Compare Monaco (2008) - Laos (2007)

Compare Monaco (2008) z Laos (2007)

	Monaco (2008)	Laos (2007)

Administrative divisions	none; there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are four quarters (quartiers, singular - quartier); Fontvieille, La Condamine, Monaco-Ville, Monte-Carlo	15 provinces (khoueng, singular and plural), 1 municipality* (kampheng nakhon, singular and plural); Attapu, Bokeo, Bolikhamxai, Champasak, Houaphan, Khammouan, Louangnamtha, Louangphrabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan (Vientiane)*, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xekong, Xiangkhoang
Age structure	0-14 years: 15% (male 2,514/female 2,394) 15-64 years: 62.3% (male 10,047/female 10,312) 65 years and over: 22.7% (male 3,019/female 4,385) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 41.2% (male 1,349,352/female 1,338,252) 15-64 years: 55.7% (male 1,795,029/female 1,835,168) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 90,188/female 114,009) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	none	sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry
Airports	-	42 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	-	total: 9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 33 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 23 (2007)
Area	total: 1.95 sq km land: 1.95 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km
Area - comparative	about three times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC	slightly larger than Utah
Background	The Genoese built a fortress on the site of present-day Monaco in 1215. The current ruling Grimaldi family secured control in the late 13th century, and a principality was established in 1338. Economic development was spurred in the late 19th century with a railroad linkup to France and the opening of a casino. Since then, the principality's mild climate, splendid scenery, and gambling facilities have made Monaco world famous as a tourist and recreation center.	Modern-day Laos has its roots in the ancient Lao kingdom of Lan Xang, established in the 14th Century under King FA NGUM. For three hundred years Lan Xang included large parts of present-day Cambodia and Thailand, as well as all of what is now Laos. After centuries of gradual decline, Laos came 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 and instituting a strict socialist regime closely aligned to Vietnam. A gradual return to private enterprise and the liberalization of foreign investment laws began in 1986. Laos became a member of ASEAN in 1997.
Birth rate	9.12 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	34.98 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $863 million expenditures: $920.6 million (2005 est.)	revenues: $392.3 million expenditures: $541.3 million (2006 est.)
Capital	name: Monaco geographic coordinates: 43 44 N, 7 25 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October	name: Vientiane geographic coordinates: 17 58 N, 102 36 E time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	Mediterranean with mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers	tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)
Coastline	4.1 km	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	17 December 1962	promulgated 14 August 1991
Country name	conventional long form: Principality of Monaco conventional short form: Monaco local long form: Principaute de Monaco local short form: Monaco	conventional long form: Lao People's Democratic Republic conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none
Death rate	12.92 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	11.28 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$18 billion (2000 est.)	$3.179 billion (2006)
Diplomatic representation from the US	the US does not have an embassy in Monaco; the US Ambassador to France is accredited to Monaco; the US Consul General in Marseille (France), under the authority of the US ambassador to France, handles routine diplomatic and consular matters concerning Monaco	chief of mission: Ambassador Ravic R. HUSO embassy: 19 Rue Bartholonie, That Dam Road, Vientiane mailing address: American Embassy Vientiane, APO AP 96546 telephone: [856] 21-26-7000 FAX: [856] 21-26-7190
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador to the US and UN Gilles NOGHES chancery: 565 Fifth Avenue, 3rd floor, New York, NY 10017 telephone: (212) 286-0500 FAX: (212) 286-1574	chief of mission: Ambassador PHIANE Philakone chancery: 2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6416 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4923
Disputes - international	none	Southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; talks continue on completion of demarcation with Thailand but disputes remain over islands in the Mekong River; concern among Mekong Commission members that China's construction of dams on the Mekong River will affect water levels
Economic aid - recipient	$NA	$379 million (2006 est.)
