A landlocked nation in Southeast Asia occupying the northwest portion of the Indochinese peninsula, Laos is surrounded by China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Burma. It is twice the size of Pennsylvania. Laos is a mountainous country, especially in the north, where peaks rise above 9,000 ft (2,800 m). Dense forests cover the northern and eastern areas. The Mekong River, which forms the boundary with Burma and Thailand, flows through the country for 932 mi (1,500 km) of its course.
Country lead by President: Choummaly Sayasone (2006)
Prime Minister: Bouasone Bouphavanh (2006)
Population
6,368,481 (growth rate: 2.4%); birth rate: 35.5/1000; infant mortality rate: 83.3/1000; life expectancy: 55.5; density per sq mi: 71
Land Area
89,112 sq mi (230,800 sq km); total area: 91,429 sq mi (236,800 sq km)
Monetary unit
New Kip Language
Lao (official), French, English, various ethnic languages
Ethnicity Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong (“Meo”) and the Yao (Mien) 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1%
Religion Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including Christian 2%)
Transportation Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 21,716 km; paved: 9,664 km; unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.). Waterways: about 4,587 km, primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are sectionally navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m. Ports and harbors: none. Airports: 51 (2002).
