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Compare Laos (2004) - Equatorial Guinea (2007)

Compare Laos (2004) z Equatorial Guinea (2007)

 Laos (2004)Equatorial Guinea (2007)
 LaosEquatorial Guinea
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 7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas
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: 41.5% (male 114,816/female 113,688)


15-64 years: 54.8% (male 145,740/female 156,097)


65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,957/female 11,903) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber
Airports 46 (2003 est.) 5 (2007)
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: 5


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 2 (2007)
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: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Area total: 236,800 sq km


land: 230,800 sq km


water: 6,000 sq km
total: 28,051 sq km


land: 28,051 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than Utah slightly smaller than Maryland
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. Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO has ruled the country since 1979 when he seized power in a coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 and 2004 legislative elections - were widely seen as flawed. The president exerts almost total control over the political system and has discouraged political opposition. Equatorial Guinea has experienced rapid economic growth due to the discovery of large offshore oil reserves, and in the last decade has become Sub-Saharan Africa's third largest oil exporter. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, there have been few improvements in the population's living standards.
Birth rate 36.47 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) 35.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $298.5 million


expenditures: $429.9 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)
revenues: $3.546 billion


expenditures: $1.516 billion (2006 est.)
Capital Vientiane name: Malabo


geographic coordinates: 3 45 N, 8 47 E


time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) tropical; always hot, humid
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 296 km
Constitution promulgated 14 August 1991 approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995
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 Equatorial Guinea


conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea


local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial/Republique de Guinee equatoriale


local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial/Guinee equatoriale


former: Spanish Guinea
Currency kip (LAK) -
Death rate 12.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) 15.01 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $2.49 billion (2001) $229 million (2006 est.)
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 Donald C. JOHNSON


embassy: adjacent to the golf course at the base of Mont Febe; note - relocated embassy is opened for limited functions; inquiries should continue to be directed to the US Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon


mailing address: B.P. 817, Yaounde, Cameroon; US Embassy Yaounde, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2520


telephone: [237] 220 15 00


FAX: [237] 220 16 20
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 Purificacion ANGUE ONDO


chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009


telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700


FAX: [1] (202) 518-5252
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 in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River and imprecisely defined maritime coordinates in the ICJ decision delay final delimitation; UN urges Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane and lesser islands and to create a maritime boundary in the hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay
Economic aid - recipient $243 million (2001 est.) $NA (2005)
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 discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993, because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Government officials and their family members own most businesses. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Growth remained strong in 2006, led by oil. Equatorial Guinea now has the fourth highest per capita income in the world, after Luxembourg, Bermuda, and Jersey.
Electricity - consumption 824.7 million kWh (2001) 26.04 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 400 million kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 1.317 billion kWh (2001) 28 million kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Mekong River 70 m


highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m
Environment - current issues unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water tap water is not potable; deforestation
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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, 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 and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% Fang 85.7%, Bubi 6.5%, Mdowe 3.6%, Annobon 1.6%, Bujeba 1.1%, other 1.4% (1994 census)
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) Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 522.4 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002)
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: President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup)


head of government: Prime Minister Ricardo Mangue Obama NFUBEA (since 14 August 2006); First Deputy Prime Minister Mercelino Oyono NTUTUMU (since 15 June 2004)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits); election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held in December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president


election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud
Exports NA (2001) NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa
Exports - partners Thailand 20.7%, Vietnam 15.9%, France 7.3%, Germany 5.3%, Belgium 4% (2003) China 30.9%, US 22.3%, Spain 12.7%, Taiwan 10.6%, Portugal 6.1% (2006)
Fiscal year 1 October - 30 September calendar year
Flag description three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice)
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: 3.1%


industry: 92%


services: 4.8% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2003 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 5.5% (2003 est.) 18.6% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates 18 00 N, 105 00 E 2 00 N, 10 00 E
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 insular and continental regions widely separated
Highways total: 21,716 km


paved: 9,664 km


unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3.2%


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


highest 10%: NA%
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 -
Imports NA (2001) NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods petroleum sector equipment, other equipment
Imports - partners Thailand 59.4%, China 12.8%, Vietnam 10.2% (2003) US 37.8%, Spain 9.5%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.9%, France 6.1%, South Korea 6.1%, UK 5.8%, Italy 5% (2006)
Independence 19 July 1949 (from France) 12 October 1968 (from Spain)
Industrial production growth rate 9.7% (2001 est.) 30% (2002 est.)
Industries tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, 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: 87.15 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 93.17 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 80.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 15.3% (2003 est.) 5% (2006 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, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land 1,640 sq km


note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.)
NA
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 Tribunal
Labor force 2.6 million (2001 est.) NA
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 80% (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
total: 539 km


border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km
Land use arable land: 3.8%


permanent crops: 0.35%


other: 95.85% (2001)
arable land: 4.63%


permanent crops: 3.57%


other: 91.8% (2005)
Languages Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages Spanish 67.6% (official), other 32.4% (includes French (official), Fang, Bubi) (1994 census)
Legal system based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom
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
unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (100 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held 25 April 2004 (next to be held in 2009)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDGE 98, CPDS 2


note: Parliament has little power since the constitution vests all executive authority in the president
Life expectancy at birth total population: 54.69 years


male: 52.71 years


female: 56.75 years (2004 est.)
total population: 49.51 years


male: 48.11 years


female: 50.95 years (2007 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: 85.7%


male: 93.3%


female: 78.4% (2003 est.)
Location Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon
Map references Southeast Asia Africa
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT


by type: cargo 1 (2004 est.)
total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,745 GRT/3,434 DWT


by type: cargo 1 (2007)
Military branches Lao People's Army (LPA; including Riverine Force), Air Force National Guard (Army, with Coast Guard (Navy) and Air Wing) (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $10.9 million (2003) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 0.5% (2003) 0.1% (2006 est.)
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) Independence Day, 12 October (1968)
Nationality noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)


adjective: Lao or Laotian
noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s)


adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean
Natural hazards floods, droughts violent windstorms, flash floods
Natural resources timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones petroleum, natural gas, timber, gold, bauxite, diamonds, tantalum, sand and gravel, clay
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines refined products 540 km (2004) condensate 46 km; condensate/gas 5 km; gas 47 km; oil 31 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP
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.) 551,201 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 40% (2002 est.) NA%
Population growth rate 2.44% (2004 est.) 2.015% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors none -
Radio broadcast stations AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2001)
Religions Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices
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: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.934 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.752 male(s)/female


total population: 0.957 male(s)/female (2007 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: digital fixed-line network in most major urban areas and good mobile coverage


domestic: fixed-line density is about 2 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular subscribership has been increasing and in 2005 stood at about 20 percent of the population


international: country code - 240; international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 61,900 (2002) 10,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular 55,200 (2002) 96,900 (2005)
Television broadcast stations 4 (1999) 1 (2001)
Terrain mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic
Total fertility rate 4.86 children born/woman (2004 est.) 4.48 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 5.7% (1997 est.) 30% (1998 est.)
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)
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