Economy - overview	Monaco, bordering France on the Mediterranean coast, is a popular resort, attracting tourists to its casino and pleasant climate. The principality also is a major banking center and has successfully sought to diversify into services and small, high-value-added, nonpolluting industries. The state has no income tax and low business taxes and thrives as a tax haven both for individuals who have established residence and for foreign companies that have set up businesses and offices. The state retains monopolies in a number of sectors, including tobacco, the telephone network, and the postal service. Living standards are high, roughly comparable to those in prosperous French metropolitan areas.	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% per year in 1988-2006 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, though the government is sponsoring major improvements in the road system with possible support from Japan. Electricity is available in only a few urban areas. Subsistence agriculture, dominated by rice, accounts for about half of GDP and provides 80% of total employment. The economy will continue to benefit from aid by the IMF and other international sources and from new foreign investment in hydropower and mining. Construction will be another strong economic driver, especially as hydroelectric dam and road projects gain steam. Several policy changes since 2004 may help spur growth. In late 2004, Laos gained Normal Trade Relations status with the US, allowing Laos-based producers to benefit from lower tariffs on exports. Laos is taking steps to join the World Trade Organization in the next few years; the resulting trade policy reforms will improve the business environment. On the fiscal side, a value-added tax (VAT) regime, slated to begin in 2008, will streamline the government's inefficient tax system.
Electricity - consumption	NA kWh	1.193 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	-	728 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by France	326 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	-	1.715 billion kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Mont Agel 140 m	lowest point: Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m
Environment - current issues	NA	unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water
Environment - international agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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
Ethnic groups	French 47%, Monegasque 16%, Italian 16%, other 21%	Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1%
Exchange rates	euros per US dollar - 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003)	kips per US dollar - 10,235 (2006), 10,820 (2005), 10,585.5 (2004), 10,569 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002)
Executive branch	chief of state: Prince ALBERT II (since 6 April 2005) head of government: Minister of State Jean-Paul PROUST (since 1 June 2005) cabinet: Council of Government is under the authority of the monarch elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; minister of state appointed by the monarch from a list of three French national candidates presented by the French Government	chief of state: President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since 8 June 2006); Vice President BOUN-GNANG Volachit (since 8 June 2006) head of government: Prime Minister BOUASONE Bouphavanh (since 8 June 2006); Deputy Prime Ministers Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since May 2002), Maj. Gen. DOUANGCHAI Phichit (since 8 June 2006), SOMSAVAT Lengsavat (since 26 February 1998), and THONGLOUN Sisoulit (since 27 March 2001) cabinet: Ministers appointed by president, approved by National Assembly elections: president and vice president elected by National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 8 June 2006 (next to be held in 2011); prime minister nominated by president and elected by National Assembly for five-year term election results: CHOUMMALI Saignason elected president; BOUN-GNANG Volachit elected vice president; percent of National Assembly vote - 100%; BOUASONE Bouphavanh elected prime minister; percent of National Assembly vote - 97%
Exports	$716.3 million note: full customs integration with France, which collects and rebates Monegasque trade duties; also participates in EU market system through customs union with France (2005)	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	-	garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin
Exports - partners	-	Thailand 41%, Vietnam 9.7%, China 4.1%, Malaysia 4% (2006)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 October - 30 September
Flag description	two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; similar to the flag of Indonesia which is longer and the flag of Poland which is white (top) and red	three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 0% industry: 4.9% services: 95.1% (2005)	agriculture: 42.7% industry: 31% services: 26.2% (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	0.9% (2000 est.)	8.3% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	43 44 N, 7 24 E	18 00 N, 105 00 E
Geography - note	second-smallest independent state in the world (after Holy See); almost entirely urban	landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong River forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand
Heliports	1 (2007)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 3.4% highest 10%: 28.5% (2002)
Illicit drugs	-	estimated opium poppy cultivation in 2005 was 5,600 hectares, about a 45% decrease from 2004; estimated potential opium production in 2005 was 28 metric tons, a significant decrease from 200 metric tons in 2003; unsubstantiated reports of domestic methamphetamine production; growing domestic methamphetamine problem
Imports	$916.1 million note: full customs integration with France, which collects and rebates Monegasque trade duties; also participates in EU market system through customs union with France (2005)	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	-	machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods
Imports - partners	-	Thailand 68.8%, China 11.3%, Vietnam 5.5% (2006)
Independence	1419 (beginning of rule by the House of Grimaldi)	19 July 1949 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	15.7% (2006 est.)
