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Compare Marshall Islands (2001) - Laos (2005)
Compare Marshall Islands (2001) z Laos (2005)
| Marshall Islands (2001) | Laos (2005) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 33 municipalities; Ailinginae, Ailinglaplap, Ailuk, Arno, Aur, Bikar, Bikini, Bokak, Ebon, Enewetak, Erikub, Jabat, Jaluit, Jemo, Kili, Kwajalein, Lae, Lib, Likiep, Majuro, Maloelap, Mejit, Mili, Namorik, Namu, Rongelap, Rongrik, Toke, Ujae, Ujelang, Utirik, Wotho, Wotje | 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 |
| Age structure | 0-14 years:
49.29% (male 17,808; female 17,101) 15-64 years: 48.61% (male 17,573; female 16,853) 65 years and over: 2.1% (male 707; female 780) (2001 est.) |
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.) |
| Agriculture - products | coconuts, tomatoes, melons, cacao, taro, breadfruit, fruits; pigs, chickens | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
| Airports | 16 (2000 est.) | 44 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
12 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 35
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total:
181.3 sq km land: 181.3 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, and Kwajalein |
total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
| Area - comparative | about the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Utah |
| Background | After almost four decades under US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of US nuclear testing on some of the islands between 1947 and 1962. | 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. |
| Birth rate | 45.07 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 35.99 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Budget | revenues:
$80.1 million expenditures: $77.4 million, including capital expenditures of $19.5 million (FY95/96 est.) |
revenues: $284.3 million
expenditures: $416.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
| Capital | Majuro | Vientiane |
| Climate | wet season from May to November; hot and humid; islands border typhoon belt | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
| Coastline | 370.4 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | 1 May 1979 | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
| Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of the Marshall Islands conventional short form: Marshall Islands former: Marshall Islands District (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) |
conventional long form: Lao People's Democratic Republic
conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none |
| Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
| Death rate | 6.23 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Debt - external | $125 million (FY96/97 est.) | $2.49 billion (2001) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Joan M. PLAISTED embassy: Oceanside, Mejen Weto, Long Island, Majuro mailing address: P. O. Box 1379, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-1379 telephone: [692] 247-4011 FAX: [692] 247-4012 |
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 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Banny DE BRUM chancery: 2433 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5414 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3236 consulate(s) general: Honolulu |
chief of mission: Ambassador PHANTHONG Phommahaxay
chancery: 2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6416 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4923 |
| Disputes - international | claims US territory of Wake Island | 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 |
| Economic aid - recipient | approximately $65 million annually from the US | $243 million (2001 est.) |
| Economy - overview | US Government assistance is the mainstay of this tiny island economy. Agricultural production is concentrated on small farms, and the most important commercial crops are coconuts, tomatoes, melons, and breadfruit. Small-scale industry is limited to handicrafts, fish processing, and copra. The tourist industry, now a small source of foreign exchange employing less than 10% of the labor force, remains the best hope for future added income. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. Under the terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US provides roughly $65 million in annual aid. Negotiations were underway in 1999 for an extended agreement. Government downsizing, drought, a drop in construction, and the decline in tourism and foreign investment due to the Asian financial difficulties caused GDP to fall in 1996-98. | 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. |
| Electricity - consumption | - | 3.036 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - exports | - | 400 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - imports | - | 125 million kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production | - | 3.56 billion kWh (2002) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 m |
lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
| Environment - current issues | inadequate supplies of potable water | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water |
| Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
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 |
| Ethnic groups | Micronesian | Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% |
| Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | kips per US dollar - 10,820 (2004), 10,569 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002), 8,954.6 (2001), 7,887.6 (2000) |
| Executive branch | chief of state:
President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament from among its own members for a four-year term; election last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: Kessai Hesa NOTE elected president; percent of Parliament vote - 100% |
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% |
| Exports | $28 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) | NA |
| Exports - commodities | fish, coconut oil, trochus shells | garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin |
| Exports - partners | US, Japan, Australia | Thailand 19.3%, Vietnam 13.4%, France 8%, Germany 5.3%, UK 5% (2004) |
| Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 October - 30 September |
| Flag description | blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes | three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $105 million (1998 est.), supplemented by approximately $65 million annual US aid | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
15% industry: 13% services: 72% (1995) |
agriculture: 49.5%
