Cayman Islands (2001) | Haiti (2007) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 districts; Creek, Eastern, Midland, South Town, Spot Bay, Stake Bay, West End, Western | 10 departments (departements, singular - departement); Artibonite, Centre, Grand 'Anse, Nippes, Nord, Nord-Est, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Est |
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: 42.1% (male 1,846,175/female 1,817,082)
15-64 years: 54.4% (male 2,313,542/female 2,426,326) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 134,580/female 168,792) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming | coffee, mangoes, sugarcane, rice, corn, sorghum; wood |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 14 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 10
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 9 (2007) |
Area | total:
259 sq km land: 259 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 27,750 sq km
land: 27,560 sq km water: 190 sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maryland |
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. | The native Taino Amerindians - who inhabited the island of Hispaniola when it was discovered by COLUMBUS in 1492 - were virtually annihilated by Spanish settlers within 25 years. In the early 17th century, the French established a presence on Hispaniola, and in 1697, Spain ceded to the French the western third of the island, which later became Haiti. The French colony, based on forestry and sugar-related industries, became one of the wealthiest in the Caribbean, but only through the heavy importation of African slaves and considerable environmental degradation. In the late 18th century, Haiti's nearly half million slaves revolted under Toussaint L'OUVERTURE. After a prolonged struggle, Haiti became the first black republic to declare its independence in 1804. The poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, Haiti has been plagued by political violence for most of its history. After an armed rebellion led to the departure of President Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE in February 2004, an interim government took office to organize new elections under the auspices of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH). Continued violence and technical delays prompted repeated postponements, but Haiti finally did inaugurate a democratically elected president and parliament in May of 2006. |
Birth rate | 13.79 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 35.87 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$265.2 million expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues: $658 million
expenditures: $726.9 million (2006 est.) |
Capital | George Town | name: Port-au-Prince
geographic coordinates: 18 32 N, 72 20 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in April; ends last Sunday in October |
Climate | tropical marine; warm, rainy summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to April) | tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds |
Coastline | 160 km | 1,771 km |
Constitution | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992 | approved March 1987; suspended June 1988 with most articles reinstated March 1989; constitutional government ousted in a military coup in September 1991, although in October 1991, military government claimed to be observing the constitution; returned to constitutional rule in October 1994; constitution, while technically in force between 2004-2006, was not enforced; returned to constitutional rule in May 2006 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Cayman Islands |
conventional long form: Republic of Haiti
conventional short form: Haiti local long form: Republique d'Haiti/Repiblik d' Ayiti local short form: Haiti/Ayiti |
Currency | Caymanian dollar (KYD) | - |
Death rate | 5.15 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 10.4 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $70 million (1996) | $1.312 billion (2006 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Janet A. SANDERSON
embassy: 5 Harry S Truman Boulevard, Bicentenaire-Port-au-Prince mailing address: P. O. Box 1761, Port-au-Prince telephone: [509] 222-0200 FAX: [509] 223-9038 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Raymond JOSEPH
chancery: 2311 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-4090 FAX: [1] (202) 745-7215 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Miami, New York, San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | none | since 2004, about 8,000 peacekeepers from the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) maintain civil order in Haiti; despite efforts to control illegal migration, Haitians cross into the Dominican Republic and sail to neighboring countries; Haiti claims US-administered Navassa Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $515 million (2005 est.) |
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. | Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, with 80% of the population living under the poverty line and 54% in abject poverty. Two-thirds of all Haitians depend on the agriculture sector, mainly small-scale subsistence farming, and remain vulnerable to damage from frequent natural disasters, exacerbated by the country's widespread deforestation. A macroeconomic program developed in 2005 with the help of the International Monetary Fund helped the economy grow 1.8% in 2006, the highest growth rate since 1999. Haiti suffers from higher inflation than similar low-income countries, a lack of investment, and a severe trade deficit. In 2005, Haiti paid its arrears to the World Bank, paving the way for reengagement with the Bank. The government relies on formal international economic assistance for fiscal sustainability. In 2006, Haiti held a successful donors conference in which the total aid pledged exceeded Haiti's request. Remittances are the primary source of foreign exchange, equaling nearly a quarter of GDP. |
Electricity - consumption | 306.9 million kWh (1999) | 322 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 330 million kWh (1999) | 535 million kWh (2005) |
