Compare Laos (2004) - Canada (2005)

Compare Laos (2004) z Canada (2005)

	Laos (2004)	Canada (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, Louangphrabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun*, Xekong, Xiangkhoang	10 provinces and 3 territories; Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon Territory
Age structure	0-14 years: 41.9% (male 1,277,152; female 1,265,761) 15-64 years: 54.9% (male 1,642,895; female 1,688,175) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 87,995; female 106,139) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 17.9% (male 3,016,032/female 2,869,244) 15-64 years: 68.9% (male 11,357,425/female 11,244,356) 65 years and over: 13.2% (male 1,842,496/female 2,475,488) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry	wheat, barley, oilseed, tobacco, fruits, vegetables; dairy products; forest products; fish
Airports	46 (2003 est.)	1,326 (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 (2004 est.)	total: 503 over 3,047 m: 18 2,438 to 3,047 m: 15 1,524 to 2,437 m: 150 914 to 1,523 m: 245 under 914 m: 75 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 35 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.)	total: 823 1,524 to 2,437 m: 67 914 to 1,523 m: 347 under 914 m: 409 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km	total: 9,984,670 sq km land: 9,093,507 sq km water: 891,163 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Utah	somewhat larger than the US
Background	Laos was under the control of Siam (Thailand) from the late 18th century until the late 19th century when it became part of French Indochina. The Franco-Siamese Treaty of 1907 defined the current Lao border with Thailand. 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.	A land of vast distances and rich natural resources, Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 while retaining ties to the British crown. Economically and technologically the nation has developed in parallel with the US, its neighbor to the south across an unfortified border. Canada's paramount political problem is meeting public demands for quality improvements in health care and education services after a decade of budget cuts. The issue of reconciling Quebec's francophone heritage with the majority anglophone Canadian population has moved to the back burner in recent years; support for separatism abated after the Quebec government's referendum on independence failed to pass in October of 1995.
Birth rate	36.47 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	10.84 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $298.5 million expenditures: $429.9 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)	revenues: $151 billion expenditures: $144 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Capital	Vientiane	Ottawa
Climate	tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)	varies from temperate in south to subarctic and arctic in north
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	202,080 km
Constitution	promulgated 14 August 1991	made up of unwritten and written acts, customs, judicial decisions, and traditions; the written part of the constitution consists of the Constitution Act of 29 March 1867, which created a federation of four provinces, and the Constitution Act of 17 April 1982, which transferred formal control over the constitution from Britain to Canada, and added a Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as procedures for constitutional amendments
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: Canada
Currency	kip (LAK)	-
Death rate	12.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	7.73 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$2.49 billion (2001)	$570 billion (2004)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Patricia M. HASLACH 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 David H. WILKINS embassy: 490 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 1G8 mailing address: P. O. Box 5000, Ogdensburgh, NY 13669-0430 telephone: [1] (613) 238-5335, 4470 FAX: [1] (613) 688-3082 consulate(s) general: Calgary, Halifax, Montreal, Quebec, Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg
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 Francis Joseph MCKENNA chancery: 501 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20001 telephone: [1] (202) 682-1740 FAX: [1] (202) 682-7726 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, San Diego, and Seattle consulate(s): Anchorage, Houston, Philadelphia, Princeton, Raleigh, San Francisco, and San Jose
Disputes - international	demarcation of boundaries with Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam is largely complete, but with Thailand several areas including Mekong River islets remain in dispute; ongoing disputes with Thailand and Vietnam over squatters; concern among Mekong Commission members that China's construction of dams on the Mekong River will affect water levels	managed maritime boundary disputes with the US at Dixon Entrance, Beaufort Sea, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and around the disputed Machias Seal Island and North Rock; working toward greater cooperation with US in monitoring people and commodities crossing the border; uncontested sovereignty dispute with Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland
Economic aid - donor	-	ODA, $2 billion (2004)
Economic aid - recipient	$243 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% 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.	As an affluent, high-tech industrial society, newly entered in the trillion dollar class, Canada closely resembles the US in its market-oriented economic system, pattern of production, and affluent living standards. Since World War II, the impressive growth of the manufacturing, mining, and service sectors has transformed the nation from a largely rural economy into one primarily industrial and urban. The 1989 US-Canada Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) (which includes Mexico) touched off a dramatic increase in trade and economic integration with the US. Given its great natural resources, skilled labor force, and modern capital plant Canada enjoys solid economic prospects. Solid fiscal management has produced a long-term budget surplus which is substantially reducing the national debt, although public debate continues over how to manage the rising cost of the publicly funded healthcare system. Exports account for roughly a third of GDP. Canada enjoys a substantial trade surplus with its principal trading partner, the United States, which absorbs more than 85% of Canadian exports.
