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Compare Laos (2001) - Guam (2005)
Compare Laos (2001) z Guam (2005)
| Laos (2001) | Guam (2005) | |
 |  | |
| 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 | none (territory of the US) |
| 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: 29.4% (male 25,645/female 23,887)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 55,115/female 52,935) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 5,157/female 5,825) (2005 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry | fruits, copra, vegetables; eggs, pork, poultry, beef |
| Airports | 51 (2000 est.) | 5 (2004 est.) |
| 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: 4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| 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 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total:
236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
total: 549 sq km
land: 549 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than Utah | three 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. | Guam was ceded to the US by Spain in 1898. Captured by the Japanese in 1941, it was retaken by the US three years later. The military installation on the island is one of the most strategically important US bases in the Pacific. |
| Birth rate | 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 19.03 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Budget | revenues:
$211 million expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
revenues: $340 million
expenditures: $445 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
| Capital | Vientiane | Hagatna (Agana) |
| Climate | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) | tropical marine; generally warm and humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to June, rainy season from July to December; little seasonal temperature variation |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 125.5 km |
| Constitution | promulgated 14 August 1991 | Organic Act of 1 August 1950 |
| 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: Territory of Guam
conventional short form: Guam local long form: Guahan |
| Currency | kip (LAK) | - |
| Death rate | 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.41 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Debt - external | $2.46 billion (1998 est.) | NA |
| Dependency status | - | organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations between Guam and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior |
| 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 |
none (territory of the US) |
| 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 |
none (territory of the US) |
| Disputes - international | parts of the border with Thailand are indefinite | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | $345 million (1999 est.) | Guam receives large transfer payments from the US Federal Treasury ($143 million in 1997) into which Guamanians pay no income or excise taxes; under the provisions of a special law of Congress, the Guam Treasury, rather than the US Treasury, receives federal income taxes paid by military and civilian Federal employees stationed in Guam (2001 est.) |
| 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. | The economy depends on US military spending, tourism, and the export of fish and handicrafts. Total US grants, wage payments, and procurement outlays amounted to $1 billion in 1998. Over the past 20 years, the tourist industry has grown rapidly, creating a construction boom for new hotels and the expansion of older ones. More than 1 million tourists visit Guam each year. The industry had recently suffered setbacks because of the continuing Japanese slowdown; the Japanese normally make up almost 90% of the tourists. Most food and industrial goods are imported. Guam faces the problem of building up the civilian economic sector to offset the impact of military downsizing. |
| Electricity - consumption | 173.6 million kWh (1999) | 776.6 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - exports | 705 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - imports | 142 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | 792 million kWh (1999) | 835 million kWh (2002) |
| 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: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Lamlam 406 m |
| Environment - current issues | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water | extirpation of native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the brown tree snake, an exotic, invasive species |
| 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 |
- |
| 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% | Chamorro 37.1%, Filipino 26.3%, other Pacific islander 11.3%, white 6.9%, other Asian 6.3%, other ethnic origin or race 2.3%, mixed 9.8% (2000 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) | the US dollar is used |
| 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: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Felix P. P. CAMACHO (since 6 January 2003) and Lieutenant Governor Kaleo MOYLAN (since 6 January 2003) cabinet: executive departments; heads appointed by the governor with the consent of the Guam legislature elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for a four-year term; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year term; election last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held November 2006) election results: Felix P. P. CAMACHO elected governor; percent of vote - Felix P. P. CAMACHO (Republican Party) 55.4%, Robert A. UNDERWOOD (Democratic Party) 44.6% |
| Exports | $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA |
| Exports - commodities | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin | mostly transshipments of refined petroleum products; construction materials, fish, food and beverage products |
| Exports - partners | Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium | Japan 66.1%, South Korea 9.9%, Singapore 8.4% (2004) |
| Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 October - 30 September |
| Flag description | three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band | territorial flag is dark blue with a narrow red border on all four sides; centered is a red-bordered, pointed, vertical ellipse containing a beach scene, outrigger canoe with sail, and a palm tree with the word GUAM superimposed in bold red letters; US flag is the national flag |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
51% industry: 22% services: 27% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 7%
