Saint Lucia (2001) | Laos (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 11 quarters; Anse-la-Raye, Castries, Choiseul, Dauphin, Dennery, Gros Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Praslin, Soufriere, Vieux Fort | 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:
32.13% (male 25,951; female 24,874) 15-64 years: 62.59% (male 48,568; female 50,430) 65 years and over: 5.28% (male 3,120; female 5,235) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.2% (male 1,255,172; female 1,242,823)
15-64 years: 54.6% (male 1,592,697; female 1,639,431) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 87,192; female 104,230) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 51 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 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 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 42
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 26 (2002) |
Area | total:
620 sq km land: 610 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Utah |
Background | The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814. Self-government was granted in 1967 and independence in 1979. | 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 | 21.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 36.93 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$141.2 million expenditures: $146.7 million, including capital expenditures of $25.1 million (FY97/98 est.) |
revenues: $211 million
expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est. est.) |
Capital | Castries | Vientiane |
Climate | tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to April, rainy season from May to August | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
Coastline | 158 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 22 February 1979 | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Saint Lucia |
conventional long form: Lao People's Democratic Republic
conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none |
Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | kip (LAK) |
Death rate | 5.36 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.39 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $131.6 million (1998) | $2.53 billion (1999) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Saint Lucia; the US Ambassador in Barbados is accredited to Saint Lucia | chief of mission: Ambassador Douglas A. HARTWICK
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 Sonia Merlyn JOHNNY chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6792 through 6795 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6728 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York |
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 | none | demarcation of boundaries with Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam is nearing completion, but with Thailand several areas including Mekong River islets remain in dispute; ongoing disputes with Thailand and Vietnam over squatters |
Economic aid - recipient | $51.8 million (1995) | $345 million (1999 est.) |
Economy - overview | The recent changes in the EU import preference regime and the increased competition from Latin American bananas have made economic diversification increasingly important in Saint Lucia. Improvement in the construction sector and growth of the tourism industry helped expand GDP in 1998-99. The agriculture sector registered its fifth year of decline in 1997 primarily because of a severe decline in banana production. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean, and the government is beginning to develop regulations for the small offshore financial sector. | 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% in 1988-2001 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. 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 102.3 million kWh (1999) | 824.7 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 400 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 110 million kWh (1999) | 1.317 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 1.4%
hydro: 98.6% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Gimie 950 m |
lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion, particularly in the northern region | 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, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
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 | black 90%, mixed 6%, East Indian 3%, white 1% | 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 | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) | kips per US dollar - 7,562 (2002), 8,954.58 (2001), 7,887.64 (2000), 7,102.02 (1999), 3,298.33 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dr. Perlette LOUISY (since September 1997) head of government: Prime Minister Kenneth ANTHONY (since 24 May 1997) and Deputy Prime Minister Mario MICHEL (since 24 May 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor general is appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
chief of state: President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphandon (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 Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since NA 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 NA 2007); 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 | $68.3 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin |
Exports - partners | UK 50%, US 24%, Caricom countries 16% (1995) | Vietnam 25.7%, Thailand 19%, France 7.5%, Germany 5.3% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | blue, with a gold isosceles triangle below a black arrowhead; the upper edges of the arrowhead have a white border | 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 - $700 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10.4 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10.7% industry: 32.3% services: 57% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 53%
industry: 23% services: 24% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,500 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 0.5% (2000 est.) | 5.7% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 53 N, 60 68 W | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
Geography - note | - | landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand |
Highways | total:
1,210 km paved: 63 km unpaved: 1,147 km (1996) |
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 | transit point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe | world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation in 2002 - 23,200 hectares, a 5% increase over 2001; estimated potential production in 2002 - 180 metric tons, a 10% decrease from 2001); potential heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamine produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis; growing methamphetamine abuse problem |
Imports | $319.4 million (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods |
Imports - partners | US 36%, Caricom countries 22%, UK 11%, Japan 5%, Canada 4% (1995) | Thailand 58.9%, Vietnam 12.3%, China 7.9% (2002) |
Independence | 22 February 1979 (from UK) | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | -8.9% (1997 est.) | 7.5% (1999 est.) |
Industries | clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism, lime processing, coconut processing | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 15.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 88.94 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 99.1 deaths/1,000 live births female: 78.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.5% (2000 est.) | 10% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT (associate), ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 15 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | 1,640 sq km
note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (jurisdiction extends to Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) | 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 | 43,800 | 2.4 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 43.4%, services 38.9%, industry and commerce 17.7% (1983 est.) | 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:
8% permanent crops: 21% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 13% other: 53% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 3.47%
permanent crops: 0.23% other: 96.3% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), French patois | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (11 seats; six members appointed on the advice of the prime minister, three on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and two after consultation with religious, economic, and social groups) and the House of Assembly (17 seats; members are elected by popular vote from single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 23 May 1997 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SLP 16, UWP 1 |
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 NA 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:
72.57 years male: 69 years female: 76.39 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 54.3 years
male: 52.34 years female: 56.33 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 67% male: 65% female: 69% (1980 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 52.8% male: 67.5% female: 38.1% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (includes Special Service Unit), Coast Guard | Lao People's Army (LPA; including Riverine Force), Air Force, National Police Department |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $5 million (FY91/92) | $55 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (FY91/92) | 4.2% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,411,042 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 759,499 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 67,260 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 February (1979) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
Nationality | noun:
Saint Lucian(s) adjective: Saint Lucian |
noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s)
adjective: Lao or Laotian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and volcanic activity | floods, droughts |
Natural resources | forests, sandy beaches, minerals (pumice), mineral springs, geothermal potential | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
Net migration rate | -4.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | refined products 540 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | National Freedom Party or NFP [Martinus FRANCOIS]; Saint Lucia Labor Party or SLP [Kenneth ANTHONY]; United Workers Party or UWP [Dr. Morella JOSEPH] | 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 | 158,178 (July 2001 est.) | 5,921,545 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 40% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.23% (2001 est.) | 2.45% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Castries, Vieux Fort | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 7 (plus 3 repeaters), shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 111,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 7%, Anglican 3% | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
adequate system domestic: system is automatically switched international: direct microwave radio relay link with Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; tropospheric scatter to Barbados; international calls beyond these countries are carried by Intelsat from Martinique |
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 | 37,000 (1997) | 25,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,600 (1997) | 4,915 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (of which two are commercial stations and one is a community antenna television or CATV channel) (1997) | 4 (1999) |
Terrain | volcanic and mountainous with some broad, fertile valleys | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
Total fertility rate | 2.38 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.94 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (1996 est.) | 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 |