Mongolia (2002) | Laos (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 21 provinces (aymguud, singular - aymag) and 1 municipality* (hot); Arhangay, Bayanhongor, Bayan-Olgiy, Bulgan, Darhan Uul, Dornod, Dornogovi, Dundgovi, Dzavhan, Govi-Altay, Govi-Sumber, Hentiy, Hovd, Hovsgol, Omnogovi, Orhon, Ovorhangay, Selenge, Suhbaatar, Tov, Ulaanbaatar*, Uvs | 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, Louangphabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan*, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun**, Xekong, Xiangkhoang |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 32% (male 438,176; female 422,960)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 864,033; female 865,172) 65 years and over: 3.9% (male 45,080; female 59,011) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
42.75% (male 1,212,577; female 1,196,795) 15-64 years: 53.94% (male 1,494,927; female 1,544,851) 65 years and over: 3.31% (male 85,632; female 101,185) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, potatoes, forage crops; sheep, goats, cattle, camels, horses | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
Airports | 34 (2001) | 51 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 26
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
total:
43 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 25 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 1.565 million sq km
land: 1,555,400 sq km water: 9,600 sq km |
total:
236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Alaska | slightly larger than Utah |
Background | The Mongols entered history in the 13th century when under GENGHIS KHAN they conquered a huge Eurasian empire. After his death the empire was divided into several powerful Mongol states, but these broke apart in the 14th century. The Mongols eventually retired to their original steppe homelands and came under Chinese rule. Mongolia won its independence in 1921 with Soviet backing. A Communist regime was installed in 1924. During the early 1990s, the ex-Communist Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) gradually yielded its monopoly on power to the Democratic Union Coalition (DUC), which defeated the MPRP in a national election in 1996. Over the next four years the DUC put forward a number of key reforms to modernize the economy and democratize the political system. However, the former Communists were a strong opposition that stalled additional restructuring and made implementation difficult. In 2000, the MPRP won an overwhelming victory in the legislature - with 72 of the 76 seats - and completely reshuffled the government. While it continues many of the reform policies, the MPRP is focusing on social welfare and public order priorities. | 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, an easing of foreign investment laws, and the admission into ASEAN in 1997. |
Birth rate | 21.8 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $262 million
expenditures: $328 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$211 million expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
Capital | Ulaanbaatar | Vientiane |
Climate | desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperature ranges) | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 12 February 1992 | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Mongolia local long form: none local short form: Mongol Uls former: Outer Mongolia |
conventional long form:
Lao People's Democratic Republic conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none |
Currency | togrog/tugrik (MNT) | kip (LAK) |
Death rate | 7.01 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $760 million (2000 est.) | $2.46 billion (1998 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John DINGER
embassy: inner northeast part of the Big Ring Road, just west of the Selbe Gol, Ulaanbaatar mailing address: United States Embassy in Mongolia, P. O. Box 1021, Ulaanbaatar 13; PSC 461, Box 300, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [976] (11) 329095 FAX: [976] (11) 320776 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affairs Karen Brevard STEWART 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 Jalbuugiyn CHOINHOR
chancery: 2833 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 333-7117 FAX: [1] (202) 298-9227 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador VANG Rattanavong chancery: 2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6416 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4923 |
Disputes - international | none | parts of the border with Thailand are indefinite |
Economic aid - recipient | $208.7 million (1999 est.) | $345 million (1999 est.) |
Economy - overview | Economic activity traditionally has been based on agriculture and breeding of livestock. Mongolia also has extensive mineral deposits: copper, coal, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, and gold account for a large part of industrial production. Soviet assistance, at its height one-third of GDP, disappeared almost overnight in 1990-91, at the time of the dismantlement of the USSR. Mongolia was driven into deep recession, prolonged by the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party's (MPRP) reluctance to undertake serious economic reform. The Democratic Coalition (DC) government has embraced free-market economics, easing price controls, liberalizing domestic and international trade, and attempting to restructure the banking system and the energy sector. Major domestic privatization programs were undertaken, as well as the fostering of foreign investment through international tender of the oil distribution company, a leading cashmere company, and banks. Reform was held back by the ex-Communist MPRP opposition and by the political instability brought about through four successive governments under the DC. Economic growth picked up in 1997-99 after stalling in 1996 due to a series of natural disasters and declines in world prices of copper and cashmere. In August and September 1999, the economy suffered from a temporary Russian ban on exports of oil and oil products, and Mongolia remains vulnerable in this sector. Mongolia joined the World Trade Organization (WTrO) in 1997. The international donor community pledged over $300 million per year at the last Consultative Group Meeting, held in Ulaanbaatar in June 1999. The MPRP government, elected in July 2000, is anxious to improve the investment climate; it must also deal with a heavy burden of external debt. Falling prices for Mongolia's mainly primary sector exports, widespread opposition to privatization, and adverse effects of weather on agriculture in early 2000 and 2001 restrained real GDP growth in 2000-01. | 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% during 1988-97. Reform efforts subsequently slowed, and GDP growth dropped an average of 3 percentage points. Because Laos depends heavily on its trade with Thailand, it was damaged by the regional financial crisis beginning in 1997. Government mismanagement deepened the crisis, and from June 1997 to June 1999 the Lao kip lost 87% of its value. Laos' foreign exchange problems peaked in September 1999 when the kip fell from 3,500 kip to the dollar to 9,000 kip to the dollar in a matter of weeks. Now that the currency has stabilized, however, the government seems content to let the current situation persist, despite limited government revenue and foreign exchange reserves. A landlocked country with a primitive infrastructure, Laos 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. For the foreseeable future the economy will continue to depend on aid from the IMF and other international sources; Japan is currently the largest bilateral aid donor; aid from the former USSR/Eastern Europe has been cut sharply. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.732 billion kWh (2000) | 173.6 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 25 million kWh (2000) | 705 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 181 million kWh (2000) | 142 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 2.77 billion kWh (2000) | 792 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
2.78% hydro: 97.22% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Hoh Nuur 518 m
highest point: Nayramadlin Orgil (Huyten Orgil) 4,374 m |
lowest point:
Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources in some areas; policies of the former Communist regime promoting rapid urbanization and industrial growth have raised concerns about their negative effects on the environment; the burning of soft coal in power plants and the lack of enforcement of environmental laws have severely polluted the air in Ulaanbaatar; deforestation, overgrazing, the converting of virgin land to agricultural production have increased soil erosion from wind and rain; desertification and mining activities have also had a deleterious effect on the environment | unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Mongol (predominantly Khalkha) 85%, Turkic (of which Kazakh is the largest group) 7%, Tungusic 4.6%, other (including Chinese and Russian) 3.4% (1998) | Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong ("Meo") and the Yao (Mien) 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% |
Exchange rates | togrogs/tugriks per US dollar - 1,101.29 (December 2001), 1,097.70 (2001), 1,076.67 (2000), 1,072.37 (1999), 840.83 (1998), 789.99 (1997) | kips per US dollar - 7,578.00 (December 2000), 7,102.03 (1999), 3,298.33 (1998), 1,259.98 (1997), 921.02 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Natsagiyn BAGABANDI (since 20 June 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR (since 26 July 2000) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the State Great Hural in consultation with the president elections: president nominated by parties in the State Great Hural and elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 20 May 2001 (next to be held NA May 2005); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by the State Great Hural; election last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Natsagiyn BAGABANDI reelected president; percent of vote - Natsagiyn BAGABANDI (MPRP) 58.13%, Radnaasumbereliyn GONCHIGDORJ (DP) 36.58%, Luvsandamba DASHNYAM (CWP) 3.54%, other 1.75%; Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR elected prime minister by a vote in the State Great Hural of 68 to 3 |
chief of state:
President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphandon (since 26 February 1998) and Vice President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since NA March 2001) head of government: Prime Minister BOUNGNANG Volachit (since NA March 2001); Deputy Prime Ministers THONGLOUN Sisolit (since NA March 2001), 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 21 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); 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% |
Exports | $466.1 million f.o.b. (2000) | $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | copper, livestock, animal products, cashmere, wool, hides, fluorspar, other nonferrous metals | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin |
Exports - partners | China 59%, US 20%, Russia 10%, Japan 2% (2000) | Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | three equal, vertical bands of red (hoist side), blue, and red; centered on the hoist-side red band in yellow is the national emblem ("soyombo" - a columnar arrangement of abstract and geometric representation for fire, sun, moon, earth, water, and the yin-yang symbol) | 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 - $4.7 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 32%
industry: 30% services: 38% (2000 est.) |
agriculture:
51% industry: 22% services: 27% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,770 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.4% (2001 est.) | 4% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 46 00 N, 105 00 E | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; strategic location between China and Russia | landlocked |
Highways | total: 3,387 km
paved: 1,563 km unpaved: 1,824 km note: there are also 45,862 km of rural roads that consist of rough, unimproved, cross-country tracks (2000) |
total:
14,000 km paved: 3,360 km unpaved: 10,640 km (1991) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 25% (1995) (1995) |
lowest 10%:
4.2% highest 10%: 26.4% (1992) |
Illicit drugs | - | world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation in 1999 - 21,800 hectares, a 16% decrease over 1998; estimated potential production in 1999 - 140 metric tons, about the same as in 1998); potential heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamine produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis |
Imports | $614.5 million c.i.f. (2000) | $540 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, fuels, food products, industrial consumer goods, chemicals, building materials, sugar, tea | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel |
Imports - partners | Russia 34%, China 21%, Japan 12%, South Korea 9%, US 4% (2000) | Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong |
Independence | 11 July 1921 (from China) | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.4% (2000 est.) | 7.5% (1999 est.) |
Industries | construction materials, mining (coal, copper, molybdenum, fluorspar, and gold); oil; food and beverages, processing of animal products | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 51.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 11.8% (2000 est.) | 33% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (observer), CCC, CP (provisional), EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 5 (2001) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 840 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,250 sq km (1993 est.)