Electricity - consumption	824.7 million kWh (2001)	487.3 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	400 million kWh (2001)	36.13 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	13 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	1.317 billion kWh (2001)	548.9 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Logan 5,959 m
Environment - current issues	unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water	air pollution and resulting acid rain severely affecting lakes and damaging forests; metal smelting, coal-burning utilities, and vehicle emissions impacting on agricultural and forest productivity; ocean waters becoming contaminated due to agricultural, industrial, mining, and forestry activities
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups	Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1%	British Isles origin 28%, French origin 23%, other European 15%, Amerindian 2%, other, mostly Asian, African, Arab 6%, mixed background 26%
Exchange rates	kips per US dollar - 10,443 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002), 8,954.58 (2001), 7,887.64 (2000), 7,102.02 (1999)	Canadian dollars per US dollar - 1.301 (2004), 1.4011 (2003), 1.5693 (2002), 1.5488 (2001), 1.4851 (2000)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphadon (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 Bouasone BOUPHAVANH (since 3 October 2003) Deputy Prime Minister Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since 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 in 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 Michaelle Jean (since 27 October 2005) head of government: Prime Minister Paul MARTIN (since 12 December 2003); Deputy Prime Minister Anne MCLELLAN (since 12 December 2003) cabinet: Federal Ministry chosen by the prime minister from among the members of his own party sitting in Parliament elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister for a five-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Commons is automatically designated prime minister by the governor general
Exports	NA (2001)	1.37 million bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin	motor vehicles and parts, industrial machinery, aircraft, telecommunications equipment; chemicals, plastics, fertilizers; wood pulp, timber, crude petroleum, natural gas, electricity, aluminum
Exports - partners	Thailand 20.7%, Vietnam 15.9%, France 7.3%, Germany 5.3%, Belgium 4% (2003)	US 85.2%, Japan 2.1%, UK 1.6% (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	two vertical bands of red (hoist and fly side, half width), with white square between them; an 11-pointed red maple leaf is centered in the white square; the official colors of Canada are red and white
GDP	purchasing power parity - $10.32 billion (2003 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 49.4% industry: 24.5% services: 26.1% (2003 est.)	agriculture: 2.3% industry: 26.4% services: 71.3% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2003 est.)	purchasing power parity - $31,500 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	5.5% (2003 est.)	2.4% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	18 00 N, 105 00 E	60 00 N, 95 00 W
Geography - note	landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong River forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand	second-largest country in world (after Russia); strategic location between Russia and US via north polar route; approximately 90% of the population is concentrated within 160 km of the US border
Heliports	-	319 (2004)
Highways	total: 21,716 km paved: 9,664 km unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.)	total: 1,408,800 km paved: 497,306 km (including 16,900 km of expressways) unpaved: 911,494 km (2002)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 3.2% highest 10%: 30.6% (1997)	lowest 10%: 2.8% highest 10%: 23.8% (1994)
Illicit drugs	world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation in 2003 - 18,900 hectares, a 19% decrease over 2002; estimated potential production in 2003 - 200 metric tons, a 11% increase from 2002); potential heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamine produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis; growing methamphetamine abuse problem	illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic drug market and export to US; use of hydroponics technology permits growers to plant large quantities of high-quality marijuana indoors; transit point for heroin and cocaine entering the US market; vulnerable to narcotics money laundering because of its mature financial services sector
Imports	NA (2001)	987,000 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods	machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, crude oil, chemicals, electricity, durable consumer goods
Imports - partners	Thailand 59.4%, China 12.8%, Vietnam 10.2% (2003)	US 58.9%, China 6.8%, Mexico 3.8% (2004)
Independence	19 July 1949 (from France)	1 July 1867 (union of British North American colonies); 11 December 1931 (independence recognized)
Industrial production growth rate	9.7% (2001 est.)	2% (2004 est.)
