INDEPTH: LAOS
Laos at a glance
CBC News Online | September 15, 2004
Name: Lao People's Democratic Republic
Population:6,068,117 (July 2004 estimate)
Capital: Vientiane
Location: Southern Asia.
Border countries: Landlocked by Thailand to the west, Myanmar and China to the north, Vietnam to the east and Cambodia to the south.
Area total: 236,800 sq. km, more than twice the size of the island of Newfoundland.
Currency (average 2003): $1 US = 10,443 kips
Government: Communist, one-party state with elections for the National Assembly every five years.
Major languages: Lao is the official language. French and English are also widely spoken.
Major religion: 60 per cent Buddhist, 40 per cent animist and other religions.
Natural resources: Timber, hydro electricity, gypsum, tin, gold, gems.
GDP: $10.34 billion US (2003)
Life expectancy (2004): 55 years
Infant mortality (2004): 87 deaths for every 1,000 live births
Literacy: Male: 67.5 per cent; Female: 38.1 per cent
History
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The region was ruled by the Lan Xang kingdom from the 14th century till the 18th, when Thailand assumed sovereignty over it. It became part of the French Indochina in the late 19th century, and declared its independence after the Second World War in 1949.
In 1975, the communist movement called Pathet Lao overthrew the royal government and assumed control of the country, now formally called the Lao People's Democratic Republic.
Laos is one of the few remaining officially Communist states, although it has gradually moved towards embracing private enterprise and liberalizing foreign investment laws.
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