Thailand (2007) | Brazil (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 76 provinces (changwat, singular and plural); Amnat Charoen, Ang Thong, Buriram, Chachoengsao, Chai Nat, Chaiyaphum, Chanthaburi, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Chon Buri, Chumphon, Kalasin, Kamphaeng Phet, Kanchanaburi, Khon Kaen, Krabi, Krung Thep Mahanakhon (Bangkok), Lampang, Lamphun, Loei, Lop Buri, Mae Hong Son, Maha Sarakham, Mukdahan, Nakhon Nayok, Nakhon Pathom, Nakhon Phanom, Nakhon Ratchasima, Nakhon Sawan, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Nan, Narathiwat, Nong Bua Lamphu, Nong Khai, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Pattani, Phangnga, Phatthalung, Phayao, Phetchabun, Phetchaburi, Phichit, Phitsanulok, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Phrae, Phuket, Prachin Buri, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Ranong, Ratchaburi, Rayong, Roi Et, Sa Kaeo, Sakon Nakhon, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, Samut Songkhram, Sara Buri, Satun, Sing Buri, Sisaket, Songkhla, Sukhothai, Suphan Buri, Surat Thani, Surin, Tak, Trang, Trat, Ubon Ratchathani, Udon Thani, Uthai Thani, Uttaradit, Yala, Yasothon | 26 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Acre, Alagoas, Amapa, Amazonas, Bahia, Ceara, Distrito Federal*, Espirito Santo, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para, Paraiba, Parana, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul, Rondonia, Roraima, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo, Sergipe, Tocantins |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 21.6% (male 7,195,750/female 6,870,858)
15-64 years: 70.1% (male 22,547,238/female 23,092,881) 65 years and over: 8.2% (male 2,437,640/female 2,923,782) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years:
28.57% (male 25,390,039; female 24,449,902) 15-64 years: 65.98% (male 56,603,895; female 58,507,289) 65 years and over: 5.45% (male 3,857,564; female 5,659,886) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, cassava (tapioca), rubber, corn, sugarcane, coconuts, soybeans | coffee, soybeans, wheat, rice, corn, sugarcane, cocoa, citrus; beef |
Airports | 106 (2007) | 3,264 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 65
over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 23 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 6 (2007) |
total:
570 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 141 914 to 1,523 m: 370 under 914 m: 33 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 41
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 28 (2007) |
total:
2,694 1,524 to 2,437 m: 68 914 to 1,523 m: 1,279 under 914 m: 1,347 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 514,000 sq km
land: 511,770 sq km water: 2,230 sq km |
total:
8,511,965 sq km land: 8,456,510 sq km water: 55,455 sq km note: includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao Paulo |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of Wyoming | slightly smaller than the US |
Background | A unified Thai kingdom was established in the mid-14th century. Known as Siam until 1939, Thailand is the only Southeast Asian country never to have been taken over by a European power. A bloodless revolution in 1932 led to a constitutional monarchy. In alliance with Japan during World War II, Thailand became a US ally following the conflict. Thailand is currently facing separatist violence in its southern ethnic Malay-Muslim provinces. | Following three centuries under the rule of Portugal, Brazil became an independent nation in 1822. By far the largest and most populous country in South America, Brazil has overcome more than half a century of military intervention in the governance of the country to pursue industrial and agricultural growth and development of the interior. Exploiting vast natural resources and a large labor pool, Brazil became Latin America's leading economic power by the 1970s. Highly unequal income distribution remains a pressing problem. |
Birth rate | 13.73 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 18.45 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $38.74 billion
expenditures: $36.61 billion (2006 est.) |
revenues:
$151 billion expenditures: $149 billion, including capital expenditures of $36 billion (1998) |
Capital | name: Bangkok
geographic coordinates: 13 45 N, 100 31 E time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Brasilia |
Climate | tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-May to September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March); southern isthmus always hot and humid | mostly tropical, but temperate in south |
Coastline | 3,219 km | 7,491 km |
Constitution | constitution signed by King PHUMIPHON (BHUMIBOL) on 24 August 2007 | 5 October 1988 |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Thailand
conventional short form: Thailand local long form: Ratcha Anachak Thai local short form: Prathet Thai former: Siam |
