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Compare Laos (2001) - Bahrain (2006)
Compare Laos (2001) z Bahrain (2006)
| Laos (2001) | Bahrain (2006) | |
 |  | |
| 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 | 5 governorates; Asamah, Janubiyah, Muharraq, Shamaliyah, Wasat
note: each governorate administered by an appointed governor |
| 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: 27.4% (male 96,567/female 94,650)
15-64 years: 69.1% (male 280,272/female 202,451) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 12,753/female 11,892) (2006 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry | fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish |
| Airports | 51 (2000 est.) | 3 (2006) |
| 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: 3
over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
| 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.) |
- |
| Area | total:
236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
total: 665 sq km
land: 665 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than Utah | 3.5 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. | In 1782, the Al Khalifa family captured Bahrain from the Persians. In order to secure these holdings, it entered into a series of treaties with the UK during the 19th century that made Bahrain a British protectorate. The archipelago attained its independence in 1971. Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors. Facing declining oil reserves, Bahrain has turned to petroleum processing and refining and has transformed itself into an international banking center. Sheikh HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa, who came to power in 1999, has pushed economic and political reforms and has worked to improve relations with the Shia community. In February 2001, Bahraini voters approved a referendum on the National Action Charter - the centerpiece of Sheikh HAMAD's political liberalization program. In February 2002, Sheikh HAMAD pronounced Bahrain a constitutional monarchy and changed his status from amir to king. In October 2002, Bahrainis elected members of the lower house of Bahrain's reconstituted bicameral legislature, the National Assembly. |
| Birth rate | 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 17.8 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Budget | revenues:
$211 million expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
revenues: $4.662 billion
expenditures: $3.447 billion; including capital expenditures of $700 million (2005 est.) |
| Capital | Vientiane | name: Manama
geographic coordinates: 26 13 N, 50 35 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Climate | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) | arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 161 km |
| Constitution | promulgated 14 August 1991 | new constitution 14 February 2002 |
| 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: Kingdom of Bahrain
conventional short form: Bahrain local long form: Mamlakat al Bahrayn local short form: Al Bahrayn former: Dilmun |
| Currency | kip (LAK) | - |
| Death rate | 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.14 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Debt - external | $2.46 billion (1998 est.) | $6.814 billion (2005 est.) |
| 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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador William T. MONROE
embassy: Building #979, Road 3119 (next to Al-Ahli Sports Club), Block 331, Zinj District, Manama mailing address: American Embassy Manama, PSC 451, FPO AE 09834-5100; international mail: American Embassy, Box 26431, Manama telephone: [973] 1724-2700 FAX: [973] 1727-0547 |
| 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 Nasir bin Muhammad al-BALUSHI
chancery: 3502 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 342-1111 FAX: [1] (202) 362-2192 consulate(s) general: New York |
| Disputes - international | parts of the border with Thailand are indefinite | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | $345 million (1999 est.) | $150 million; note - $50 million annually since 1992 from the UAE and Kuwait (2002) |
| 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. | Petroleum production and refining account for about 60% of Bahrain's export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP. With its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. A large share of exports consists of petroleum products made from refining imported crude. Construction proceeds on several major industrial projects. Unemployment, especially among the young, and the depletion of oil and underground water resources are major long-term economic problems. In 2005 Bahrain and the US ratified a Free Trade Agreement (FTA), the first FTA between the US and a Gulf state. |
| Electricity - consumption | 173.6 million kWh (1999) | 6.83 billion kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - exports | 705 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - imports | 142 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - production | 792 million kWh (1999) | 7.345 billion kWh (2003) |
| 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: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m |
| Environment - current issues | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water | desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land, periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution stations; lack of freshwater resources, groundwater and seawater are the only sources for all water needs |
| 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, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
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% | Bahraini 62.4%, non-Bahraini 37.6% (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) | Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.376 (2005), 0.376 (2004), 0.376 (2003), 0.376 (2002), 0.376 (2001) |
| 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: King HAMAD bin Isa al-Khalifa (since 6 March 1999); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SALMAN bin Hamad (son of the monarch, born 21 October 1969)
head of government: Prime Minister KHALIFA bin Salman al-Khalifa (since 1971); Deputy Prime Ministers ALI bin Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa, MUHAMMAD bin Mubarak al-Khalifa, Jawad al-ARAIDH cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
| Exports | $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
| Exports - commodities | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin | petroleum and petroleum products, aluminum, textiles |
| Exports - partners | Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium | Saudi Arabia 3.3%, US 2.6%, UAE 2.3% (2005) |
| Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
| Flag description | three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band | red, the traditional color for flags of Persian Gulf states, with a white serrated band (five white points) on the hoist side; the five points represent the five pillars of Islam |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
