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Compare Kiribati (2001) - Laos (2006)
Compare Kiribati (2001) z Laos (2006)
| Kiribati (2001) | Laos (2006) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 3 units; Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands; note - in addition, there are 6 districts (Banaba, Central Gilberts, Line Islands, Northern Gilberts, Southern Gilberts, Tarawa) and 21 island councils - one for each of the inhabited islands (Abaiang, Abemama, Aranuka, Arorae, Banaba, Beru, Butaritari, Kanton, Kiritimati, Kuria, Maiana, Makin, Marakei, Nikunau, Nonouti, Onotoa, Tabiteuea, Tabuaeran, Tamana, Tarawa, Teraina) | 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:
40.53% (male 19,322; female 18,833) 15-64 years: 56.27% (male 26,136; female 26,841) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 1,291; female 1,726) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 41.4% (male 1,324,207/female 1,313,454)
15-64 years: 55.4% (male 1,744,206/female 1,786,139) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 89,451/female 111,024) (2006 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes, vegetables; fish | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
| Airports | 21 (2000 est.) | 44 (2006) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2006) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
17 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
total: 35
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 21 (2006) |
| Area | total:
717 sq km land: 717 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes three island groups - Gilbert Islands, Line Islands, Phoenix Islands |
total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
| Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Utah |
| Background | The Gilbert Islands were granted self-rule by the UK in 1971 and complete independence in 1979 under the new name of Kiribati. The US relinquished all claims to the sparsely inhabited Phoenix and Line Island groups in a 1979 treaty of friendship with Kiribati. | Modern-day Laos has its roots in the ancient Lao kingdom of Lan Xang, established in the 14th Century under King FA NGUM. For three hundred years Lan Xang included large parts of present-day Cambodia and Thailand, as well as all of what is now Laos. After centuries of gradual decline, Laos came 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 and instituting a strict socialist regime closely aligned to Vietnam. A gradual return to private enterprise and the liberalization of foreign investment laws began in 1986. Laos became a member of ASEAN in 1997. |
| Birth rate | 31.98 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 35.49 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Budget | revenues:
$33.3 million expenditures: $47.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (1996 est.) |
revenues: $319.3 million
expenditures: $434.6 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
| Capital | Tarawa | name: Vientiane
geographic coordinates: 17 58 N, 102 36 E time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Climate | tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
| Coastline | 1,143 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | 12 July 1979 | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
| Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Kiribati conventional short form: Kiribati note: pronounced kir-ih-bahss former: Gilbert Islands |
conventional long form: Lao People's Democratic Republic
conventional short form: Laos PDR or Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none |
| Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) | - |
| Death rate | 8.88 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.55 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Debt - external | $10 million (1999 est.) | $2.49 billion (2001) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Kiribati; the ambassador to the Marshall Islands is accredited to Kiribati | chief of mission: Ambassador Patricia M. HASLACH
embassy: 19 Rue Bartholonie, That Dam Road, Vientiane mailing address: American Embassy Vientiane, Box V, APO AP 96546 telephone: [856] 21-26 7000 FAX: [856] 21-26 7074 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | Kiribati does not have an embassy in the US; there is an honorary consulate in Honolulu | 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; talks continue on completion of demarcation with Thailand but disputes remain over several areas along Mekong River and Thai squatters; concern among Mekong Commission members that China's construction of dams on the Mekong River will affect water levels |
| Economic aid - recipient | $15.5 million (1995), largely from UK and Japan | $243 million (2001 est.) |
| Economy - overview | A remote country of 33 scattered coral atolls, Kiribati has few national resources. Commercially viable phosphate deposits were exhausted at the time of independence from the UK in 1979. Copra and fish now represent the bulk of production and exports. The economy has fluctuated widely in recent years. Economic development is constrained by a shortage of skilled workers, weak infrastructure, and remoteness from international markets. Tourism provides more than one-fifth of GDP. The financial sector is at an early stage of development as is the expansion of private sector initiatives. Foreign financial aid, largely from the UK and Japan, is a critical supplement to GDP, equal to 25%-50% of GDP in recent years. Remittances from workers abroad account for more than $5 million each year. Performance in 2000 fell short of the 2.5% growth in 1999, which benefited from increased copra production and exceptionally large revenues from fishing licenses. | 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, though the government is sponsoring major improvements in the road system with possible support from Japan. Electricity is available in only a few urban areas. Subsistence agriculture, dominated by rice, accounts for about half of GDP and provides 80% of total employment. The economy will continue to benefit from aid by the IMF and other international sources and from new foreign investment in food processing and mining. Construction will be another strong economic driver, especially as hydroelectric dam and road projects gain steam. In late 2004, Laos gained Normal Trade Relations status with the US, allowing Laos-based producers to face lower tariffs on exports. This new status may help spur growth. In addition, the European Union has agreed to provide $1 million to the Lao Government for technical assistance in preparations for WTO membership. If the avian flu worsens and spreads in the region, however, prospects for tourism could dim. |
