Compare British Virgin Islands (2004) - Dominican Republic (2003)

Compare British Virgin Islands (2004) z Dominican Republic (2003)

	British Virgin Islands (2004)	Dominican Republic (2003)

Administrative divisions	none (overseas territory of the UK)	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: 21.5% (male 2,402; female 2,361) 15-64 years: 73.5% (male 8,395; female 7,911) 65 years and over: 5% (male 594; female 524) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 33.6% (male 1,497,777; female 1,431,104) 15-64 years: 61.2% (male 2,719,505; female 2,614,495) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 212,045; female 240,676) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products	fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish	sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs
Airports	3 (2003 est.)	30 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (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: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 17 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 10 (2002)
Area	total: 153 sq km land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the island of Anegada	total: 48,730 sq km land: 48,380 sq km water: 350 sq km
Area - comparative	about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC	slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire
Background	First settled by the Dutch in 1648, the islands were annexed in 1672 by the English. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency.	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 over the past decade.
Birth rate	14.96 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	23.94 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget	revenues: $121.5 million expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1997)	revenues: $2.9 billion expenditures: $3.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.1 billion (2001 est.)
Capital	Road Town	Santo Domingo
Climate	subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds	tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall
Coastline	80 km	1,288 km
Constitution	1 June 1977	28 November 1966
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI	conventional long form: Dominican Republic conventional short form: none local long form: Republica Dominicana local short form: none
Currency	US dollar (USD)	Dominican peso (DOP)
Death rate	4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	6.88 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external	$36.1 million (1997)	$4.8 billion (2002 est.)
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing	-
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas territory of the UK)	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	none (overseas territory of the UK)	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	none	despite efforts to control illegal migration, destitute Haitians continue to cross into the Dominican Republic
Economic aid - recipient	NA	$239.6 million (1995)
Economy - overview	The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1998. Tourism suffered in 2002 because of the lackluster US economy. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, is expected to make the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the dollar as its currency since 1959.	The Dominican Republic's 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 nearly 40% of national income. Growth probably will slow in 2003 with reduced tourism and expected low growth in the US economy, the source of 87% of export revenues.
Electricity - consumption	35.43 million kWh (2001)	8.543 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	38.1 million kWh (2001)	9.186 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 92% hydro: 7.6% nuclear: 0% other: 0.4% (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Sage 521 m	lowest point: Lago Enriquillo -46 m highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m
Environment - current issues	limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments)	water shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; deforestation; Hurricane Georges damage
Environment - international agreements	-	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	black 83%, white, Indian, Asian and mixed	white 16%, black 11%, mixed 73%
Exchange rates	the US dollar is used	Dominican pesos per US dollar - 18.61 (2002), 16.95 (2001), 16.42 (2000), 16.03 (1999), 15.27 (1998)
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Tom MACAN (since 14 October 2002) head of government: Chief Minister Orlando D. SMITH (since 17 June 2003) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor	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 (2001)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand	ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats, consumer goods
Exports - partners	Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US	US 85%, Canada 1.6%, UK 1.6% (2002)
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	calendar year
Flag description	blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful)	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 featuring a shield supported by an olive branch (left) and a palm branch (right) is at the center of the cross; above the shield a blue ribbon displays the motto, DIOS, PATRIA, LIBERTAD (God, Fatherland, Liberty), and below the shield, REPUBLICA DOMINICANA appears on a red ribbon
GDP	purchasing power parity - $320 million (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $53.78 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 1.8% industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.)	agriculture: 11% industry: 34% services: 55% (2001)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $16,000 (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	1% (2002 est.)	4.1% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates	18 30 N, 64 30 W	19 00 N, 70 40 W
Geography - note	strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico	shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti (eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic, western one-third is Haiti)
