Main page Compare countries Index countries Index fields

Query:
Jah-Jah.pl / Index countries / Nauru (2001) - Laos (2001) / Compare countries
##ciekawa_strona##

Compare Nauru (2001) - Laos (2001)

Compare Nauru (2001) z Laos (2001)

 Nauru (2001)Laos (2001)
 NauruLaos
Administrative divisions 14 districts; Aiwo, Anabar, Anetan, Anibare, Baiti, Boe, Buada, Denigomodu, Ewa, Ijuw, Meneng, Nibok, Uaboe, Yaren 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:
40.33% (male 2,510; female 2,365)

15-64 years:
57.97% (male 3,475; female 3,533)

65 years and over:
1.7% (male 103; female 102) (2001 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 coconuts sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry
Airports 1 (2000 est.) 51 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total:
1

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1 (2000 est.)
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:
43

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1

914 to 1,523 m:
17

under 914 m:
25 (2000 est.)
Area total:
21 sq km

land:
21 sq km

water:
0 sq km
total:
236,800 sq km

land:
230,800 sq km

water:
6,000 sq km
Area - comparative about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC slightly larger than Utah
Background Nauru's phosphate deposits began to be mined early in the 20th century by a German-British consortium; the island was occupied by Australian forces in World War I. Upon achieving independence in 1968, Nauru became the smallest independent republic in the world; it joined the UN in 1999. 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 27.22 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Budget revenues:
$23.4 million

expenditures:
$64.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY95/96)
revenues:
$211 million

expenditures:
$462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.)
Capital no official capital; government offices in Yaren District Vientiane
Climate tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February) tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)
Coastline 30 km 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution 29 January 1968 promulgated 14 August 1991
Country name conventional long form:
Republic of Nauru

conventional short form:
Nauru

former:
Pleasant Island
conventional long form:
Lao People's Democratic Republic

conventional short form:
Laos

local long form:
Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao

local short form:
none
Currency Australian dollar (AUD) kip (LAK)
Death rate 7.2 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Debt - external $33.3 million $2.46 billion (1998 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US the US does not have an embassy in Nauru; the US Ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Nauru 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 Nauru does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a UN office at 800 2nd Avenue, Suite 400 D, New York, New York 10017; telephone: (212) 937-0074

consulate(s):
Hagatna (Guam)
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 $2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.) $345 million (1999 est.)
Economy - overview Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates, but reserves are expected to be exhausted within five to ten years. Phosphate production has declined since 1989, as demand has fallen in traditional markets and as the marginal cost of extracting the remaining phosphate increases, making it less internationally competitive. While phosphates have given Nauruans one of the highest per capita incomes in the Third World, few other resources exist with most necessities being imported, including fresh water from Australia. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. In anticipation of the exhaustion of Nauru's phosphate deposits, substantial amounts of phosphate income have been invested in trust funds to help cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's economic future. The government has been borrowing heavily from the trusts to finance fiscal deficits. To cut costs the government has called for a freezing of wages, a reduction of over-staffed public service departments, privatization of numerous government agencies, and closure of some overseas consulates. In recent years Nauru has encouraged the registration of offshore banks and corporations. Tens of billions of dollars have been channeled through their accounts. Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with estimates of Nauru's per capita GDP varying widely. 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 27.9 million kWh (1999) 173.6 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (1999) 705 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (1999) 142 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production 30 million kWh (1999) 792 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
100%

hydro:
0%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
fossil fuel:
2.78%

hydro:
97.22%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m

highest point:
unnamed location along plateau rim 61 m
lowest point:
Mekong River 70 m

highest point:
Phou Bia 2,817 m
Environment - current issues limited natural fresh water resources, roof storage tanks collect rainwater, but mostly dependent on a single, aging desalination plant; intensive phosphate mining during the past 90 years - mainly by a UK, Australia, and NZ consortium - has left the central 90% of Nauru a wasteland and threatens limited remaining land resources 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, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping

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 Nauruan 58%, other Pacific Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European 8% 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 Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) 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 Bernard DOWIYOGO (since 19 April 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:
President Bernard DOWIYOGO (since 19 April 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

cabinet:
Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament

elections:
president elected by Parliament for a three-year term; election last held 8 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2003)

election results:
Bernard DOWIYOGO elected president by a vote in Parliament of nine to eight

note:
former President Rene HARRIS was deposed in a no-confidence vote; this is the eighth change of government in Nauru since the fall of the Lagumont HARRIS government in a no-confidence motion in early November 1996; six of the last eight governments have resulted because of parliamentary no-confidence motions
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 $25.3 million (f.o.b., 1991) $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Exports - commodities phosphates wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin
Exports - partners Australia, NZ Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium
Fiscal year 1 July - 30 June 1 October - 30 September
Flag description blue with a narrow, horizontal, yellow stripe across the center and a large white 12-pointed star below the stripe on the hoist side; the star indicates the country's location in relation to the Equator (the yellow stripe) and the 12 points symbolize the 12 original tribes of Nauru 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 - $59 million (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
NA%

industry:
NA%

services:
NA%
agriculture:
51%

industry:
22%

services:
27% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate NA% 4% (2000 est.)
Geographic coordinates 0 32 S, 166 55 E 18 00 N, 105 00 E
Geography - note Nauru is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Makatea in French Polynesia; only 53 km south of Equator landlocked
Highways total:
30 km

paved:
24 km

unpaved:
6 km (1998 est.)
total:
14,000 km

paved:
3,360 km

unpaved:
10,640 km (1991)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
NA%

highest 10%:
NA%
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 $21.1 million (c.i.f., 1991) $540 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Imports - commodities food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel
Imports - partners Australia, UK, NZ, Japan Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong
Independence 31 January 1968 (from the Australia-, NZ-, and UK-administered UN trusteeship) 19 July 1949 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate NA% 7.5% (1999 est.)
Industries phosphate mining, financial services, coconut products tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism
Infant mortality rate 10.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) 92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) -3.6% (1993) 33% (2000 est.)
International organization participation ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, ICAO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO 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) 1 (2000) 1 (2000)
Irrigated land NA sq km 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 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 million - 1.5 million
Labor force - by occupation employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education, and transportation 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:
0%

permanent pastures:
0%

forests and woodland:
0%

other:
100% (1993 est.)
arable land:
3%

permanent crops:
0%

permanent pastures:
3%

forests and woodland:
54%

other:
40% (1993 est.)
Languages Nauruan (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages
Legal system acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice
Legislative branch unicameral Parliament (18 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)

elections:
last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held NA April 2003)

election results:
percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 18
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:
61.2 years

male:
57.7 years

female:
64.88 years (2001 est.)
total population:
53.48 years

male:
51.58 years

female:
55.44 years (2001 est.)
Literacy definition:
NA

total population:
NA%

male:
NA%

female:
NA%
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
57%

male:
70%

female:
44% (1999 est.)
Location Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, south of the Marshall Islands 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 none (2000 est.) total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,370 GRT/3,000 DWT

ships by type:
cargo 1 (2000 est.)
Military - note Nauru maintains no defense forces; under an informal agreement, defense is the responsibility of Australia -
Military branches no regular armed forces; Directorate of the Nauru Police Force Lao People's Army (LPA; includes riverine element), Air Force, National Police Department
Military expenditures - dollar figure $NA $55 million (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA% 4.2% (FY96/97)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
3,018 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49:
1,319,537 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
1,661 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49:
710,627 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 18 years of age
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males:
64,437 (2001 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 31 January (1968) Republic Day, 2 December (1975)
Nationality noun:
Nauruan(s)

adjective:
Nauruan
noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s)

adjective:
Lao or Laotian
Natural hazards periodic droughts floods, droughts, and blight
Natural resources phosphates timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Pipelines - petroleum products 136 km
Political parties and leaders loose multiparty system; Democratic Party [Kennan ADEANG]; Nauru Party (informal) [Bernard DOWIYOGO] 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 12,088 (July 2001 est.) 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% 46.1% (1993 est.)
Population growth rate 2% (2001 est.) 2.48% (2001 est.)
Ports and harbors Nauru none
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998)
Radios 7,000 (1997) 730,000 (1997)
Railways total:
5 km; note - used to haul phosphates from the center of the island to processing facilities on the southwest coast
0 km
Religions Christian (two-thirds Protestant, one-third Roman Catholic) Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40%
Sex ratio at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.06 male(s)/female

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

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

total population:
1.01 male(s)/female (2001 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 20 years of age; universal and compulsory 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
adequate local and international radiotelephone communications provided via Australian facilities

domestic:
NA

international:
satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
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 2,000 (1996) 25,000 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular 450 (1994) 4,915 (1997)
Television broadcast stations 1 (1997) 4 (1999)
Terrain sandy beach rises to fertile ring around raised coral reefs with phosphate plateau in center mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus
Total fertility rate 3.61 children born/woman (2001 est.) 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate 0% 5.7% (1997 est.)
Waterways none 4,587 km approximately

note:
primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m
Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.