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Compare Laos (2003) - Jamaica (2004)

Compare Laos (2003) z Jamaica (2004)

 Laos (2003)Jamaica (2004)
 LaosJamaica
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


note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation
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: 28.2% (male 390,966; female 372,961)


15-64 years: 65% (male 883,053; female 880,296)


65 years and over: 6.9% (male 82,788; female 103,066) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, vegetables, poultry, goats, milk, crustaceans, and mollusks
Airports 51 (2002) 35 (2003 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: 11


2,438 to 3,047 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 5 (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: 24


914 to 1,523 m: 2


under 914 m: 22 (2004 est.)
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 drop off in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s.
Birth rate 36.93 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) 16.94 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget revenues: $211 million


expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est. est.)
revenues: $2.596 billion


expenditures: $3.111 billion, including capital expenditures of $236 million (2003 est.)
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.) 5.4 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external $2.53 billion (1999) $4.962 billion (2003 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) 935-6001
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 Gordon SHIRLEY


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.) $16 million (2003)
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 Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for 70% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. The global economic slowdown, particularly after the terrorist attacks in the US on 11 September 2001, stunted economic growth; the economy rebounded moderately in 2003, with one of the best tourist seasons on record. But the economy faces serious long-term problems: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a sizable merchandise trade deficit; large-scale unemployment; and a growing internal debt, the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy. The ratio of debt to GDP is close to 150%. Inflation, previously a bright spot, is expected to remain in the double digits. Depressed economic conditions have led to increased civil unrest, including gang violence fueled by the drug trade. In 2004, the government faces the difficult prospect of having to achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem that is hampering economic growth.
Electricity - consumption 824.7 million kWh (2001) 5.833 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 400 million kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 1.317 billion kWh (2001) 6.272 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 1.4%


hydro: 98.6%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2001)
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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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, 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 - 57.7409 (2003), 48.4159 (2002), 45.9962 (2001), 42.7011 (2000), 39.0435 (1999)
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)


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) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels
Exports - partners Vietnam 25.7%, Thailand 19%, France 7.5%, Germany 5.3% (2002) US 29.6%, UK 11%, Canada 10.8%, France 7.9%, Norway 6.8%, Germany 6.2%, China 6%, Netherlands 4.4% (2003)
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 - $10.61 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 53%


industry: 23%


services: 24% (2001 est.)
agriculture: 6.7%


industry: 37.2%


services: 56.2% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $1,800 (2002 est.) purchasing power parity - $3,900 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 5.7% (2002 est.) 1.9% (2003 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: 18,700 km


paved: 13,109 km


unpaved: 5,591 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3.2%


highest 10%: 30.6% (1997)
lowest 10%: 2.7%


highest 10%: 30.3% (2000)
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) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials
Imports - partners Thailand 58.9%, Vietnam 12.3%, China 7.9% (2002) US 39.8%, Trinidad and Tobago 9.7%, Germany 5.6%, Venezuela 4.5%, France 4.5%, Japan 4.2% (2003)
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/alumina, textiles, agro processing, wearing apparel, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications
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.)
total: 12.81 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 13.82 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 11.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 10% (2002 est.) 10.3% (2003 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-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, 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.)
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 (2003)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 80% (1997 est.) agriculture 21%, industry 19%, services 60% (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: 10.16%


other: 73.77% (2001)
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 in 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: 76.07 years


male: 74.04 years


female: 78.21 years (2004 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: 87.9%


male: 84.1%


female: 91.6% (2003 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 straight baselines


territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT


ships by type: cargo 1 (2002 est.)
total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 74,881 GRT/100,682 DWT


by type: bulk 2, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 2, short-sea/passenger 1


foreign-owned: Greece 2, Iceland 1, Latvia 1, United States 2 (2004 est.)
Military branches Lao People's Army (LPA; including Riverine Force), Air Force, National Police Department Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing
Military expenditures - dollar figure $55 million (FY98) $31 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 4.2% (FY96) 0.4% (2003)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 1,411,042 (2003 est.) males age 15-49: 764,266 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 759,499 (2003 est.) males age 15-49: 533,768 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age (2003 est.) -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 67,260 (2003 est.) males: 27,126 (2004 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.) -4.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines refined products 540 km (2003) -
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 [Hyacinth BENNETT]; 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.) 2,713,130 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line 40% (2002 est.) 19.7% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate 2.45% (2003 est.) 0.66% (2004 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)
Railways 0 km total: 272 km


standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-m gauge


note: 207 of these km belonging to the Jamaica Railway Corporation had been in common carrier service until 1992 but are no longer operational; 57 km of the remaining track is privately owned and used by ALCAN to transport bauxite (2003)
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: 0.8 male(s)/female


total population: 1 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: fully automatic domestic telephone network


domestic: NA


international: country code - 1-876; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables
Telephones - main lines in use 25,000 (1997) 444,400 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular 4,915 (1997) 1.4 million (2002)
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.) 1.98 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate 5.7% (1997 est.) 15.9% (2003 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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