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Compare Laos (2005) - Norfolk Island (2004)

Compare Laos (2005) z Norfolk Island (2004)

 Laos (2005)Norfolk Island (2004)
 LaosNorfolk Island
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 (Vientiane)*, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun**, Xekong, Xiangkhoang none (territory of Australia)
Age structure 0-14 years: 41.6% (male 1,300,094/female 1,289,227)


15-64 years: 55.2% (male 1,693,494/female 1,737,196)


65 years and over: 3.2% (male 88,744/female 108,386) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 20.2%


15-64 years: 63.9%


65 years and over: 15.9% (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry
Airports 44 (2004 est.) 1 (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 (2004 est.)
total: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (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.)
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Area total: 236,800 sq km


land: 230,800 sq km


water: 6,000 sq km
total: 34.6 sq km


land: 34.6 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than Utah about 0.2 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. Two British attempts at establishing the island as a penal colony (1788-1814 and 1825-55) were ultimately abandoned. In 1856, the island was resettled by Pitcairn Islanders, descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions.
Birth rate 35.99 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) NA births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget revenues: $284.3 million


expenditures: $416.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
revenues: $4.6 million


expenditures: $4.8 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY92/93)
Capital Vientiane Kingston
Climate tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 32 km
Constitution promulgated 14 August 1991 Norfolk Island Act of 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: Territory of Norfolk Island


conventional short form: Norfolk Island
Currency - Australian dollar (AUD)
Death rate 11.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) NA deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external $2.49 billion (2001) NA
Dependency status - territory of Australia; Canberra administers Commonwealth responsibilities on Norfolk Island through the Department of Environment, Sport, and Territories
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
none (territory of Australia)
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
none (territory of Australia)
Disputes - international Southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Laos and Thailand pledge to complete demarcation of boundaries in 2005, while ongoing disputes over squatters and boundary encroachment by Thailand including Mekong River islets persist; in 2004 Cambodian-Laotian boundary commission agrees to re-erect missing markers in two adjoining provinces; concern among Mekong Commission members that China's construction of dams on the Mekong River will affect water levels none
Economic aid - recipient $243 million (2001 est.) NA
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 6% in 1988-2004 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. The government has sponsored major improvements in the road system. 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. In late 2004, Laos gained Normal Trade Relations status with the US, allowing Laos-based producers to face lower tariffs on their exports; this may help spur growth. Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily increased over the years and has brought a level of prosperity unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural sector has become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs.
Electricity - consumption 3.036 billion kWh (2002) NA kWh
Electricity - exports 400 million kWh (2002) -
Electricity - imports 125 million kWh (2002) -
Electricity - production 3.56 billion kWh (2002) NA kWh
Elevation extremes lowest point: Mekong River 70 m


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


highest point: Mount Bates 319 m
Environment - current issues unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water NA
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
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Ethnic groups Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesians
Exchange rates kips per US dollar - 10,820 (2004), 10,569 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002), 8,954.6 (2001), 7,887.6 (2000) Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9320 (2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999)
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 Siphadon elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA%
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and Australia are represented by Administrator Grant TAMBLING (since 1 November 2003)


head of government: Assembly President and Chief Minister Geoffrey Robert GARDNER (since 5 December 2001)


cabinet: Executive Council is made up of four of the nine members of the Legislative Assembly; the council devises government policy and acts as an advisor to the administrator


elections: the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia; chief minister elected by the Legislative Assembly for a term of not more than three years; election last held 29 November 2001 (next to be held by December 2004)


election results: Geoffrey Robert GARDNER elected chief minister; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - NA
Exports NA $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY91/92)
Exports - commodities garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados
Exports - partners Thailand 19.3%, Vietnam 13.4%, France 8%, Germany 5.3%, UK 5% (2004) Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe
Fiscal year 1 October - 30 September 1 July - 30 June
Flag description three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider white band
GDP - purchasing power parity - NA
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 49.5%