industry: 27.5% services: 23% (2004 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,670 (1998 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,900 (2004 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | -5% (1998 est.) | 6% (2004 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 9 00 N, 168 00 E | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
| Geography - note | two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands; Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is now used as a US missile test range | landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong River forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand |
| Highways | total:
NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: paved roads on major islands (Majuro, Kwajalein), otherwise stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads and tracks |
total: 21,716 km
paved: 9,664 km unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 30.6% (1997) |
| 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 | $58 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) | NA |
| Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels, beverages and tobacco | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods |
| Imports - partners | US, Japan, Australia, NZ, Guam, Singapore | Thailand 60.5%, China 10.3%, Vietnam 7.1%, Singapore 4% (2004) |
| Independence | 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 9.7% (2001 est.) |
| Industries | copra, fish, tourism, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls, offshore banking (embryonic) | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism |
| Infant mortality rate | 39.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 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.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5% (1997) | 12.3% (2004 est.) |
| International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO | 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) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | 1,640 sq km
note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Court | 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) |
| Labor force | NA | 2.6 million (2001 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 5,083 km
border countries: Burma 235 km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km, Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km |
| Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 60% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 40% |
arable land: 3.8%
permanent crops: 0.35% other: 95.85% (2001) |
| Languages | English (universally spoken and is the official language), two major Marshallese dialects from the Malayo-Polynesian family, Japanese | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
| Legal system | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Nitijela (33 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA note: the Council of Chiefs is a 12-member body that advises on matters affecting customary law and practice |
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 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
65.84 years male: 64.04 years female: 67.73 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 55.08 years
male: 53.07 years female: 57.17 years (2005 est.) |
| Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 100% female: 88% (1980 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 66.4% male: 77.4% female: 55.5% (2002) |
| Location | Oceania, group of atolls and reefs in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Papua New Guinea | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
| Map references | Oceania | Southeast Asia |
| Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | total:
212 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 9,768,406 GRT/16,242,699 DWT ships by type: bulk 63, cargo 9, chemical tanker 10, combination ore/oil 2, container 29, liquefied gas 10, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 87, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 1, Germany 1, Japan 1, US 6 (2000 est.) |
total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2005) |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | 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 | no regular military forces (a coast guard may be established); Police Force | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes Riverine Force), Air Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $NA | $10.7 million (2004) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 0.5% (2004) |
| National holiday | Constitution Day, 1 May (1979) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
| Nationality | noun:
Marshallese (singular and plural) adjective: Marshallese |
noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)
adjective: Lao or Laotian |
| Natural hazards | occasional typhoons | floods, droughts |
| Natural resources | phosphate deposits, marine products, deep seabed minerals | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | refined products 540 km (2004) |
| Political parties and leaders | traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two "groupings" have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Kabua Party [Imata KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa TOMEING] | Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphadon, party president]; other parties proscribed |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 |
| Population | 70,822 (July 2001 est.) | 6,217,141 (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 40% (2002 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 3.88% (2001 est.) | 2.42% (2005 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Majuro | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) |
| Radios | NA | - |
| Railways | 0 km | - |
| Religions | Christian (mostly Protestant) | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) |
| Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
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.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment:
telex services domestic: Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); US Government satellite communications system on Kwajalein |
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) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 3,000 (1996) | 61,900 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 365 (1996) | 55,200 (2002) |
| Television broadcast stations | 3 (of which two are US military stations) (1997) | 4 (1999) |
| Terrain | low coral limestone and sand islands | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
| Total fertility rate | 6.55 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.77 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 16% (1991 est.) | 5.7% (1997 est.) |
| Waterways | none | 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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