Jamaica (2004) | Thailand (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland
note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation |
76 provinces (changwat, singular and plural); Amnat Charoen, Ang Thong, Buriram, Chachoengsao, Chai Nat, Chaiyaphum, Chanthaburi, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Chon Buri, Chumphon, Kalasin, Kamphaeng Phet, Kanchanaburi, Khon Kaen, Krabi, Krung Thep Mahanakhon (Bangkok), Lampang, Lamphun, Loei, Lop Buri, Mae Hong Son, Maha Sarakham, Mukdahan, Nakhon Nayok, Nakhon Pathom, Nakhon Phanom, Nakhon Ratchasima, Nakhon Sawan, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Nan, Narathiwat, Nong Bua Lamphu, Nong Khai, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Pattani, Phangnga, Phatthalung, Phayao, Phetchabun, Phetchaburi, Phichit, Phitsanulok, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Phrae, Phuket, Prachin Buri, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Ranong, Ratchaburi, Rayong, Roi Et, Sa Kaeo, Sakon Nakhon, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, Samut Songkhram, Sara Buri, Satun, Sing Buri, Sisaket, Songkhla, Sukhothai, Suphan Buri, Surat Thani, Surin, Tak, Trang, Trat, Ubon Ratchathani, Udon Thani, Uthai Thani, Uttaradit, Yala, Yasothon |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 28.2% (male 390,966; female 372,961)
15-64 years: 65% (male 883,053; female 880,296) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 82,788; female 103,066) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 24.2% (male 7,955,597; female 7,604,652)
15-64 years: 68.8% (male 21,819,445; female 22,362,085) 65 years and over: 7% (male 2,081,768; female 2,441,729) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, vegetables, poultry, goats, milk, crustaceans, and mollusks | rice, cassava (tapioca), rubber, corn, sugarcane, coconuts, soybeans |
Airports | 35 (2003 est.) | 111 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
total: 62
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2004 est.) |
total: 49
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 31 (2002) |
Area | total: 10,991 sq km
land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total: 514,000 sq km
land: 511,770 sq km water: 2,230 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Connecticut | slightly more than twice the size of Wyoming |
Background | Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a drop off in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s. | A unified Thai kingdom was established in the mid-14th century. Known as Siam until 1939, Thailand is the only Southeast Asian country never to have been taken over by a European power. A bloodless revolution in 1932 led to a constitutional monarchy. In alliance with Japan during World War II, Thailand became a US ally following the conflict. |
Birth rate | 16.94 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 16.37 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.596 billion
expenditures: $3.111 billion, including capital expenditures of $236 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $19 billion
expenditures: $21 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Kingston | Bangkok |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior | tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-May to September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March); southern isthmus always hot and humid |
Coastline | 1,022 km | 3,219 km |
Constitution | 6 August 1962 | new constitution signed by King PHUMIPHON on 11 October 1997 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Jamaica |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Thailand
conventional short form: Thailand former: Siam |
Currency | Jamaican dollar (JMD) | baht (THB) |
Death rate | 5.4 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.86 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.962 billion (2003 est.) | $62.5 billion (2002 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Sue McCourt COBB
embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 935-6001 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Darryl N. JOHNSON
embassy: 120/22 Wireless Road, Bangkok mailing address: APO AP 96546 telephone: [66] (2) 205-4000 FAX: [66] (2) 254-2990, 205-4131 consulate(s) general: Chiang Mai |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Gordon SHIRLEY
chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador SAKTHIP Krairiksh
chancery: 1024 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 944-3600 FAX: [1] (202) 944-3611 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
Disputes - international | none | completion of boundary demarcation with Cambodia hampered by accusations of moving and destroying boundary markers, encroachments, initiating border incidents, and sealing off Preah Vihear temple ruins, awarded to Cambodia by ICJ decision in 1962; demarcation complete except for a 1 kilometer segment at the mouth of the Kolok River in dispute with Malaysia; demarcation with Laos complete except for certain Mekong River islets and complaints of Thai squatters; despite continuing border committee talks, significant differences remain with Burma over boundary alignment and the handling of ethnic rebels, refugees, and illegal cross-border activities |
Economic aid - recipient | $16 million (2003) | $131.5 million (1998 est.) |
Economy - overview | The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for 70% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. The global economic slowdown, particularly after the terrorist attacks in the US on 11 September 2001, stunted economic growth; the economy rebounded moderately in 2003, with one of the best tourist seasons on record. But the economy faces serious long-term problems: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a sizable merchandise trade deficit; large-scale unemployment; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy. The ratio of debt to GDP is close to 150%. Inflation, previously a bright spot, is expected to remain in the double digits. Depressed economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including gang violence fueled by the drug trade. In 2004, the government faces the difficult prospect of having to achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem that is hampering economic growth. | Thailand has a free enterprise economy and welcomes foreign investment. Exports feature computers and electrical appliances. After enjoying the world's highest growth rate from 1985 to 1995 - averaging almost 9% annually - increased speculative pressure on Thailand's currency in 1997 led to a crisis that uncovered financial sector weaknesses and forced the government to float the baht. Long pegged at 25 to the dollar, the baht reached its lowest point of 56 to the dollar in January 1998, and the economy contracted by 10.2% that same year. Thailand then entered a recovery stage, expanding by 4.2% in 1999 and 4.4% in 2000, largely due to strong exports. An ailing financial sector and the slow pace of corporate debt restructuring, combined with a softening of global demand, slowed growth to 1.4% in 2001. Increased consumption and investment spending pushed GDP growth up to 5.2% in 2002 despite a sluggish global economy. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.833 billion kWh (2001) | 90.91 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 200 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 350 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 6.272 billion kWh (2001) | 97.6 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 91.3%
hydro: 6.4% nuclear: 0% other: 2.4% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m |
lowest point: Gulf of Thailand 0 m
highest point: Doi Inthanon 2,576 m |
Environment - current issues | heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions | air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from organic and factory wastes; deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by illegal hunting |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1% | Thai 75%, Chinese 14%, other 11% |
Exchange rates | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 57.7409 (2003), 48.4159 (2002), 45.9962 (2001), 42.7011 (2000), 39.0435 (1999) | baht per US dollar - 42.96 (2002), 44.43 (2001), 40.11 (2000), 37.81 (1999), 41.36 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister |
chief of state: King PHUMIPHON Adunyadet (since 9 June 1946)
head of government: Prime Minister THAKSIN Chinnawat (since 9 February 2001) and Deputy Prime Ministers Gen. (Ret.) CHAWALIT Yongchaiyut, KON Thappharansi, SUWIT Khunkitti, CHATURON Chaisaeng, VISHANU Krua-ngam, and PROMMIN Lertsuridej (since 18 February 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers note: there is also a Privy Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister is designated from among the members of the House of Representatives; following national elections for the House of Representatives, the leader of the party that can organize a majority coalition usually is appointed prime minister by the king |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels | computers, transistors, seafood, clothing, rice (2000) |
Exports - partners | US 29.6%, UK 11%, Canada 10.8%, France 7.9%, Norway 6.8%, Germany 6.2%, China 6%, Netherlands 4.4% (2003) | US 19.6%, Japan 14.5%, Singapore 8.1%, Hong Kong 5.4%, China 5.2%, Malaysia 4.1% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) | five horizontal bands of red (top), white, blue (double width), white, and red |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10.61 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $445.8 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6.7%
industry: 37.2% services: 56.2% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 11%
industry: 40% services: 49% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,900 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.9% (2003 est.) | 5.3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 15 N, 77 30 W | 15 00 N, 100 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal | controls only land route from Asia to Malaysia and Singapore |
Heliports | - | 2 (2002) |
Highways | total: 18,700 km
paved: 13,109 km unpaved: 5,591 km (1999 est.) |
total: 64,600 km
paved: 62,985 km unpaved: 1,615 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.7%
highest 10%: 30.3% (2000) |
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 32.4% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions | a minor producer of opium, heroin, and marijuana; illicit transit point for heroin en route to the international drug market from Burma and Laos; eradication efforts have reduced the area of cannabis cultivation and shifted some production to neighboring countries; opium poppy cultivation has been reduced by eradication efforts; also a drug money-laundering center; minor role in amphetamine production for regional consumption; increasing indigenous abuse of methamphetamine |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials | capital goods, intermediate goods and raw materials, consumer goods, fuels (2000) |
Imports - partners | US 39.8%, Trinidad and Tobago 9.7%, Germany 5.6%, Venezuela 4.5%, France 4.5%, Japan 4.2% (2003) | Japan 23%, US 9.6%, China 7.6%, Malaysia 5.6%, Singapore 4.5%, Taiwan 4.4% (2002) |
Independence | 6 August 1962 (from UK) | 1238 (traditional founding date; never colonized) |
Industrial production growth rate | -2% (2000 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
Industries | tourism, bauxite/alumina, textiles, agro processing, wearing apparel, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications | tourism; textiles and garments, agricultural processing, beverages, tobacco, cement, light manufacturing, such as jewelry; electric appliances and components, computers and parts, integrated circuits, furniture, plastics; world's second-largest tungsten producer and third-largest tin producer |
Infant mortality rate | total: 12.81 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 21.83 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.17 deaths/1,000 live births female: 20.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 10.3% (2003 est.) | 0.6% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, BIS, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC (observer), OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMISET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 15 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 250 sq km (1998 est.) | 47,490 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal | Supreme Court or Sandika (judges appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 1.13 million (2003) | 33.4 million (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 21%, industry 19%, services 60% (1998) | agriculture 54%, industry 15%, services 31% (1996 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 4,863 km
border countries: Burma 1,800 km, Cambodia 803 km, Laos 1,754 km, Malaysia 506 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.07%
permanent crops: 10.16% other: 73.77% (2001) |
arable land: 32.88%
permanent crops: 7% other: 60.12% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English, patois English | Thai, English (secondary language of the elite), ethnic and regional dialects |
Legal system | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on civil law system, with influences of common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 16 October 2002 (next to be held in October 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PNP 52%, JLP 47.3%; seats by party - PNP 34, JLP 26 |
bicameral National Assembly or Rathasapha consists of the Senate or Wuthisapha (200 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Sapha Phuthaen Ratsadon (500 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 4 March, 29 April, 4 June, 9 July, and 22 July 2000 (next to be held NA March 2004); House of Representatives - last held 6 January 2001 (next to be held NA January 2005) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - TRT 248, DP 128, TNP 41, NDP 29, other 54 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.07 years
male: 74.04 years female: 78.21 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 71.24 years
male: 69.07 years female: 73.53 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 87.9% male: 84.1% female: 91.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96% male: 97.5% female: 94.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Burma |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 74,881 GRT/100,682 DWT
by type: bulk 2, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 2, short-sea/passenger 1 foreign-owned: Greece 2, Iceland 1, Latvia 1, United States 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 317 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,744,103 GRT/2,657,666 DWT
ships by type: bulk 33, cargo 136, chemical tanker 5, combination bulk 1, combination ore/oil 1, container 17, liquefied gas 21, multi-functional large-load carrier 2, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 74, refrigerated cargo 17, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea passenger 2, specialized tanker 4, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 1, Greece 1, Indonesia 1, Japan 1, Norway 24, Panama 1, Singapore 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing | Royal Thai Army, Royal Thai Navy (includes Royal Thai Marine Corps), Royal Thai Air Force, paramilitary forces (includes the Border Patrol Police [including Police Aerial Reinforcement Unit], Thahan Phran, Special Action Forces, Police Aviation Division, Thai Marine Police, and the Volunteer Defense Corps) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $31 million (2003) | $1.775 billion (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.4% (2003) | 1.4% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 764,266 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 17,904,298 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 533,768 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49: 10,724,565 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 27,126 (2004 est.) | males: 520,472 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962) | Birthday of King PHUMIPHON, 5 December (1927) |
Nationality | noun: Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican |
noun: Thai (singular and plural)
adjective: Thai |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (especially July to November) | land subsidence in Bangkok area resulting from the depletion of the water table; droughts |
Natural resources | bauxite, gypsum, limestone | tin, rubber, natural gas, tungsten, tantalum, timber, lead, fish, gypsum, lignite, fluorite, arable land |
Net migration rate | -4.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 3,066 km; refined products 265 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Hyacinth BENNETT]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON] | Democratic Party or DP (Prachathipat Party) [BANTADTAN Banyat]; National Development Party or NDP (Chat Phattana) [KORN Dabbaransi]; Thai Nation Party or TNP (Chat Thai Party) [BANHAN Sinlapa-acha]; Thai Rak Thai Party or TRT [THAKSIN Chinnawat] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) | NA |
Population | 2,713,130 (July 2004 est.) | 64,265,276
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 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 19.7% (2002 est.) | 12.5% (1998 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.66% (2004 est.) | 0.95% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf) | Bangkok, Laem Chabang, Pattani, Phuket, Sattahip, Si Racha, Songkhla |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 204, FM 334, shortwave 6 (1999) |
Railways | total: 272 km
standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge note: 207 of these km belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation had been in common carrier service until 1992 but are no longer operational; 57 km of the remaining track is privately owned and used by ALCAN to transport bauxite (2003) |
total: 4,071 km
narrow gauge: 4,071 km 1.000-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other including some spiritual cults 34.7% | Buddhism 95%, Muslim 3.8%, Christianity 0.5%, Hinduism 0.1%, other 0.6% (1991) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | general assessment: fully automatic domestic telephone network
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-876; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables |
general assessment: service to general public adequate, but investment in technological upgrades reduced by recession; bulk of service to government activities provided by multichannel cable and microwave radio relay network
domestic: microwave radio relay and multichannel cable; domestic satellite system being developed international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 444,400 (2002) | 5.6 million (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.4 million (2002) | 3.1 million (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 7 (1997) | 5 (all in Bangkok; plus 131 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain | central plain; Khorat Plateau in the east; mountains elsewhere |
Total fertility rate | 1.98 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.91 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15.9% (2003 est.) | 2.9% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | - | 4,000 km
note: 3,701 km are navigable throughout the year by boats with drafts up to 0.9 meters; numerous minor waterways serve shallow-draft native craft |