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Compare Laos (2001) - Antigua and Barbuda (2007)

Compare Laos (2001) z Antigua and Barbuda (2007)

 Laos (2001)Antigua and Barbuda (2007)
 LaosAntigua and Barbuda
Administrative divisions 16 provinces (khoueng, singular and plural), 1 municipality* (kampheng nakhon, singular and plural), and 1 special zone** (khetphiset, singular and plural); Attapu, Bokeo, Bolikhamxai, Champasak, Houaphan, Khammouan, Louangnamtha, Louangphabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan*, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun**, Xekong, Xiangkhoang 6 parishes and 2 dependencies*; Barbuda*, Redonda*, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint Peter, Saint Philip
Age structure 0-14 years:
42.75% (male 1,212,577; female 1,196,795)

15-64 years:
53.94% (male 1,494,927; female 1,544,851)

65 years and over:
3.31% (male 85,632; female 101,185) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 27.3% (male 9,647/female 9,306)


15-64 years: 69% (male 24,137/female 23,801)


65 years and over: 3.7% (male 965/female 1,625) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts, cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock
Airports 51 (2000 est.) 3 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total:
8

2,438 to 3,047 m:
1

1,524 to 2,437 m:
5

914 to 1,523 m:
2 (2000 est.)
total: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
43

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1

914 to 1,523 m:
17

under 914 m:
25 (2000 est.)
total: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Area total:
236,800 sq km

land:
230,800 sq km

water:
6,000 sq km
total: 442.6 sq km (Antigua 280 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km)


land: 442.6 sq km


water: 0 sq km


note: includes Redonda, 1.6 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than Utah 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Background In 1975 the communist Pathet Lao took control of the government, ending a six-century-old monarchy. Initial closer ties to Vietnam and socialization were replaced with a gradual return to private enterprise, an easing of foreign investment laws, and the admission into ASEAN in 1997. The Siboney were the first to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in 2400 B.C., but Arawak Indians populated the islands when COLUMBUS landed on his second voyage in 1493. Early settlements by the Spanish and French were succeeded by the English who formed a colony in 1667. Slavery, established to run the sugar plantations on Antigua, was abolished in 1834. The islands became an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981.
Birth rate 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 16.62 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues:
$211 million

expenditures:
$462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.)
revenues: $123.7 million


expenditures: $145.9 million (2000 est.)
Capital Vientiane name: Saint John's


geographic coordinates: 17 07 N, 61 51 W


time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 153 km
Constitution promulgated 14 August 1991 1 November 1981
Country name conventional long form:
Lao People's Democratic Republic

conventional short form:
Laos

local long form:
Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao

local short form:
none
conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Antigua and Barbuda
Currency kip (LAK) -
Death rate 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 5.31 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $2.46 billion (1998 est.) $427.3 million; note - data are for public external debt, not total external debt (2000)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affairs Karen Brevard STEWART

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
the US does not have an embassy in Antigua and Barbuda; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Antigua and Barbuda
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador VANG Rattanavong

chancery:
2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:
[1] (202) 332-6416

FAX:
[1] (202) 332-4923
chief of mission: Ambassador Deborah Mae LOVELL


chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016


telephone: [1] (202) 362-5122


FAX: [1] (202) 362-5225


consulate(s) general: Miami
Disputes - international parts of the border with Thailand are indefinite none
Economic aid - recipient $345 million (1999 est.) $7.23 million (2005)
Economy - overview The government of Laos - one of the few remaining official communist states - began decentralizing control and encouraging private enterprise in 1986. The results, starting from an extremely low base, were striking - growth averaged 7% during 1988-97. Reform efforts subsequently slowed, and GDP growth dropped an average of 3 percentage points. Because Laos depends heavily on its trade with Thailand, it was damaged by the regional financial crisis beginning in 1997. Government mismanagement deepened the crisis, and from June 1997 to June 1999 the Lao kip lost 87% of its value. Laos' foreign exchange problems peaked in September 1999 when the kip fell from 3,500 kip to the dollar to 9,000 kip to the dollar in a matter of weeks. Now that the currency has stabilized, however, the government seems content to let the current situation persist, despite limited government revenue and foreign exchange reserves. A landlocked country with a primitive infrastructure, Laos has no railroads, a rudimentary road system, and limited external and internal telecommunications. Electricity is available in only a few urban areas. Subsistence agriculture accounts for half of GDP and provides 80% of total employment. For the foreseeable future the economy will continue to depend on aid from the IMF and other international sources; Japan is currently the largest bilateral aid donor; aid from the former USSR/Eastern Europe has been cut sharply. Tourism continues to dominate the economy, accounting for more than half of GDP. Weak tourist arrival numbers since early 2000 have slowed the economy and pressed the government into a tight fiscal corner. The dual-island nation's agricultural production is focused on the domestic market and constrained by a limited water supply and a labor shortage stemming from the lure of higher wages in tourism and construction. Manufacturing comprises enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding, handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for economic growth in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the industrialized world, especially in the US, which accounts for slightly more than one-third of tourist arrivals.
Electricity - consumption 173.6 million kWh (1999) 97.65 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 705 million kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 142 million kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 792 million kWh (1999) 105 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
2.78%

hydro:
97.22%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Mekong River 70 m

highest point:
Phou Bia 2,817 m
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m


highest point: Boggy Peak 402 m
Environment - current issues unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water water management - a major concern because of limited natural fresh water resources - is further hampered by the clearing of trees to increase crop production, causing rainfall to run off quickly
Environment - international agreements party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
party to: 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, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong ("Meo") and the Yao (Mien) 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% black 91%, mixed 4.4%, white 1.7%, other 2.9% (2001 census)
Exchange rates kips per US dollar - 7,578.00 (December 2000), 7,102.03 (1999), 3,298.33 (1998), 1,259.98 (1997), 921.02 (1996) East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002)


note: fixed rate since 1976
Executive branch chief of state:
President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphandon (since 26 February 1998) and Vice President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since NA March 2001)

head of government:
Prime Minister BOUNGNANG Volachit (since NA March 2001); Deputy Prime Ministers THONGLOUN Sisolit (since NA March 2001), 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 21 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); prime minister appointed by the president with the approval of the National Assembly for a five-year term

election results:
KHAMTAI Siphandon elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA%
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Louisse LAKE-TACK (since 17 July 2007)


head of government: Prime Minister Winston Baldwin SPENCER (since 24 March 2004)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister


elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general chosen by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general
Exports $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, machinery and transport equipment 17%, food and live animals 4%, other 8%
Exports - partners Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium Spain 34%, Germany 20.7%, Italy 7.7%, Singapore 5.8%, UK 4.9% (2006)
Fiscal year 1 October - 30 September 1 April - 31 March
Flag description three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band red, with an inverted isosceles triangle based on the top edge of the flag; the triangle contains three horizontal bands of black (top), light blue, and white, with a yellow rising sun in the black band
GDP purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
51%

industry:
22%

services:
27% (1999 est.)
agriculture: 3.8%


industry: 22%


services: 74.3% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 4% (2000 est.) 3.8% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates 18 00 N, 105 00 E 17 03 N, 61 48 W
Geography - note landlocked Antigua has a deeply indented shoreline with many natural harbors and beaches; Barbuda has a very large western harbor
Highways total:
14,000 km

paved:
3,360 km

unpaved:
10,640 km (1991)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
4.2%

highest 10%:
26.4% (1992)
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation in 1999 - 21,800 hectares, a 16% decrease over 1998; estimated potential production in 1999 - 140 metric tons, about the same as in 1998); potential heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamine produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis considered a minor transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; more significant as an offshore financial center
Imports $540 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil
Imports - partners Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong US 21.1%, China 16.4%, Germany 13.3%, Singapore 12.7%, Spain 6.5% (2006)
Independence 19 July 1949 (from France) 1 November 1981 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate 7.5% (1999 est.) NA%
Industries tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing, alcohol, household appliances)
Infant mortality rate 92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 18.26 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 21.99 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 14.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 33% (2000 est.) 0.9% (2005 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) -
Irrigated land 1,250 sq km (1993 est.)

note:
rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.)
NA
Judicial branch 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) Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia; one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction); member Caribbean Court of Justice
Labor force 1 million - 1.5 million 30,000 (1991)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 80% (1997 est.) agriculture: 7%


industry: 11%


services: 82% (1983)
Land boundaries total:
5,083 km

border countries:
Burma 235 km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km, Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km
0 km
Land use arable land:
3%

permanent crops:
0%

permanent pastures:
3%

forests and woodland:
54%

other:
40% (1993 est.)
arable land: 18.18%


permanent crops: 4.55%


other: 77.27% (2005)
Languages Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages English (official), local dialects
Legal system based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice based on English common law
Legislative branch unicameral National Assembly (99 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - by presidential decree, on 27 October 1997, the number of seats increased from 85 to 99)

elections:
last held 21 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002)

election results:
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LPRP or LPRP-approved (independent, non-party members) 99
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (17 seats; members appointed by the governor general) and the House of Representatives (17 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms)


elections: House of Representatives - last held 23 March 2004 (next to be held in 2009)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ALP 4, UPP 13
Life expectancy at birth total population:
53.48 years

male:
51.58 years

female:
55.44 years (2001 est.)
total population: 72.42 years


male: 70.03 years


female: 74.94 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
57%

male:
70%

female:
44% (1999 est.)
definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling


total population: 85.8%


male: NA%


female: NA% (2003 est.)
Location Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico
Map references Southeast Asia Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,370 GRT/3,000 DWT

ships by type:
cargo 1 (2000 est.)
total: 1,059 ships (1000 GRT or over) 8,158,597 GRT/10,757,767 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 46, cargo 612, carrier 4, chemical tanker 6, container 350, liquefied gas 11, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 9, roll on/roll off 20


foreign-owned: 1,021 (Australia 1, Colombia 1, Cyprus 2, Denmark 15, Estonia 15, France 1, Germany 891, Greece 3, Iceland 9, Latvia 9, Lebanon 1, Lithuania 6, Netherlands 19, Norway 7, NZ 2, Poland 2, Russia 5, Slovenia 6, Sweden 1, Switzerland 5, Turkey 7, UK 4, US 8, Vietnam 1) (2007)
Military branches Lao People's Army (LPA; includes riverine element), Air Force, National Police Department Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $55 million (FY98) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 4.2% (FY96/97) NA (2006)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
1,319,537 (2001 est.)
-
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
710,627 (2001 est.)
-
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males:
64,437 (2001 est.)
-
National holiday Republic Day, 2 December (1975) Independence Day (National Day), 1 November (1981)
Nationality noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s)

adjective:
Lao or Laotian
noun: Antiguan(s), Barbudan(s)


adjective: Antiguan, Barbudan
Natural hazards floods, droughts, and blight hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October); periodic droughts
Natural resources timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) -6.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines petroleum products 136 km -
Political parties and leaders Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed Antigua Labor Party or ALP [Lester Bryant BIRD]; Barbudans for a Better Barbuda [Ordrick SAMUEL]; Barbuda People's Movement or BPM [Thomas H. FRANK]; Barbuda People's Movement for Change [Arthur NIBBS]; United Progressive Party or UPP [Baldwin SPENCER] (a coalition of three parties - Antigua Caribbean Liberation Movement or ACLM, Progressive Labor Movement or PLM, United National Democratic Party or UNDP)
Political pressure groups and leaders noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 Antigua Trades and Labor Union or ATLU [William ROBINSON]; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Hugh MARSHALL]
Population 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) 69,481 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 46.1% (1993 est.) NA%
Population growth rate 2.48% (2001 est.) 0.527% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors none -
Radio broadcast stations AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios 730,000 (1997) -
Railways 0 km -
Religions Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% Anglican 25.7%, Seventh Day Adventist 12.3%, Pentecostal 10.6%, Moravian 10.5%, Roman Catholic 10.4%, Methodist 7.9%, Baptist 4.9%, Church of God 4.5%, other Christian 5.4%, other 2%, none or unspecified 5.8% (2001 census)
Sex ratio at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.01 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
0.97 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
0.85 male(s)/female

total population:
0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.037 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.014 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.594 male(s)/female


total population: 1 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
service to general public is poor but improving, with over 20,000 telephones currently in service and an additional 48,000 expected by 2001; the government relies on a radiotelephone network to communicate with remote areas

domestic:
radiotelephone communications

international:
satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
general assessment: NA


domestic: good automatic telephone system


international: country code - 1-268; landing point for the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable with links to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean extending from the British Virgin Islands to Trinidad; satellite earth station - 2; tropospheric scatter to Saba (Netherlands Antilles) and Guadeloupe (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use 25,000 (1997) 40,000 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 4,915 (1997) 102,000 (2006)
Television broadcast stations 4 (1999) 2 (1997)
Terrain mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some higher volcanic areas
Total fertility rate 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) 2.23 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 5.7% (1997 est.) 11% (2001 est.)
Waterways 4,587 km approximately

note:
primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m
-
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