industry: 27.5%


services: 23% (2004 est.)
agriculture: NA


industry: NA


services: NA
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2004 est.) purchasing power parity - NA
GDP - real growth rate 6% (2004 est.) NA
Geographic coordinates 18 00 N, 105 00 E 29 02 S, 167 57 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 most of the 32-km coastline consists of almost inaccessible cliffs, but the land slopes down to the sea in one small southern area on Sydney Bay, where the capital of Kingston is situated
Highways total: 21,716 km


paved: 9,664 km


unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.)
total: 80 km


paved: 53 km


unpaved: 27 km (2001)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3.2%


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


highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs estimated cultivation in 2004 - 10,000 hectares, a 45% decrease from 2003; estimated potential production in 2004 - 49 metric tons, a significant decrease from 200 metric tons in 2003 (2005) -
Imports NA $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods NA
Imports - partners Thailand 60.5%, China 10.3%, Vietnam 7.1%, Singapore 4% (2004) Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe
Independence 19 July 1949 (from France) none (territory of Australia)
Industrial production growth rate 9.7% (2001 est.) NA
Industries tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism tourism
Infant mortality rate total: 85.22 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 95.04 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 75.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
total: NA


male: NA


female: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 12.3% (2004 est.) NA
International organization participation ACCT, APT, 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) UPU
Irrigated land 1,640 sq km


note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.)
NA sq km
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; Court of Petty Sessions
Labor force 2.6 million (2001 est.) NA
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 80% (1997 est.) tourism NA, subsistence agriculture NA
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: 0%


permanent crops: 0%


other: 100% (2001)
Languages Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages English (official), Norfolk a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian
Legal system based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and acts; English common law applies in matters not covered by either Australian or Norfolk Island 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
unicameral Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members elected by electors who have nine equal votes each but only four votes can be given to any one candidate; members serve three-year terms)


elections: last held 29 November 2001 (next to be held by December 2004)


election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 9
Life expectancy at birth total population: 55.08 years


male: 53.07 years


female: 57.17 years (2005 est.)
total population: NA years


male: NA years


female: NA years
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 66.4%


male: 77.4%


female: 55.5% (2002)
NA
Location Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia
Map references Southeast Asia Oceania
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm


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


by type: cargo 1 (2005)
none
Military - note Laos is one of the world's least developed countries; the Lao People's Armed Forces are small, poorly funded, and ineffectively resourced; there is little political will to allocate sparse funding to the military, and the armed forces' gradual degradation is likely to continue; the massive drug production and trafficking industry centered in the Golden Triangle makes Laos an important narcotics transit country, and armed Wa and Chinese smugglers are active on the Lao-Burma border (2005) defense is the responsibility of Australia
Military branches Lao People's Army (LPA; includes Riverine Force), Air Force -
Military expenditures - dollar figure $10.7 million (2004) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 0.5% (2004) -
National holiday Republic Day, 2 December (1975) Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June (1856)
Nationality noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)


adjective: Lao or Laotian
noun: Norfolk Islander(s)


adjective: Norfolk Islander(s)
Natural hazards floods, droughts typhoons (especially May to July)
Natural resources timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones fish
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) NA migrant(s)/1,000 population
Pipelines refined products 540 km (2004) -
Political parties and leaders Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphadon, party president]; other parties proscribed none
Political pressure groups and leaders noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 none
Population 6,217,141 (July 2005 est.) 1,841 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line 40% (2002 est.) NA
Population growth rate 2.42% (2005 est.) -0.01% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors - none; loading jetties at Kingston and Cascade
Radio broadcast stations AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998)
Religions Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) Anglican 37.4%, Uniting Church in Australia 14.5%, Roman Catholic 11.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3.1%, none 12.2%, unknown 17.4%, other 3.9% (1996)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
NA
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


domestic: NA


international: country code - 672; undersea coaxial cable links with Australia, New Zealand, and Canada; satellite service planned for near future
Telephones - main lines in use 61,900 (2002) 2,532; note: a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits (2004)
Telephones - mobile cellular 55,200 (2002) 0 (proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island referendum) (2002)
Television broadcast stations 4 (1999) 1 (local programming station plus two repeaters that bring in Australian programs by satellite) (1998)
Terrain mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains
Total fertility rate 4.77 children born/woman (2005 est.) NA children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate 5.7% (1997 est.) NA
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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