1990 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1990 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season
Coastline
none--landlocked
Comparative area
slightly larger than Utah
Disputes
boundary dispute with Thailand
Environment
deforestation; soil erosion; subject to floods
Land boundaries
5,083 km total; Burma 235 km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km, Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km
Land use
4% arable land; NEGL% permanent crops; 3% meadows and pastures; 58% forest and woodland; 35% other; includes 1% irrigated
Maritime claims
none--landlocked
Natural resources
timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones
Note
landlocked
Terrain
mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus
Total area
236,800 km2; land area: 230,800 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
37 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate
15 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Ethnic divisions
50% Lao, 15% Phoutheung (Kha), 20% tribal Thai, 15% Meo, Hmong, Yao, and other
Infant mortality rate
126 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Labor force
1-1.5 million; 85-90% in agriculture (est.)
Language
Lao (official), French, and English
Life expectancy at birth
48 years male, 51 years female (1990)
Literacy
85%
Nationality
noun--Lao (sing., Lao or Laotian); adjective--Lao or Laotian
Net migration rate
0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Organized labor
Lao Federation of Trade Unions is subordinate to the Communist party
Population
4,023,726 (July 1990), growth rate 2.2% (1990)
Religion
85% Buddhist, 15% animist and other
Total fertility rate
5.1 children born/woman (1990)
Government
Administrative divisions
16 provinces (khoueng, singular and plural) and 1 municipality* (kampheng nakhon, singular and plural); Attapu, Bokeo, Bolikhamsai, Champasak, Houaphan, Khammouan, Louang Namtha, Louangphrabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Saravan, Savannakhet, Sekong, Vientiane, Vientiane*, Xaignabouri, Xiangkhoang
Capital
Vientiane
Constitution
draft constitution under discussion since 1976
Diplomatic representation
First Secretary, Charge d'Affaires ad interim DONE SOMVORACHIT; Chancery at 2222 S Street NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 332-6416 or 6417; US--Charge d'Affaires Charles B. SALMON; Embassy at Rue Bartholonie, Vientiane (mailing address is B. P. 114, Vientiane, or Box V, APO San Francisco 96346); telephone 2220, 2357, 2384
Elections
Supreme People's Assembly--last held on 26 March 1989 (next to be held NA); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(79 total) number of seats by party NA
Executive branch
president, chairman and five vice chairmen of the Council of Ministers, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
Flag
three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band
Independence
19 July 1949 (from France)
Judicial branch
Central Supreme Court
Leaders
Chief of State--Acting President PHOUMI VONGVICHIT (since 29 October 1986); Head of Government--Chairman of the Council of Ministers General KAYSONE PHOMVIHAN (since 2 December 1975)
Legal system
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch
Supreme People's Assembly
Long-form name
Lao People's Democratic Republic
Member of
ADB, Colombo Plan, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, ILO, IMF, INTERPOL, IPU, IRC, ITU, Mekong Committee, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO
National holiday
National Day (proclamation of the Lao People's Democratic Republic), 2 December (1975)
Other political or pressure groups
non-Communist political groups moribund; most leaders have fled the country
Political parties and leaders
Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP), Kaysone Phomvihan, party chairman; includes Lao Patriotic Front and Alliance Committee of Patriotic Neutralist Forces; other parties moribund
Suffrage
universal at age 18
Type
Communist state
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for 60% of GDP and employs most of the work force; subsistence farming predominates; normally self-sufficient; principal crops--rice (80% of cultivated land), potatoes, vegetables, coffee, sugarcane, cotton
Aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-79), $276 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $468 million; Communist countries (1970-88), $895 million
Budget
revenues $71 million; expenditures $198 million, including capital expenditures of $132 million (1988 est.)
Currency
new kip (plural--kips); 1 new kip (NK) = 100 at
Electricity
176,000 kW capacity; 900 million kWh produced, 225 kWh per capita (1989)
Exchange rates
new kips (NK) per US$1--700 (December 1989), 725 (1989), 350 (1988), 200 (1987), 108 (1986), 95 (1985)
Exports
$57.5 million (f.o.b., 1989 est.); commodities-- electricity, wood products, coffee, tin; partners--Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, USSR, US
External debt
$964 million (1989 est.)
Fiscal year
1 July-30 June
GDP
$585 million, per capita $150; real growth rate 3% (1989 est.)
Illicit drugs
illicit producer of cannabis and opium poppy for the international drug trade; production of cannabis increased in 1989; marijuana and heroin are shipped to Western countries, including the US
Imports
$219 million (c.i.f., 1989 est.); commodities--food, fuel oil, consumer goods, manufactures; partners--Thailand, USSR, Japan, France, Vietnam
Industrial production
growth rate 8% (1989 est.)
Industries
tin mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
35% (1989 est.)
Overview
One of the world's poorest nations, Laos has had a Communist centrally planned economy with government ownership and control of productive enterprises of any size. Recently, however, the government has been decentralizing control and encouraging private enterprise. Laos is a landlocked country with a primitive infrastructure, that is, it has no railroads, a rudimentary road system, limited external and internal telecommunications, and electricity available in only a limited area. Subsistence agriculture is the main occupation, accounting for over 60% of GDP and providing about 85-90% of total employment. The predominant crop is rice. For the foreseeable future the economy will continue to depend for its survival on foreign aid--from CEMA, IMF, and other international sources.
Unemployment rate
15% (1989 est.)
Communications
Airports
64 total, 50 usable; 9 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 12 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Highways
about 27,527 km total; 1,856 km bituminous or bituminous treated; 7,451 km gravel, crushed stone, or improved earth; 18,220 km unimproved earth and often impassable during rainy season mid-May to mid-September
Inland waterways
about 4,587 km, primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional kilometers are sectionally navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m
Pipelines
136 km, refined products
Ports
none
Telecommunications
service to general public considered poor; radio network provides generally erratic service to government users; 7,390 telephones (1986); stations--10 AM, no FM, 1 TV; 1 satellite earth station
Military and Security
Branches
Lao People's Army (LPA, which consists of an army with naval, aviation, and militia elements), Air Force, National Police Department
Defense expenditures
3.8% of GDP (1987)
Military manpower
males 15-49, 967,047; 517,666 fit for military service; 44,176 reach military age (18) annually; conscription age NA