US State Department Issues notes on the Kingdom of Thailand

State Department Issues Background Note on Kingdom of Thailand

(Targeted News Service Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) WASHINGTON, Jan. 28 -- The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Intelligence and Research Electronic Affairs Publication Office issued the following Background Note: Official Name: Kingdom of Thailand Geography Area: 513,115 sq. km. (198,114 sq. mi.); equivalent to the size of France, or slightly smaller than Texas.

Cities: Capital--Bangkok (population 9,668,854); Nakhon Ratchasima (pop. 437,386 for Muang district and 2,565,685 for the whole province), Chiang Mai (pop. 247,672 for Muang district and 1,595,855 for the whole province).

Terrain: Densely populated central plain; northeastern plateau; mountain range in the west; southern isthmus joins the land mass with Malaysia.

Climate: Tropical monsoon.

People Nationality: Noun and adjective--Thai.

Population (2009 est.): 67.0 million. (Data based on the Thailand National Statistic Office and the National Economic and Social Development Board.) Labor force (2009 est.): 38.4 million.

Annual population growth rate (2009 est.): 0.5%.

Ethnic groups: Thai 89%, other 11%.

Religions: Buddhist 93%-94%, Muslim 5%-6%, Christian 1%, Hindu, Brahmin, other.

Languages: Thai (official language); English is the second language of the elite; Malay and regional languages and dialects.

Education: Years compulsory--9. Literacy--94.9% male, 90.5% female.

Health (2008 est.): Infant mortality rate--18.23/1,000. Life expectancy--70.51 years male, 75.27 years female.

Government Type: Constitutional monarchy.

Constitution: Thailand adopted its current constitution following an August 19, 2007 referendum.

Independence: Never colonized; traditional founding date 1238.

Branches: Executive--King (chief of state), Prime Minister (head of government). Legislative--bicameral, with a fully-elected House of Representatives and a partially-elected Senate. Judicial--composed of the Constitutional Tribunal, the Courts of Justice, and the Administrative Courts.

Administrative subdivisions: 77 provinces, including Bangkok municipality, subdivided into 877 districts, 7,255 tambon administration, and 74,944 villages.

Political parties: Multi-party system; Communist Party is prohibited.

Suffrage: Universal and compulsory at 18 years of age.

Economy GDP (2010 prelim.): $317 billion. (Data based on the National Economic and Social Development Board) Annual GDP growth rate (2010 prelim.): 7.8%.

Inflation rates (2010): 3.3% (headline) and 0.9% (excluding energy and food prices).

Per capita income (2010 prelim.): $4,716.

Unemployment rate (2010 prelim.): 1.0% of total labor force.

Natural resources: Tin, rubber, natural gas, tungsten, tantalum, timber, lead, fish, gypsum, lignite, fluorite.

Agriculture (12% of GDP): Products--rice, tapioca, rubber, corn, sugarcane, coconuts, soybeans.

Industry: Types--tourism, textiles, garments, agricultural processing, cement, integrated circuits, jewelry, electronics, petrochemical, and auto assembly.

Trade (2010 preliminary): Merchandise exports--$188.8 billion. Products--automatic data processing machines and parts, automobiles and parts, precious stones and jewelry, refined fuels, rubber, electronic integrated circuits, polymers of ethylene and propylene, rice, iron and steel and their products, rubber products, chemical products. Major markets--ASEAN, EU, China, U.S., Japan, and Hong Kong. Merchandise imports--$175.5 billion. Products--crude oil, machinery and parts, electrical machinery and parts, chemicals, iron and steel and their products, electrical circuits panels, computers and parts, other metal ores and metal waste scrap, ships and boats and floating structure, jewelry including silver and gold. Major suppliers--Japan, ASEAN, China, the Middle East, EU, and U.S.

PEOPLE Thailand (previously Siam) has always been a multi-ethnic, multi-confessional society. More than 85% speak a variant of Thai and share a common culture, though there is a strong sense of regional identity and pride in many areas of Thailand. Roughly one-third of the population is in central Thailand, including Bangkok; one-third in the northeast, with significant Lao and Khmer heritage; 20% in the north; and 15% in the south. Ethnic Malay Muslims comprise a majority in the three southernmost provinces.

Central Thai is the language taught in schools and used in government. Lao, as well as "Isaan dialect", is spoken widely in northeastern Thailand; "Gam Muang" or northern dialect is spoken in the north; and a southern Thai dialect in the mid-south. Several other Tai dialects are spoken among smaller groups, such as the Shan (Tai Yai), Lue, and Phutai.

Up to 12% of Thai are of significant Chinese heritage, but the Sino-Thai community is the best integrated in Southeast Asia. Other groups include the Khmer in border provinces with Cambodia; the Mon, who are substantially assimilated with the Thai; and the Vietnamese. Smaller mountain-dwelling tribes, such as the Hmong, Mein, and the Karen, number about 788,024.

The population is mostly rural, concentrated in the rice-growing areas of the central, northeastern, and northern regions. However, as Thailand continues to industrialize, its urban population--31.6% of total population, principally in the Bangkok area--is growing.

Thailand's highly successful government-sponsored family planning program has resulted in a dramatic decline in population growth from 3.1% in 1960 to less than 1% today. Life expectancy also has risen, a positive reflection of Thailand's public health efforts. Thailand's model intervention programs in the 1990s also averted what could have been a major AIDS epidemic. Even so, today, approximately 1.4% of the adult population lives with HIV/AIDS.

The constitution mandates at least 12 years of free education; however, only 9 years are compulsory. In early 2009, the Abhisit administration put into effect a program to provide 15 years of free education (3 years in preschool and grades 1-12). Education accounts for approximately 18.0% of total government expenditures.

Theravada Buddhism is the major religion of Thailand, practiced by about 90% of its people. The government permits religious diversity, and other major religions are represented, with Muslim communities scattered throughout Thailand, and in larger numbers in the southern region. Spirit worship/animism and Hindu-Brahmic rituals are widely practiced.

History

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