Highways	total: 177 km paved: 177 km unpaved: 0 km (2000)	total: 12,600 km paved: 6,224 km unpaved: 6,376 km (1999)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	lowest 10%: 2.1% highest 10%: 37.9% (1998)
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering	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 (2001)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery	foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals
Imports - partners	Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US	US 51.5%, Venezuela 9.6%, Mexico 5.1%, Spain 4% (2002)
Independence	none (overseas territory of the UK)	27 February 1844 (from Haiti)
Industrial production growth rate	NA	2% (2001 est.)
Industries	tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center	tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco
Infant mortality rate	total: 18.05 deaths/1,000 live births male: 21.02 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 34.19 deaths/1,000 live births male: 36.7 deaths/1,000 live births female: 31.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.5% (2002)	5.3% (2002 est.)
International organization participation	Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate), UPU	ACP, Caricom (observer), ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), 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, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	24 (2000)
Irrigated land	NA sq km	2,590 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction	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	4,911 (1980)	2.3 million - 2.6 million
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA	services and government 58.7%, industry 24.3%, agriculture 17% (1998 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 360 km border countries: Haiti 360 km
Land use	arable land: 20% permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (2001)	arable land: 21.08% permanent crops: 9.92% other: 69% (1998 est.)
Languages	English (official)	Spanish
Legal system	English law	based on French civil codes
Legislative branch	unicameral Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, one member from each of 9 electoral districts, four at-large members; members serve four-year terms) elections: last held 16 May 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NDP 8, VIP 5	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: 76.27 years male: 75.24 years female: 77.36 years (2004 est.)	total population: 67.96 years male: 66.41 years female: 69.58 years (2003 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA female: NA	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 84.7% male: 84.6% female: 84.8% (2003 est.)
Location	Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico	Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti
Map references	Central America and the Caribbean	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm	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: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 83,825 GRT/155,909 DWT by type: cargo 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: Norway 1 registered in other countries: 32 (2004 est.)	total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,587 GRT/1,165 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2002 est.)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the UK	-
Military branches	-	Army, Navy, Air Force, National Police
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$180 million (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	1.1% (FY98)
Military manpower - availability	-	males age 15-49: 2,319,419 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	-	males age 15-49: 1,453,705 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - military age	-	18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	-	males: 89,073 (2003 est.)
National holiday	Territory Day, 1 July	Independence Day, 27 February (1844)
Nationality	noun: British Virgin Islander(s) adjective: British Virgin Islander	noun: Dominican(s) adjective: Dominican
Natural hazards	hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October)	lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts
Natural resources	NEGL	nickel, bauxite, gold, silver
Net migration rate	10.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-3.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Pipelines	-	crude oil 96 km; petroleum products 8 km
Political parties and leaders	Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL]	Dominican Liberation Party or PLD [Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna]; Dominican Revolutionary Party or PRD [Hatuey DE CAMPS]; Social Christian Reformist Party or PRSC [Eduardo ESTRELLA]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Collective of Popular Organizations or COP
Population	22,187 (July 2004 est.)	8,715,602 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA	25%
Population growth rate	2.06% (2004 est.)	1.36% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors	Road Town	Barahona, La Romana, Manzanillo, Puerto Plata, San Pedro de Macoris, Santo Domingo
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998)	AM 120, FM 56, shortwave 4 (1998)
Railways	-	total: 1,503 km standard gauge: 375 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 142 km 0.762-m gauge note:: 986 km also operated by sugar companies in 1.076-m, 0.889-m, and 0.762-m gauges (2002)
Religions	Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991)	Roman Catholic 95%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	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: worldwide telephone service domestic: NA international: country code - 1-284; submarine cable to Bermuda	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	11,700 (2002)	709,000 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular	8,000 (2002)	130,149 (1997)
Television broadcast stations	1 (plus one cable company) (1997)	25 (1997)
Terrain	coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly	rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed
Total fertility rate	1.72 children born/woman (2004 est.)	2.92 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate	3% (1995)	14.5% (2002 est.)
Waterways	-	none

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