Compare Laos (2003) - Jamaica (2002)

Compare Laos (2003) z Jamaica (2002)

	Laos (2003)	Jamaica (2002)

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	14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland
Age structure	0-14 years: 42.2% (male 1,255,172; female 1,242,823) 15-64 years: 54.6% (male 1,592,697; female 1,639,431) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 87,192; female 104,230) (2003 est.)	0-14 years: 29.1% (male 399,249; female 380,864) 15-64 years: 64.1% (male 858,433; female 859,174) 65 years and over: 6.8% (male 81,321; female 100,988) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products	sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry	sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk
Airports	51 (2002)	35 (2001)
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: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2002)
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: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 22 (2002)
Area	total: 236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km	total: 10,991 sq km land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Utah	slightly smaller than Connecticut
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, a liberalization of foreign investment laws, and the admission into ASEAN in 1997.	Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a dropoff in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Subsequent governments have been open market oriented. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s.
Birth rate	36.93 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)	17.74 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget	revenues: $211 million expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est. est.)	revenues: $2.23 billion expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of $232.5 million
Capital	Vientiane	Kingston
Climate	tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)	tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	1,022 km
Constitution	promulgated 14 August 1991	6 August 1962
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: none conventional short form: Jamaica
Currency	kip (LAK)	Jamaican dollar (JMD)
Death rate	12.39 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)	5.45 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external	$2.53 billion (1999)	$5.2 billion (2001 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 Sue McCourt COBB embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859 FAX: [1] (876) 926-6743
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 Seymour MULLINGS chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 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	none
Economic aid - recipient	$345 million (1999 est.)	$102.7 million (1995) (1995)
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.	The economy, which depends heavily on tourism and bauxite, has been stagnant since 1995. After five years of recession, the economy grew 0.8% in 2000 and 1.1% in 2001, but the global economic slowdown, particularly in the United States after the 11 September terrorist attacks, has stunted the economic recovery. Serious problems include: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a widening merchandise trade deficit; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to various ailing sectors of the economy, particularly the financial sector. Depressed economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including a mounting crime rate. Jamaica's medium-term prospects will depend upon encouraging investment, maintaining a competitive exchange rate, selling off reacquired firms, and implementing proper fiscal and monetary policies.
Electricity - consumption	824.7 million kWh (2001)	6.27 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports	400 million kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - production	1.317 billion kWh (2001)	6.74 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source	fossil fuel: 1.4% hydro: 98.6% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)	fossil fuel: 89% hydro: 3% nuclear: 0% other: 7% (2000)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m
Environment - current issues	unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water	heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions
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, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, 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%	black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1%
Exchange rates	kips per US dollar - 7,562 (2002), 8,954.58 (2001), 7,887.64 (2000), 7,102.02 (1999), 3,298.33 (1998)	Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 47.277 (December 2001), 45.996 (2001), 42.701 (2000), 39.044 (1999), 36.550 (1998), 35.404 (1997)
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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991) head of government: Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) and Deputy Prime Minister Seymour MULLINGS (since NA 1993) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister
Exports	NA (2001)	$1.6 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Exports - commodities	wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin	alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas, rum
Exports - partners	Vietnam 25.7%, Thailand 19%, France 7.5%, Germany 5.3% (2002)	US 35.7%, EU (excluding UK) 15.9%, UK 13%, Canada 10.5% (1999)
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	diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side)
GDP	purchasing power parity - $10.4 billion (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $9.8 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 53% industry: 23% services: 24% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 7% industry: 28% services: 65% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $1,800 (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	5.7% (2002 est.)	1.1% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates	18 00 N, 105 00 E	18 15 N, 77 30 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	strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal
Highways	total: 21,716 km paved: 9,664 km unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.)	total: 19,000 km paved: 13,433 km unpaved: 5,567 km (1997)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 3.2% highest 10%: 30.6% (1997)	lowest 10%: 3% highest 10%: 29% (1996) (1996)
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	major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions
Imports	NA (2001)	$3.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods	machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals, fertilizers
Imports - partners	Thailand 58.9%, Vietnam 12.3%, China 7.9% (2002)	US 47.8%, Caricom countries 12.4%, Latin America 7.2%, EU (excluding UK) 4.7% (1999)
Independence	19 July 1949 (from France)	6 August 1962 (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	tourism, bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products
Infant mortality rate	total: 88.94 deaths/1,000 live births male: 99.1 deaths/1,000 live births female: 78.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)	13.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	10% (2002 est.)	6.9% (2001 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, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	1 (2000)	21 (2000)
Irrigated land	1,640 sq km note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.)	250 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 (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal
Labor force	2.4 million (1999)	1.13 million (1998) (1998)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 80% (1997 est.)	services 60%, agriculture 21%, industry 19% (1998) (1998)
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: 16.07% permanent crops: 9.23% other: 74.7% (1998 est.)
Languages	Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages	English, patois English
Legal system	based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice	based on English common law; 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 (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 16 October 2002 (next to be held NA October 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PNP 52%, JLP 47.3%; seats by party - PNP 34, JLP 26
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 54.3 years male: 52.34 years female: 56.33 years (2003 est.)	total population: 75.64 years male: 73.65 years female: 77.73 years (2002 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 52.8% male: 67.5% female: 38.1% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 85% male: 80.8% female: 89.1% (1995 est.)
Location	Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam	Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba
Map references	Southeast Asia	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	measured from claimed archipelagic baselines contiguous zone: 24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2002 est.)	total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 21,954 GRT/25,250 DWT ships by type: petroleum tanker 1, includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Latvia 2, United States 2 (2002 est.)
Military branches	Lao People's Army (LPA; including Riverine Force), Air Force, National Police Department	Jamaica Defense Force (including Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$55 million (FY98)	$30 million (FY95/96 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	4.2% (FY96)	NA%
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 1,411,042 (2003 est.)	males age 15-49: 747,043 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 759,499 (2003 est.)	males age 15-49: 523,550 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age	18 years of age (2003 est.)	18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 67,260 (2003 est.)	males: 27,729 (2002 est.)
National holiday	Republic Day, 2 December (1975)	Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962)
Nationality	noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian	noun: Jamaican(s) adjective: Jamaican
Natural hazards	floods, droughts	hurricanes (especially July to November)
Natural resources	timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones	bauxite, gypsum, limestone
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)	-6.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines	refined products 540 km (2003)	petroleum products 10 km
Political parties and leaders	Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed	Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON]
Political pressure groups and leaders	noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975	New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists)
Population	5,921,545 (July 2003 est.)	2,680,029 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line	40% (2002 est.)	34% (1992 est.)
Population growth rate	2.45% (2003 est.)	0.56% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors	none	Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998)	AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios	-	1.215 million (1997)
Railways	0 km	total: 272 km standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge; note - 207 km, belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation, were in common carrier service but are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite (2000)
Religions	Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%)	Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other, including some spiritual cults 34.7%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.04 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 (2003 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2002 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: fully automatic domestic telephone network domestic: NA international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables
Telephones - main lines in use	25,000 (1997)	353,000 (1996)
Telephones - mobile cellular	4,915 (1997)	54,640 (1996)
Television broadcast stations	4 (1999)	7 (1997)
Terrain	mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus	mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain
Total fertility rate	4.94 children born/woman (2003 est.)	2.05 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate	5.7% (1997 est.)	16% (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	none

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