| Electricity - consumption | 6.5 million kWh (1999) | 3.298 billion kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 435 million kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 230 million kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - production | 7 million kWh (1999) | 3.767 billion kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Banaba 81 m |
lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
| Environment - current issues | heavy pollution in lagoon of south Tarawa atoll due to heavy migration mixed with traditional practices such as lagoon latrines and open-pit dumping; ground water at risk | 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, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 | predominantly Micronesian with some Polynesian | Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% |
| Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) | kips per US dollar - 10,820 (2005), 10,585.5 (2004), 10,569 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002), 8,954.6 (2001) |
| Executive branch | chief of state:
President Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President Tewareka TENTOA (since 12 October 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Teburoro TITO (since 1 October 1994); Vice President Tewareka TENTOA (since 12 October 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the House of Assembly, includes the president, vice president, attorney general, and up to eight other ministers elections: the House of Assembly chooses the presidential candidates from among their members and then those candidates compete in a general election; president is elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 27 November 1998 (next to be held by NA November 2002); vice president appointed by the president election results: Teburoro TITO reelected president; percent of vote - Teburoro TITO 52.3%, Dr. Harry TONG 45.8%, Amberoti NIKORA 1.9%, Taberannang TIMEON 0% |
chief of state: President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since 8 June 2006) and Vice President BOUN-GNANG Volachit (since 8 June 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister BOUASONE Bouphavanh (since 8 June 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since May 2002), Deputy Prime Minister Maj. Gen. DOUANGCHAI Phichit [since 8 June 2006], Deputy Prime Minister SOMSAVAT Lengsavat (since 26 February 1998), and Deputy Prime Minister THONGLOUN Sisolit (since 27 March 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the National Assembly elections: president and vice president elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 8 June 2006 (next to be held in 2011); prime minister nominated by the president and elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term election results: CHOUMMALI Saignason elected president; BOUN-GNANG Volachit elected vice president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100%; BOUASONE Bouphavanh elected prime minister; percent of National Assembly vote - 97% |
| Exports | $6 million (f.o.b., 1998) | NA bbl/day |
| Exports - commodities | copra 62%, coconuts, seaweed, fish | garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin |
| Exports - partners | Bangladesh, Australia, US, Hong Kong (1999) | Thailand 29.6%, Vietnam 12%, France 6.1%, Germany 4.6% (2005) |
| Fiscal year | NA | 1 October - 30 September |
| Flag description | the upper half is red with a yellow frigate bird flying over a yellow rising sun, and the lower half is blue with three horizontal wavy white stripes to represent the ocean | 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 - $76 million (2000 est.), supplemented by a nearly equal amount from external sources | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
14% industry: 7% services: 79% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 45.5%
industry: 28.7% services: 25.8% (2005 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2000 est.) | 7.3% (2005 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 1 25 N, 173 00 E | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
| Geography - note | 20 of the 33 islands are inhabited; Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Makatea in French Polynesia, and Nauru | 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:
670 km (1996) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
- |
| 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 | $44 million (c.i.f., 1999) | NA bbl/day |
| Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, miscellaneous manufactured goods, fuel | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods |
| Imports - partners | Australia, Fiji, Japan, NZ, China (1999) | Thailand 66.1%, China 9%, Vietnam 6.7% (2005) |
| Independence | 12 July 1979 (from UK) | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 0.7% (1992 est.) | 13% (2005 est.) |
| Industries | fishing, handicrafts | copper, tin, and gypsum mining; timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism, cement |
| Infant mortality rate | 54 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 83.31 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 92.95 deaths/1,000 live births female: 73.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1999 est.) | 7% (2005 est.) |
