Laos

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.

• tropical monsoon;
• rainy season (May to November);
• dry season (December to April)

• unexploded ordnance;
• deforestation;
• soil erosion;
• a majority of the population does not have access to potable water

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

• landlocked;
• most of the country is mountainous and thickly forested;
• the Mekong forms a large part of the western boundary with Thailand

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.)

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.)

noun:

Lao(s) or Laotian(s)

adjective:

Lao or Laotian

conventional long form:

Lao People's Democratic Republic

conventional short form:

Laos

local short form:

none

local long form:

Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao

• 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

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%

chief of mission:

Ambassador PHANTHONG Phommahaxay

FAX:

[1] (202) 332-4923

telephone:

[1] (202) 332-6416

chancery:

2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

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

lowest 10%:

3.2%

highest 10%:

30.6% (1997)

• sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton;
• tea, peanuts, rice;
• water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry

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)

total:

21,716 km

paved:

9,664 km

unpaved:

12,052 km (1999 est.)

total:

1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 2,370 GRT/3,110 DWT

ships by type:

cargo 1 (2002 est.)

• 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

• 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