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Compare Laos (2004) - Saint Lucia (2008)
Compare Laos (2004) z Saint Lucia (2008)
| Laos (2004) | Saint Lucia (2008) | |
 |  | |
| 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 | 11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros-Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux-Fort |
| 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: 29.4% (male 25,869/female 24,248)
15-64 years: 65.5% (male 55,115/female 56,641) 65 years and over: 5.1% (male 3,200/female 5,576) (2007 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa |
| Airports | 46 (2003 est.) | 2 (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: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (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.) |
- |
| Area | total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
total: 616 sq km
land: 606 sq km water: 10 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than Utah | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
| 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. | The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Even after the abolition of slavery on its plantations in 1834, Saint Lucia remained an agricultural island, dedicated to producing tropical commodity crops. Self-government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979. |
| Birth rate | 36.47 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 19.28 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $298.5 million
expenditures: $429.9 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues: $141.2 million
expenditures: $146.7 million (2000 est.) |
| Capital | Vientiane | name: Castries
geographic coordinates: 14 01 N, 61 00 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Climate | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) | tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season January to April, rainy season May to August |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 158 km |
| Constitution | promulgated 14 August 1991 | 22 February 1979 |
| 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: Saint Lucia |
| Currency | kip (LAK) | - |
| Death rate | 12.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 5.03 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Debt - external | $2.49 billion (2001) | $257 million (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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Saint Lucia; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Saint Lucia |
| 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 Sonia Merlyn JOHNNY
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6723 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York |
| 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 | joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the eastern Caribbean Sea |
| Economic aid - recipient | $243 million (2001 est.) | $11.06 million (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 island nation has been able to attract foreign business and investment, especially in its offshore banking and tourism industries, with a surge in foreign direct investment in 2006, attributed to the construction of several tourism projects. Tourism is the main source of foreign exchange, with more than 700,000 arrivals in 2005. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean area, and the government is trying to revitalize the banana industry. Saint Lucia is vulnerable to a variety of external shocks including declines in European Union banana preferences, volatile tourism receipts, natural disasters, and dependence on foreign oil. High debt servicing obligations constrain the KING administration's ability to respond to adverse external shocks. Economic fundamentals remain solid, even though unemployment needs to be reduced. |
| Electricity - consumption | 824.7 million kWh (2001) | 282.9 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) | 304.2 million kWh (2005) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m |
| Environment - current issues | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water | deforestation; soil erosion, particularly in the northern region |
| 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, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
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% | black 82.5%, mixed 11.9%, East Indian 2.4%, other or unspecified 3.1% (2001 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) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - NA (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003) |
| 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 Dame Pearlette LOUISY (since September 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Stephenson KING (since 9 September 2007); note - Sir John COMPTON died in office Friday, 7 September 2007 cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
| Exports | NA (2001) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
| Exports - commodities | garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin | bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil |
| Exports - partners | Thailand 20.7%, Vietnam 15.9%, France 7.3%, Germany 5.3%, Belgium 4% (2003) | France 69.7%, US 10.2%, UK 8.8% (2006) |
| 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 | blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border |
| 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: 5%
industry: 15% services: 80% (2005 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2003 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2003 est.) | 5.1% (2005 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 00 N, 105 00 E | 13 53 N, 60 58 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 | the twin Pitons (Gros Piton and Petit Piton), striking cone-shaped peaks south of Soufriere, are one of the scenic natural highlights of the Caribbean |
| Highways | total: 21,716 km
paved: 9,664 km unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.) |
- |
| 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 | transit point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe |
| Imports | NA (2001) | 2,678 bbl/day (2004) |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods | food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels |
| Imports - partners | Thailand 59.4%, China 12.8%, Vietnam 10.2% (2003) | US 21.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 14.9%, Italy 12.3%, France 11.8%, Venezuela 7.2%, UK 6.9%, Netherlands 5.8% (2006) |
| Independence | 19 July 1949 (from France) | 22 February 1979 (from UK) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 9.7% (2001 est.) | -8.9% (1997 est.) |
| Industries | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism | clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism; lime processing, coconut processing |
| 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: 12.81 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 15.3% (2003 est.) | 2.9% (2005 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, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OIF, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Irrigated land | 1,640 sq km
note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
30 sq km (2003) |
| 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) | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (jurisdiction extends to Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) |
| Labor force | 2.6 million (2001 est.) | 43,800 (2001 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) | agriculture: 21.7%
industry: 24.7% services: 53.6% (2002 est.) |
| Land boundaries | total: 5,083 km
border countries: Burma 235 km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km, Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km |
0 km |
| Land use | arable land: 3.8%
permanent crops: 0.35% other: 95.85% (2001) |
arable land: 6.45%
permanent crops: 22.58% other: 70.97% (2005) |
| Languages | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages | English (official), French patois |
| Legal system | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice | based on English common law |
| 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 consists of the Senate (11 seats; six members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and two after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups) and the House of Assembly (17 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 11 December 2006 (next to be held in December 2011) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - UWP 50%, SLP 46.9%, other 3.1%; seats by party - UWP 11, SLP 6 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 54.69 years
male: 52.71 years female: 56.75 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 74.08 years
male: 70.53 years female: 77.88 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 has ever attended school
total population: 90.1% male: 89.5% female: 90.6% (2001 est.) |
| Location | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
| Map references | Southeast Asia | Central America and the Caribbean |
| 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.) |
- |
| Military branches | Lao People's Army (LPA; including Riverine Force), Air Force | no regular military forces; Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (includes Special Service Unit, Coast Guard) (2007) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $10.9 million (2003) | - |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.5% (2003) | NA |
| 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, 22 February (1979) |
| Nationality | noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)
adjective: Lao or Laotian |
noun: Saint Lucian(s)
adjective: Saint Lucian |
| Natural hazards | floods, droughts | hurricanes and volcanic activity |
| Natural resources | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones | forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -1.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Pipelines | refined products 540 km (2004) | - |
| Political parties and leaders | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed | National Alliance or NA [George ODLUM]; Saint Lucia Freedom Party or SFP [Martinus FRANCOIS]; Saint Lucia Labor Party or SLP [Kenneth ANTHONY]; Sou Tout Apwe Fete Fini or STAFF [Christopher HUNTE]; United Workers Party or UWP [Sir John COMPTON] |
| 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.) | 170,649 (July 2007 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 40% (2002 est.) | NA% |
| Population growth rate | 2.44% (2004 est.) | 1.297% (2007 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | none | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 2, FM 7, shortwave 0 (2003) |
| Religions | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) | Roman Catholic 67.5%, Seventh Day Adventist 8.5%, Pentecostal 5.7%, Rastafarian 2.1%, Anglican 2%, Evangelical 2%, other Christian 5.1%, other 1.1%, unspecified 1.5%, none 4.5% (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: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.067 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.973 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.574 male(s)/female total population: 0.974 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: adequate system
domestic: system is automatically switched international: country code - 1-758; the East Caribbean Fiber Optic System (ECFS) and Southern Caribbean fiber optic system (SCF) submarine cables, along with Intelsat from Martinique, carry calls internationally; direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; tropospheric scatter to Barbados |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 61,900 (2002) | 51,100 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 55,200 (2002) | 105,700 (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | 4 (1999) | 2 (1 commercial broadcast station and 1 community antenna television or CATV channel) (2003) |
| Terrain | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus | volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys |
| Total fertility rate | 4.86 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 2.15 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 5.7% (1997 est.) | 20% (2003 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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