conventional long form:
Federative Republic of Brazil conventional short form: Brazil local long form: Republica Federativa do Brasil local short form: Brasil |
Currency | - | real (BRL) |
Death rate | 7.1 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 9.34 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $59.93 billion (2006 est.) | $232 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ralph L. BOYCE
embassy: 120-122 Wireless Road, Bangkok 10330 mailing address: APO AP 96546 telephone: [66] (2) 205-4000 FAX: [66] (2) 254-2990, 205-4131 consulate(s) general: Chiang Mai |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Anthony S. HARRINGTON embassy: Avenida das Nacoes, Quadra 801, Lote 3, Distrito Federal Cep 70403-900, Brasilia mailing address: Unit 3500, APO AA 34030 telephone: [55] (061) 321-7272 FAX: [55] (061) 225-9136 consulate(s) general: Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo consulate(s): Recife |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador KRIT Kanchanakunchon (KRIT Garnjana-Goonchorn)
chancery: 1024 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Suite 401, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 944-3600 FAX: [1] (202) 944-3611 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Rubens Antonio BARBOSA chancery: 3006 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 238-2700 FAX: [1] (202) 238-2827 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco |
Disputes - international | separatist violence in Thailand's predominantly Muslim southern provinces prompt border closures and controls with Malaysia to stem terrorist activities; Southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; talks continue on completion of demarcation with Laos but disputes remain over several islands in the Mekong River; despite continuing border committee talks, Thailand must deal with Karen and other ethnic rebels, refugees, and illegal cross-border activities, and as of 2006, over 116,000 Karen, Hmong, and other refugees and asylum seekers from Burma; Cambodia and Thailand dispute sections of historic boundary with missing boundary markers; Cambodia claims Thai encroachments into Cambodian territory and obstructing access to Preah Vihear temple ruins awarded to Cambodia by ICJ decision in 1962; Thailand is studying the feasibility of jointly constructing the Hatgyi Dam on the Salween river near the border with Burma; in 2004, international environmentalist pressure prompted China to halt construction of 13 dams on the Salween River that flows through China, Burma, and Thailand | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $171.1 million (2005) | NA |
Economy - overview | With a well-developed infrastructure, a free-enterprise economy, and pro-investment policies, Thailand appears to have fully recovered from the 1997-98 Asian Financial Crisis. The country was one of East Asia's best performers from 2002-04. Boosted by increased consumption and strong export growth, the Thai economy grew 6.9% in 2003 and 6.1% in 2004 despite a sluggish global economy. Bangkok has pursued preferential trade agreements with a variety of partners in an effort to boost exports and to maintain high growth. In late December 2004, a major tsunami took 8,500 lives in Thailand and caused massive destruction of property in the southern provinces of Krabi, Phangnga, and Phuket. In 2006, investment stagnated as investors, spooked by the THAKSIN administration's political problems, stayed on the sidelines. The military coup in September brought in a new economic team led by the former central bank governor. In December, the Thai Board of Investment reported the value of investment applications from January to November had declined by 27% year-on-year. On the positive side, exports have performed at record levels, rising nearly 17% in 2006. Export-oriented manufacturing - in particular automobile production - and farm output are driving these gains. | Possessing large and well-developed agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors, Brazil's economy outweighs that of all other South American countries and is expanding its presence in world markets. In the late eighties and early nineties, high inflation hindered economic activity and investment. "The Real Plan", instituted in the spring of 1994, sought to break inflationary expectations by pegging the real to the US dollar. Inflation was brought down to single digit annual figures, but not fast enough to avoid substantial real exchange rate appreciation during the transition phase of the "Real Plan". This appreciation meant that Brazilian goods were now more expensive relative to goods from other countries, which contributed to large current account deficits. However, no shortage of foreign currency ensued because of the financial community's renewed interest in Brazilian markets as inflation rates stabilized and the debt crisis of the eighties faded from