note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (serves as appeals court for people's and provincial courts, but rarely overturns verdicts of lower courts; judges are nominated by the General Council of Courts for approval by the president) | 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 | 1.4 million (2000) | 1 million - 1.5 million |
Labor force - by occupation | primarily herding/agricultural | agriculture 80% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 8,162 km
border countries: China 4,677 km, Russia 3,485 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: 0.84%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.16% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 3% forests and woodland: 54% other: 40% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Khalkha Mongol 90%, Turkic, Russian (1999) | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
Legal system | blend of Russian, Chinese, Turkish, and Western systems of law that combines aspects of a parliamentary system with some aspects of a presidential system; constitution ambiguous on judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice |
Legislative branch | unicameral State Great Hural (76 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA July 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MPRP 72, other 4 |
unicameral National Assembly (99 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - by presidential decree, on 27 October 1997, the number of seats increased from 85 to 99)
elections: last held 21 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LPRP or LPRP-approved (independent, non-party members) 99 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 64.62 years
male: 62.47 years female: 66.87 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
53.48 years male: 51.58 years female: 55.44 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% male: 98% female: 97.5% (2000) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 57% male: 70% female: 44% (1999 est.) |
Location | Northern Asia, between China and Russia | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
Map references | Asia | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | - | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,370 GRT/3,000 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Mongolian Armed Forces (includes General Purpose Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces, Civil Defense Troops); note - Border Troops are under Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs in peacetime | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes riverine element), Air Force, National Police Department |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $24.3 million (FY01) | $55 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.5% (FY01) | 4.2% (FY96/97) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 772,619 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,319,537 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 501,493 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
710,627 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 30,230 (2002 est.) | males:
64,437 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day/Revolution Day, 11 July (1921) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
Nationality | noun: Mongolian(s)
adjective: Mongolian |
noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian |
Natural hazards | dust storms, grassland and forest fires, drought, and "zud", which is harsh winter conditions | floods, droughts, and blight |
Natural resources | oil, coal, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, phosphates, tin, nickel, zinc, wolfram, fluorspar, gold, silver, iron, phosphate | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products 136 km |
Political parties and leaders | Citizens' Will Party or CWP (also called Civil Will Party or Civil Courage Party) [Sanjaasurengyn OYUN]; Democratic Party or DP [D. DORLIGJAN]; Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party or MPRP [Nambaryn ENKHBAYAR]; Mongolian New Socialist Democratic Party or MNSDP [B. ERDENEBAT]; Mongolian Republican Party or MRP [B. JARGALSAIHAN]
note: the MPRP is the ruling party |
Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 |
Population | 2,694,432 (July 2002 est.) | 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 36% (2001 est.) | 46.1% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.48% (2002 est.) | 2.48% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 7, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2001) | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 155,900 (1999) | 730,000 (1997) |
Railways | 1,815 km
broad gauge: 1,815 km 1.524-m gauge (2001) |
0 km |
Religions | Tibetan Buddhist Lamaism 96%, Muslim (primarily in the southwest), Shamanism, and Christian 4% (1998) | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: very low density: about 3.5 telephones for each thousand persons
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean Region) |
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: satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 104,100 (1999) | 25,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 110,000 (2001) | 4,915 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (plus 18 provincial repeaters and many low powered repeaters) (1999) | 4 (1999) |
Terrain | vast semidesert and desert plains, grassy steppe, mountains in west and southwest; Gobi Desert in south-central | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
Total fertility rate | 2.37 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (2000) | 5.7% (1997 est.) |
Waterways | 400 km (1999) | 4,587 km approximately
note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m |