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Compare Laos (2001) - Sierra Leone (2004)
Compare Laos (2001) z Sierra Leone (2004)
| Laos (2001) | Sierra Leone (2004) | |
 |  | |
| 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 | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* |
| 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: 44.8% (male 1,291,621; female 1,343,827)
15-64 years: 52% (male 1,458,610; female 1,599,109) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 91,232; female 99,490) (2004 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish |
| Airports | 51 (2000 est.) | 10 (2003 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: 1
over 3,047 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: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total:
236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
total: 71,740 sq km
land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than Utah | slightly smaller than South Carolina |
| 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 1991 to 2002 civil war between the government and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (well over one-third of the population), many of whom are now refugees in neighboring countries. With the support of the UN peacekeeping force and contributions from the World Bank and international community, demobilization and disarmament of the RUF and Civil Defense Forces (CDF) combatants has been completed. National elections were held in May 2002 and the government continues to slowly reestablish its authority. However, the gradual withdrawal of most UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) peacekeepers in 2004 and early 2005, deteriorating political and economic conditions in Guinea, and the tenuous security situation in neighboring Liberia may present challenges to the continuation of Sierra Leone's stability. |
| Birth rate | 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 43.34 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Budget | revenues:
$211 million expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
revenues: $96 million
expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
| Capital | Vientiane | Freetown |
| Climate | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 402 km |
| Constitution | promulgated 14 August 1991 | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times |
| 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: Republic of Sierra Leone
conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
| Currency | kip (LAK) | leone (SLL) |
| Death rate | 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 20.62 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Debt - external | $2.46 billion (1998 est.) | $1.5 billion (2002 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 Peter Russell CHAVEAS
embassy: Corner of Walpole and Siaka Stevens Streets, Freetown mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [232] (22) 226481 through 226485 FAX: [232] (22) 225471 |
| 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 Ibrahim M. KAMARA
chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9261 through 9263 FAX: [1] (202) 483-1793 |
| Disputes - international | parts of the border with Thailand are indefinite | domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone have created insurgencies, street violence, looting, arms trafficking, ethnic conflicts, and refugees in border areas; in 2003, Guinea and Sierra Leone established a boundary commission to resolve a dispute over the town of Yenga |
| Economic aid - recipient | $345 million (1999 est.) | $103 million (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. | Sierra Leone is an extremely poor African nation with tremendous inequality in income distribution. It does have substantial mineral, agricultural, and fishery resources. However, the economic and social infrastructure is not well developed, and serious social disorders continue to hamper economic development, following a 11-year civil war. About two-thirds of the working-age population engages in subsistence agriculture. Manufacturing consists mainly of the processing of raw materials and of light manufacturing for the domestic market. Plans continue to reopen bauxite and rutile mines shut down during the conflict. The major source of hard currency consists of the mining of diamonds. The fate of the economy depends upon the maintenance of domestic peace and the continued receipt of substantial aid from abroad, which is essential to offset the severe trade imbalance and to supplement government revenues. |
| Electricity - consumption | 173.6 million kWh (1999) | 232.6 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - exports | 705 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - imports | 142 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production | 792 million kWh (1999) | 250.1 million kWh (2001) |
| 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: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
| Environment - current issues | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water | rapid population growth pressuring the environment; overharvesting of timber, expansion of cattle grazing, and slash-and-burn agriculture have resulted in deforestation and soil exhaustion; civil war depleting natural resources; overfishing |
| 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, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
| 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% | 20 native African tribes 90% (Temne 30%, Mende 30%, other 30%), Creole (Krio) 10% (descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area in the late-18th century), refugees from Liberia's recent civil war, small numbers of Europeans, Lebanese, Pakistanis, and Indians |
| 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) | leones per US dollar - 2,347.94 (2003), 2,099.03 (2002), 1,986.15 (2001), 2,092.12 (2000), 1,804.19 (1999) |
| 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 Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March 1996, reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March 1996, reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Ministers of State appointed by the president with the approval of the House of Representatives; the cabinet is responsible to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 14 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007); note - president's tenure of office is limited to two five-year terms election results: Ahmad Tejan KABBAH reelected president; percent of vote - Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (SLPP) 70.6%, Ernest KOROMA (APC) 22.4% |
| Exports | $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish (1999) |
| Exports - partners | Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium | Belgium 61.2%, Germany 14.2%, UK 4.5%, US 4.5% (2003) |
| 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 | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3.057 billion (2003 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
51% industry: 22% services: 27% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 49%
industry: 31% services: 21% (2001 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $500 (2003 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | 6.5% (2003 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 00 N, 105 00 E | 8 30 N, 11 30 W |
| Geography - note | landlocked | rainfall along the coast can reach 495 cm (195 inches) a year, making it one of the wettest places along coastal, western Africa |
| Heliports | - | 2 (2003 est.) |
| Highways | total:
14,000 km paved: 3,360 km unpaved: 10,640 km (1991) |
total: 11,330 km
paved: 895 km unpaved: 10,435 km (1999) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
4.2% highest 10%: 26.4% (1992) |
lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 43.6% (1989) |
| 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 (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals (1995) |
| Imports - partners | Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong | Germany 23.7%, UK 9.9%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.4%, France 7.4%, US 5.3%, Netherlands 5.1%, Ukraine 4.6% (2003) |
| Independence | 19 July 1949 (from France) | 27 April 1961 (from UK) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 7.5% (1999 est.) | NA |
| Industries | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism | mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining |
| Infant mortality rate | 92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 145.24 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 162.64 deaths/1,000 live births female: 127.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 33% (2000 est.) | 1% (2002 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, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, 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.) |
290 sq km (1998 est.) |
| 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) | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court |
| Labor force | 1 million - 1.5 million | 1.369 million (1981 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) | agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA |
| 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 |
total: 958 km
border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
| Land use | arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 3% forests and woodland: 54% other: 40% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 6.98%
permanent crops: 0.89% other: 92.13% (2001) |
| Languages | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages | English (official, regular use limited to literate minority), Mende (principal vernacular in the south), Temne (principal vernacular in the north), Krio (English-based Creole, spoken by the descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area, a lingua franca and a first language for 10% of the population but understood by 95%) |
| Legal system | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| 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 Parliament (124 seats - 112 elected by popular vote, 12 filled by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 14 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - SLPP 70.06%, APC 22.35%, PLP 3%, others 4.59%; seats by party - SLPP 83, APC 27, PLP 2 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
53.48 years male: 51.58 years female: 55.44 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 42.69 years
male: 40.23 years female: 45.21 years (2004 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 English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic
total population: 31.4% male: 45.4% female: 18.2% (1995 est.) |
| Location | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia |
| Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 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.) |
total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,435 GRT/8,750 DWT
by type: cargo 2 (2004 est.) |
| Military branches | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes riverine element), Air Force, National Police Department | Army (RSLAF) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $55 million (FY98) | $11.7 million (2003) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.2% (FY96/97) | 1.5% (2003) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,319,537 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,265,140 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
710,627 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 614,338 (2004 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, 27 April (1961) |
| Nationality | noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian |
noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
adjective: Sierra Leonean |
| Natural hazards | floods, droughts, and blight | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms |
| Natural resources | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2004 est.) |
| Pipelines | petroleum products 136 km | - |
| Political parties and leaders | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed | All People's Congress or APC [Ben KANU]; Peace and Liberation Party or PLP [Darlington MORRISON, interim chairman]; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [Sama BANYA]; numerous others |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 | Trade Unions and Student Unions |
| Population | 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) | 5,883,889 (July 2004 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 46.1% (1993 est.) | 68% (1989 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 2.48% (2001 est.) | 2.27% (2004 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | none | Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) |
| Radios | 730,000 (1997) | - |
| Railways | 0 km | - |
| Religions | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% | Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% |
| 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: 0.96 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2004 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: marginal telephone and telegraph service
domestic: the national microwave radio relay trunk system connects Freetown to Bo and Kenema international: country code - 232; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 25,000 (1997) | 24,000 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,915 (1997) | 67,000 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | 4 (1999) | 2 (1999) |
| Terrain | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east |
| Total fertility rate | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.79 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 5.7% (1997 est.) | NA |
| 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 |
800 km (2003) |
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