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Dominican Republic
Background :
Explored and claimed by Christopher COLUMBUS on his first voyage in 1492, the island of Hispaniola became a springboard for Spanish conquest of the Caribbean and the American mainland. In 1697, Spain recognized French dominion over the western third of the island, which in 1804 became Haiti. The remainder of the island, by then known as Santo Domingo, sought to gain its own independence in 1821 but was conquered and ruled by the Haitians for 22 years; it finally attained independence as the Dominican Republic in 1844. In 1861, the Dominicans voluntarily returned to the Spanish Empire, but two years later they launched a war that restored independence in 1865. A legacy of unsettled, mostly non-representative rule followed, capped by the dictatorship of Rafael Leonidas TRUJILLO from 1930-61. Juan BOSCH was elected president in 1962 but was deposed in a military coup in 1963. In 1965, the United States led an intervention in the midst of a civil war sparked by an uprising to restore BOSCH. In 1966, Joaquin BALAGUER defeated BOSCH in an election to become president. BALAGUER maintained a tight grip on power for most of the next 30 years when international reaction to flawed elections forced him to curtail his term in 1996. Since then, regular competitive elections have been held in which opposition candidates have won the presidency. Former President (1996-2000) Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna won election to a second term in 2004 following a constitutional amendment allowing presidents to serve more than one term.
Location :
Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti
Geographic Coordinates Center :
19 00 N, 70 40 W (Latitude, Longtitude)
Geographic Coordinates Rectangle :
| West | -72.00 |
| North | 19.93 |
| East | -68.32 |
| South | 17.54 |
Map references :
America
Area :
| total | 48 670 | square km |
| land | 48 320 | square km |
| water | 350 | square km |
Land boundaries :
| total | 360 | km |
| Haiti (ht) | 360 | km |
Coastline :
1288.00 km
Climate :
tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall
Terrain :
rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed
Elevation extremes :
| lowest point | 46 | metres |
| highest point | 3 175 | metres |
Natural resources :
| bauxite | gold |
| nickel | silver |
Land use :
| arable land | 22.49 | % |
| permanent crops | 10.26 | % |
| other | 67.25 | % |
Irrigated land :
2 750 square km
Total renewable water resources :
21 cubic km
Natural hazards :
| flooding | periodic droughts |
| torms |
current issues :
water shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; deforestation
international agreements :
| Biodiversity | Climate Change |
| Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol | Desertification |
| Endangered Species | Hazardous Wastes |
| Law of the Sea | Marine Dumping |
| Marine Life Conservation | Ozone Layer Protection |
| Ship Pollution | Wetlands |
Population :
9 650 054
Indicators :
| Growth rate | 1.49 | % |
| Birth rate | 22.39 | births/1,000 population |
| Total fertility rate | 2.76 | children born/woman |
| Death rate | 5.28 | deaths/1,000 population |
| Net migration rate | -2.22 | migrant(s)/1,000 population |
Age structure :
| 0-14 years | 31.40 | % |
| 15-64 years | 62.70 | % |
| 65 years and over | 5.90 | % |
Median age :
| total | 24.90 | years |
| male | 24.80 | years |
| female | 25.10 | years |
Sex ratio :
| at birth | 1.04 | male(s)/female |
| under 15 years | 1.04 | male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 1.04 | male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.86 | male(s)/female |
| total population | 1.03 | male(s)/female |
Health :
| Infant mortality rate | 25.96 | deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life expectancy at birth - total population | 73.70 | years |
| Life expectancy at birth - male | 71.88 | years |
| Life expectancy at birth - female | 75.60 | years |
| HIV-AIDS adult prevalence rate | 1.10 | % |
| HIV-AIDS people living with HIV-AIDS | 62 000 | |
| HIV-AIDS deaths | 4 100 |
Religions :
| Roman Catholic | 95.00 | % |
| other | 5.00 | % |
Languages :
| Spanish |
Literacy :
| total population | 87.00 | % |
| male | 86.80 | % |
| female | 87.20 | % |
Country name :
| conventional long form | Dominican Republic |
| conventional short form | The Dominican |
| local long form | Republica Dominicana |
