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Compare Laos (2002) - Trinidad and Tobago (2005)
Compare Laos (2002) z Trinidad and Tobago (2005)
| Laos (2002) | Trinidad and Tobago (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 | 9 regional corporations, 2 city corporations, 3 borough corporations, and 1 ward
regional corporations: Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo, Diego Martin, Mayaro/Rio Claro, Penal/Debe, Princes Town, Sangre Grande, San Juan/Laventille, Siparia, Tunapuna/Piarco city corporations: Port-of-Spain, San Fernando; borough corporations: Arima, Point Fortin, Chaguanas ward: Tobago |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 42.5% (male 1,233,659; female 1,219,872)
15-64 years: 54.2% (male 1,543,246; female 1,591,419) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 86,375; female 102,609) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 20.7% (male 115,594/female 109,665)
15-64 years: 71% (male 403,301/female 369,664) 65 years and over: 8.3% (male 40,638/female 49,782) (2005 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry | cocoa, rice, citrus, coffee, vegetables; poultry |
| Airports | 51 (2001) | 6 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2002) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 42
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 26 (2002) |
total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
total: 5,128 sq km
land: 5,128 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than Utah | slightly smaller than Delaware |
| 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 islands came under British control in the 19th century; independence was granted in 1962. The country is one of the most prosperous in the Caribbean thanks largely to petroleum and natural gas production and processing. Tourism, mostly in Tobago, is targeted for expansion and is growing. |
| Birth rate | 37.39 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 12.81 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $211 million
expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
revenues: $3.25 billion
expenditures: $3.193 billion, including capital expenditures of $117.3 million (2004 est.) |
| Capital | Vientiane | Port-of-Spain |
| Climate | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) | tropical; rainy season (June to December) |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 362 km |
| Constitution | promulgated 14 August 1991 | 1 August 1976 |
| 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 Trinidad and Tobago
conventional short form: Trinidad and Tobago |
| Currency | kip (LAK) | - |
| Death rate | 12.71 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 9.37 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Debt - external | $2.53 billion (1999) | $2.94 billion (2004 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Douglas A. HARTWICK
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 Roy L. AUSTIN
embassy: 15 Queen's Park West, Port-of-Spain mailing address: P. O. Box 752, Port-of-Spain telephone: [1] (868) 622-6372 through 6376, 622-6176 FAX: [1] (868) 628-5462 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador PHANTHONG Phommahaxay
chancery: 2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6416 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4923 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Marina Annette VALERE
chancery: 1708 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 467-6490 FAX: [1] (202) 785-3130 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
| Disputes - international | demarcation of boundaries with Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam is nearing completion, but with Thailand, several areas including Mekong River islets, remain in dispute; ongoing disputes with Thailand and Vietnam over squatters | Barbados will assert its claim before UNCLOS that the northern limit of Trinidad and Tobago's maritime boundary with Venezuela extends into its waters; Guyana has also expressed its intention to challenge this boundary as it may extend into its waters as well |
| Economic aid - recipient | $345 million (1999 est.) | $24 million (1999 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% in 1988-2001 except during the short-lived drop caused by the Asian financial crisis beginning in 1997. Despite this high growth rate, Laos remains a country with a primitive infrastructure; it 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. The economy will continue to benefit from aid from the IMF and other international sources and from new foreign investment in food-processing and mining. | Trinidad and Tobago, the leading Caribbean producer of oil and gas, has earned a reputation as an excellent investment site for international businesses. Tourism is a growing sector, although not proportionately as important as in many other Caribbean islands. The economy benefits from low inflation and a growing trade surplus. Prospects for growth in 2004 are good as prices for oil, petrochemicals, and liquified natural gas are expected to remain high, and foreign direct investment continues to grow to support expanded capacity in the energy sector. The government is coping with a rise in violent crime. |
| Electricity - consumption | 690.6 million kWh (2000) | 5.341 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - exports | 400 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - imports | 142 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | 1.02 billion kWh (2000) | 5.743 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 2%
hydro: 98% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: El Cerro del Aripo 940 m |
| Environment - current issues | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water | water pollution from agricultural chemicals, industrial wastes, and raw sewage; oil pollution of beaches; deforestation; soil erosion |
| 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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, 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% | Indian (South Asian) 40%, African 37.5%, mixed 20.5%, other 1.2%, unspecified 0.8% (2000 census) |
| Exchange rates | kips per US dollar - 9,467.00 (December 2001), 8,954.58 (2001), 7,887.64 (2000), 7,102.03 (1999), 3,298.33 (1998), 1,259.98 (1997) | Trinidad and Tobago dollars per US dollar - 6.299 (2004), 6.2951 (2003), 6.2487 (2002), 6.2332 (2001), 6.2998 (2000) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphandon (since 26 February 1998) and Vice President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since 27 March 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister BOUNGNANG Volachit (since 27 March 2001); First Deputy Prime Minister Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since NA May 2002), Deputy Prime Minister THONGLOUN Sisolit (since 27 March 2001), and Deputy Prime Minister 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 24 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); 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 Maxwell RICHARDS (since 17 March 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Patrick MANNING (since 24 December 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by an electoral college, which consists of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives, for a five-year term; election last held 14 February 2003 (next to be held in 2008); the president usually appoints as prime minister the leader of the majority party in the House of Representatives election results: George Maxwell RICHARDS elected president; percent of electoral college vote - 43% |
| Exports | $325 million (2001 est.) | NA |
| Exports - commodities | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin | petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, steel products, fertilizer, sugar, cocoa, coffee, citrus, flowers |
| Exports - partners | Thailand 20%, France 7.5%, Germany 5.9%, UK 4.1%, Belgium 4% (2000) | US 67.1%, Jamaica 5.7%, France 3.5% (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 | red with a white-edged black diagonal band from the upper hoist side to the lower fly side |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $9.2 billion (2001 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 53%
industry: 22% services: 25% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 2.7%