| International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WTrO (applicant) | ACCT, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | 1,750 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | Court of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judges at all levels are appointed by the president | 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 | 7,870 economically active, not including subsistence farmers (1985 est.) | 2.8 million (2002 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture: 80%
industry and services: 20% (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:
0% permanent crops: 51% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 3% other: 46% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 4.01%
permanent crops: 0.34% other: 95.65% (2005) |
| Languages | English (official), I-Kiribati | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
| Legal system | NA | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice |
| Legislative branch | unicameral House of Assembly or Maneaba Ni Maungatabu (41 seats; 39 elected by popular vote, one ex officio member, and one nominated to represent Banaba; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 23 September 1998 (next to be held by NA September 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Maneaban Te Mauri Party 14, National Progressive Party 11, independents 14 |
unicameral National Assembly (115 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 30 April 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LPRP 113, independents 2 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
60.16 years male: 57.25 years female: 63.22 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 55.49 years
male: 53.45 years female: 57.61 years (2006 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 | Oceania, group of islands in the Pacific Ocean, straddling the equator, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia; note - on 1 January 1995, Kiribati proclaimed that all of its territory lies in the same time zone as its Gilbert Islands group (GMT +12) even though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands under its jurisdiction lie on the other side of the International Date Line | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
| Map references | Oceania | Southeast Asia |
| Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,291 GRT/1,295 DWT ships by type: passenger/cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2006) |
| Military - note | Kiribati does not have military forces; defense assistance is provided by Australia and NZ | 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 | no regular military forces; Police Force (carries out law enforcement functions and paramilitary duties; small police posts are on all islands) | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes Riverine Force), Air Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $11.04 million (2005 est.) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 0.4% (2005 est.) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 12 July (1979) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
| Nationality | noun:
I-Kiribati (singular and plural) adjective: I-Kiribati |
noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)
adjective: Lao or Laotian |
| Natural hazards | typhoons can occur any time, but usually November to March; occasional tornadoes; low level of some of the islands make them very sensitive to changes in sea level | floods, droughts |
| Natural resources | phosphate (production discontinued in 1979) | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | refined products 540 km (2006) |
| Political parties and leaders | Maneaban Te Mauri Party [Teburoro TITO]; National Progressive Party [Teatao TEANNAKI]
note: there is no tradition of formally organized political parties in Kiribati; they more closely resemble factions or interest groups because they have no party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures |
Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [CHOUMMALY Sayasone]; other parties proscribed |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 |
| Population | 94,149 (July 2001 est.) | 6,368,481 (July 2006 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 34% (2005 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 2.31% (2001 est.) | 2.39% (2006 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Banaba, Betio, English Harbor, Kanton | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 7, FM 13, shortwave 2 (2006) |
| Radios | 17,000 (1997) | - |
| Railways | 0 km | - |
| Religions | Roman Catholic 54%, Protestant (Congregational) 30%, some Seventh-Day Adventist, Baha'i, Latter-day Saints, and Church of God (1996) | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) |
| Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 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: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) note: Kiribati is being linked to the Pacific Ocean Cooperative Telecommunications Network, which should improve telephone service |
general assessment: service to general public is poor but improving; 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 | 2,000 (1997) | 90,067 (2006) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 520,546 (2006) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 7; note - including one station relaying Vietnam Television from Hanoi (2006) |
| Terrain | mostly low-lying coral atolls surrounded by extensive reefs | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
| Total fertility rate | 4.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.68 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 2%; underemployment 70% (1992 est.) | 2.4% (2005 est.) |
| Waterways | 5 km (small network of canals in Line Islands) | 4,600 km
note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m (2005) |
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