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: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Chaine de la Selle 2,680 m |
Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchment | extensive deforestation (much of the remaining forested land is being cleared for agriculture and used as fuel); soil erosion; inadequate supplies of potable water |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Hazardous Wastes |
Ethnic groups | mixed 40%, white 20%, black 20%, expatriates of various ethnic groups 20% | black 95%, mulatto and white 5% |
Exchange rates | Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) | gourdes per US dollar - 40.232 (2006), 40.449 (2005), 38.352 (2004), 42.367 (2003), 29.251 (2002) |
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 Rene PREVAL (since 14 May 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Jacques-Edouard ALEXIS (since 30 May 2006) cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (may not serve consecutive terms); election last held 7 February 2006 (next to be held in 2010); prime minister appointed by the president, ratified by the National Assembly election results: Rene PREVAL elected president; percent of vote - Rene PREVAL 51% |
Exports | $1.5 million (1998) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | turtle products, manufactured consumer goods | manufactures, coffee, oils, cocoa, mangoes |
Exports - partners | mostly US | US 80%, Dominican Republic 7.6%, Canada 3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 October - 30 September |
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 | two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a centered white rectangle bearing the coat of arms, which contains a palm tree flanked by flags and two cannons above a scroll bearing the motto L'UNION FAIT LA FORCE (Union Makes Strength) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $930 million (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
1.4% industry: 3.2% services: 95.4% (1994 est.) |
agriculture: 28%
industry: 20% services: 52% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $24,500 (1997 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (1999 est.) | 2.3% (2006 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 30 N, 80 30 W | 19 00 N, 72 25 W |
Geography - note | important location between Cuba and Central America | shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic) |
Highways | total:
406 km paved: 304 km unpaved: 102 km |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% (2001) |
Illicit drugs | vulnerable to drug money laundering and drug transshipment to the US and Europe | Caribbean transshipment point for cocaine en route to the US and Europe; substantial bulk cash smuggling activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Haiti for illicit financial transactions; pervasive corruption; significant consumer of cannabis |
Imports | $507.6 million (1998) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, manufactured goods | food, manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, raw materials |
Imports - partners | US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan | US 46.5%, Netherlands Antilles 11.9%, Brazil 3.8% (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 1 January 1804 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture | sugar refining, flour milling, textiles, cement, light assembly based on imported parts |
Infant mortality rate | 10.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 63.83 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 68.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 59.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (1998) | 13.1% (2006 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UNESCO (associate) | ACCT, ACP, Caricom, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OIF, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 920 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Summary Court; Grand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal | Supreme Court or Cour de Cassation |
Labor force | 19,820 (1995) | 3.6 million
note: shortage of skilled labor, unskilled labor abundant (1995) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) | agriculture: 66%
industry: 9% services: 25% (1995) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 360 km
border countries: Dominican Republic 360 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 8% forests and woodland: 23% other: 69% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 28.11%
permanent crops: 11.53% other: 60.36% (2005) |
Languages | English | French (official), Creole (official) |
Legal system | British common law and local statutes | based on Roman civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 Assembly or Assemblee Nationale consists of the Senate (30 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies (99 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - in reestablishing the Senate, the candidate in each department receiving the most votes in the last election serves six years, the candidate with the second most votes serves four years, and the candidate with the third most votes serves two years
elections: Senate - last held 21 April 2006 with run-off elections on 3 December 2006 (next regular election, for one third of seats, to be held in 2008); Chamber of Deputies - last held 21 April 2006 with run-off elections on 3 December 2006 (next regular election to be held in 2010) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - L'ESPWA 11, FUSION 5, OPL 4, FL 3, LAAA 2, UNCRH 2, PONT 2, ALYANS 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - L'ESPWA 23, FUSION 17, FRN 12, OPL 10, ALYANS 10, LAAA 5, MPH 3, MOCHRENA 3, other 10; results for six other seats contested on 3 December 2006 remain unknown |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
79.03 years male: 76.24 years female: 81.43 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 57.03 years
