Country explorer: Laos
EXPERIMENTAL
2024
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Overview
Laos is a mountainous, lower-middle-income country in Southeast Asia with a small population. Its economy has grown very rapidly in recent decades, and is based on tourism, agriculture and hydropower.
Laos is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by five countries.
Economy
Laos has experienced considerable economic growth, evidenced by significant increases in GDP per capita, a variable yet generally low unemployment rate, and fluctuating inflation rates; like its lower-middle-income peers, it has made strides in poverty reduction, yet faces challenges similar to those of rapidly developing regional counterparts.
Demographics
Laos has experienced substantial demographic shifts, marked by a steady population increase, significant net migration losses, a gradual decline in fertility rates from well above to slightly below the lower-middle-income countries' average, and improvement in life expectancy, reflecting trends common in lower-middle-income countries yet exhibiting notable progress in health and population dynamics.
Basic needs
Laos has seen significant but gradual improvement in access to basic needs such as clean fuels for cooking, electricity, safely managed drinking water, and sanitation facilities, reflecting a trajectory of development that, while slower compared to some of its Southeast Asian neighbors, underscores steady progression towards enhancing public health and quality of life.
Human development
Laos has experienced notable progress in human development indicators, including improvements in the Human Development Index, reductions in child mortality rates, and increases in literacy rates, reflecting a transformative trajectory of social and educational development that aligns with trends observed in other lower-middle-income countries.
Environment & energy
Over the last two decades, Laos has seen a distinctive increase in per capita CO₂ emissions and significant growth in hydroelectric power generation, contrasting with a decline in forest area and renewable internal freshwater resources per capita, indicative of broad environmental and energy shifts towards hydroelectric development at ecological costs.
Technology & innovation
Laos has experienced notable progress in technology and innovation, marked by significant improvements in internet usage, mobile phone subscriptions, and scientific output, illustrating a gradual but consistent integration of digital technology into societal norms, akin to trends observed in other lower-middle-income countries.
Culture & society
Laos has exhibited a steady progression in societal well-being with a slight increase in foreign-born population, notable advancements in gender equality, consistent improvements in self-reported life satisfaction, and a managed decrease in its age dependency ratio, embodying a trajectory of gradual development that aligns closely with broader trends observed across lower-middle-income countries.
Governance
Laos has demonstrated a stagnant or marginal improvement in governance indicators - including the rule of law, corruption perception, political civil liberties, and press freedom - reflecting a slow and cautious approach to governance reform in comparison to some regional peers who exhibit either similar stagnation or more significant shifts within the same period.