memory. The maintenance of large current account deficits via capital account surpluses became problematic as investors became more risk averse to emerging market exposure as a consequence of the Asian financial crisis in 1997 and the Russian bond default in August 1998. After crafting a fiscal adjustment program and pledging progress on structural reform, Brazil received a $41.5 billion IMF-led international support program in November 1998. In January 1999, the Brazilian Central Bank announced that the real would no longer be pegged to the US dollar. This devaluation helped moderate the downturn in economic growth in 1999 that investors had expressed concerns about over the summer of 1998. Brazil's debt to GDP ratio for 1999 beat the IMF target and helped reassure investors that Brazil will maintain tight fiscal and monetary policy even with a floating currency. The economy continued to recover in 2000, with inflation remaining in the single digits and expected growth for 2001 of 4.5%. Foreign direct investment set a record of more than $30 billion in 2000. |
Electricity - consumption | 117.7 billion kWh (2005) | 353.674 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 642 million kWh (2005) | 5 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 4.419 billion kWh (2005) | 39.86 billion kWh
note: supplied by Paraguay (1999) |
Electricity - production | 124.6 billion kWh (2005) | 337.44 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
5.28% hydro: 90.66% nuclear: 1.12% other: 2.94% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Gulf of Thailand 0 m
highest point: Doi Inthanon 2,576 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico da Neblina 3,014 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from organic and factory wastes; deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by illegal hunting | deforestation in Amazon Basin destroys the habitat and endangers the existence of a multitude of plant and animal species indigenous to the area; air and water pollution in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and several other large cities; land degradation and water pollution caused by improper mining activities
note: President CARDOSO in September 1999 signed into force an environmental crime bill which for the first time defines pollution and deforestation as crimes punishable by stiff fines and jail sentences |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Thai 75%, Chinese 14%, other 11% | white (includes Portuguese, German, Italian, Spanish, Polish) 55%, mixed white and black 38%, black 6%, other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian) 1% |
Exchange rates | baht per US dollar - 37.882 (2006), 40.22 (2005), 40.222 (2004), 41.485 (2003), 42.96 (2002) | reals per US dollar - 1.954 (January 2001), 1.830 (2000), 1.815 (1999), 1.161 (1998), 1.078 (1997), 1.005 (1996)
note: from October 1994 through 14 January 1999, the official rate was determined by a managed float; since 15 January 1999, the official rate floats independently with respect to the US dollar |
Executive branch | chief of state: King PHUMIPHON Adunyadet (BHUMIBOL Adulyadej) (since 9 June 1946)
head of government: Prime Minister SURAYUT Chulanon (SURAYUD Chulanont) (since 1 October 2006); Deputy Prime Minister KHOSIT Panpiamrat (KHOSIT Panpiemras) (since 8 October 2006); Deputy Prime Minister SONTHI Boonyaratglin (SOHTHI Boonyaratkalin) (since 1 October 2007); Deputy Prime Minister PHAIBUN Wattanasiritham (PAIBOON Wattanasiritham) (since 8 March 2007) note: Prime Minister THAKSIN Chinnawat (THAKSIN Shinawatra) was overthrown on 19 September 2006 in a coup led by General SONTHI Boonyaratglin (SONTHI Boonyaratkalin) cabinet: Council of Ministers note: there is also a Privy Council elections: none; monarch is hereditary; according to 2007 constitution, prime minister is designated from among members of House of Representatives; following national elections for House of Representatives, leader of party that could organize a majority coalition usually was appointed prime minister by king; prime minister is limited to two 4-year terms |
chief of state:
President Fernando Henrique CARDOSO (since 1 January 1995); Vice President Marco MACIEL (since 1 January 1995); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Fernando Henrique CARDOSO (since 1 January 1995); Vice President Marco MACIEL (since 1 January 1995); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 4 October 1998 (next to be held NA October 2002) election results: Fernando Henrique CARDOSO reelected president; percent of vote - 53% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $55.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | textiles and footwear, fishery products, rice, rubber, jewelry, automobiles, computers and electrical appliances | manufactures, iron ore, soybeans, footwear, coffee |
Exports - partners | US 15%, Japan 12.7%, China 9%, Singapore 6.4%, Hong Kong 5.5%, Malaysia 5.1% (2006) | US 23%, Argentina 11%, Germany 5%, Netherlands 5%, Japan 5% (1999) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
Flag description | five horizontal bands of red (top), white, blue (double width), white, and red | green with a large yellow diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 27 white five-pointed stars (one for each state and the Federal District) arranged in the same pattern as the night sky over Brazil; the globe has a white equatorial band with the motto ORDEM E PROGRESSO (Order and Progress) |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.13 trillion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 10.7%
industry: 44.6% services: 44.7% (2006 est.) |
agriculture:
9% industry: 29% services: 62% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $6,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2006 est.) | 4.2% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 15 00 N, 100 00 E | 10 00 S, 55 00 W |
Geography - note | controls only land route from Asia to Malaysia and Singapore | largest country in South America; shares common boundaries with every South American country except Chile and Ecuador |
Heliports | 3 (2007) | - |
Highways | - | total:
1.98 million km paved: 184,140 km unpaved: 1,795,860 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.7%
highest 10%: 33.4% (2002) |
lowest 10%:
1% highest 10%: 47.6% (1996) |
Illicit drugs | a minor producer of opium, heroin, and marijuana; transit point for illicit heroin en route to the international drug market from Burma and Laos; eradication efforts have reduced the area of cannabis cultivation and shifted some production to neighboring countries; opium poppy cultivation has been reduced by eradication efforts; also a drug money-laundering center; minor role in methamphetamine production for regional consumption; major consumer of methamphetamine since the 1990s despite a series of government crackdowns | limited illicit producer of cannabis, minor coca cultivation in the Amazon region, mostly used for domestic consumption; government has a large-scale eradication program to control cannabis; important transshipment country for Bolivian, Colombian, and Peruvian cocaine headed for the US and Europe; also used by traffickers as a way station for narcotics air transshipments between Peru and Colombia; upsurge in drug-related violence and weapons smuggling; important market for Bolivian, Peruvian, and Colombian cocaine |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $55.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, intermediate goods and raw materials, consumer goods, fuels | machinery and equipment, chemical products, oil, electricity |
Imports - partners | Japan 20.1%, China 10.6%, US 6.7%, Malaysia 6.6%, UAE 5.6%, Singapore 4.5% (2006) | US 24%, Argentina 12%, Germany 10%, Japan 5%, Italy 5% (1999) |
Independence | 1238 (traditional founding date; never colonized) | 7 September 1822 (from Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6% (2006 est.) | 6.9% (2000 est.) |
Industries | tourism, textiles and garments, agricultural processing, beverages, tobacco, cement, light manufacturing such as jewelry and electric appliances, computers and parts, integrated circuits, furniture, plastics, automobiles and automotive parts; world's second-largest tungsten producer and third-largest tin producer | textiles, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, other machinery and equipment |
Infant mortality rate | total: 18.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 17.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
36.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.6% (2006 est.) | 6% (2000) |
International organization participation | APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, BIMSTEC, BIS, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC (observer), ONUB, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | AfDB, BIS, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMOP, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 50 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 49,860 sq km (2003) | 28,000 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Sandika (judges appointed by the monarch) | Supreme Federal Tribunal (11 ministers are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate); Higher Tribunal of Justice; Regional Federal Tribunals (judges are appointed for life) |
Labor force | 36.55 million (2006 est.) | 79 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 49%
industry: 14% services: 37% (2000 est.) |
services 53.2%, agriculture 23.1%, industry 23.7% |
Land boundaries | total: 4,863 km
border countries: Burma 1,800 km, Cambodia 803 km, Laos 1,754 km, Malaysia 506 km |
total:
14,691 km border countries: Argentina 1,224 km, Bolivia 3,400 km, Colombia 1,643 km, French Guiana 673 km, Guyana 1,119 km, Paraguay 1,290 km, Peru 1,560 km, Suriname 597 km, Uruguay 985 km, Venezuela 2,200 km |
