|
|||||||||||
|
CAUTION: The following links
and accompanying text have been culled from the web to illuminate the
situation in Laos in the early years of the 21st Century. Some of these
links may lead to websites that present allegations that are unsubstantiated,
misleading or even false. No attempt has been made to validate
their authenticity or to verify their content. HOW TO USE THIS WEBPAGE Students If you are looking for
material to use in a term-paper, you are advised to scan the postings on this
page and others to see which aspects of poverty are of particular interest to
you. You might be interested in
exploring the relationship between distribution of labor and per-capita GDP,
for example. Perhaps your paper could
focus on life expectancy or infant mortality.
Other factors of interest might be unemployment, literacy, access to
basic services, etc. On the other
hand, you might choose to include some of the possible outgrowths of poverty
such as Human Trafficking,
Street Children,
or even Prostitution. There is a lot to the subject of
Poverty. Scan other countries as well
as this one. Draw comparisons between
activity in adjacent countries and/or regions. Meanwhile, check out some of the Term-Paper resources
that are available on-line. Teachers Check out some of
the Resources
for Teachers attached to this website. *** Extreme Weather *** In
Laos, the city of Luang Prabang
experienced a scorching 43.5°C (110.3°F), surpassing the national record set
less than a month ago. The Laotian capital, Vientiane, also broke its
all-time high with a temperature of 42.5°C (108.5°F). These
extreme temperatures are a cause for concern in the context of climate
change. Scientists believe that such records will be repeated, confirming the
accuracy of extreme climate models. The region has endured an unprecedented
seven-week tropical record heat event, affecting millions of square
kilometers. Laos,
already vulnerable to extreme weather, is projected to experience more
heatwaves, increased rainfall variability, and severe floods and droughts. By
2050, the country may face temperature increases of 2–3°C, along with health
impacts due to industrialization, environmental degradation, pollution, and
urbanization. – adapted
from Microsoft BING Copilot *** ARCHIVES *** The World Factbook - Laos U.S. Central Intelligence Agency CIA www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/la.html [accessed 1 January
2021] World Factbook
website has moved to ---> www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/laos/ [accessed 6 January 2021] Laos
remains a country with an underdeveloped infrastructure, particularly in
rural areas. It has a basic, but improving, road system, and limited external
and internal land-line telecommunications. Electricity is available to 83% of
the population. Agriculture, dominated by rice cultivation in lowland areas,
accounts for about 20% of GDP and 73% of total employment. GDP -
per capita (PPP): $57,400 (2017
est.) Labor
force - by occupation: agriculture:
73.1% industry:
6.1% services: 20.6% (2012 est.) Unemployment
rate: 0.7% (2017
est.) Population
below poverty line: 22% (2013
est.) Maternal
mortality rate: 185
deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.) Infant
mortality rate: total: 45.6
deaths/1,000 live births Life
expectancy at birth: total population: 65.7 years Drinking
water source: improved: total: 82.1% of
population Physicians
density: 0.49 physicians/1,000 population (2014) Sanitation
facility access: improved: total: 77.2% of
population Electricity
access: electrification - total population: 87.1% (2016) The
Borgen Project - Laos borgenproject.org/category/laos/ [accessed 14 February 14, 2021] The Borgen Project works with U.S. leaders to utilize the
United States’ platform behind efforts toward improving living conditions for
the world’s poor. It is an innovative,
national campaign that is working to make poverty a focus of U.S. foreign
policy. It believes that leaders of
the most powerful nation on earth should be doing more to address global
poverty. From ending segregation to providing women with the right to vote,
nearly every wrong ever righted in history was achieved through advocacy. The
Borgen Project addresses the big picture, operating
at the political level advancing policies and programs that improve living
conditions for those living on less than $1 per day. ~
Laos’ Healthcare System Improves During Impoverished State borgenproject.org/laos-healthcare-system-improves-during-impoverished-state/ ~
10 Facts About Sanitation In Laos borgenproject.org/ten-facts-about-sanitation-in-laos/ ~
International Efforts To Reduce Poverty In Laos borgenproject.org/reduce-poverty-in-laos/ ~
Health Policy Evolution In Laos borgenproject.org/health-policy-evolution-in-laos/ ~
The Progress Of Laos’ Growing Economy borgenproject.org/laos-growing-economy/ ~
9 Health Care Facts About Laos borgenproject.org/9-health-care-facts-about-laos/ ~
10 Facts About Human Trafficking In Laos borgenproject.org/10-facts-about-human-trafficking-in-laos/ ~
Bubzbeauty Helps Build Schools borgenproject.org/bubzbeauty-helps-build-schools/ FAO
and Lao People’s Democratic Republic move forward with Hand-in-Hand
Initiative to accelerate resource partnerships for sustainable agriculture
and rural development Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAO, Vientiane, 12 May 2021 [accessed 12 May 2021] Hand-in-Hand
aims to unlock the country’s agricultural potential to eradicate poverty,
hunger and malnutrition, as part of a broader effort to achieve the
Sustainable Development Goals. As such, it supports the Government’s
Agriculture Development Strategy to 2025 and Vision to the year 2030. “When
we talk about building back better and greener, we must focus on rural areas,
where food and agricultural systems are concentrated,” said Maximo Torero,
FAO’s Chief Economist. “It’s where the majority of the
poorest people live and work as smallholder farmers. So rural
development is key, and the Hand-in-Hand Initiative
is designed to do it and the Lao economic corridor is a clear example of
this.” The
World Bank in Lao PDR www.worldbank.org/en/country/lao/overview [accessed 21 April 2021] Lao PDR
is one of the fastest growing economies in East Asia and the Pacific. It has improved
access to electricity, schools, roads, and has become an important energy
exporter. Looking
back a few years … Advameg, Inc., Encyclopedia of the Nations www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Asia-and-Oceania/Lao-People-s-Democratic-Republic-ECONOMY.html
[accessed 1 January 2021] One of
the world's poorest and least-developed nations, Laos is overwhelmingly
agricultural, with 85% of the population still engaged in subsistence
farming. Because industrialization is minimal, Laos imports nearly all the
manufactured products it requires. Distribution of imports is limited almost
entirely to Vientiane and a few other towns, and even there consumption is
low. The hostilities of the 1960s and 1970s badly disrupted the economy,
forcing the country to depend on imports from Thailand to supplement its
daily rice requirements. All
material used herein reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for
noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use. PLEASE RESPECT
COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT ARTICLES. Cite this webpage as: Prof. Martin
Patt, "Poverty - Laos", http://gvnet.com/poverty/Laos.htm,
[accessed <date>] |