industry: 15% services: 78% (2002 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $21,000 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | NA |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 00 N, 105 00 E | 13 28 N, 144 47 E |
| Geography - note | landlocked | largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago; strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean |
| Highways | total:
14,000 km paved: 3,360 km unpaved: 10,640 km (1991) |
total: 977 km
paved: 962 km unpaved: 15 km (2004) |
| 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 |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel | petroleum and petroleum products, food, manufactured goods |
| Imports - partners | Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong | Singapore 39.5%, South Korea 20.8%, Japan 19%, Hong Kong 9%, Philippines 4.3% (2004) |
| Independence | 19 July 1949 (from France) | none (territory of the US) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 7.5% (1999 est.) | NA |
| Industries | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism | US military, tourism, construction, transshipment services, concrete products, printing and publishing, food processing, textiles |
| Infant mortality rate | 92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 6.94 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.24 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 33% (2000 est.) | 0% (1999 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) | Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UPU |
| 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) | Federal District Court (judge is appointed by the president); Territorial Superior Court (judges appointed for eight-year terms by the governor) |
| Labor force | 1 million - 1.5 million | 60,000 (2000 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) | private 74% (industry 10%, trade 24%, other services 40%), federal and territorial government 26% (2000 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: 9.09%
permanent crops: 16.36% other: 74.55% (2001) |
| Languages | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages | English 38.3%, Chamorro 22.2%, Philippine languages 22.2%, other Pacific island languages 6.8%, Asian languages 7%, other languages 3.5% (2000 census) |
| Legal system | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice | modeled on US; US federal laws apply |
| 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 |
unicameral Legislature (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Democratic Party 6, Republican Party 9 note: Guam elects one nonvoting delegate to the US House of Representatives; election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006); results - Madeleine BORDALLO (Democratic Party) was elected as delegate; percent of vote by party - Democratic Party 64.6%, Republican Party 35.4%; seats by party - Democratic Party 1 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
53.48 years male: 51.58 years female: 55.44 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.4 years
male: 75.34 years female: 81.64 years (2005 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: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.) |
| Location | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam | Oceania, island in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines |
| Map references | Southeast Asia | Oceania |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
| Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,370 GRT/3,000 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
| Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the US |
| Military branches | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes riverine element), Air Force, National Police Department | - |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $55 million (FY98) | - |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.2% (FY96/97) | - |
| 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) | Discovery Day, first Monday in March (1521) |
| Nationality | noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian |
noun: Guamanian(s)
adjective: Guamanian |
| Natural hazards | floods, droughts, and blight | frequent squalls during rainy season; relatively rare, but potentially very destructive typhoons (June - December) |
| Natural resources | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones | fishing (largely undeveloped), tourism (especially from Japan) |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Pipelines | petroleum products 136 km | - |
| Political parties and leaders | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed | Democratic Party [leader Michael PHILLIPS]; Republican Party (controls the legislature) [leader Philip J. FLORES] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 | NA |
| Population | 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) | 168,564 (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 46.1% (1993 est.) | 23% (2001 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 2.48% (2001 est.) | 1.46% (2005 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | none | Apra Harbor |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 4, FM 7, shortwave 2 (2003) |
| Radios | 730,000 (1997) | - |
| Railways | 0 km | - |
| Religions | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% | Roman Catholic 85%, other 15% (1999 est.) |
| 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: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal; US citizens, but do not vote in US presidential elections |
| 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, integrated with US facilities for direct dialing, including free use of 800 numbers
domestic: modern digital system, including cellular mobile service and local access to the Internet international: country code - 1-671; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); submarine cables to US and Japan (Guam is a trans-Pacific communications hub for MCI, Sprint, AT&T, IT&E, and GTE, linking the US and Asia) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 25,000 (1997) | 84,134 (2001) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,915 (1997) | 32,600 (2001) |
| Television broadcast stations | 4 (1999) | 5 (1997) |
| Terrain | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus | volcanic origin, surrounded by coral reefs; relatively flat coralline limestone plateau (source of most fresh water), with steep coastal cliffs and narrow coastal plains in north, low hills in center, mountains in south |
| Total fertility rate | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.6 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 5.7% (1997 est.) | 15% (2000 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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