Laos (2001) | Jersey (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 | none (British crown dependency) |
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: 17.2% (male 8,139/female 7,552)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 30,407/female 30,691) 65 years and over: 15.7% (male 6,299/female 7,996) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry | potatoes, cauliflower, tomatoes; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 51 (2000 est.) | 1 (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: 1
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: 116 sq km
land: 116 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Utah | about two-thirds 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. | Jersey and the other Channel Islands represent the last remnants of the medieval Dukedom of Normandy that held sway in both France and England. These islands were the only British soil occupied by German troops in World War II. Jersey is a British crown dependency, but is not part of the UK. |
Birth rate | 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.3 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$211 million expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
revenues: $601 million
expenditures: $588 million; including capital expenditures of $98 million (2000 est.) |
Capital | Vientiane | name: Saint Helier
geographic coordinates: 49 12 N, 2 07 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Climate | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) | temperate; mild winters and cool summers |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 70 km |
Constitution | promulgated 14 August 1991 | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice |
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: Bailiwick of Jersey
conventional short form: Jersey |
Currency | kip (LAK) | - |
Death rate | 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.28 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.46 billion (1998 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | British crown dependency |
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 (British crown dependency) |
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 (British crown dependency) |
Disputes - international | parts of the border with Thailand are indefinite | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $345 million (1999 est.) | $0 |
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. | Jersey's economy is based on international financial services, agriculture, and tourism. In 1996, the finance sector accounted for about 60% of the island's output. Potatoes, cauliflower, tomatoes, and especially flowers are important export crops, shipped mostly to the UK. The Jersey breed of dairy cattle is known worldwide and represents an important export income earner. Milk products go to the UK and other EU countries. Tourism accounts for 24% of GDP. In recent years, the government has encouraged light industry to locate in Jersey, with the result that an electronics industry has developed alongside the traditional manufacturing of knitwear. All raw material and energy requirements are imported, as well as a large share of Jersey's food needs. Light taxes and death duties make the island a popular tax haven. Living standards come close to those of the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | 173.6 million kWh (1999) | 630.1 million kWh (2004 est.) |
Electricity - exports | 705 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 142 million kWh (1999) | NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by France |
Electricity - production | 792 million kWh (1999) | - |
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: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 143 m |
Environment - current issues | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water | NA |
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% | Jersey 51.1%, British 34.8%, Irish, French, and other white 6.6%, Portuguese/Madeiran 6.4%, other 1.1% (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) | Jersey pounds per US dollar - 0.55 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003), 0.6672 (2002), 0.6947 (2001)
note: the Jersey pound is at par with the British pound |
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)
head of government: Lieutenant Governor Andrew RIDGEWAY (since 14 June 2006); Bailiff Philip Martin BAILHACHE (since February 1995) cabinet: committees appointed by the Assembly of the States elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor and bailiff appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $NA |
Exports - commodities | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin | light industrial and electrical goods, foodstuffs, textiles |
Exports - partners | Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium | UK (2004) |
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 | white with a diagonal red cross extending to the corners of the flag; in the upper quadrant, surmounted by a yellow crown, a red shield with the three lions of England in yellow |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
51% industry: 22% services: 27% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 2% services: 93% (1996) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 18 00 N, 105 00 E | 49 15 N, 2 10 W |
Geography - note | landlocked | largest and southernmost of Channel Islands; about 30% of population concentrated in Saint Helier |
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 |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, foodstuffs, mineral fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong | UK (2004) |
Independence | 19 July 1949 (from France) | none (British crown dependency) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.5% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Industries | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism | tourism, banking and finance, dairy |
Infant mortality rate | 92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 5.16 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.52 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 33% (2000 est.) | 5.3% (2004) |
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) | - |
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) | Royal Court (judges elected by an electoral college and the bailiff) |
Labor force | 1 million - 1.5 million | 52,790 (2004) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80% (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: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages | English 94.5% (official), Portuguese 4.6%, other 0.9% (2001 census) |
Legal system | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice | English law and local statute; justice is administered by the Royal Court |
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 Assembly of the States (55 voting members - 12 senators (elected for six-year terms), 12 constables or heads of parishes (elected for three-year terms), 29 deputies (elected for three-year terms); the bailiff and the deputy bailiff; and three non-voting members - the Dean of Jersey, the Attorney General, and the Solicitor General all appointed by the monarch)
elections: last held NA (next to be held NA); note - on 23 November 2005, 29 deputies, independents, were elected election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 55 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
53.48 years male: 51.58 years female: 55.44 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 79.38 years
male: 76.89 years female: 82.05 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 57% male: 70% female: 44% (1999 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam | Western Europe, island in the English Channel, northwest of France |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 12 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 UK |
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) | Liberation Day, 9 May (1945) |
Nationality | noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian |
noun: Channel Islander(s)
adjective: Channel Islander |
Natural hazards | floods, droughts, and blight | NA |
Natural resources | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones | arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 2.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | petroleum products 136 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed | none; all independents |
Political pressure groups and leaders | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 | none |
Population | 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) | 91,084 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 46.1% (1993 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.48% (2001 est.) | 0.28% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM NA, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 730,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% | Anglican, Roman Catholic, Baptist, Congregational New Church, Methodist, Presbyterian |
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: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA years of age; universal adult |
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: NA international: 3 submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | 25,000 (1997) | 73,900 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,915 (1997) | 83,900 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (1999) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus | gently rolling plain with low, rugged hills along north coast |
Total fertility rate | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.58 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 5.7% (1997 est.) | 0.9% (2004 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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