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Climate : Humid, Tropical climate, Summer (March-May) averange about 34 C (93 F), Rain Period (June-September) temperature run from 27 to 32 C (80-89 F), Winter (october-feb) temperature around 18-32 C (65-89 F)

Population : About 62,354,402 millions (2002), population growth rate 0,88% 

Political Divisions : Thailand is divided into 76 provinces, called changwads. The provinces are further subdivided into districts, called amphurs, more than communes, called tambons, and then villages known as moobans.

Education : Education in Thailand is free and compulsory for all children between the ages of 7 and 14, but the available school facilities, both public and in Buddhist monasteries, are insufficient to provide a primary education for all children. The literacy rate is nearly 90 per cent, higher than that of most other countries of South East Asia.

Elementary and Secondary Schools : In 1992 there were about 6.8 million primary school pupils and 1.1 million secondary school pupils. An additional 973,000 students were enrolled in higher educational institutions.

Universities and Colleges : Thailand has several universities, the largest of which include Chulalongkorn University (1917) and Thammasat University (1934) in Bangkok, and Chiang Mai University (1964) in the north. In addition, the Asian Institute of Technology (1959), in Bangkok, enrolled about 1,000 graduate students in the early 1990s.

Judiciary : The highest court is the Supreme Court (Sarn Dika) sitting in Bangkok, which is the court of final appeal in all civil, criminal, and bankruptcy cases. A single court of appeals (Sarn Uthorn) has appellate jurisdiction in all cases. Courts of first instance include magistrates’ courts with limited civil and criminal jurisdiction, provincial courts with unlimited jurisdiction, and civil and criminal courts with exclusive jurisdiction in Bangkok and Thon Buri. Under the 1991 constitution the independence of the judiciary is recognized.

Ethnic group : thai 75%, chinese 14%, other 11 %

Religion : Buddhism 95% , Muslim 3,8 %, Christian 0,5% , Hinduism 0,1%, others0,6% (1991)

Language : thai, english(second language of the elite) , ethnic and regional dialects. Thai, a member of the Sino-Tibetan language family, is the chief language. Four regional dialects are in use. Lao, Chinese, Mon-Khmer, and Malay are also spoken in Thailand. English is taught in some secondary schools and colleges, and is also used in commerce and government.

Agriculture - products rice, cassava (tapioca), rubber, corn, sugarcane, coconuts, soybeans

Exports $65.3 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Exports - partners US 23%, Japan 14%, Singapore 8%, China 6%, Hong Kong 5%, Malaysia 4% (2000). In 1993 Thai exports were valued at about $37.2 billion, and imports were valued at about $46.2 billion. Principal exports were textiles and clothing, electronic components, computers, transistors, rice, rubber, tin, cassava, sugar, and prawns. Imports included petroleum and petroleum products, non-electrical machinery, transport equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, and electrical machinery. Primary trading partners were Japan, the United States, Singapore, Germany, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.

Imports $62.3 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Manufacturing : Manufacturing employs about 15 per cent of the labour force. Food-processing industries, especially rice-milling and sugar-refining, textile and clothing manufacture, and the electronics industry predominate. Other important manufactured goods in 1992 included cement (20 million tonnes), motor vehicles (350,000 units), cigarettes (40,500 tonnes), and various chemicals and petroleum products.

Energy : In 1992 Thailand produced about 60 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity, up from about 3 billion kilowatt-hours in 1968, from an installed capacity of 9.7 million kilowatts. More than 85 per cent was produced in thermal installations, largely burning locally produced coal or imported petroleum; the remainder was generated in hydroelectric facilities. Some hydroelectricity is imported from Laos.

Currency and Banking : The monetary unit of Thailand is the baht (THB) of 100 satang (25.90 baht equal US$1; 1997). The Bank of Thailand, established in 1942, issues all currency. Thailand also has many commercial bank branches, as well as several foreign banks. Currency code THB

GDP purchasing power parity - $410 billion (2001)

GDP - real growth rate 1.4% (2001)

GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $6,600 (2001)

GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: 11%
industry: 40%
services: 49% (2001)

Population below poverty line 12.5% (1998)

Birth rate : 16,39 births/1,000 population (2002)

Death rate : 7,55 deaths/1,000 population (2002)

Sex ration : at birth 1,05 male(s)/female; under 15 years : 1,04 male(s)/female; 15-64 years : 0,97 male(s)/female; over 65 years : 0,78 male(s) /female; total population : 0,97 male(s)/female (2002)  

Life expectancy at birth : total population 69,18 years; female: 72,51 years; male: 66 years

Total fertility rate : 1,86 children / woman (2002) 

Infant mortality rate : 29,5 deaths/ 1,000 lives births (2002)

Age structure : 
0-14 years : 23,3%
(Male 7,404,227; Female 7,121,083)
15-64 years : 69,9 %
(Male 21,469,186; Female 22,090,520) 
65 years and over : 6,8 %
(Male 1,868,632; Female 2,400,754) (2002)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 32.4% (1998)

Distribution of family income - Gini index 41.4 (1998)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1.6% (2001)

Labor force 33.4 million (2001)

Labor force - by occupation agriculture 54%, industry 15%, services 31% (1996)

Unemployment rate 3.9% (2001)

HIV / AIDS 
Adult prevalence rate : 2,15 % (1999)
People living with AIDS : 755,000 (1999)
Deaths : 66,000 (1999) 

Source: CIA The World Factbook

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