Land use | arable land: 27.54%
permanent crops: 6.93% other: 65.53% (2005) |
arable land:
5% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 22% forests and woodland: 58% other: 14% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Thai, English (secondary language of the elite), ethnic and regional dialects | Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French |
Legal system | based on civil law system, with influences of common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Roman codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Assembly or Rathasapha consisted of the Senate or Wuthisapha (150 seats; 76 members elected by popular vote representing 76 provinces, 74 appointed by judges and independent government bodies; all serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Sapha Phuthaen Ratsadon (480 seats; 400 members elected from 157 multi-seat constituencies and 80 elected on proportional party-list basis of 10 per eight zones or groupings of provinces; all serve four-year terms); after coup in September 2006, coup leaders appointed an interim National Assembly with 250 members to act as Senate and House of Representatives
elections: Senate - last held on 19 April 2006; House of Representatives - last valid election held on 6 February 2005; elections held on 2 April 2006 invalidated by court ruling; next general election will be held on 23 December 2007 election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; House of Representatives - (2005 election) percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - TRT 376, DP 97, TNP 25, PP 2 |
bicameral National Congress or Congresso Nacional consists of the Federal Senate or Senado Federal (81 seats; three members from each state or federal district elected according to the principle of majority to serve eight-year terms; one-third elected after a four year period, two-thirds elected after the next four-year period) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara dos Deputados (513 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: Federal Senate - last held 4 October 1998 for one-third of Senate (next to be held NA October 2002 for two-thirds of the Senate); Chamber of Deputies - last held 4 October 1998 (next to be held NA October 2002) election results: Federal Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PMDB 27, PFL 20, PSDB 16, PT 7, PPB 5, PSB 3, PDT 2, PPS 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PFL 106, PSDB 99, PMDB 82, PPB 60, PT 58, PTB 31, PDT 25, PSB 19, PL 12, PCdoB 7, other 14 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.55 years
male: 70.24 years female: 74.98 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
63.24 years male: 58.96 years female: 67.73 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.6% male: 94.9% female: 90.5% (2000 census) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83.3% male: 83.3% female: 83.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Burma | Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean |
Map references | Southeast Asia | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 405 ships (1000 GRT or over) 2,640,857 GRT/4,043,938 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 53, cargo 140, chemical tanker 16, container 21, liquefied gas 30, passenger/cargo 9, petroleum tanker 101, refrigerated cargo 32, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: 15 (China 1, Japan 4, Malaysia 3, Russia 1, Singapore 2, Taiwan 1, UK 3) registered in other countries: 34 (Bahamas 1, Indonesia 1, Mongolia 1, Panama 10, Singapore 20, Tuvalu 1) (2007) |
total:
171 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,788,999 GRT/6,067,314 DWT ships by type: bulk 33, cargo 26, chemical tanker 5, combination ore/oil 9, container 12, liquefied gas 11, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 56, roll on/roll off 12, short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Royal Thai Army (RTA), Royal Thai Navy (RTN, includes Royal Thai Marine Corps), Royal Thai Air Force (Knogtap Agard Thai, RTAF) (2006) | Brazilian Army, Brazilian Navy (includes naval air and marines), Brazilian Air Force, Federal Police (paramilitary) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $13.408 billion (FY99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.8% (2005 est.) | 1.9% (FY99) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
48,298,486 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
32,388,786 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
1,762,740 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Birthday of King PHUMIPHON (BHUMIBOL), 5 December (1927) | Independence Day, 7 September (1822) |
Nationality | noun: Thai (singular and plural)
adjective: Thai |
noun:
Brazilian(s) adjective: Brazilian |
Natural hazards | land subsidence in Bangkok area resulting from the depletion of the water table; droughts | recurring droughts in northeast; floods and occasional frost in south |
