##ciekawa_strona##
Compare Japan (2006) - Laos (2005)
Compare Japan (2006) z Laos (2005)
| Japan (2006) | Laos (2005) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 47 prefectures; Aichi, Akita, Aomori, Chiba, Ehime, Fukui, Fukuoka, Fukushima, Gifu, Gunma, Hiroshima, Hokkaido, Hyogo, Ibaraki, Ishikawa, Iwate, Kagawa, Kagoshima, Kanagawa, Kochi, Kumamoto, Kyoto, Mie, Miyagi, Miyazaki, Nagano, Nagasaki, Nara, Niigata, Oita, Okayama, Okinawa, Osaka, Saga, Saitama, Shiga, Shimane, Shizuoka, Tochigi, Tokushima, Tokyo, Tottori, Toyama, Wakayama, Yamagata, Yamaguchi, Yamanashi | 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: 14.2% (male 9,309,524/female 8,849,476)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 42,158,122/female 41,611,754) 65 years and over: 20% (male 10,762,585/female 14,772,150) (2006 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 | rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
| Airports | 175 (2006) | 44 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 145
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 41 1,524 to 2,437 m: 39 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 30 (2006) |
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: 30
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 26 (2006) |
total: 35
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 377,835 sq km
land: 374,744 sq km water: 3,091 sq km note: includes Bonin Islands (Ogasawara-gunto), Daito-shoto, Minami-jima, Okino-tori-shima, Ryukyu Islands (Nansei-shoto), and Volcano Islands (Kazan-retto) |
total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than California | slightly larger than Utah |
| Background | In 1603, a Tokugawa shogunate (military dictatorship) ushered in a long period of isolation from foreign influence in order to secure its power. For 250 years this policy enabled Japan to enjoy stability and a flowering of its indigenous culture. Following the Treaty of Kanagawa with the US in 1854, Japan opened its ports and began to intensively modernize and industrialize. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Japan became a regional power that was able to defeat the forces of both China and Russia. It occupied Korea, Formosa (Taiwan), and southern Sakhalin Island. In 1931-32 Japan occupied Manchuria, and in 1937 it launched a full-scale invasion of China. Japan attacked US forces in 1941 - triggering America's entry into World War II - and soon occupied much of East and Southeast Asia. After its defeat in World War II, Japan recovered to become an economic power and a staunch ally of the US. While the emperor retains his throne as a symbol of national unity, actual power rests in networks of powerful politicians, bureaucrats, and business executives. The economy experienced a major slowdown starting in the 1990s following three decades of unprecedented growth, but Japan still remains a major economic power, both in Asia and globally. In 2005, Japan began a two-year term as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. | 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 | 9.37 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 35.99 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $1.429 trillion
expenditures: $1.775 trillion; including capital expenditures (public works only) of about $71 billion (2005 est.) |
revenues: $284.3 million
expenditures: $416.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
| Capital | name: Tokyo
geographic coordinates: 35 42 N, 139 46 E time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Vientiane |
| Climate | varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
| Coastline | 29,751 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | 3 May 1947 | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
| Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Japan local long form: Nihon-koku/Nippon-koku local short form: Nihon/Nippon |
conventional long form: Lao People's Democratic Republic
conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none |
| Death rate | 9.16 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 11.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Debt - external | $1.545 trillion (31 December 2004) | $2.49 billion (2001) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador J. Thomas SCHIEFFER
embassy: 1-10-5 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-8420 mailing address: Unit 45004, Box 258, APO AP 96337-5004 telephone: [81] (03) 3224-5000 FAX: [81] (03) 3505-1862 consulate(s) general: Naha (Okinawa), Osaka-Kobe, Sapporo consulate(s): Fukuoka, Nagoya |
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 | chief of mission: Ambassador Ryozo KATO
chancery: 2520 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 238-6700 FAX: [1] (202) 328-2187 consulate(s) general: Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Agana (Guam), Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Portland (Oregon), San Francisco, Seattle |
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 | the sovereignty dispute over the islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan, and the Habomai group, known in Japan as the "Northern Territories" and in Russia as the "Southern Kuril Islands," occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia and claimed by Japan, remains the primary sticking point to signing a peace treaty formally ending World War II hostilities; Japan and South Korea claim Liancourt Rocks (Take-shima/Tok-do) occupied by South Korea since 1954; China and Taiwan dispute both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of the Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared exclusive economic zone in the East China Sea, the site of intensive hydrocarbon prospecting | 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 - donor | ODA, $8.9 billion (2004) | - |
| Economic aid - recipient | - | $243 million (2001 est.) |
