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Compare Niue (2003) - Laos (2001)
Compare Niue (2003) z Laos (2001)
| Niue (2003) | Laos (2001) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none; note - there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 14 villages at the second order | 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: NA%
15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% (2003 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, passion fruit, honey, limes, taro, yams, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, poultry, beef cattle | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
| Airports | 1 (2002) | 51 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 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:
43 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 25 (2000 est.) |
| Area | total: 260 sq km
land: 260 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
| Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Utah |
| Background | Niue's remoteness, as well as cultural and linguistic differences between its Polynesian inhabitants and those of the rest of the Cook Islands, have caused it to be separately administered. The population of the island continues to drop (from a peak of 5,200 in 1966 to about 2,100 in 2002), with substantial emigration to New Zealand, 2,400 km to the southwest. | 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 | NA births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
revenues:
$211 million expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
| Capital | Alofi | Vientiane |
| Climate | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
| Coastline | 64 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | 19 October 1974 (Niue Constitution Act) | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
| Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Niue former: Savage 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 | New Zealand dollar (NZD) | kip (LAK) |
| Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Debt - external | $418,000 (2002 est.) | $2.46 billion (1998 est.) |
| Dependency status | self-governing in free association with New Zealand since 1974; Niue fully responsible for internal affairs; New Zealand retains responsibility for external affairs and defense; however, these responsibilities confer no rights of control and are only exercised at the request of the Government of Niue | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand) | 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 | none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand) | 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 | $2.6 million from New Zealand (2002) | $345 million (1999 est.) |
| Economy - overview | The economy suffers from the typical Pacific island problems of geographic isolation, few resources, and a small population. Government expenditures regularly exceed revenues, and the shortfall is made up by critically needed grants from New Zealand that are used to pay wages to public employees. Niue has cut government expenditures by reducing the public service by almost half. The agricultural sector consists mainly of subsistence gardening, although some cash crops are grown for export. Industry consists primarily of small factories to process passion fruit, lime oil, honey, and coconut cream. The sale of postage stamps to foreign collectors is an important source of revenue. The island in recent years has suffered a serious loss of population because of migration of Niueans to New Zealand. Efforts to increase GDP include the promotion of tourism and a financial services industry, although Premier LAKATANI announced in February 2002 that Niue will shut down the offshore banking industry. Economic aid from New Zealand in 2002 was about $2.6 million. | 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 | 2.79 million kWh (2001) | 173.6 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 705 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 142 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production | 3 million kWh (2001) | 792 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
2.78% hydro: 97.22% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location near Mutalau settlement 68 m |
lowest point:
Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
| Environment - current issues | increasing attention to conservationist practices to counter loss of soil fertility from traditional slash and burn agriculture | 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
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
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 | Polynesian (with some 200 Europeans, Samoans, and Tongans) | 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 | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.162 (2002), 2.3776 (2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8629 (1998) | 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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by New Zealand High Commissioner John BRYAN (since NA May 2000)
head of government: Premier Young VIVIAN (since 1 May 2002) cabinet: Cabinet consists of the premier and three ministers elections: the monarch is hereditary; premier elected by the Legislative Assembly for a three-year term; election last held 1 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2005) election results: Young VIVIAN elected premier; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - Young VIVIAN (NPP) 70%, Hunukitama HUNUKI (AI) 30% |
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 | NA (2001) | $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | canned coconut cream, copra, honey, vanilla, passion fruit products, pawpaws, root crops, limes, footballs, stamps, handicrafts | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin |
| Exports - partners | NZ mainly, Fiji, Cook Islands, Australia (2000) | Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium |
| Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 October - 30 September |
| Flag description | yellow with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the flag of the UK bears five yellow five-pointed stars - a large one on a blue disk in the center and a smaller one on each arm of the bold red cross | 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 - $7.6 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: 55% |
agriculture:
51% industry: 22% services: 27% (1999 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,600 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | -0.3% (2000 est.) | 4% (2000 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 19 02 S, 169 52 W | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
| Geography - note | one of world's largest coral islands | landlocked |
| Highways | total: 234 km
paved: 86 km unpaved: 148 km (2001) |
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 | NA (2001) | $540 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | food, live animals, manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, lubricants, chemicals, drugs | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel |
| Imports - partners | NZ mainly, Fiji, Japan, Samoa, Australia, US (2000) | Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong |
| Independence | on 19 October 1974, Niue became a self-governing parliamentary government in free association with New Zealand | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 7.5% (1999 est.) |
| Industries | tourism, handicrafts, food processing | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism |
| Infant mortality rate | total: NA%
male: NA% female: NA% |
92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (1995) | 33% (2000 est.) |
| International organization participation | ACP, ESCAP (associate), FAO, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UNESCO, WHO, WMO | 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 of New Zealand; High Court of Niue | 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 | 1 million - 1.5 million |
| Labor force - by occupation | most work on family plantations; paid work exists only in government service, small industry, and the Niue Development Board | 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: 19.23%
permanent crops: 7.69% other: 73.08% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 3% forests and woodland: 54% other: 40% (1993 est.) |
| Languages | Niuean, a Polynesian language closely related to Tongan and Samoan; English | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
| Legal system | English common law
note: Niue is self-governing, with the power to make its own laws |
based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (20 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; six elected from a common roll and 14 are village representatives)
elections: last held 21 March 2002 (next to be held in March 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 9, independents 11; note - all 20 seats were reelected |
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: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years (2003 est.) |
total population:
53.48 years male: 51.58 years female: 55.44 years (2001 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: NA
total population: 95% 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, east of Tonga | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
| Map references | Oceania | Southeast Asia |
| Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | none (2002 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 | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand | - |
| Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; Police Force | Lao People's Army (LPA; includes riverine element), Air Force, National Police Department |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $55 million (FY98) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 4.2% (FY96/97) |
| Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
1,319,537 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | - | 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 | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
| Nationality | noun: Niuean(s)
adjective: Niuean |
noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian |
| Natural hazards | typhoons | floods, droughts, and blight |
| Natural resources | fish, arable land | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
| Net migration rate | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Pipelines | - | petroleum products 136 km |
| Political parties and leaders | Niue People's Action Party or NPP [Young VIVIAN]; Alliance of Independents or AI [leader NA] | 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 | 2,145 (July 2003 est.) | 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 46.1% (1993 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.01% (2003 est.) | 2.48% (2001 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | none; offshore anchorage only | none |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) |
| Radios | - | 730,000 (1997) |
| Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
| Religions | Ekalesia Niue (Niuean Church - a Protestant church closely related to the London Missionary Society) 75%, Latter-Day Saints 10%, other 15% (mostly Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventist) | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% |
| Sex ratio | NA (2003 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 | domestic: single-line telephone system connects all villages on island
international: NA |
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 | 376 (1991) | 25,000 (1997) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1991) | 4,915 (1997) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 4 (1999) |
| Terrain | steep limestone cliffs along coast, central plateau | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
| Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman (2003 est.) | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | NA% | 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 |
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