lao pdr

Lao People's Democratic

Republic (LPDR)

By:Jhona G. DeTorres

Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR) Government name: People’s Democratic Republic

Capital: Vientiane

Population: 6.8 million(July 2014 est.)

Language: Lao

Religion: Theravada Buddhism

Currency: Kip

National Day: December 2

Brief History of Laos Laos traces its history to the kingdom of Lan Xang, the first Laotian state

which existed from the 14th century which ruled laos until it split into three kingdoms: the Luang Phrabang, Vientiane and Champasak. During the 18th century, these three separate kingdoms were ruled by Siamese or today is the the Thai people.

In 1893, it became a French protectorate, and at same time the French colonists take control the Siamese(thai) people and forcefully removed them to the western part of the Mekong river. Those separate kingdoms were reunited by the French — uniting to form what is now known as Laos. In 1949, French granted semi-autonomy in Laos until it became independent in 1953, with a constitutional monarchy under Sisavang Vong. Shortly after independence, a long civil war ended the monarchy, when the Communist Pathet Lao movement came to power in 1975.

Laos is a single-party socialist republic. It espouses Marxism and is governed by a single party communist politburo dominated by military generals.

Other Infos:

Laos' strategy for development is based on generating electricity from its rivers and selling the power to its neighbors, namely Thailand, China, and Vietnam. Its economy is accelerating rapidly with the demands for its metals.

It is a member of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA), Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), East Asia Summit and La Francophonie. Laos applied for membership of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1997; on 2 February 2013, it was granted full membership.

According to the anti-corruption non-governmental organization Transparency International, Laos remains one of the most corrupt countries in the world. This has deterred foreign investment and created major problems with the rule of law, including the nation's ability to enforce contract and business regulation.

 This has contributed to a third of the population of Laos currently living below the international poverty line (living on less than US$1.25 per day). Laos has a low-income economy, with one of the lowest annual incomes in the world. In 2013, Laos ranked in 138th place (tied with Cambodia) on the Human Development Index (HDI), indicating that Laos has lower medium to low development. According to the Global Hunger Index (2013), Laos ranks as the 25th hungriest nation in the world out of the list of the 56 nations with the worst hunger situation(s). Laos has had a poor human rights record most particularly dealing with the nation's acts of genocide being committed towards its Hmong population.

Map of Laos

Interesting And Amazing Facts On Laos

It is the only country in Southeast Asia which is landlocked, And because of being landlocked, Laos does not have a navy.

The Mekong River can be called the river which instils life in this country, as it not only forms a vital transportation route for people here, but also helps in generating electricity, irrigating crops and fishing.

The Mekong River is also known as Mae Nam Khong, which translates to ‘mother of all rivers’..

There are three main plateaus in Laos, namely, Xiangkhiang, Khammouan and Bolovens. Out of these, Xiangkhiang is the largest one while Bolovens is the one really fertile for crops such as rice, coffee, tea and others, thereby acting as food bowl of the nation.

The people of Laos are known around the world for their honesty and simplicity; mainly the followers of Buddhism, these people have discovered joy in minimalism.

One of the few mystical creatures which reside in the wilds of Laos is one of world’s longest venomous snakes, King Cobra, which measures fourteen foot in length. Along with it, Irrawaddy Dolphins also are found in abundance here.

. http://www.interestingfunfacts.com/facts-about-laos.html

Though Laos is among the poorest countries of the world, the people here have found the way to happiness by accepting Buddhism as their major religion. Buddhism helps them in finding joy in simple living. Most of these people live in hamlets which are situated by the rivers. The main occupation here is agriculture.

Sports in Laos is quite primitive as people play Kataw, which is like Volley Ball but instead of using the hands to play the sport, these people use their feet to kick a ball made up of woven bamboo to cross the net. Another sport is rhinoceros-beetle wrestling in which people bet on beetles to predict the last beetle standing.

The laws against drugs and liquor in Laos are rigid, Though there are no major restrictions on alcohol; it is served at a few bars and restaurants. But using drugs and trafficking drugs is a major taboo, the punishment for trafficking narcotics is a death sentence.

The Khone Papeng waterfall situated in Laos is the largest waterfall in whole of Southeast Asia.

Government type: Communist state Executive branch: chief of state: President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI

Saignason

Vice President BOUN-GNANG Volachit

head of government: Prime Minister THONGSING Thammavong

cabinet: ministers appointed by president, approved by National Assembly

elections: president and vice president elected by National Assembly for five-year terms; prime minister, appointed by the president with the approval of the National Assembly, serves a five-year term.

FUNCTIONS OF THE PRESIDENT:

■ The president appoints and can dismiss the prime minister and members of the government, with the approval of the National Assembly

■  He also presides over meetings of the government, "when necessary," and appoints and dismisses provincial governors and mayors of municipalities as well as generals of the armed forces, upon the recommendation of the prime minister.

■ In addition, the president receives and appoints ambassadors and declares states of emergency or war.

Functions of Prime Minister:

■ Duties of this office include the guidance and supervision of the work of government ministries and committees, as well as of the governors of provinces and mayors of municipalities. The prime minister appoints all the deputies at these levels of government, as well as the local district chiefs.

Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (132 seats; members elected by popular vote from a list of candidates selected by the Lao People's Revolutionary Party to serve five-year terms)  

Functions:

■ The National Assembly makes decisions on fundamental issues and oversees administrative and judicial organs. Its most significant powers include electing and removing the president of state, the president of the Supreme People's Court, and the prosecutor general, "on the recommendation of the National Assembly Standing Committee.

■ Its powers encompass amending the constitution, determining taxes, approving the state budget, endorsing or abrogating laws, and electing or removing the two top judicial figures in the system.

■ Members of the National Assembly have the "right to interpellate the members of the government.“

■. The National Assembly also ratifies treaties and decides questions of war and peace.

Between sessions, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly, consisting of the president and the vice president elected by the National Assembly and an unspecified number of other members, prepares for future sessions and "supervise[s] and oversee[s] the activities of the administrative and judicial organizations." It is empowered to appoint or remove the vice president of the Supreme People's Court and judges at all levels of the lower courts. Its supervisory role can be reinforced by National Assembly committees established to consider draft laws and decrees and to help in the supervision and administration of the courts. 

Judicial branch: highest court(s): People's Supreme Court (consists of NA judges)

judge selection and term of office: president of People's Supreme Court elected by National Assembly on recommendation of National Assembly Standing Committee; vice president of People's Supreme Court and judges appointed by National Assembly Standing Committee; term of office NA

subordinate courts: provincial, municipal, district, and military courts

Constitution: Adopted: 1991; Protects the right to preserve the national culture, natural heritage, fine tradition, antiques and historical places of the country and its ethnic minorities, the right to transfer of technology, and and the right to create artistic and literary works and to engage in cultural activities.

NEWS:

Laos expects economy to grow 7.6 pct this yearPublished: 05-May-15 09:21AM

Lao Deputy Finance Minister Thipphakone Chanthavongsa

PHNOM PENH (The Cambodia Herald) -- Laos expects its economy to expand by 7.6 percent this year despite headwinds slowing the pace of growth, Deputy Finance Minister Thipphakone Chanthavongsa said Monday.

In a statement to the annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku, she said growth would be driven by services, manufacturing, construction and hydropower.

Thipphakone said the Lao kip had remained "relatively stable" against the dollar and the baht. Inflation had meanwhile dropped from 5.64 percent to 5.16 percent in the first six months of fiscal 2014-2015.

"The path of the fiscal deficit in FY14/15 will critically depend on the Government’s ability to achieve an unusually strong performance in revenue collection and to maintain tight control over spending across categories," the deputy finance minister said.

"The fiscal deficit is projected to narrow to about 4.4 percent of GDP in 2015 with higher revenues to GDP, and smaller current spending, including on wages, and a decline in capital spending.

"However, more hard works are needed to encourage the development of the domestic small and medium enterprise as well as the private sector," she added.

http://www.thecambodiaherald.com/cambodia/laos-expects-economy-to-grow-76-pct-this-year-8503#sthash.e7pTTe9o.dpuf

Laos and China to Set Up Joint Company for High-Speed Railway

Laos hopes a railway between Vietnam and Thailand and another connecting Thailand and China will help drive socio-economic development in the impoverished country

CURRENT NEWS 2015-06-05 Laos is setting up a joint company with

China to oversee the construction and financing of a multibillion-dollar, high-speed railway project that will link the two neighboring countries and extend to Thailand, according to a transport ministry official.

“The process is ongoing, and we need the contract to be signed as soon as possible,” said the official, who declined to be identified because he is not authorized to speak about it. He added that the ministry was gearing up to start marking the railway’s 420-kilometer (261-mile) route through the country.

“The joint company that will be established will be responsible for the project management, land concession, construction [and] fare collections. It means the Lao government must borrow money, so the company will borrow money, but the cost of project is lower than U.S. $7 billion.”

Previously, Lao and China said the project would cost about U.S. $7.2 billion.

The ministry official said he did not who would guarantee the bank loan for the project if the joint company had to borrow a huge sum of money.

Koung Souk-Aloun, a senior Lao official in charge of the railway project, said he had no further details on the project and did not have permission to say anything publicly about it.

“It is still in the consultation process…that is…we do not know it. The process is the same as it was before,” he told RFA.

A notice issued by the Lao government on April 24 indicated that it was holding talks with Chinese counterparts to hammer out details about their cooperation on the project, and that officials in charge of the project were planning to purchase vehicles to conduct the survey work.

The notice also said that the Lao Ministry of Public Works and Transport and its Thai counterpart were surveying an appropriate location for the construction of a bridge to accommodate the railway link between their two countries.

Sonesay Siphandone, Minister to Government’ Office, had issued a notice on April 1 to the ministries of planning and investment, and natural resources and environment, to preserve the mines that would be used to back a loan from China,but the types of mines and their locations were not made public.

Reported by RFA’s Laos Service. Translated by Ounkeo Souksavanh. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.

http://www.rfa.org/english/news/laos/laos-and-china-to-set-up-joint-company-for-major-high-speed-railway-06042015172519.html