| Economy - overview | Government-industry cooperation, a strong work ethic, mastery of high technology, and a comparatively small defense allocation (1% of GDP) helped Japan advance with extraordinary rapidity to the rank of second most technologically powerful economy in the world after the US and the third-largest economy in the world after the US and China, measured on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis. One notable characteristic of the economy is how manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors work together in closely-knit groups called keiretsu. A second basic feature has been the guarantee of lifetime employment for a substantial portion of the urban labor force. Both features are now eroding. Japan's industrial sector is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and fuels. The tiny agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected, with crop yields among the highest in the world. Usually self sufficient in rice, Japan must import about 60% of its food on a caloric basis. Japan maintains one of the world's largest fishing fleets and accounts for nearly 15% of the global catch. For three decades, overall real economic growth had been spectacular - a 10% average in the 1960s, a 5% average in the 1970s, and a 4% average in the 1980s. Growth slowed markedly in the 1990s, averaging just 1.7%, largely because of the after effects of overinvestment during the late 1980s and contractionary domestic policies intended to wring speculative excesses from the stock and real estate markets and to force a restructuring of the economy. From 2000 to 2003, government efforts to revive economic growth met with little success and were further hampered by the slowing of the US, European, and Asian economies. In 2004 and 2005, growth improved and the lingering fears of deflation in prices and economic activity lessened. Japan's huge government debt, which totals 170% of GDP, and the aging of the population are two major long-run problems. Some fear that a rise in taxes could endanger the current economic recovery. Internal conflict over the proper way to reform the financial system will continue as Japan Post's banking, insurance, and delivery services undergo privatization between 2007 and 2017. | 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 | 946.3 billion kWh (2003) | 3.036 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 400 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | 125 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | 1.017 trillion kWh (2003) | 3.56 billion kWh (2002) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Hachiro-gata -4 m
highest point: Mount Fuji 3,776 m |
lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
| Environment - current issues | air pollution from power plant emissions results in acid rain; acidification of lakes and reservoirs degrading water quality and threatening aquatic life; Japan is one of the largest consumers of fish and tropical timber, contributing to the depletion of these resources in Asia and elsewhere | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling | 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 | Japanese 99%, others 1% (Korean 511,262, Chinese 244,241, Brazilian 182,232, Filipino 89,851, other 237,914)
note: up to 230,000 Brazilians of Japanese origin migrated to Japan in the 1990s to work in industries; some have returned to Brazil (2004) |
Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% |
| Exchange rates | yen per US dollar - 110.22 (2005), 108.19 (2004), 115.93 (2003), 125.39 (2002), 121.53 (2001) | 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: Emperor AKIHITO (since 7 January 1989)
head of government: Prime Minister Shinzo ABE (since 26 September 2006) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: Diet designates prime minister; constitution requires that prime minister commands parliamentary majority; following legislative elections, leader of majority party or leader of majority coalition in House of Representatives usually becomes prime minister; monarch is hereditary election results: ABE was elected prime minister with 339 of 476 votes cast in the House of Representatives and 136 of 240 votes cast in the House of Councilors. |
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 | 93,360 bbl/day (2001) | NA |
| Exports - commodities | transport equipment, motor vehicles, semiconductors, electrical machinery, chemicals | garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin |
| Exports - partners | US 22.9%, China 13.4%, South Korea 7.8%, Taiwan 7.3%, Hong Kong 6.1% (2005) | Thailand 19.3%, Vietnam 13.4%, France 8%, Germany 5.3%, UK 5% (2004) |
| Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 October - 30 September |
| Flag description | white with a large red disk (representing the sun without rays) in the center | three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.7%
industry: 25.8% services: 72.5% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 49.5%
industry: 27.5% services: 23% (2004 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2004 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 2.6% (2005 est.) | 6% (2004 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 36 00 N, 138 00 E | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
| Geography - note | strategic location in northeast Asia | landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong River forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand |
| Heliports | 15 (2006) | - |
| Highways | - | total: 21,716 km
paved: 9,664 km unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4.8%
highest 10%: 21.7% (1993) |
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 | 5.449 million bbl/day (2001) | NA |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, raw materials (2001) | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods |
| Imports - partners | China 21%, US 12.7%, Saudi Arabia 5.5%, UAE 4.9%, Australia 4.7%, South Korea 4.7%, Indonesia 4% (2005) | Thailand 60.5%, China 10.3%, Vietnam 7.1%, Singapore 4% (2004) |
| Independence | 660 B.C. (traditional founding by Emperor JIMMU) | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 1.5% (2005 est.) | 9.7% (2001 est.) |
| Industries | among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals, textiles, processed foods | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 3.24 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.5 deaths/1,000 live births female: 2.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 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) | -0.3% (2005 est.) | 12.3% (2004 est.) |
| International organization participation | AfDB, APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, G-5, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAIA, MIGA, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC (observer), SECI (observer), UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMOVIC, UNRWA, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC | 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) |
| Irrigated land | 25,920 sq km (2003) | 1,640 sq km
note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the monarch after designation by the cabinet; all other justices are appointed by the cabinet) | 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 | 66.4 million (2005 est.) | 2.6 million (2001 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 4.6%
industry: 27.8% services: 67.7% (2004) |
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: 11.64%
permanent crops: 0.9% other: 87.46% (2005) |
arable land: 3.8%
permanent crops: 0.35% other: 95.85% (2001) |
| Languages | Japanese | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
| Legal system | modeled after European civil law system with English-American influence; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice |
| Legislative branch | bicameral Diet or Kokkai consists of the House of Councillors or Sangi-in (242 seats - members elected for six-year terms; half reelected every three years; 146 members in multi-seat constituencies and 96 by proportional representation) and the House of Representatives or Shugi-in (480 seats - members elected for four-year terms; 300 in single-seat constituencies; 180 members by proportional representation in 11 regional blocs)
elections: House of Councillors - last held 11 July 2004 (next to be held in July 2007); House of Representatives - last held 11 September 2005 (next election by September 2009) election results: House of Councillors - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LDP 115, DPJ 82, Komeito 24, JCP 9, SDP 5, others 7; distribution of seats as of January 2006 - LDP 112, DPJ 83, Komeito 24, JCP 9, SDP 6, others 8 House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - LDP 47.8%, DPJ 36.4%, others 15.8%; seats by party - LDP 296, DPJ 113, Komeito 31, JCP 9, SDP 7, others 24; distribution of seats as of January 2006 - LDP 294, DPJ 112, Komeito 31, JCP 9, SDP 7, others 27 (2006) |
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: 81.25 years
male: 77.96 years female: 84.7 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 55.08 years
male: 53.07 years female: 57.17 years (2005 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2002) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 66.4% male: 77.4% female: 55.5% (2002) |
| Location | Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
| Map references | Asia | Southeast Asia |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm; between 3 nm and 12 nm in the international straits - La Perouse or Soya, Tsugaru, Osumi, and Eastern and Western Channels of the Korea or Tsushima Strait
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | total: 683 ships (1000 GRT or over) 10,415,892 GRT/11,765,038 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 134, cargo 30, chemical tanker 20, container 11, liquefied gas 59, passenger 14, passenger/cargo 149, petroleum tanker 156, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 51, vehicle carrier 56 registered in other countries: 2,459 (Australia 1, Bahamas 51, Belize 2, Burma 4, Cambodia 4, Cayman Islands 1, China 3, Cyprus 17, French Southern and Antarctic Lands 4, Honduras 4, Hong Kong 67, Indonesia 3, Isle of Man 4, South Korea 1, Liberia 102, Malaysia 4, Malta 1, Marshall Islands 7, Mongolia 1, Norway 1, Panama 2007, Philippines 26, Portugal 9, Singapore 100, Sweden 2, Thailand 4, Vanuatu 28, unknown 1) (2006) |
total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2005) |
| Military - note | - | 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 | Japanese Defense Agency (JDA): Ground Self-Defense Force (Rikujou Jietai, GSDF), Maritime Self-Defense Force (Kaijou Jietai, MSDF), Air Self-Defense Force (Nihon Koku-Jieitai, ASDF) (2006) | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes Riverine Force), Air Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $44.31 billion (2005 est.) | $10.7 million (2004) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1% (2005 est.) | 0.5% (2004) |
| National holiday | Birthday of Emperor AKIHITO, 23 December (1933) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
| Nationality | noun: Japanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Japanese |
noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)
adjective: Lao or Laotian |
| Natural hazards | many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; tsunamis; typhoons | floods, droughts |
| Natural resources | negligible mineral resources, fish | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Pipelines | gas 8,015 km; oil 170 km; oil/gas/water 60 km (2006) | refined products 540 km (2004) |
| Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party of Japan or DPJ [Ichiro OZAWA]; Japan Communist Party or JCP [Kazuo SHII]; Komeito [Akihoro OTA]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Shinzo ABE]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Mizuho FUKUSHIMA] | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphadon, party president]; other parties proscribed |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 |
| Population | 127,463,611 (July 2006 est.) | 6,217,141 (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 40% (2002 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.02% (2006 est.) | 2.42% (2005 est.) |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 215 plus 370 repeaters, FM 89 plus 485 repeaters, shortwave 21 (2001) | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) |
| Railways | total: 23,556 km
standard gauge: 3,204 km 1.435-m gauge (3,204 km electrified) narrow gauge: 77 km 1.372-m gauge (77 km electrified); 20,264 km 1.067-m gauge (13,280 km electrified); 11 km 0.762-m gauge (11 km electrified) (2005) |
- |
| Religions | observe both Shinto and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%) | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 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 | 20 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: excellent domestic and international service
domestic: high level of modern technology and excellent service of every kind international: country code - 81; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region), and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); submarine cables to China, Philippines, Russia, and US (via Guam) (1999) |
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 | 58.78 million (2005) | 61,900 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 94.745 million (2005) | 55,200 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | 211 plus 7,341 repeaters
note: in addition, US Forces are served by 3 TV stations and 2 TV cable services (1999) |
4 (1999) |
| Terrain | mostly rugged and mountainous | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
| Total fertility rate | 1.4 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 4.77 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 4.4% (2005 est.) | 5.7% (1997 est.) |
| Waterways | 1,770 km (seagoing vessels use inland seas) (2006) | 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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