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Compare Laos (2005) - Togo (2002)

Compare Laos (2005) z Togo (2002)

 Laos (2005)Togo (2002)
 LaosTogo
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 5 regions (regions, singular - region); De La Kara, Des Plateaux, Des Savanes, Centrale, Maritime
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: 45.1% (male 1,195,052; female 1,187,014)


15-64 years: 52.4% (male 1,351,345; female 1,420,617)


65 years and over: 2.5% (male 56,270; female 75,203) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry coffee, cocoa, cotton, yams, cassava (tapioca), corn, beans, rice, millet, sorghum; livestock; fish
Airports 44 (2004 est.) 9 (2001)
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: 2 (2002)
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: 7


914 to 1,523 m: 5


under 914 m: 2 (2002)
Area total: 236,800 sq km


land: 230,800 sq km


water: 6,000 sq km
total: 56,785 sq km


land: 54,385 sq km


water: 2,400 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than Utah slightly smaller than West Virginia
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. French Togoland became Togo in 1960. General Gnassingbe EYADEMA, installed as military ruler in 1967, is Africa's longest-serving head of state. Despite the facade of multiparty elections instituted in the early 1990s, the government continues to be dominated by President EYADEMA, whose Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) party has maintained power almost continually since 1967. In addition, Togo has come under fire from international organizations for human rights abuses and is plagued by political unrest. Most bilateral and multilateral aid to Togo remains frozen.
Birth rate 35.99 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) 36.11 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $284.3 million


expenditures: $416.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
revenues: $232 million


expenditures: $252 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.)
Capital Vientiane Lome
Climate tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 56 km
Constitution promulgated 14 August 1991 multiparty draft constitution approved by High Council of the Republic 1 July 1992; adopted by public referendum 27 September 1992
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: Togolese Republic


conventional short form: Togo


local long form: Republique Togolaise


local short form: none


former: French Togoland
Currency - Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States
Death rate 11.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) 11.3 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $2.49 billion (2001) $1.5 billion (1999) (1999)
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 Karl HOFMANN


embassy: Angle Rue Kouenou and Rue 15 Beniglato, Lome


mailing address: B. P. 852, Lome


telephone: [228] 221 29 91 through 221 29 94


FAX: [228] 221 79 52
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 Akoussoulelou BODJONA


chancery: 2208 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 234-4212


FAX: [1] (202) 232-3190
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 Benin accuses Togo of moving boundary markers and stationing troops in its territory
Economic aid - recipient $243 million (2001 est.) $201.1 million (1995) (1995)
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. This small sub-Saharan economy is heavily dependent on both commercial and subsistence agriculture, which provides employment for 65% of the labor force. Some basic foodstuffs must still be imported. Cocoa, coffee, and cotton generate about 40% of export earnings, with cotton being the most significant cash crop despite falling prices on the world market. Political unrest, including private and public sector strikes throughout 1992 and 1993, jeopardized the reform program, shrunk the tax base, and disrupted vital economic activity. The 12 January 1994 devaluation of the XOF currency by 50% provided an important impetus to renewed structural adjustment. In the industrial sector, phosphate mining is by far the most important activity. Togo is the world's fourth largest producer, and geological advantages keep production costs low. The recently privatized mining operation, Office Togolais des Phosphates (OTP), is slowly recovering from a steep fall in prices in the early 1990's, but continues to face the challenge of tough foreign competition, exacerbated by weakening demand. Togo serves as a regional commercial and trade center. It continues to expand its duty-free export-processing zone (EPZ), launched in 1989, which has attracted enterprises from France, Italy, Scandinavia, the US, India, and China and created jobs for Togolese nationals. The government's decade-long effort, supported by the World Bank and the IMF, to implement economic reform measures, encourage foreign investment, and bring revenues in line with expenditures has stalled. Progress depends on following through on privatization, increased openness in government financial operations, progress towards legislative elections, and possible downsizing of the military, on which the regime has depended to stay in place. Lack of large-scale foreign aid, deterioration of the financial sector, energy shortages, and depressed commodity prices continue to constrain economic growth. The takeover of the national power company by a Franco-Canadian consortium in 2000 should ease the energy crisis.
Electricity - consumption 3.036 billion kWh (2002) 525.21 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 400 million kWh (2002) 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 125 million kWh (2002) 435 million kWh


note: electricity supplied by Ghana (2000)
Electricity - production 3.56 billion kWh (2002) 97 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 98%


hydro: 2%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Mekong River 70 m


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


highest point: Mont Agou 986 m
Environment - current issues unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water deforestation attributable to slash-and-burn agriculture and the use of wood for fuel; water pollution presents health hazards and hinders the fishing industry; air pollution increasing in urban areas
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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, 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% native African (37 tribes; largest and most important are Ewe, Mina, and Kabre) 99%, European and Syrian-Lebanese less than 1%
Exchange rates kips per US dollar - 10,820 (2004), 10,569 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002), 8,954.6 (2001), 7,887.6 (2000) Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 741.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro
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: President Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA (since 14 April 1967)


head of government: Prime Minister Koffi SAMA (since 29 June 2002)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president and the prime minister


