Thailand is a Southeast Asian country bordered by Burma, Laos,
Cambodia, and Malaysia. The climate is classified as tropical due
to variable monsoon seasons. Residents can expect warm weather
associated with the southwest monsoon season and cooler weather
associated with the northeast monsoon season. The southern part of
Thailand exhibits a consistent hot climate. The country is
endowed with natural resources such as tin, rubber, natural gas,
tungsten, tantalum, timber, lead, fish, gypsum, lignite, fluorite,
and arable land. Thailand has a number of natural hazards including
sinking land and droughts.
The government structure in use is defined as a constitutional
monarch with tri-branch structure. This includes an executive,
legislative, and judicial branch. Thailand has a population of
65,905,410 people. This is ranked 20th in the world as of July
2009. The primary language spoken in this country is Thai. It
contains variants depending on the region and people that speak it.
English is spoken by those who are well educated. According to a
2004 estimate, 10% of the population lives below the poverty
line.
Statistics
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$547.4 billion (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 25
$533.5 billion (2007 est.)
$508.6 billion (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$8,400 (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 117
$8,200 (2007 est.)
$7,900 (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
Currency: 1.00 United States Dollar =
33.3600 Thai Bhat (THB)
Environment - current issues: air pollution from vehicle
emissions; water pollution from organic and factory wastes;
deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by
illegal hunting
Infant mortality rate:
17.63 deaths/1000 live births, ranked 117 in the world
Male: 18.9 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 16.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
Total population: 73.1 years
Country comparison to the world: 110
Male: 70.77 years
Female: 75.55 years (2009 est.)
Total Fertility rate:
1.65 children born/woman (2009 est.)
Country comparison to the world: 178
Unemployment Rate:
1.4% (2008 est.)
Country comparison to the world: 8
1.4% (2007 est.)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.6%
male: 94.9%
female: 90.5% (2000 census)