Compare Solomon Islands (2004) - Laos (2004)

Compare Solomon Islands (2004) z Laos (2004)

	Solomon Islands (2004)	Laos (2004)

Administrative divisions	9 provinces and 1 capital territory; Central, Choiseul, Guadalcanal, Honiara, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona, Temotu, Western	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, Louangphrabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun*, Xekong, Xiangkhoang
Age structure	0-14 years: 42.4% (male 113,183; female 108,816) 15-64 years: 54.4% (male 144,157; female 140,769) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 8,058; female 8,634) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 41.9% (male 1,277,152; female 1,265,761) 15-64 years: 54.9% (male 1,642,895; female 1,688,175) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 87,995; female 106,139) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs; timber; fish	sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry
Airports	33 (2003 est.)	46 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 31 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.)	total: 35 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 28,450 sq km land: 27,540 sq km water: 910 sq km	total: 236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland	slightly larger than Utah
Background	The UK established a protectorate over the Solomon Islands in the 1890s. Some of the bitterest fighting of World War II occurred on these islands. Self-government was achieved in 1976 and independence two years later. Ethnic violence, government malfeasance, and endemic crime have undermined stability and civil society. In June 2003, Prime Minister Sir Allen KEMAKEZA sought the assistance of Australia in reestablishing law and order; the following month, an Australian-led multinational force arrived to restore peace and disarm ethnic militias. The Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) has been very effective in restoring law and order and rebuilding government institutions.	Laos was 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. 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	31.6 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	36.47 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $38 million expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA (2001)	revenues: $298.5 million expenditures: $429.9 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)
Capital	Honiara	Vientiane
Climate	tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather	tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)
Coastline	5,313 km	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	7 July 1978	promulgated 14 August 1991
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Solomon Islands former: British Solomon Islands	conventional long form: Lao People's Democratic Republic conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none
Currency	Solomon Islands dollar (SBD)	kip (LAK)
Death rate	4.04 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	12.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$162.5 million (2001 est.)	$2.49 billion (2001)
Diplomatic representation from the US	the US does not have an embassy in Solomon Islands (embassy closed July 1993); the ambassador to Papua New Guinea, Ambassador Robert W. FITTS, is accredited to the Solomon Islands	chief of mission: Ambassador Patricia M. HASLACH 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 Collin David BECK chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400L, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 599-6192, 6193 FAX: [1] (212) 661-8925	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	Australian defense personnel are dispatched at the invitation of the Solomon Islands' Government to restore law and order on the islands and reinforce regional security	demarcation of boundaries with Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam is largely complete, but with Thailand several areas including Mekong River islets remain in dispute; ongoing disputes with Thailand and Vietnam over squatters; concern among Mekong Commission members that China's construction of dams on the Mekong River will affect water levels
Economic aid - recipient	$28 million annually, mainly from Australia (2001 est.)	$243 million (2001 est.)
Economy - overview	The bulk of the population depends on agriculture, fishing, and forestry for at least part of their livelihood. Most manufactured goods and petroleum products must be imported. The islands are rich in undeveloped mineral resources such as lead, zinc, nickel, and gold. However, severe ethnic violence, the closing of key business enterprises, and an empty government treasury have led to serious economic disarray, indeed near collapse. Tanker deliveries of crucial fuel supplies (including those for electrical generation) have become sporadic due to the government's inability to pay and attacks against ships. Telecommunications are threatened by the nonpayment of bills and by the lack of technical and maintenance staff many of whom have left the country. The disintegration of law and order left the economy in tatters by mid-2003, and on 24 July 2003 more than 2000 Australian soldiers entered the Solomon Islands to restore order and to facilitate the restoration of basic services.	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	29.76 million kWh (2001)	824.7 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	400 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	32 million kWh (2001)	1.317 billion kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m	lowest point: Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying	unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, 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	Melanesian 93%, Polynesian 4%, Micronesian 1.5%, European 0.8%, Chinese 0.3%, other 0.4%	Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1%
Exchange rates	Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - NA (2003), 6.7488 (2002), 5.278 (2001), 5.0889 (2000), 4.8381 (1999)	kips per US dollar - 10,443 (2003), 10,056.3 (2002), 8,954.58 (2001), 7,887.64 (2000), 7,102.02 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Nathaniel WAENA (since 7 July 2004) head of government: Prime Minister Sir Allan KEMAKEZA (since 17 December 2001); Deputy Prime Minister Snyder RINI (since 17 December 2001) cabinet: Cabinet consists of 20 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of Parliament for up to five years; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by Parliament; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament	chief of state: President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphadon (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 Bouasone BOUPHAVANH (since 3 October 2003) Deputy Prime Minister Maj. Gen. ASANG Laoli (since 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 in 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	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa	garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin
Exports - partners	China 25.2%, South Korea 17.6%, Japan 13.4%, Philippines 8.4%, Singapore 5.9%, Thailand 5.9% (2003)	Thailand 20.7%, Vietnam 15.9%, France 7.3%, Germany 5.3%, Belgium 4% (2003)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 October - 30 September
Flag description	divided diagonally by a thin yellow stripe from the lower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is blue with five white five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern; the lower triangle is green	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 - $800 million (2001 est.)	purchasing power parity - $10.32 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 42% industry: 11% services: 47% (2000 est.)	agriculture: 49.4% industry: 24.5% services: 26.1% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2001 est.)	purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-10% (2001 est.)	5.5% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates	8 00 S, 159 00 E	18 00 N, 105 00 E
Geography - note	strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea	landlocked; most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested; the Mekong River forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand
Government - note	June 2003 Prime Minister Sir Allen KEMAKEZA sought the intervention of Australia to aid in restoring order; parliament approved the request for intervention in July 2003; troops from Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga arrived 24 July 2003	-
Highways	total: 1,360 km paved: 34 km unpaved: 1,326 km (1999 est.)	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	-	world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation in 2003 - 18,900 hectares, a 19% decrease over 2002; estimated potential production in 2003 - 200 metric tons, a 11% increase from 2002); potential heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamine produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis; growing methamphetamine abuse problem
Imports	NA (2001)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals	machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods
Imports - partners	Australia 29.7%, Singapore 21.9%, Fiji 4.7%, New Zealand 4.7% (2003)	Thailand 59.4%, China 12.8%, Vietnam 10.2% (2003)
Independence	7 July 1978 (from UK)	19 July 1949 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	NA	9.7% (2001 est.)
Industries	fish (tuna), mining, timber	tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism
Infant mortality rate	total: 22.09 deaths/1,000 live births male: 25.15 deaths/1,000 live births female: 18.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 87.06 deaths/1,000 live births male: 97.05 deaths/1,000 live births female: 76.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	9% (2002 est.)	15.3% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO	ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land	NA sq km	1,640 sq km note: rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Court of Appeal	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	26,840 (1999)	2.6 million (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 75%, industry 5%, services 20% (2000 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: 0.64% permanent crops: 2% other: 97.36% (2001)	arable land: 3.8% permanent crops: 0.35% other: 95.85% (2001)
Languages	Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua franca; English is official but spoken by only 1%-2% of the population note: 120 indigenous languages	Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages
Legal system	English common law, which is widely disregarded	based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and socialist practice
Legislative branch	unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from single-member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 5 December 2001 (next to be held not later than December 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - PAP 40%, SIACC 40%, PPP 20%; seats by party - PAP 16, SIACC 13, PPP 2, SILP 1, independents 18	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 in 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: 72.38 years male: 69.9 years female: 74.98 years (2004 est.)	total population: 54.69 years male: 52.71 years female: 56.75 years (2004 est.)
Literacy	definition: NA total population: NA male: NA female: NA	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 66.4% male: 77.4% female: 55.5% (2002)
Location	Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea	Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam
Map references	Oceania	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	measured from claimed archipelagic baselines territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm	none (landlocked)
Merchant marine	none	total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT by type: cargo 1 (2004 est.)
Military branches	no regular military forces; Solomon Islands National Reconnaissance and Surveillance Force; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)	Lao People's Army (LPA; including Riverine Force), Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	NA	$10.9 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA	0.5% (2003)
Military manpower - availability	-	males age 15-49: 1,456,500 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	-	males age 15-49: 783,800 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	-	males: 68,563 (2004 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 7 July (1978)	Republic Day, 2 December (1975)
Nationality	noun: Solomon Islander(s) adjective: Solomon Islander	noun: Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian
Natural hazards	typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity	floods, droughts
Natural resources	fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel	timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines	-	refined products 540 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Association of Independents [Snyder RINI]; People's Alliance Party or PAP [Allan KEMAKEZA]; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Mannaseh Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon Islands Alliance for Change Coalition or SIACC [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU] note: in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid coalitions	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	523,617 (July 2004 est.)	6,068,117 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA	40% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate	2.76% (2004 est.)	2.44% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	Aola Bay, Honiara, Lofung, Noro, Viru Harbor, Yandina	none
Radio broadcast stations	AM 3, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998)
Religions	Anglican 45%, Roman Catholic 18%, United (Methodist/Presbyterian) 12%, Baptist 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 7%, other Protestant 5%, indigenous beliefs 4%	Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including various Christian denominations 1.5%)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2004 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: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage	21 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: country code - 677; 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: country code - 856; satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
Telephones - main lines in use	6,600 (2002)	61,900 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	1,000 (2002)	55,200 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	0 (1997)	4 (1999)
Terrain	mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls	mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus
Total fertility rate	4.19 children born/woman (2004 est.)	4.86 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	NA	5.7% (1997 est.)
Waterways	-	4,600 km note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m (2003)

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