Bolivia (2005) | Dominican Republic (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, Beni, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija | 29 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 district* (distrito); Azua, Baoruco, Barahona, Dajabon, Distrito Nacional*, Duarte, Elias Pina, El Seibo, 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, Sanchez Ramirez, San Cristobal, San Juan, San Pedro de Macoris, Santiago, Santiago Rodriguez, Valverde |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 35.7% (male 1,613,049/female 1,551,023)
15-64 years: 59.8% (male 2,591,328/female 2,701,892) 65 years and over: 4.5% (male 178,486/female 222,092) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 33.7% (male 1,503,344; female 1,439,157)
15-64 years: 61.3% (male 2,720,308; female 2,621,539) 65 years and over: 5% (male 206,556; female 230,690) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | soybeans, coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber | sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs |
Airports | 1,065 (2004 est.) | 29 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 16
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 13
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1,049
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 60 914 to 1,523 m: 207 under 914 m: 778 (2004 est.) |
total: 17
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 10 (2002) |
Area | total: 1,098,580 sq km
land: 1,084,390 sq km water: 14,190 sq km |
total: 48,730 sq km
land: 48,380 sq km water: 350 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Montana | slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire |
Background | Bolivia, named after independence fighter Simon BOLIVAR, broke away from Spanish rule in 1825; much of its subsequent history has consisted of a series of nearly 200 coups and counter-coups. Comparatively democratic civilian rule was established in 1982, but leaders have faced difficult problems of deep-seated poverty, social unrest, and illegal drug production. Current goals include attracting foreign investment, strengthening the educational system, resolving disputes with coca growers over Bolivia's counterdrug efforts, and waging an anticorruption campaign. | Explored and claimed by 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. A legacy of unsettled, mostly non-representative, rule for much of its subsequent history was brought to an end in 1966 when Joaquin BALAGUER became president. He 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. The Dominican economy has had one of the fastest growth rates in the hemisphere. |
Birth rate | 23.76 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 24.4 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.264 billion
expenditures: $2.769 billion, including capital expenditures of $741 million (2004 est.) |
revenues: $2.9 billion
expenditures: $3.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.1 billion (2001 est.) |
Capital | La Paz (seat of government); Sucre (legal capital and seat of judiciary) | Santo Domingo |
Climate | varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid | tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 1,288 km |
Constitution | 2 February 1967; revised in August 1994 | 28 November 1966 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Bolivia
conventional short form: Bolivia local long form: Republica de Bolivia local short form: Bolivia |
conventional long form: Dominican Republic
conventional short form: none local long form: Republica Dominicana local short form: none |
Currency | - | Dominican peso (DOP) |
Death rate | 7.64 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 4.68 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.439 billion (June 2004 est.) | $5.4 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador David N. GREENLEE
embassy: Avenida Arce 2780, San Jorge, La Paz mailing address: P. O. Box 425, La Paz; APO AA 34032 telephone: [591] (2) 2430120, 2430251 FAX: [591] (2) 2433900 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Hans H. HERTELL
embassy: corner of Calle Cesar Nicolas Penson and Calle Leopoldo Navarro, Santo Domingo mailing address: Unit 5500, APO AA 34041-5500 telephone: [1] (809) 221-2171 FAX: [1] (809) 686-7437 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jaime APARICIO Otero
chancery: 3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4410 FAX: [1] (202) 328-3712 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York, and San Francisco |
chief of mission: Ambassador Hugo GUILIANI Cury
chancery: 1715 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6280 FAX: [1] (202) 265-8057 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Jacksonville, Mayaguez (Puerto Rico), Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) consulate(s): Mobile and Ponce (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | Chile rebuffs Bolivia's reactivated claim to restore the Atacama corridor, ceded to Chile in 1884, offering instead unrestricted but not sovereign maritime access through Chile for Bolivian natural gas and other commodities | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $681 million (2002) | $239.6 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | Bolivia, long one of the poorest and least developed Latin American countries, reformed its economy after suffering a disastrous economic crisis in the early 1980s. The reforms spurred real GDP growth, which averaged 4 percent in the 1990s, and poverty rates fell. Economic growth, however, lagged again