industry: 47% services: 50.3% (2004 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,630 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10,500 (2004 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2001 est.) | 5.7% (2004 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 00 N, 105 00 E | 11 00 N, 61 00 W |
| Geography - note | landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand | Pitch Lake, on Trinidad's southwestern coast, is the world's largest natural reservoir of asphalt |
| Highways | total: 14,000 km
paved: 3,360 km unpaved: 10,640 km (1991) |
total: 8,320 km
paved: 4,252 km unpaved: 4,068 km (1999 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 31% (1997) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
| Illicit drugs | world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation in 2002 - 23,200 hectares, a 5% increase over 2001; estimated potential production in 2002 - 180 metric tons, a 10% decrease from 2001); potential heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamine produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis; growing methamphetamine abuse problem | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; producer of cannabis |
| Imports | $540 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) | NA |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel | machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, food, live animals |
| Imports - partners | Thailand 52%, Singapore 3.9%, Japan 1.6%, Hong Kong 1.5%, China 0.8% (2000) | US 23.9%, Venezuela 11.5%, Germany 11.2%, Brazil 10.7%, Spain 6.4%, Italy 5.1% (2004) |
| Independence | 19 July 1949 (from France) | 31 August 1962 (from UK) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 7.5% (1999 est.) | 7.2% (2004 est.) |
| Industries | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism | petroleum, chemicals, tourism, food processing, cement, beverage, cotton textiles |
| Infant mortality rate | 90.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 24.31 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 26.23 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 10% (2001 est.) | 3.3% (2004 est.) |
| International organization participation | ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | 1,640 sq km
note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
30 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 of Judicature (comprised of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeals; the chief justice is appointed by the president after consultation with the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; other justices are appointed by the president on the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission); High Court of Justice; Court of Appeals; the highest court of appeal is the Privy Council in London |
| Labor force | 2.4 million (1999) | 590,000 (2004 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) | agriculture 9.5%, manufacturing, mining, and quarrying 14%, construction and utilities 12.4%, services 64.1% (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: 3.47%
permanent crops: 0.23% other: 96.3% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 14.62%
permanent crops: 9.16% other: 76.22% (2001) |
| Languages | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages | English (official), Hindi, French, Spanish, Chinese |
| Legal system | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice | based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (109 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - total number of seats increased from 99 to 109 for the 2002 election)
elections: last held 24 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LPRP or LPRP-approved (independent, non-party members) 109 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (31 seats; 16 members appointed by the ruling party, 9 by the President, 6 by the opposition party for a maximum term of five years) and the House of Representatives (36 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 7 October 2002 (next to be held by October 2007) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote - PNM 55.5%, UNC 44.5%; seats by party - PNM 20, UNC 16 note: Tobago has a unicameral House of Assembly with 12 members serving four-year terms |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 53.88 years
male: 51.95 years female: 55.87 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 66.73 years
male: 65.6 years female: 67.91 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: 98.6% male: 99.1% female: 98% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela |
| Map references | Southeast Asia | Central America and the Caribbean |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental margin |
| Merchant marine | total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,178 GRT/3,633 DWT
by type: passenger 2, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: 1 (United States 1) registered in other countries: 4 (2005) |
| Military branches | Lao People's Army (LPA; including Riverine Force), Air Force, National Police Department | Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force: Ground Force, Coast Guard (includes Air Wing) (2004) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $55 million (FY98) | $66.7 million (2003) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.2% (FY96/97) | 0.6% (2003) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,365,027 (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 734,945 (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 64,437 (2002 est.) | - |
| National holiday | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) | Independence Day, 31 August (1962) |
| Nationality | noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)
adjective: Lao or Laotian |
noun: Trinidadian(s), Tobagonian(s)
adjective: Trinidadian, Tobagonian |
| Natural hazards | floods, droughts | outside usual path of hurricanes and other tropical storms |
| Natural resources | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones | petroleum, natural gas, asphalt |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -10.87 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Pipelines | petroleum products 136 km | condensate 253 km; gas 1,117 km; oil 478 km (2004) |
| Political parties and leaders | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed | National Alliance for Reconstruction or NAR [Lennox SANKERSINGH]; People's National Movement or PNM [Patrick MANNING]; Team Unity or TU [Ramesh MAHARAJ]; United National Congress or UNC [Basdeo PANDAY]; Democratic Action Committee or DAC [Hochoy CHARLES], note - only active in Tobago |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 | Jamaat-al Muslimeen [Yasin BAKR] |
| Population | 5,777,180 (July 2002 est.) | 1,088,644 (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 40% (2001 est.) | 21% (1992 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 2.47% (2002 est.) | -0.74% (2005 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | none | Pointe-a-Pierre, Point Lisas, Port-of-Spain |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 4, FM 18, shortwave 0 (2004) |
| Radios | 730,000 (1997) | - |
| Railways | 0 km (2001) | - |
| Religions | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) | Roman Catholic 26%, Hindu 22.5%, Anglican 7.8%, Baptist 7.2%, Pentecostal 6.8%, Seventh Day Adventist 4%, other Christian 5.8%, Muslim 5.8%, other 10.8%, unspecified 1.4%, none 1.9% (2000 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: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.09 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2005 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: excellent international service; good local service
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-868; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Barbados and Guyana |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 25,000 (1997) | 325,100 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,915 (1997) | 361,900 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | 4 (1999) | 4 (2004) |
| Terrain | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus | mostly plains with some hills and low mountains |
| Total fertility rate | 5.03 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.75 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 5.7% (1997 est.) | 10.4% (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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