51% industry: 22% services: 27% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 0.5%
industry: 38.7% services: 60.8% (2005 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | 5.9% (2005 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 00 N, 105 00 E | 26 00 N, 50 33 E |
| Geography - note | landlocked | close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf, through which much of the Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean |
| Heliports | - | 1 (2006) |
| 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 | - |
| Imports | $540 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel | crude oil, machinery, chemicals |
| Imports - partners | Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong | Saudi Arabia 36.4%, Japan 6.6%, Germany 6.4%, US 5.4%, UK 5%, UAE 4.1% (2005) |
| Independence | 19 July 1949 (from France) | 15 August 1971 (from UK) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 7.5% (1999 est.) | 2% (2000 est.) |
| Industries | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism | petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, iron pelletization, fertilizers, offshore banking, ship repairing, tourism |
| Infant mortality rate | 92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 16.8 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 19.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 33% (2000 est.) | 2.7% (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) | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, 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.) |
40 sq km (2003) |
| 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) | High Civil Appeals Court |
| Labor force | 1 million - 1.5 million | 380,000
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2005 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) | agriculture: 1%
industry: 79% services: 20% (1997 est.) |
| 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: 2.82%
permanent crops: 5.63% other: 91.55% (2005) |
| Languages | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu |
| Legal system | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice | based on Islamic law and 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 Shura Council (40 members appointed by the King) and House of Deputies (40 members directly elected to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Deputies - last held 31 October 2002 (next election to be held in September 2006) election results: House of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Sunni Islamists 12, Shia grouping 7, other groupings and independents 21 note: first elections since 7 December 1973; unicameral National Assembly dissolved 26 August 1975; National Action Charter created bicameral legislature on 23 December 2000; approved by referendum 14 February 2001; first legislative session of Parliament held on 25 December 2002 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
53.48 years male: 51.58 years female: 55.44 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 74.45 years
male: 71.97 years female: 77 years (2006 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 can read and write
total population: 89.1% male: 91.9% female: 85% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam | Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia |
| Map references | Southeast Asia | Middle East |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined |
| 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: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 235,449 GRT/339,728 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 4, cargo 1, container 2, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: 3 (Kuwait 3) (2006) |
| Military branches | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes riverine element), Air Force, National Police Department | Bahrain Defense Forces (BDF): Ground Force (includes Air Defense), Navy, Air Force, National Guard |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $55 million (FY98) | $627.7 million (2005 est.) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.2% (FY96/97) | 4.9% (2005 est.) |
| 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) | National Day, 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 is the date of independence from the UK, 16 December 1971 is the date of independence from British protection |
| Nationality | noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian |
noun: Bahraini(s)
adjective: Bahraini |
| Natural hazards | floods, droughts, and blight | periodic droughts; dust storms |
| Natural resources | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones | oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0.82 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Pipelines | petroleum products 136 km | gas 20 km; oil 52 km (2006) |
| Political parties and leaders | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed | political parties prohibited but political societies were legalized per a July 2005 law |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 | Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically in 1994-97 and have recently engaged in protests and marches, demanding that more power be vested in the elected Council of Representatives and that the government do more to decrease unemployment; several small, clandestine leftist and Islamic fundamentalist groups are active |
| Population | 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) | 698,585
note: includes 235,108 non-nationals (July 2006 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 46.1% (1993 est.) | NA% |
| Population growth rate | 2.48% (2001 est.) | 1.45% (2006 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | none | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Radios | 730,000 (1997) | - |
| Railways | 0 km | - |
| Religions | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% | Muslim (Shi'a and Sunni) 81.2%, Christian 9%, other 9.8% (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: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.38 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.07 male(s)/female total population: 1.26 male(s)/female (2006 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: modern system
domestic: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile cellular telephones international: country code - 973; tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; submarine cable to Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 1 (1997) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 25,000 (1997) | 196,500 (2005) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,915 (1997) | 748,700 (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | 4 (1999) | 4 (1997) |
| Terrain | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus | mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment |
| Total fertility rate | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.6 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 5.7% (1997 est.) | 15% (2005 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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