Cayman Islands (2001) | Dominican Republic (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 districts; Creek, Eastern, Midland, South Town, Spot Bay, Stake Bay, West End, Western | 31 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 Jose de Ocoa, San Juan, San Pedro de Macoris, Santiago, Santiago Rodriguez, Santo Domingo, Valverde |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
22.21% (male 3,807; female 4,084) 15-64 years: 69.74% (male 12,102; female 12,676) 65 years and over: 8.05% (male 1,318; female 1,540) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 32.9% (male 1,505,964/female 1,438,809)
15-64 years: 61.7% (male 2,815,544/female 2,703,012) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 226,372/female 260,333) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming | sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 31 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2000 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 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
259 sq km land: 259 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 48,730 sq km
land: 48,380 sq km water: 350 sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire |
Background | The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries. Administered by Jamaica from 1863, they remained a British dependency after 1962 when the former became independent. | 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. 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 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 | 13.79 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 23.28 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$265.2 million expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues: $2.625 billion
expenditures: $3.382 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.1 billion (2004 est.) |
Capital | George Town | Santo Domingo |
Climate | tropical marine; warm, rainy summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to April) | tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall |
Coastline | 160 km | 1,288 km |
Constitution | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992 | 28 November 1966; amended 25 July 2002 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Cayman Islands |
conventional long form: Dominican Republic
conventional short form: The Dominican local long form: Republica Dominicana local short form: La Dominicana |
Currency | Caymanian dollar (KYD) | - |
Death rate | 5.15 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.35 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $70 million (1996) | $7.745 billion (2004 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
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-designate Flavio Dario Espinal JACOBO
chancery: 1715 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6280 FAX: [1] (202) 265-8057 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Mayaguez (Puerto Rico), Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | none | increasing numbers of illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage each year to Puerto Rico to find work |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $239.6 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | With no direct taxation, the islands are a thriving offshore financial center. More than 40,000 companies were registered in the Cayman Islands as of 1997, including almost 600 banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion. A stock exchange was opened in 1997. Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and 75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1.2 million visitors in 1997. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living in the world. | The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean representative democracy which enjoyed GDP growth of more than 7% in 1998-2000. Growth subsequently plummeted as part of the global economic slowdown. 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% enjoys nearly 40% of national income. Growth turned negative in 2003 with reduced tourism, a major bank fraud, and limited growth in the US economy (the source of about 85% of export revenues), but recovered slightly in 2004. Resumption of a badly needed IMF loan, slowed due to government repurchase of electrical power plants, is basic to the restoration of social and economic stability. Newly elected President FERNANDEZ in mid-2004 promised belt-tightening reform. His administration has passed tax reform and is working to meet preconditions for a $600 IMF standby arrangement to ease the country's fiscal situation. |
Electricity - consumption | 306.9 million kWh (1999) | 8.912 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 330 million kWh (1999) | 9.583 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: The Bluff 43 m |
lowest point: Lago Enriquillo -46 m
highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m |
Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchment | water shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | mixed 40%, white 20%, black 20%, expatriates of various ethnic groups 20% | white 16%, black 11%, mixed 73% |
Exchange rates | Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) | Dominican pesos per US dollar - 42.12 (2004), 30.831 (2003), 18.61 (2002), 16.952 (2001), 16.415 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Governor and President of the Executive Council Peter SMITH (since 5 May 1999) head of government: Kurt TIBBETTS (since November 2000) cabinet: Executive Council (three members appointed by the governor, four members elected by the Legislative Assembly) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor is appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna (since 16 August 2004); Vice President Rafael ALBURQUERQUE de Castro (since 16 August 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna (since 16 August 2004); Vice President Rafael ALBURQUERQUE de Castro (since 16 August 2004); 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 2004 (next to be held in May 2008) election results: Leonel FERNANDEZ elected president; percent of vote - Leonel FERNANDEZ (PLD) 57.1%, Rafael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez (PRD) 33.7%, Eduardo ESTRELLA (PRSC) 8.7% |
Exports | $1.5 million (1998) | NA |
Exports - commodities | turtle products, manufactured consumer goods | ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats, consumer goods |
Exports - partners | mostly US | US 80%, South Korea 2.1%, Canada 1.9% (2004) |
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 Caymanian coat of arms on a white disk centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes a pineapple and turtle above a shield with three stars (representing the three islands) and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HE HATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS | 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 - $930 million (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
1.4% industry: 3.2% services: 95.4% (1994 est.) |
agriculture: 10.7%
industry: 31.5% services: 57.8% (2003) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $24,500 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (1999 est.) | 1.7% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 30 N, 80 30 W | 19 00 N, 70 40 W |
