister appointed by the president with the approval of the National Assembly for a five-year term election results: KHAMTAI Siphadon elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA% |
| Exports | $NA | NA |
| Exports - commodities | tomatoes, flowers and ferns, sweet peppers, eggplant, other vegetables | garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin |
| Exports - partners | UK (regarded as internal trade) | Thailand 19.3%, Vietnam 13.4%, France 8%, Germany 5.3%, UK 5% (2004) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
| Flag description | white with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint of England) extending to the edges of the flag and a yellow equal-armed cross of William the Conqueror superimposed on the Saint George cross | 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 - $1.3 billion (1999 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 3%
industry: 10% services: 87% (2000) |
agriculture: 49.5%
industry: 27.5% services: 23% (2004 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $20,000 (1999 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2004 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 5.7% (1999 est.) | 6% (2004 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 49 28 N, 2 35 W | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
| Geography - note | large, deepwater harbor at Saint Peter Port | landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong River forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand |
| Highways | total: NA km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total: 21,716 km
paved: 9,664 km unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 30.6% (1997) |
| Illicit drugs | - | estimated cultivation in 2004 - 10,000 hectares, a 45% decrease from 2003; estimated potential production in 2004 - 49 metric tons, a significant decrease from 200 metric tons in 2003 (2005) |
| Imports | $NA | NA |
| Imports - commodities | coal, gasoline, oil, machinery and equipment | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods |
| Imports - partners | UK (regarded as internal trade) | Thailand 60.5%, China 10.3%, Vietnam 7.1%, Singapore 4% (2004) |
| Independence | none (British crown dependency) | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 9.7% (2001 est.) |
| Industries | tourism, banking | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 4.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 85.22 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 95.04 deaths/1,000 live births female: 75.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.99% (2000 est.) | 12.3% (2004 est.) |
| International organization participation | none | ACCT, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | NA | - |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | 1,640 sq km
note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Royal Court | 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 | 31,322 (2000) | 2.6 million (2001 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) |
| Land boundaries | 0 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: NA%
permanent crops: NA% other: NA% |
arable land: 3.8%
permanent crops: 0.35% other: 95.85% (2001) |
| Languages | English, French, Norman-French dialect spoken in country districts | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
| Legal system | English law and local statute; justice is administered by the Royal Court | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Assembly of the States; consists of the bailiff, 10 Douzaine (parish council) representatives, 45 people's deputies elected by popular vote, 2 representatives from Alderney, Her Majesty's Procureur (Attorney General), Her Majesty's Comptroller (Solicitor General) and Her Majesty's Greffier (Court Recorder and Registrar General); note - Alderney and Sark have their own parliaments
elections: last held 12 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - all independents |
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 in 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: 80.04 years
male: 77.04 years female: 83.14 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 55.08 years
male: 53.07 years female: 57.17 years (2005 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 66.4% male: 77.4% female: 55.5% (2002) |
| Location | Western Europe, islands in the English Channel, northwest of France | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
| Map references | Europe | Southeast Asia |
| Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 12 NM
territorial sea: 3 NM |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2005) |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | Laos is one of the world's least developed countries; the Lao People's Armed Forces are small, poorly funded, and ineffectively resourced; there is little political will to allocate sparse funding to the military, and the armed forces' gradual degradation is likely to continue; the massive drug production and trafficking industry centered in the Golden Triangle makes Laos an important narcotics transit country, and armed Wa and Chinese smugglers are active on the Lao-Burma border (2005) |
| Military branches | - | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes Riverine Force), Air Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $10.7 million (2004) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.5% (2004) |
| National holiday | Liberation Day, 9 May (1945) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
| Nationality | noun: Channel Islander(s)
adjective: Channel Islander |
noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)
adjective: Lao or Laotian |
| Natural hazards | NA | floods, droughts |
| Natural resources | cropland | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
| Net migration rate | 3.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | refined products 540 km (2004) |
| Political parties and leaders | none; all independents | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphadon, party president]; other parties proscribed |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | none | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 |
| Population | 64,818 (July 2003 est.) | 6,217,141 (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 40% (2002 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.34% (2003 est.) | 2.42% (2005 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Saint Peter Port, Saint Sampson | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) |
| Railways | 5 km | - |
| Religions | Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Baptist, Congregational, Methodist | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: 1 submarine cable |
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: country code - 856; satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 44,000 (1996) | 61,900 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 12,000 (1997) | 55,200 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 4 (1999) |
| Terrain | mostly level with low hills in southwest | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
| Total fertility rate | 1.37 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 4.77 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 0.5% (1999 est.) | 5.7% (1997 est.) |
| Waterways | none | 4,600 km
note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m (2003) |
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