Turks and Caicos Islands (2008) | Laos (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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: 31.3% (male 3,466/female 3,345)
15-64 years: 64.8% (male 7,398/female 6,690) 65 years and over: 3.9% (male 394/female 453) (2007 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 | corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), citrus fruits; fish | sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry |
Airports | 8 (2007) | 51 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
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: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
total:
43 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 25 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 430 sq km
land: 430 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
236,800 sq km land: 230,800 sq km water: 6,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Utah |
Background | The islands were part of the UK's Jamaican colony until 1962, when they assumed the status of a separate crown colony upon Jamaica's independence. The governor of The Bahamas oversaw affairs from 1965 to 1973. With Bahamian independence, the islands received a separate governor in 1973. Although independence was agreed upon for 1982, the policy was reversed and the islands remain a British overseas territory. | 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 | 21.48 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $47 million
expenditures: $33.6 million (1997-98 est.) |
revenues:
$211 million expenditures: $462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.) |
Capital | name: Grand Turk (Cockburn Town)
geographic coordinates: 21 28 N, 71 08 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in April; ends last Sunday in October |
Vientiane |
Climate | tropical; marine; moderated by trade winds; sunny and relatively dry | tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
Coastline | 389 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | Turks and Caicos Islands Constitution Order 2006 (effective 9 August 2006) | promulgated 14 August 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Turks and Caicos Islands abbreviation: TCI |
conventional long form:
Lao People's Democratic Republic conventional short form: Laos local long form: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao local short form: none |
Currency | - | kip (LAK) |
Death rate | 4.23 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $2.46 billion (1998 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 | have received Haitians fleeing economic and civil disorder | parts of the border with Thailand are indefinite |
Economic aid - recipient | $4.1 million (1997) | $345 million (1999 est.) |
Economy - overview | The Turks and Caicos economy is based on tourism, offshore financial services, and fishing. Most capital goods and food for domestic consumption are imported. The US is the leading source of tourists, accounting for more than three-quarters of the 175,000 visitors that arrived in 2004. Major sources of government revenue also include fees from offshore financial activities and customs receipts. | 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 | 10.76 million kWh (2005) | 173.6 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 705 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 142 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 11.57 million kWh (2005) | 792 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
2.78% hydro: 97.22% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Hills 49 m |
lowest point:
Mekong River 70 m highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources, private cisterns collect rainwater | 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, 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, European, or North American 10% | 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 | the US dollar is used | 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); represented by Governor Richard TAUWHARE (since 11 July 2005)
head of government: Premier Michael Eugene MISICK (since 15 August 2003); note - the office of premier was created in the 2006 constitution cabinet: Cabinet consists of the governor, the premier, six ministers appointed by the governor from among the members of the House of Assembly, and the attorney general elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is appointed premier by the governor |
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 | 0 bbl/day (2004) | $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | lobster, dried and fresh conch, conch shells | wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin |
Exports - partners | US, UK (2006) | Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the colonial shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield is yellow and contains a conch shell, lobster, and cactus | 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 - $9 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture:
51% industry: 22% services: 27% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (2000 est.) | 4% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 45 N, 71 35 W | 18 00 N, 105 00 E |
Geography - note | about 40 islands (eight inhabited) | landlocked |
Highways | - | 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 | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe | 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 | 83.55 bbl/day (2004) | $540 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | food and beverages, tobacco, clothing, manufactures, construction materials | machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel |
Imports - partners | US, UK (2006) | Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 19 July 1949 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 7.5% (1999 est.) |
Industries | tourism, offshore financial services | tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 14.7 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 17 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (1995) | 33% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), UPU | 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) |
Irrigated land | NA | 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; 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 | 4,848 (1990 est.) | 1 million - 1.5 million |
Labor force - by occupation | note: about 33% in government and 20% in agriculture and fishing; significant numbers in tourism, financial, and other services | 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: 2.33%
permanent crops: 0% other: 97.67% (2005) |
arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 3% forests and woodland: 54% other: 40% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English (official) | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
Legal system | based on laws of England and Wales, with a few adopted from Jamaica and The Bahamas | based on traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of Assembly (21 seats of which 15 are popularly elected; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 9 February 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - PNP 60%, PDM 40%; seats by party - PNP 13, PDM 2 |
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: 74.95 years
male: 72.69 years female: 77.32 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
53.48 years male: 51.58 years female: 55.44 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 57% male: 70% female: 44% (1999 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, two island groups in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of The Bahamas, north of Haiti | Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2007) | 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 the UK | - |
Military branches | - | 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 | Constitution Day, 30 August (1976) | Republic Day, 2 December (1975) |
Nationality | noun: none
adjective: none |
noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s) adjective: Lao or Laotian |
Natural hazards | frequent hurricanes | floods, droughts, and blight |
Natural resources | spiny lobster, conch | timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
Net migration rate | 9.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
People - note | destination and transit point for illegal Haitian immigrants bound for the Turks and Caicos Islands, The Bahamas, and the US | - |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products 136 km |
Political parties and leaders | People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Floyd SEYMOUR]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Michael Eugene MISICK] | 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 | 21,746 (July 2007 est.) | 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 46.1% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.722% (2007 est.) | 2.48% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 7, shortwave 0 (2003) | AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | - | 730,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Baptist 40%, Anglican 18%, Methodist 16%, Church of God 12%, other 14% (1990) | Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.036 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.106 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 1.073 male(s)/female (2007 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 | general assessment: fully digital system with international direct dialing
domestic: full range of services available; GSM wireless service available international: country code - 1-649; the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber optic telecommunications submarine cable provides connectivity to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and US; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment:
service to general public is poor but improving, with over 20,000 telephones currently in service and an additional 48,000 expected by 2001; the government relies on a radiotelephone network to communicate with remote areas domestic: radiotelephone communications international: satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 5,700 (2002) | 25,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,700 (1999) | 4,915 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (broadcasts received from The Bahamas; 2 cable television networks) (2003) | 4 (1999) |
Terrain | low, flat limestone; extensive marshes and mangrove swamps | mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
Total fertility rate | 3.02 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% (1997 est.) | 5.7% (1997 est.) |
Waterways | - | 4,587 km approximately
note: primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m |