Geography - note | important location between Cuba and Central America | shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti |
Highways | total:
406 km paved: 304 km unpaved: 102 km |
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 | vulnerable to drug money laundering and drug transshipment to the US and Europe | 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 | $507.6 million (1998) | 129,900 bbl/day (2003) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, manufactured goods | foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals |
Imports - partners | US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan | US 48.1%, Venezuela 13.5%, Colombia 4.8%, Mexico 4.8% (2004) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 27 February 1844 (from Haiti) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 2% (2001 est.) |
Industries | tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture | tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco |
Infant mortality rate | 10.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 32.38 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 34.81 deaths/1,000 live births female: 29.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (1998) | 55% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UNESCO (associate) | ACP, 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), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 2,590 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Summary Court; Grand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are appointed by a the National Judicial Council comprised of the President, the leaders of both chambers of congress, the President of the Supreme Court, and an opposition or non-governing party member) |
Labor force | 19,820 (1995) | 2.3 million - 2.6 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) | agriculture 17%, industry 24.3%, services and government 58.7% (1998 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 360 km
border countries: Haiti 360 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 8% forests and woodland: 23% other: 69% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 22.65%
permanent crops: 10.33% other: 67.02% (2001) |
Languages | English | Spanish |
Legal system | British common law and local statutes | based on French civil codes; undergoing modification in 2004 towards an accusatory system |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (18 seats, three appointed members and 15 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA |
bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate or Senado (32 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (150 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 16 May 2002 (next to be held May 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 16 May 2002 (next to be held May 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 29, PLD 2, PRSC 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRD 73, PLD 41, PRSC 36 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
79.03 years male: 76.24 years female: 81.43 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 71.44 years
male: 69.94 years female: 73.03 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84.7% male: 84.6% female: 84.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island group in Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras | 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 | exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 6 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total:
106 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,656,452 GRT/2,643,036 DWT ships by type: bulk 21, cargo 5, chemical tanker 27, container 4, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 13, refrigerated cargo 30, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 2, Denmark 2, Finland 1, Greece 11, Norway 3, UK 3, US 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 11,230 GRT/17,011 DWT
by type: cargo 3 (2005) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | Royal Cayman Islands Police Force (RCIPF) | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $180 million (1998) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.1% (1998) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, first Monday in July | Independence Day, 27 February (1844) |
Nationality | noun:
Caymanian(s) adjective: Caymanian |
noun: Dominican(s)
adjective: Dominican |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (July to November) | lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | fish, climate and beaches that foster tourism | nickel, bauxite, gold, silver |
Net migration rate | 12.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: major destination for Cubans trying to migrate to the US |
-3.02 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | there are no formal political parties but the following loose groupings act as political organizations; National Team; Democratic Alliance; Team Cayman | Dominican Liberation Party or PLD [Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna]; Dominican Revolutionary Party or PRD [Vicente Sanchez BARET]; Social Christian Reformist Party or PRSC [Enrique ATUN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Collective of Popular Organizations or COP; Citizen Participation Group (Participacion Ciudadania); Foundation for Institution-Building (FINJUS) |
Population | 35,527 (July 2001 est.) | 8,950,034 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 25% |
Population growth rate | 2.12% (2001 est.) | 1.29% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cayman Brac, George Town | Boca Chica, Puerto Plata, Rio Haina, Santo Domingo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 120, FM 56, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 36,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 1,743 km
standard gauge: 375 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 142 km 0.762-m gauge note: additional 1,226 km operated by sugar companies in 1.076-m, 0.889-m, and 0.762-m gauges (2004) |
Religions | United Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), Anglican, Baptist, Roman Catholic, Church of God, other Protestant | Roman Catholic 95% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
0.86 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 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: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2005 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 national police cannot vote |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: 1 submarine coaxial cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: relatively efficient system based on island-wide microwave radio relay network international: country code - 1-809; 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 19,000 (1995) | 901,800 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,534 (1995) | 2,120,400 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 25 (2003) |
Terrain | low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs | rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed |
Total fertility rate | 2.04 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.86 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.1% (1997) | 17% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |