French is spoken widely and there are also numerous tribal languages. The principal religion is Buddhism which strongly influences the arts and literature issues. Another feature is that 85 per cent of the population live in the countryside. The ethnic diversity of the population and the existence of communication tensions obstruct efforts to promote social and economic development. The economy is among the least developed in the world.
Production is overwhelmingly agrarian.
The great importance is attached to the literature. The decisive turnpoint in cultural activities occurred in 1975 with the liberation of whole country. The Government and the People's Revolutionary Party adopted attitudes towards cultural and educational policies by stressing the cultural identity and the use of national language. According to these attitudes, the purpose of cultural policy is to mobilize the people to take more active part in all cultural fields. The Ministry of Information and Culture is responsible for cultural policy.