Industries	tourism, construction, small-scale industrial and consumer products	copper, tin, and gypsum mining; timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism, cement
Infant mortality rate	total: 5.27 deaths/1,000 live births male: 6.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 81.44 deaths/1,000 live births male: 90.91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 71.56 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.9% (2000)	6.8% (2006 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, CE, FAO, IAEA, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITSO, ITU, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO	ACCT, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land	NA	1,750 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Tribunal Supreme (judges appointed by the monarch on the basis of nominations by the National Council)	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	44,000 note: includes workers from all foreign countries (2005 est.)	2.1 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture: 80% industry and services: 20% (2005 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 4.4 km border countries: France 4.4 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: 0% other: 100% (urban area) (2005)	arable land: 4.01% permanent crops: 0.34% other: 95.65% (2005)
Languages	French (official), English, Italian, Monegasque	Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages
Legal system	based on French law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral National Council or Conseil National (24 seats; 16 members elected by list majority system, 8 by proportional representation; to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 3 February 2008 (next to be held February 2013) election results: percent of vote by party - UPM 52.2%, REM 40.5%, Monaco Together 7.3%; seats by party - UPM 21, REM 3	unicameral National Assembly (115 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 30 April 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LPRP 113, independents 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 79.82 years male: 75.99 years female: 83.85 years (2007 est.)	total population: 55.89 years male: 53.82 years female: 58.04 years (2007 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 68.7% male: 77% female: 60.9% (2001 est.)
Location	Western Europe, bordering the Mediterranean Sea on the southern coast of France, near the border with Italy	Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam
Map references	Europe	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 12 nm	none (landlocked)
Merchant marine	registered in other countries: 64 (Bahamas 11, Barbados 1, Georgia 10, Isle of Man 3, Liberia 8, Malta 1, Marshall Islands 7, Norway 5, Panama 11, St Kitts and Nevis 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 6, unknown 1) (2007)	total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT by type: cargo 1 (2007)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of France; the Palace Guard performs ceremonial duties (2003)	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
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	0.5% (2006)
National holiday	National Day (Saint Rainier's Day), 19 November (1857)	Republic Day, 2 December (1975)
Nationality	noun: Monegasque(s) or Monacan(s) adjective: Monegasque or Monacan	noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian
Natural hazards	NA	floods, droughts
Natural resources	none	timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones
Net migration rate	7.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	-	refined products 540 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	Union for Monaco or UPM (including National Union for the Future of Monaco or UNAM); Rally and Issues for Monaco or REM; Monaco Together	Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [CHOUMMALI Saignason]; other parties proscribed
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975
Population	32,671 (July 2007 est.)	6,521,998 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	30.7% (2005 est.)
Population growth rate	0.386% (2007 est.)	2.37% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM NA, shortwave 8 (1998)	AM 7, FM 14, shortwave 2 (2006)
Religions	Roman Catholic 90%, other 10%	Buddhist 65%, animist 32.9%, Christian 1.3%, other and unspecified 0.8% (1995 census)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.974 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.688 male(s)/female total population: 0.912 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.008 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.978 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.791 male(s)/female total population: 0.984 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: modern automatic telephone system domestic: NA international: country code - 377; no satellite earth stations; connected by cable into the French communications system	general assessment: service to general public is poor but improving; the government relies on a radiotelephone network to communicate with remote areas domestic: multiple service providers; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular subscribership about 10 per 100 persons international: country code - 856; satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
Telephones - main lines in use	34,000 (2005)	90,067 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	17,200 (2005)	638,200 (2006)
Television broadcast stations	5 (1998)	7 (includes 1 station relaying Vietnam Television from Hanoi) (2006)
Terrain	hilly, rugged, rocky	mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus
Total fertility rate	1.75 children born/woman (2007 est.)	4.59 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	0% (2005)	2.4% (2005 est.)
Waterways	-	4,600 km note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,900 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m (2007)

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