male: 55.35 years female: 58.75 years (2007 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: 52.9% male: 54.8% female: 51.2% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island group in Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras | Caribbean, western one-third of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of the Dominican Republic |
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: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: to depth of exploitation |
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.) |
- |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | Royal Cayman Islands Police Force (RCIPF) | no regular military forces - small coast guard; the regular Haitian Armed Forces (FAdH) - Army, Navy, and Air Force - have been demobilized but still exist on paper unless they are constitutionally abolished (2007) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 0.4% (2006) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, first Monday in July | Independence Day, 1 January (1804) |
Nationality | noun:
Caymanian(s) adjective: Caymanian |
noun: Haitian(s)
adjective: Haitian |
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 and earthquakes; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | fish, climate and beaches that foster tourism | bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 12.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: major destination for Cubans trying to migrate to the US |
-0.94 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 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 | Artibonite in Action or LAAA [Youri LATORTUE]; Assembly of Progressive National Democrats or RDNP [Leslie MANIGAT]; Convention for Democratic Unity or KID [Evans PAUL]; Cooperative Action to Build Haiti or KONBA [Evans LESCOUFALIR]; Democratic Alliance or ALYANS [Evans PAUL] (coalition composed of KID and PPRH); Effort and Solidarity to Create an Alternative for the People or ESKAMP [Joseph JASME]; For Us All or PONT [Jean-Marie CHERESTAL]; Front for Hope or L'ESPWA [Rene PREVAL] (alliance of ESKAMP, PLB, and grass-roots organizations Grand-Anse Resistance Committee, the Central Plateau Peasants' Group, and Kombit Sudest); Haitian Christian Democratic Party or PDCH [Osner FEVRY and Marie-Denise CLAUDE]; Haitian Democratic and Reform Movement or MODEREH [Dany TOUSSAINT and Pierre Soncon PRINCE]; Heads Together or Tet-Ansanm [Dr. Gerard BLOT]; Independent Movement for National Reconciliation or MIRN [Luc FLEURINORD]; Justice for Peace and National Development or JPDN [Rigaud DUPLAN]; Fanmi Lavalas or FL [Rudy HERIVEAUX]; Liberal Party of Haiti or PLH [Gehy MICHEL]; Merging of Haitian Social Democratic Parties or FUSION or FPSDH [Serge GILLES] (coalition of Ayiti Capable, Haitian National Revolutionary Party, and National Congress of Democratic Movements); Mobilization for Haiti's Development or MPH [Samir MOURRA]; Mobilization for National Development or MDN [Hubert de RONCERAY]; Movement for National Reconstruction or MRN [Jean Henold BUTEAU]; Movement for the Installation of Democracy in Haiti or MIDH [Marc BAZIN]; National Christian Union for the Reconstruction of Haiti or UNCRH [Marie Claude GERMAIN]; National Front for the Reconstruction of Haiti or FRN [Guy PHILIPPE]; New Christian Movement for a New Haiti or MOCHRENA [Luc MESADIEU]; Open the Gate Party or PLB [Anes LUBIN]; Popular Party for the Renewal of Haiti or PPRH [Claude ROMAIN]; Struggling People's Organization or OPL [Edgard LEBLANC]; Union of Nationalist and Progressive Haitians or UNITE [Edouard FRANCISQUE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Autonomous Organizations of Haitian Workers or CATH [Fignole ST-CYR]; Confederation of Haitian Workers or CTH; Federation of Workers Trade Unions or FOS; General Organization of Independent Haitian Workers [Patrick NUMAS]; Grand-Anse Resistance Committee, or KOREGA; National Popular Assembly or APN; Papaye Peasants Movement or MPP [Chavannes JEAN-BAPTISTE]; Popular Organizations Gathering Power or PROP; Roman Catholic Church; Protestant Federation of Haiti |
Population | 35,527 (July 2001 est.) | 8,706,497
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 80% (2003 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.12% (2001 est.) | 2.453% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cayman Brac, George Town | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 41, FM 26, shortwave 0 (1999) |
Radios | 36,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | United Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), Anglican, Baptist, Roman Catholic, Church of God, other Protestant | Roman Catholic 80%, Protestant 16% (Baptist 10%, Pentecostal 4%, Adventist 1%, other 1%), none 1%, other 3%
note: roughly half of the population practices voodoo |
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: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.016 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.954 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.797 male(s)/female total population: 0.973 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: 1 submarine coaxial cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: domestic facilities barely adequate; international facilities slightly better; telephone density in Haiti remains the lowest in the Latin American and Caribbean region
domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay trunk service; combined fixed and mobile-cellular teledensity is about 8 per 100 persons international: country code - 509; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 19,000 (1995) | 145,300 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,534 (1995) | 500,200 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 2 (plus a cable TV service) (1997) |
Terrain | low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs | mostly rough and mountainous |
Total fertility rate | 2.04 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.86 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.1% (1997) | widespread unemployment and underemployment; more than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal jobs (2002 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |