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Modern-day
Laos has its roots in the ancient Lao kingdom of Lan Xang,
established in the 14th Century under King FA NGUM. For three
hundred years Lan Xang included large parts of present-day
Cambodia and Thailand, as well as all of what is now Laos.
After centuries of gradual decline, Laos came 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 and instituting
a strict socialist regime closely aligned to Vietnam. A gradual
return to private enterprise and the liberalization of foreign
investment laws began in 1986. Laos became a member of ASEAN
in 1997.
Laos
is a landlocked country which most part is mountainous and
thickly forested; the Mekong River forms a large part of the
western boundary with Thailand.
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-GEOGRAPHY |
| Area
|
total
: 236,800 sq km
land : 230,800 sq km
water : 6,000 sq km
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| Land
boundaries |
total
: 5,083 km
border countries :
-
Burma 235 km,
-
China 423 km,
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Thailand 1,754 km,
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Cambodia 541 km,
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Vietnam 2,130 km
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| Coastline |
0
km (landlocked)
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| Climate |
tropical
mansoon : rainy, season (May to November); dry season (December
to April)
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| Terrain |
mostly
rugged mountains, some plains and plateaus
|
| Elevation
extremes |
lowest
point : Mekong River 70 m
highest point : Phou Bia 2,817 m
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|
Natural
resources
|
timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones
|
| Land
use |
arable
land : 4.01%
permanent crops : 0.34%
other : 95.65% (2005)
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| Irrigated
Land |
1,750
sq km (2003)
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| Natural
hazards |
floods,
droughts
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| -PEOPLE |
| Population |
6,521,998
(July 2007 est.)
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| Age
structure |
0-14
years : 41.2% (male 1,349,352 / female 1,338,252)
15-64 years : 55.7% (male 1,795,029 / female 1,835,168)
65 years and over : 3.1% (male 90,188 / female 114,009)
(2007 est.)
|
| Growth
rate |
2.37%
(2007 est.)
|
| Birth
rate |
34.98
births / 1,000 population (2007 est.)
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| Death
rate |
11.28
deaths / 1,000 population (2007 est.)
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|
Net
migration rate
|
0
migrant / 1,000 population (2007 est.)
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Sex
ratio
|
at
birth : 1.04 males / female
under 15 years : 1.008 males / female
15-64 years : 0.978 male / female
65 years and over : 0.791 male / female
total population : 0.984 male / female (2007 est.)
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| Infant
mortality rate |
total
: 81.44 deaths / 1,000 live births
male : 90.91 deaths / 1,000 live births
female : 71.56 deaths / 1,000 live births (2007 est.)
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Life
expectancy at birth
|
total
population : 55.89 years
male : 53.82 years
female : 58.04 years (2007 est.)
|
|
Total
fertility rate
|
4.59
children born / woman (2007 est.)
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HIV
/ AIDS
|
adult
prevalence rate : 0.1% (2003
est.)
people living
with HIV / AIDS : 1,700
(2003 est.)
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| Ethnic
groups |
Lao
Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland)
including the Hmong and the Yao 9%, ethnic Vietnamese / Chinese
1%
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| Religions |
Buddhist
65%, animist 32.9%, Christian 1.3%, other and unspecified 0.8%
(1995 census)
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| Languages |
Lao
(official), French, English, Central Khmer, Mandarin Chinese,
Sedang, Vietnamese. 71% Daic languages speakers (Lao, Phu
Thai, Phuan), 24.1% Austro-Asiatic languages speakers (Kasseng,
Kataang, Khmu), 4% Miao-Yao languages speakers (Hmong), 1%
Tibeto-Burman languages speakers (Akha. Lahu, Phunoi). 82
living languages are listed for Laos, including Lao.
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| Literacy |
definition
: age 15 and over can read and write
total population : 68.7%
male : 77%
female : 60.9% (2001 est.)
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