beginning in 1999 because of a global slowdown and homegrown factors such as political turmoil, civil unrest, and soaring fiscal deficits, all of which hurt investor confidence. In 2003, violent protests against the pro-foreign investment economic policies of President SANCHEZ DE LOZADA led to his resignation and the cancellation of plans to export Bolivia's newly discovered natural gas reserves to large northern hemisphere markets. Foreign investment dried up as companies adopted a wait-and-see attitude regarding new President Carlos MESA's willingness to protect investor rights in the face of increased demands by radical groups that the government expropriate foreign-owned assets. Real GDP growth in 2003 and 2004 - helped by increased demand for natural gas in neighboring Brazil - was positive, but still below the levels seen during the 1990s. Bolivia remains dependent on foreign aid from multilateral lenders and foreign governments. | The Dominican economy experienced dramatic growth over the last decade, even though the economy was hit hard by Hurricane Georges in 1998. Although the country has long been viewed primarily as an exporter of sugar, coffee, and tobacco, in recent years the service sector has overtaken agriculture as the economy's largest employer, due to growth in tourism and free trade zones. The country suffers from marked income inequality; the poorest half of the population receives less than one-fifth of GNP, while the richest 10% enjoy 40% of national income. A US $500 million foreign bond issue in September 2001 will contribute to increased public investment spending. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.848 billion kWh (2002) | 8,812.029 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 3 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 9 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 4.132 billion kWh (2002) | 9.475 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 87%
hydro: 13% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Rio Paraguay 90 m
highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m |
lowest point: Lago Enriquillo -46 m
highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m |
Environment - current issues | the clearing of land for agricultural purposes and the international demand for tropical timber are contributing to deforestation; soil erosion from overgrazing and poor cultivation methods (including slash-and-burn agriculture); desertification; loss of biodiversity; industrial pollution of water supplies used for drinking and irrigation | water shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; deforestation; Hurricane Georges damage |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Quechua 30%, mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry) 30%, Aymara 25%, white 15% | white 16%, black 11%, mixed 73% |
Exchange rates | bolivianos per US dollar - 7.9363 (2004), 7.6592 (2003), 7.17 (2002), 6.6069 (2001), 6.1835 (2000) | Dominican pesos per US dollar - 17.310 (January 2002), 16.952 (2001), 16.415 (2000), 16.033 (1999), 15.267 (1998), 14.265 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Eduardo RODRIGUEZ Veltze (since 9 June 2005); Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Eduardo RODRIGUEZ Veltze (since 9 June 2005); Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 30 June 2002 (next to be held June 2007) election results: as a result of no candidate winning a majority in the 30 June 2002 election, Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA Bustamante was chosen president by Congress; congressional votes - Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA Bustamante 84, Evo MORALES 43; note - following the resignation of the elected president on 17 October 2003 and Vice President Carlos Diego MESA Gisbert on 9 June 2005, Eduardo RODRIGUEZ Veltze, President of the Supreme Court and constitutional successor, became president. |
chief of state: President Rafael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez (since 16 August 2000); Vice President Milagros ORTIZ-BOSCH (since 16 August 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Rafael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez (since 16 August 2000); Vice President Milagros ORTIZ-BOSCH (since 16 August 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 16 May 2000 (next to be held NA May 2004) election results: Raphael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez elected president; percent of vote - Rafael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez (PRD) 49.87%, Danilo MEDINA (PLD) 24.95%, Joaquin BALAGUER (PRSC) 24.6% |
Exports | NA | $5.5 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | natural gas, soybeans and soy products, crude petroleum, zinc ore, tin | ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats, consumer goods |
Exports - partners | Brazil 40%, US 13.9%, Colombia 8.7%, Peru 6.3%, Japan 4.5% (2004) | US 87.3%, Netherlands 1.1%, Canada 0.7%, France 0.7% (2000 est.) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with the coat of arms centered on the yellow band; similar to the flag of Ghana, which has a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band | a centered white cross that extends to the edges divides the flag into four rectangles - the top ones are blue (hoist side) and red, and the bottom ones are red (hoist side) and blue; a small coat of arms is at the center of the cross |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $50 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 13%
industry: 28% services: 59% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 11%
industry: 34% services: 55% (2000) (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5,800 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.7% (2004 est.) | 1.5% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 S, 65 00 W | 19 00 N, 70 40 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru | shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti (eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic, western one-third is Haiti) |
Highways | total: 60,282 km
paved: 3,979 km unpaved: 56,303 km (2002) |
total: 12,600 km
paved: 6,224 km unpaved: 6,376 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.3%
highest 10%: 32% (1999) |
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 40% (1989) (1989) |
Illicit drugs | world's third-largest cultivator of coca (after Colombia and Peru) with an estimated 28,450 hectares under cultivation in June 2003, a 23% increase from June 2002; intermediate coca products and cocaine exported mostly to or through Brazil, Argentina, and Chile to European and US drug markets; eradication and alternative crop programs under the MESA administration have been unable to keep pace with farmers' attempts to increase cultivation; money-laundering activity related to narcotics trade, especially along the borders with Brazil and Paraguay | transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe; has become a transshipment point for ecstasy from the Netherlands and Belgium destined for US and Canada; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor the Dominican Republic for illicit financial transactions |
Imports | NA | $8.7 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, plastics, paper, aircraft and aircraft parts, prepared foods, automobiles, insecticides, soybeans | foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals |
Imports - partners | Brazil 29.7%, Argentina 17.6%, US 10.8%, Chile 7.7%, Peru 7.3% (2004) | US 60.5%, Japan 10.4%, Mexico 4.7%, Venezuela 3% (2000 est.) |
Independence | 6 August 1825 (from Spain) | 27 February 1844 (from Haiti) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.7% (2004 est.) | 2% (2001 est.) |
Industries | mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing | tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco |
Infant mortality rate | total: 53.11 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 56.7 deaths/1,000 live births female: 49.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
33.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.9% (2004 est.) | 5% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | CAN, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS, ONUB, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, Caricom (observer), ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 24 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 1,280 sq km (1998 est.) | 2,590 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges appointed for 10-year terms by National Congress); District Courts (one in each department); provincial and local courts (to try minor cases) | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are elected by a Council made up of members of the legislative and executive branches with the president presiding) |
Labor force | 3.8 million (2004 est.) | 2.3 million - 2.6 million |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | services and government 59%, industry 24%, agriculture 17% (1998 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 6,743 km
border countries: Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 km |
total: 360 km
border countries: Haiti 360 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.67%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 97.14% (2001) |
arable land: 21.08%
permanent crops: 9.92% other: 69% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara (official) | Spanish |
Legal system | based on Spanish law and Napoleonic Code; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on French civil codes |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (27 seats; members are elected by proportional representation from party lists to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (130 seats; 68 are directly elected from their districts and 62 are elected by proportional representation from party lists to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators and Chamber of Deputies - last held 30 June 2002 (next to be held June 2007) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNR 11, MAS 8, MIR 5, NFR 2, other 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNR 36, MAS 27, MIR 26, NFR 25, others 16 |
bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate or Senado (30 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (149 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 16 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 16 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 24, PLD 3, PRSC 3; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 83, PLD 49, PRSC 17 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 65.5 years
male: 62.89 years female: 68.25 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 73.68 years
male: 71.57 years female: 75.91 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 87.2% male: 93.1% female: 81.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 82.1% male: 82% female: 82.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Central South America, southwest of Brazil | Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti |
Map references | South America | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 6 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 32 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 413,407 GRT/699,901 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 16, chemical tanker 1, container 1, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 9, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 11 (Argentina 1, Egypt 2, Eritrea 1, Germany 1, Iran 1, Singapore 2, United Kingdom 1, United States 2) (2005) |
total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,587 GRT/1,165 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army (Ejercito Boliviano), Navy (Fuerza Naval; includes Marines), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana) (2004) | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $132.2 million (2004) | $180 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.6% (2004) | 1.1% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 2,323,088 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,455,887 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 87,404 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 August (1825) | Independence Day, 27 February (1844) |
Nationality | noun: Bolivian(s)
adjective: Bolivian |
noun: Dominican(s)
adjective: Dominican |
Natural hazards | flooding in the northeast (March-April) | lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower | nickel, bauxite, gold, silver |
Net migration rate | -1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -3.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 4,860 km; liquid petroleum gas 47 km; oil 2,457 km; refined products 1,589 km; unknown (oil/water) 247 km (2004) | crude oil 96 km; petroleum products 8 km |
Political parties and leaders | Bolivian Socialist Falange or FSB [Romel PANTOJA]; Civic Solidarity Union or UCS [Johnny FERNANDEZ]; Free Bolivia Movement or MBL [Franz BARRIOS]; Marshal of Ayacucho Institutional Vanguard or VIMA [Freddy ZABALA]; Movement of the Revolutionary Left or MIR [Jaime PAZ Zamora]; Movement Toward Socialism or MAS [Evo MORALES]; Movement Without Fear or MSM [Juan DEL GRANADO]; Nationalist Democratic Action or ADN [Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez]; Nationalist Revolutionary Movement or MNR [leader NA]; New Republican Force or NFR [Manfred REYES-VILLA]; Pachakuti Indigenous Movement or MIP [Felipe QUISPE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jeres JUSTINIANO] | Dominican Liberation Party or PLD [Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna]; Dominican Revolutionary Party or PRD [Hatuey DE CAMPS]; Social Christian Reformist Party or PRSC [Joaquin BALAGUER Ricardo] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Cocalero Groups; indigenous organizations; labor unions; Sole Confederation of Campesino Workers of Bolivia or CSUTCB [Roman LOAYZA] | Collective of Popular Organizations or COP |
Population | 8,857,870 (July 2005 est.) | 8,721,594 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 64% (2004 est.) | 25% |
Population growth rate | 1.49% (2005 est.) | 1.61% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Puerto Aguirre (on the Paraguay/Parana waterway, at the Bolivia/Brazil border); also, Bolivia has free port privileges in maritime ports in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay | Barahona, La Romana, Manzanillo, Puerto Plata, San Pedro de Macoris, Santo Domingo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 171, FM 73, shortwave 77 (1999) | AM 120, FM 56, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | - | 1.44 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 3,519 km
narrow gauge: 3,519 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
total: 757 km
standard gauge: 375 km 1.435-m gauge (Central Romana Railroad) narrow gauge: 142 km 0.762-m gauge (Dominican Republic Government Railway) miscellaneous gauge: 240 km operated by sugar companies in various gauges (0.558-m, 0.762-m, 1.067-m gauges) (2000 est.) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist) 5% | Roman Catholic 95% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age, universal and compulsory (married); 21 years of age, universal and compulsory (single) | 18 years of age, universal and compulsory; married persons regardless of age
note: members of the armed forces and police cannot vote |
Telephone system | general assessment: new subscribers face bureaucratic difficulties; most telephones are concentrated in La Paz and other cities; mobile cellular telephone use expanding rapidly
domestic: primary trunk system, which is being expanded, employs digital microwave radio relay; some areas are served by fiber-optic cable; mobile cellular systems are being expanded international: country code - 591; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: relatively efficient system based on islandwide microwave radio relay network international: 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 600,100 (2003) | 709,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,401,500 (2003) | 130,149 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 48 (1997) | 25 (1997) |
Terrain | rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin | rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed |
Total fertility rate | 2.94 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.94 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.2% in urban areas
note: widespread underemployment (2003 est.) |
15% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | 10,000 km (commercially navigable) (2004) | none |