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 21 June 1998 (next to be held June 2003); prime minister appointed by the president


election results: Gnassingbe EYADEMA reelected president; percent of vote - Gnassingbe EYADEMA 52.13%, Gilchrist OLYMPIO 34.12%, other 13.75%
Exports NA $306 million f.o.b. (2001)
Exports - commodities garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin cotton, phosphates, coffee, cocoa
Exports - partners Thailand 19.3%, Vietnam 13.4%, France 8%, Germany 5.3%, UK 5% (2004) Benin 12%, Nigeria 9%, Belgium 5%, Ghana 4% (2000)
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 five equal horizontal bands of green (top and bottom) alternating with yellow; there is a white five-pointed star on a red square in the upper hoist-side corner; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
GDP - purchasing power parity - $7.6 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 49.5%


industry: 27.5%


services: 23% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 42%


industry: 21%


services: 37% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2004 est.) purchasing power parity - $1,500 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 6% (2004 est.) 2.2% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates 18 00 N, 105 00 E 8 00 N, 1 10 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 the country's length allows it to stretch through six distinct geographic regions; climate varies from tropical to savanna
Highways total: 21,716 km


paved: 9,664 km


unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.)
total: 7,520 km


paved: 2,376 km


unpaved: 5,144 km (1996)
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) transit hub for Nigerian heroin and cocaine traffickers; money laundering not a significant problem
Imports NA $420 million f.o.b. (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products
Imports - partners Thailand 60.5%, China 10.3%, Vietnam 7.1%, Singapore 4% (2004) Ghana 26%, France 11%, China 7%, Cote d'Ivoire 7% (2000)
Independence 19 July 1949 (from France) 27 April 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship)
Industrial production growth rate 9.7% (2001 est.) NA%
Industries tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism phosphate mining, agricultural processing, cement; handicrafts, textiles, beverages
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.)
69.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 12.3% (2004 est.) 2.3% (2001 est.)
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) ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIPONUH, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 3 (2001)
Irrigated land 1,640 sq km


note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.)
70 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) Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme
Labor force 2.6 million (2001 est.) 1.74 million (1996) (1996)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 80% (1997 est.) agriculture 65%, industry 5%, services 30% (1998 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: 1,647 km


border countries: Benin 644 km, Burkina Faso 126 km, Ghana 877 km
Land use arable land: 3.8%


permanent crops: 0.35%


other: 95.85% (2001)
arable land: 41.37%


permanent crops: 1.84%


other: 56.79% (1998 est.)
Languages Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages French (official and the language of commerce), Ewe and Mina (the two major African languages in the south), Kabye (sometimes spelled Kabiye) and Dagomba (the two major African languages in the north)
Legal system based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice French-based court system
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 National Assembly (81 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held 27 October 2002 (next NA 2006)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPT 72, RSD 3, UDPS 2, Juvento 2, MOCEP 1, independents 1


note: two opposition parties boycotted the election, the Union of the Forces for Change, and the Action Committee for Renewal
Life expectancy at birth total population: 55.08 years


male: 53.07 years


female: 57.17 years (2005 est.)
total population: 54.02 years


male: 52.03 years


female: 56.07 years (2002 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: 51.7%


male: 67%


female: 37% (1995 est.)
Location Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Benin and Ghana
Map references Southeast Asia Africa
Maritime claims none (landlocked) exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 30 NM
Merchant marine total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT


by type: cargo 1 (2005)
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,603 GRT/2,800 DWT


ships by type: specialized tanker 1


note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Greece 1 (2002 est.)
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) -
Military branches Lao People's Army (LPA; includes Riverine Force), Air Force Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie
Military expenditures - dollar figure $10.7 million (2004) $21.9 million (FY01)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 0.5% (2004) 1.8% (FY01)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 1,220,758 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 640,280 (2002 est.)
National holiday Republic Day, 2 December (1975) Independence Day, 27 April (1960)
Nationality noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)


adjective: Lao or Laotian
noun: Togolese (singular and plural)


adjective: Togolese
Natural hazards floods, droughts hot, dry harmattan wind can reduce visibility in north during winter; periodic droughts
Natural resources timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones phosphates, limestone, marble, arable land
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines refined products 540 km (2004) -
Political parties and leaders Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphadon, party president]; other parties proscribed Action Committee for Renewal or CAR [Yawovi AGBOYIBO]; Coordination des Forces Nouvelles or CFN [Joseph KOFFIGOH]; Democratic Convention of African Peoples or CDPA [Leopold GNININVI]; Party for Democracy and Renewal or PDR [Zarifou AYEVA]; Patriotic Pan-African Convergence or CPP [Edem KODJO]; Rally of the Togolese People or RPT [President Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA]; Union of Forces for Change or UFC [Gilchrist OLYMPIO (in exile), Jean Pierre FABRE, general secretary in Togo]; Union of Independent Liberals or ULI [Jacques AMOUZOU]


note: Rally of the Togolese People or RPT, led by President EYADEMA, was the only party until the formation of multiple parties was legalized 12 April 1991
Political pressure groups and leaders noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 NA
Population 6,217,141 (July 2005 est.) 5,285,501


note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line 40% (2002 est.) 32% (1989 est.)
Population growth rate 2.42% (2005 est.) 2.48% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors - Kpeme, Lome
Radio broadcast stations AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (1998)
Radios - 940,000 (1997)
Railways - total: 525 km


narrow gauge: 525 km 1.000-m gauge (2001)
Religions Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) indigenous beliefs 51%, Christian 29%, Muslim 20%
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.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female


total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal NA years of age; universal adult
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: fair system based on a network of microwave radio relay routes supplemented by open-wire lines and a mobile cellular system


domestic: microwave radio relay and open-wire lines for conventional system; cellular system has capacity of 10,000 telephones


international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Symphonie
Telephones - main lines in use 61,900 (2002) 25,000 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular 55,200 (2002) 2,995 (1997)
Television broadcast stations 4 (1999) 3 (plus two repeaters) (1997)
Terrain mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus gently rolling savanna in north; central hills; southern plateau; low coastal plain with extensive lagoons and marshes
Total fertility rate 4.77 children born/woman (2005 est.) 5.14 children born/woman (2002 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)
50 km (Mono river)
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