SHARING BORDERS with Bangladesh, India, Tibet/China, Laos and Thailand, Burma is located at the junction of South and Southeast Asia. In October 2002, Himal carried a special focus on Burma and its role in South Asia. In this profile, with inputs provided by Burma Alert bulletin, Himal presents a statistical comparison of Burma and its neighbours.
As a rule, statistical data about Burma are unreliable. However, this comparison is made with recently released intelligence data, which provide a consistent basis for drawing comparisons between Burma and the other countries. Vietnam is included here because many economists like to compare Burma with Vietnam, says Burma Alert.