Natural resources | tin, rubber, natural gas, tungsten, tantalum, timber, lead, fish, gypsum, lignite, fluorite, arable land | bauxite, gold, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, platinum, tin, uranium, petroleum, hydropower, timber |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 3,760 km; refined products 379 km (2006) | crude oil 2,980 km; petroleum products 4,762 km; natural gas 4,246 km (1998) |
Political parties and leaders | Democrat Party or DP (Prachathipat Party) [ABHISIT Wetchachiwa] (ABHISIT Vejjajiva); People's Party or PP (Mahachon Party) [ANEK Laothamatas]; People Power Party (Palang Prachachon Party) or PPP [SAMAK Sunthorawet] (SAMAK Sundaravej]; Thai Nation Party or TNP (Chat Thai Party) [BARNHARN SILPA-ARCHA]; Thai Party (Thai Rak) or TRT [CHATURON Chaisang]; note - dissolved by Constitutional Tribunal on 30 May 2007 | Brazilian Democratic Movement Party or PMDB [Jader BARBALHO, president]; Brazilian Labor Party or PTB [Roberto JEFFERSON]; Brazilian Social Democracy Party or PSDB [Teotonio VILELA Filno]; Brazilian Socialist Party or PSB [Miguel ARRAES, president]; Brazilian Progressive Party or PPB [Paulo Salim MALUF]; Communist Party of Brazil or PCdoB [Sergio Roberto Gomes SOUZA, chairman]; Democratic Labor Party or PDT [Leonel BRIZOLA, president]; Liberal Front Party or PFL [Jorge BORNHAUSEN, president]; Liberal Party or PL [Francisco Teixeira de OLIVEIRA]; Popular Socialist Party or PPS [Ciro GOMEZ, president]; Worker's Party or PT [Jose DIRCEU, president] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | left wing of the Catholic Church, Landless Worker's Movement, and labor unions allied to leftist Worker's Party are critical of government's social and economic policies |
Population | 65,068,149
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
174,468,575
note: Brazil took an intercensal count in August 1996 which reported a population of 157,079,573; that figure was about 5% lower than projections by the US Census Bureau, which is close to the implied underenumeration of 4.6% for the 1991 census; estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 10% (2004 est.) | 17.4% (1990 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.663% (2007 est.) | 0.91% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Belem, Fortaleza, Ilheus, Imbituba, Manaus, Paranagua, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande, Salvador, Santos, Vitoria |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 204, FM 334, shortwave 6 (1999) | AM 1,365, FM 296, shortwave 161 (of which 91 are collocated with AM stations) (1999) |
Radios | - | 71 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 4,071 km
narrow gauge: 4,071 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
total:
30,539 km (2,129 km electrified); note - excludes urban rail broad gauge: 5,679 km 1.600-m gauge (1199 km electrified) standard gauge: 194 km 1.440-m gauge narrow gauge: 24,666 km 1.000-m gauge (930 km electrified) dual gauge: 336 km 1.000-m and 1.600-m gauges (three rails) (1999 est.) |
Religions | Buddhist 94.6%, Muslim 4.6%, Christian 0.7%, other 0.1% (2000 census) | Roman Catholic (nominal) 80% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.047 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.976 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.834 male(s)/female total population: 0.979 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | voluntary between 16 and 18 years of age and over 70; compulsory over 18 and under 70 years of age |
Telephone system | general assessment: high quality system, especially in urban areas like Bangkok
domestic: fixed line system provided by both a government owned and commercial provider; wireless service expanding rapidly and outpacing fixed lines international: country code - 66; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean, 1 Pacific Ocean); landing country for APCN submarine cable |
general assessment:
good working system domestic: extensive microwave radio relay system and a domestic satellite system with 64 earth stations international: 3 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region east), connected by microwave relay system to MERCOSUR Brazilsat B3 satellite earth station |
Telephones - main lines in use | 7.073 million (2006) | 17.039 million (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 40.816 million (2006) | 4.4 million (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 111 (2006) | 138 (1997) |
Terrain | central plain; Khorat Plateau in the east; mountains elsewhere | mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal belt |
Total fertility rate | 1.64 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.09 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2.1% (2006 est.) | 7.1% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 4,000 km
note: 3,701 km navigable by boats with drafts up to 0.9 m (2005) |
50,000 km |