| local short form | La Dominicana |
Country Codes :
| ISO 3166 | DO |
| ISO Numeric | 214 |
| ISO3 | DOM |
| FIPS | DR |
| ccTLD | do |
| English | Dominican Republic |
Administrative divisions :
31 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 district* (distrito); Azua, Bahoruco, Barahona, Dajabon, Distrito Nacional*, Duarte, El Seibo, Elias Pina, Espaillat, Hato Mayor, Independencia, La Altagracia, La Romana, La Vega, Maria Trinidad Sanchez, Monsenor Nouel, Monte Cristi, Monte Plata, Pedernales, Peravia, Puerto Plata, Salcedo, Samana, San Cristobal, San Jose de Ocoa, San Juan, San Pedro de Macoris, Sanchez Ramirez, Santiago, Santiago Rodriguez, Santo Domingo, Valverde
Capital :
| name | Santo Domingo |
| geographic coordinates | 18 28 N, 69 54 W |
| time difference | -4.00 |
International organization participation :
| ACP | AOSIS |
| BCIE | Caricom (observer) |
| FAO | G-77 |
| IADB | IAEA |
| IBRD | ICAO |
| ICC | ICCt |
| ICRM | IDA |
| IFAD | IFC |
| IFRCS | IHO |
| ILO | IMF |
| IMO | IOC |
| IOM | IPU |
| ISO (correspondent) | ITSO |
| ITU | ITUC |
| Interpol | LAES |
| LAIA (observer) | MIGA |
| NAM | OAS |
| OPANAL | OPCW |
| PCA | PetroCaribe |
| RG | SICA (associated member) |
| UN | UNCTAD |
| UNESCO | UNIDO |
| UNWTO | UPU |
| Union Latina | WCO |
| WFTU | WHO |
| WIPO | WMO |
| WTO |
Independence :
1844-02-27
National holiday :
Independence Day
1844-02-27
Executive branch :
| President Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna |
GDP - Gross Domestic product :
| PPP - Purchasing Power Parity | 78 890 000 000 | $ |
| Official Exchange Rate | 44 720 000 000 | |
| RGR - Real Growth rate | -0.30 | % |
| PPP - per capita | 8 200 | $ |
GDP Composition by sector :
| agriculture | 10.50 | % |
| industry | 21.30 | % |
| services | 68.20 | % |
Labor force - by occupation :
| agriculture | 14.60 | % |
| industry | 22.30 | % |
| services | 63.10 | % |
Other Indicators :
| Labor force | 4 417 000 | people |
| Unemployment rate | 15.10 | % |
| Population below poverty line | 42.20 | % |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index | 49.90 | |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.40 | % |
| Investment (gross fixed) | 16.60 | % of GDP |
| Current account balance | - 2 274 000 000 | $ |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | 2 288 000 000 | $ |
| Debt external | 11 850 000 000 | $ |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad | 59 000 000 | $ |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home | 17 190 000 000 | $ |
| Military expenditures | 0.80 | % of GDP |
| Public debt | 41.50 | % of GDP |
Household income or consumption by percentage share :
| lowest 10% | 1.50 | % |
| highest 10% | 38.70 | % |
Budget :
| revenues | 6 361 000 000 | $ |
| expenditures | 7 588 000 000 | $ |
Agriculture - products :
| bananas | beans |
| beef | cattle |
| cocoa | coffee |
| corn | cotton |
| dairy | eggs |
| pigs | potatoes |
| rice | sugarcane |
| tobacco |
Industries :
| cement | gold mining |
| sugar processing | textiles |
| tobacco | tourism |
Energy :
| Electricity Production | 14 020 000 000 | kWh |
| Electricity Consumption | 12 700 000 000 | kWh |
| Oil Consumption | 119 000 | bbl/day |
| Oil Imports | 116 200 | bbl/day |
| Natural gas Consumption | 470 000 000 | cubic metres |
| Natural gas Imports | 470 000 000 | cubic metres |
Value :
5 372 000 000 $
Partners :
| United States (us) | 58.10 | % |
| Haiti (ht) | 9.30 | % |
| Netherlands (nl) | 2.90 | % |
Commodities :
| cocoa | coffee |
| consumer products | ferronickel |
| gold | meat |
| silver | sugar |
| tobacco |
Value :
12 140 000 000 $
Partners :
| United States (us) | 39.20 | % |
| Venezuela (ve) | 7.70 | % |
| Tawian | 5.90 | % |
| Mexico (mx) | 5.40 | % |
| Colombia (co) | 4.90 | % |
Commodities :
| chemicals and pharmaceuticals | cotton and fabrics |
| foodstuffs | petroleum |
Currency-code :
DOP
Currency-name :
Dominican peso
Communications :
| Telephons Main lines in use | 985 700 | |
| Telephons Mobile, Cellular | 7 210 000 | |
| FM Radio broadcast stations | 56 | |
| Television broadcast stations | 25 | |
| Internet Country code (ccTLD) | do | |
| Internet Hosts | 280 457 | |
| Internet Users | 2 147 000 |
Transportation :
| Airports with paved runways | 16 | |
| Roadways - total | 19 705 | km |
| Roadways - paved | 9 872 | km |
| Roadways - unpaved | 9 833 | km |
| Railways | 1 784 | km |
Flag
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