The Lao Republic (“Laos”) is a landlocked, mountainous country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, and Myanmar (Burma).

Laos is also one of the least developed countries ranking 133 out of 177 countries.1.

Here’s one reason why: Laos was the most heavily bombed country in the history of warfare. According to Ian MacKinnon of The Guardian, “Laos was hit by an average of one B-52 bomb-load every eight minutes, 24 hours a day, between 1964 and 1973. US bombers dropped more ordnance on Laos in this period than was dropped during the whole of the second world war.”2

Quick Facts:

• An astounding 41% of the population is under the age of 14 and the mean age is only 18.9. 3
• 23% of the population lives on less than $1 a day, 73% lives on less than $2 a day (2003).
• Subsistence agriculture, dominated by rice, accounts for about a third of GDP and provides 80% of total employment.4
• The percentage of the population that have never been to school has dropped to 23%.
• With only 8% of villages/towns having lower secondary schools, students often move and live with relatives, on their own, or at temples as novice monks to be able to continue their education (2003).
• Books are rare in Laos, school texts are often unavailable and books are often cost prohibitive.
• Laos has 68 different ethnic groups, divided into 3 or 4 major groups: Lao Loum (lowland) 53%, Lao Theung (upland) 23%, Lao Tai (Tai) 13%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong 10%, other 1%.
• Life expectancy at birth is 54.5 years (2005).

1. 2005 United Nations Human development index [↩]
2. The Guardian: “Forty years on, Laos reaps bitter harvest of the secret war” [↩]
3. Wikipedia: Demographics of Laos [↩]
4. CIA World Factbook [↩]