Industries	tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism	transportation equipment, chemicals, processed and unprocessed minerals, food products; wood and paper products; fish products, petroleum and natural gas
Infant mortality rate	total: 87.06 deaths/1,000 live births male: 97.05 deaths/1,000 live births female: 76.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 4.75 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.21 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	15.3% (2003 est.)	1.9% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)	ACCT, AfDB, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CDB, CE (observer), EAPC, EBRD, ESA (cooperating state), FAO, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNMOVIC, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land	1,640 sq km note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.)	7,200 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 Canada (judges are appointed by the prime minister through the governor general); Federal Court of Canada; Federal Court of Appeal; Provincial Courts (these are named variously Court of Appeal, Court of Queens Bench, Superior Court, Supreme Court, and Court of Justice)
Labor force	2.6 million (2001 est.)	17.37 million (2004)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 80% (1997 est.)	agriculture 3%, manufacturing 15%, construction 5%, services 74%, other 3% (2000)
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: 8,893 km border countries: US 8,893 km (includes 2,477 km with Alaska)
Land use	arable land: 3.8% permanent crops: 0.35% other: 95.85% (2001)	arable land: 4.96% permanent crops: 0.02% other: 95.02% (2001)
Languages	Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages	English (official) 59.3%, French (official) 23.2%, other 17.5%
Legal system	based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice	based on English common law, except in Quebec, where civil law system based on French law prevails; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
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 in 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LPRP or LPRP-approved (independent, non-party members) 109	bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of the Senate or Senat (members appointed by the governor general with the advice of the prime minister and serve until reaching 75 years of age; its normal limit is 105 senators) and the House of Commons or Chambre des Communes (308 seats; members elected by direct, popular vote to serve for up to five-year terms) elections: House of Commons - last held 28 June 2004 (next to be held by NA 2009) election results: House of Commons - percent of vote by party - Liberal Party 36.7%, Conservative Party 29.6%, New Democratic Party 15.7%, Bloc Quebecois 12.4%, Greens 4.3%, independents 0.4%, other 0.9%; seats by party - Liberal Party 134, Conservative Party 99, Bloc Quebecois 54, New Democratic Party 19, independent 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 54.69 years male: 52.71 years female: 56.75 years (2004 est.)	total population: 80.1 years male: 76.73 years female: 83.63 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 66.4% male: 77.4% female: 55.5% (2002)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97% (1986 est.) male: NA% female: NA%
Location	Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam	Northern North America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean on the east, North Pacific Ocean on the west, and the Arctic Ocean on the north, north of the conterminous US
Map references	Southeast Asia	North America
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT by type: cargo 1 (2004 est.)	total: 169 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,784,229 GRT/2,657,499 DWT by type: bulk carrier 22, cargo 49, chemical tanker 6, combination ore/oil 1, container 1, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 65, petroleum tanker 13, roll on/roll off 6 foreign-owned: 6 (France 1, Germany 3, United States 2) registered in other countries: 112 (2005)
Military branches	Lao People's Army (LPA; including Riverine Force), Air Force	Canadian Armed Forces: Land Forces Command, Maritime Command, Air Command, Canada Command (homeland security) to be operational in early 2006 (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$10.9 million (2003)	$9,801.7 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	0.5% (2003)	1.1% (2003)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 1,456,500 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 783,800 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 68,563 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Republic Day, 2 December (1975)	Canada Day, 1 July (1867)
Nationality	noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian	noun: Canadian(s) adjective: Canadian
Natural hazards	floods, droughts	continuous permafrost in north is a serious obstacle to development; cyclonic storms form east of the Rocky Mountains, a result of the mixing of air masses from the Arctic, Pacific, and North American interior, and produce most of the country's rain and snow east of the mountains
Natural resources	timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones	iron ore, nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, molybdenum, potash, diamonds, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, petroleum, natural gas, hydropower
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	5.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	refined products 540 km (2004)	crude and refined oil 23,564 km; liquid petroleum gas 74,980 km (2003)
Political parties and leaders	Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed	Bloc Quebecois [Gilles DUCEPPE]; Conservative Party of Canada (a merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party) [Stephen HARPER]; Green Party [Jim HARRIS]; Liberal Party [Paul MARTIN]; New Democratic Party [Jack LAYTON]
Political pressure groups and leaders	noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975	NA
Population	6,068,117 (July 2004 est.)	32,805,041 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	40% (2002 est.)	NA
Population growth rate	2.44% (2004 est.)	0.9% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	none	Fraser River Port, Goderich, Montreal, Port Cartier, Quebec, Saint John's (Newfoundland), Sept Isles, Vancouver
Radio broadcast stations	AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998)	AM 245, FM 582, shortwave 6 (2004)
Railways	-	total: 48,683 km standard gauge: 48,683 km 1.435-m gauge (2004)
Religions	Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%)	Roman Catholic 42.6%, Protestant 23.3% (including United Church 9.5%, Anglican 6.8%, Baptist 2.4%, Lutheran 2%), other Christian 4.4%, Muslim 1.9%, other and unspecified 11.8%, none 16% (2001 census)
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: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 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: country code - 856; satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)	general assessment: excellent service provided by modern technology domestic: domestic satellite system with about 300 earth stations international: country code - 1-xxx; 5 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean) and 2 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region)
Telephones - main lines in use	61,900 (2002)	19,950,900 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	55,200 (2002)	13,221,800 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	4 (1999)	80 (plus many repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus	mostly plains with mountains in west and lowlands in southeast
Total fertility rate	4.86 children born/woman (2004 est.)	1.61 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	5.7% (1997 est.)	7% (2004)
Waterways	4,600 km note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m (2003)	631 km note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km, including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km, shared with United States (2003)

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