An Overview of Laos

Country Statistics and Facts  Population (2014 est.): 6,803,699 (growth rate: 1.59%)  Life expectancy :  Capital and largest city (2011 est.): Vientiane, 810,000  Monetary unit: New Kip  Languages: Lao (official), French, English, various ethnic languages  Ethnicity/races: Lao 55%, Khmou 11%, Hmong 8%, other (over 100 minor ethnic groups) 26% (2005 census)  Religions : Buddhist 67%, Christian 1.5%, other and unspecified 31.5% (2005 census)  Government: Lao People's Democratic Republic  Corruption Perception Index (2014): 145 th out of 174 (29 th most corrupt country)

Colonial Rule: (1893–1953)  Taken over in 1893 by French through gunboat diplomacy, part of French imperialism.  Was put under colonial rule had little importance to the French and became a backwater for the next 50 years. This was due to low population, lack of a sea port and hard to economically develop.  During WWII, was under Vichy French Rule and later Japanese rule until the end of the war. Then returned back to France.  After the end of the First Indochina war in 1953, Laos gained complete independence.

Laotian Civil War and the war in Vietnam: ( )  A civil war from took place among the communist Pathet lao and the Royal Lao Government. The Pathet Lao were backed by the Vietcong and NVA. They eventually emerged victorious.  During the Vietnam war, Laos became the most bombed country on Earth, as the US tried to deny use of the Ho Chi Minh trail and to keep the Royal Lao Government alive.

Laos since 1975: (1975- Present) In the late 1970s, food shortages under “socialist transformation cause hundreds of thousands to leave Laos. In 1986, encouraged by Gorbachev’s reforms, Laos introduces market oriented reforms. In 2008, Laos takes steps to join WTO (world Trade Organization) In 2011 US secretary of State Hilary Clinton becomes first State Secretary to visit Laos in 57 years

Current Political Situation Lao is a one-party communist country After the US withdrew from Vietnam in 1975, the Lao communist party rose to power The government has strict regulations, such as ones on freedom of speech or religion They also attempt to control the population, so that there are no changes to the specially chosen parliament Their National Assembly wrote up a constitution that established a market-oriented economy in 1991 The constitution also provided protection for foreign investment Over the past few years, society has strayed a bit from the strict government regulations, allowing private sector development, freedom to travel, and choice of employment. Politics of LaosEconomic Effect

Current Economy GDP: 20.8 billion USD Growth Rate (2014): 7.56 % GDP Per Capita (2014): 1,725 USD Inflation rate (August 2015): 1.29 GDP Composition by sector Agricultural: 23.15% Industry: 32.42% Services: 37.87% Top 10 Exports 1.Refined Copper: 29% 2.Copper Ore: 21% 3.Rough Wood: 6.2% 4.Men’s Suits: 4.2% 5.Sawn Wood: 3.8% 6.Coffee: 3.8% 7.Rubber: 3% 8.Gold: 2% 9.Hydrogen: 1.9% 10.Corn: 1.5%

Gap between elite and poor  From the outside, the impressive 7% growth rate and thriving trade and business, Laos looks like a country that, while not perfect, is sustainable for its citizens  However, the poorer citizens of Laos have less hope. 85% of the population is connected to the farming industry in some way  Only 20% of the national budget goes toward the social sector, so no government money is going to the development of this large industry. Many farmers must live off of what they grow, which widens this gap further when they cannot sell anything to make an income

bib        poverty-and-a-thriving-elite.html poverty-and-a-thriving-elite.html  