Dominican Republic (2001) | Mayotte (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 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 | none (territorial overseas collectivity of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
34.11% (male 1,495,477; female 1,431,406) 15-64 years: 60.99% (male 2,664,679; female 2,569,398) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 199,240; female 221,277) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 45.8% (male 48,016/female 47,533)
15-64 years: 52.5% (male 59,111/female 50,437) 65 years and over: 1.8% (male 1,864/female 1,822) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs | vanilla, ylang-ylang (perfume essence), coffee, copra |
Airports | 29 (2000 est.) | 1 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
13 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
16 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 10 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
48,730 sq km land: 48,380 sq km water: 350 sq km |
total: 374 sq km
land: 374 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC |
Background | A legacy of unsettled, mostly non-representative, rule for much of the 20th century was brought to an end in 1996 when free and open elections ushered in a new government. | Mayotte was ceded to France along with the other islands of the Comoros group in 1843. It was the only island in the archipelago that voted in 1974 to retain its link with France and forego independence. |
Birth rate | 24.77 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 40.35 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$2.3 billion expenditures: $2.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $867 million (1999 est.) |
revenues: $420 million
expenditures: $394 million (2005) |
Capital | Santo Domingo | name: Mamoudzou
geographic coordinates: 12 46 S, 45 13 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall | tropical; marine; hot, humid, rainy season during northeastern monsoon (November to May); dry season is cooler (May to November) |
Coastline | 1,288 km | 185.2 km |
Constitution | 28 November 1966 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form:
Dominican Republic conventional short form: none local long form: Republica Dominicana local short form: none |
conventional long form: Territorial Collectivity of Mayotte
conventional short form: Mayotte |
Currency | Dominican peso (DOP) | - |
Death rate | 4.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.53 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.7 billion (2000 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | departmental collectivity of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Charles T. MANATT 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 |
none (territorial overseas collectivity of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Roberto Bienvenido SALADIN-SELIN 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, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) consulate(s): Houston, Jacksonville, Mobile, and Ponce (Puerto Rico) |
none (territorial overseas collectivity of France) |
Disputes - international | none | claimed by Comoros |
Economic aid - recipient | $239.6 million (1995) | $201.3 million; note - extensive French financial assistance (2005) |
Economy - overview | 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 ten percent enjoy 40% of national income. In December 2000, the new MEJIA administration passed broad new tax legislation which it hopes will provide enough revenue to offset rising oil prices and to service foreign debt. | Economic activity is based primarily on the agricultural sector, including fishing and livestock raising. Mayotte is not self-sufficient and must import a large portion of its food requirements, mainly from France. The economy and future development of the island are heavily dependent on French financial assistance, an important supplement to GDP. Mayotte's remote location is an obstacle to the development of tourism. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.78 billion kWh (1999) | 139.2 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 7.29 billion kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
87.19% hydro: 12.4% nuclear: 0% other: 0.41% (1999) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Lago Enriquillo -46 m highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Benara 660 m |
Environment - current issues | water shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; deforestation; Hurricane Georges damage | NA |
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 | white 16%, black 11%, mixed 73% | NA |
Exchange rates | Dominican pesos per US dollar - 16.888 (January 2001), 16.415 (2000), 16.033 (1999), 15.267 (1998), 14.265 (1997), 13.775 (1996) | euros per US dollar - 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003) |
Executive branch | 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 term; 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% |
chief of state: President Nicolas SARKOZY (since 16 May 2007); represented by Prefect Jean-Paul KIHL (since 17 January 2005)
head of government: President of the General Council Said Omar OILI (since 8 April 2004) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; president of the General Council elected by the members of the General Council for a six-year term; next election to be held in 2010 |
Exports | $5.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $6.5 million f.o.b. (2005) |
Exports - commodities | ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats | ylang-ylang (perfume essence), vanilla, copra, coconuts, coffee, cinnamon |
Exports - partners | US 66.1%, Netherlands 7.8%, Canada 7.6%, Russia 7.4%, UK 4.5% (1999 est.) | France 43%, Comoros 36%, Reunion 15% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | 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 | unofficial, local flag with the coat of arms of Mayotte centered on a white field, above which the name of the island appears in red capital letters; the main elements of the coat of arms, flanked on either side by a seahorse, appear above a scroll with the motto RA HACHIRI (We are Vigilant); the only official flag is the national flag of France |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $48.3 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
11.3% industry: 32.2% services: 56.5% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,700 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 8% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 19 00 N, 70 40 W | 12 50 S, 45 10 E |
Geography - note | shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti (eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic, western one-third is Haiti) | part of Comoro Archipelago; 18 islands |
Highways | total:
12,600 km paved: 6,224 km unpaved: 6,376 km (1996) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.6% highest 10%: 39.6% (1989) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | 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 | - |
Imports | $9.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $341 million f.o.b.; note - excludes petroleum imports (2005) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals | food, machinery and equipment, transportation equipment, metals, chemicals |
Imports - partners | US 25.7%, Venezuela 9.2%, Mexico 4%, Japan 3%, Panama 2.6% (1999 est.) | France 49%, Seychelles 8.8%, China 4.1%, South Africa 2.8% (2006) |
Independence | 27 February 1844 (from Haiti) | none (territorial overseas collectivity of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco | newly created lobster and shrimp industry, construction |
Infant mortality rate | 34.67 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 59.51 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 65.33 deaths/1,000 live births female: 53.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.9% (2000 est.) | 1.7% (2005) |
International organization participation | ACP, Caricom (observer), ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | InOC, UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 24 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 2,300 sq km (1993 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | 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) | Supreme Court or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel |
Labor force | 2.3 million - 2.6 million | 44,560 (2002) |
Labor force - by occupation | services and government 58.7%, industry 24.3%, agriculture 17% (1998 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | total:
275 km border countries: Haiti 275 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
21% permanent crops: 9% permanent pastures: 43% forests and woodland: 12% other: 15% (1993 est.) |
arable land: NA%
permanent crops: NA% other: NA% |
Languages | Spanish | Mahorian (a Swahili dialect), French (official language) spoken by 35% of the population |
Legal system | based on French civil codes | the laws of France, where applicable, apply |
Legislative branch | 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 1998 (next to be held NA May 2002); Chamber of Deputies - last held 16 May 1998 (next to be held NA May 2002) 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 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 21 and 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - MDM 23.3%, UMP 22.8%, PS 10.2%, MRC 8.9%, FRAP 6.5%, MPM 1.2%, other 27.1%; seats by party - MDM 6, UMP 9, MRC 2, MPM 1, diverse left 1 note: Mayotte elects one member of the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held in September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; Mayotte also elects one member to the French National Assembly; elections last held 16 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - UMP-RPR 55.1%, UDF 44.9%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
73.44 years male: 71.34 years female: 75.64 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 62.16 years
male: 59.94 years female: 64.45 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 82.1% male: 82% female: 82.2% (1995 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
Location | Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti | Southern Africa, island in the Mozambique Channel, about one-half of the way from northern Madagascar to northern Mozambique |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | 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 |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,587 GRT/1,165 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France; a small contingent of French forces is stationed on the island |
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:
2,281,035 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,430,776 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
87,404 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 February (1844) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun:
Dominican(s) adjective: Dominican |
noun: Mahorais (singular and plural)
adjective: Mahoran |
Natural hazards | lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts | cyclones during rainy season |
Natural resources | nickel, bauxite, gold, silver | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -3.81 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 3.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 96 km; petroleum products 8 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | 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] | Democratic Front or FD [Youssouf MOUSSA]; Mahoran Popular Movement or MPM [Ahmed MADI]; Federation of Mahorans or UMP-RPR [Mansour KAMARDINE]; Force of the Rally and the Alliance for Democracy or FRAP; Movement for Department Status Mayotte or MDM [Mouhoutar SALIM]; Renewed Communist Party of Mayotte or MRC [Omar SIMBA]; Socialist Party or PS [Ibrahim ABUBACAR] (local branch of French Parti Socialiste); Union for French Democracy or UDF [Henri JEAN-BAPTISTE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Collective of Popular Organizations or COP | NA |
Population | 8,581,477 (July 2001 est.) | 208,783 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 25% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.63% (2001 est.) | 3.617% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Barahona, La Romana, Puerto Plata, San Pedro de Macoris, Santo Domingo | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 120, FM 56, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Radios | 1.44 million (1997) | - |
Railways | 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) note: 240 km operated by sugar companies in various gauges (0.558-m, 0.762-m, 1.067-m gauges) (2000) |
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Religions | Roman Catholic 95% | Muslim 97%, Christian (mostly Roman Catholic) 3% |
Sex ratio | 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 (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.172 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.023 male(s)/female total population: 1.092 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age, universal and compulsory; married persons regardless of age
note: members of the armed forces and police cannot vote |
18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | 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) |
general assessment: small system administered by French Department of Posts and Telecommunications
domestic: NA international: country code - 269; microwave radio relay and HF radiotelephone communications to Comoros |
Telephones - main lines in use | 709,000 (1997) | 10,000 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 130,149 (1997) | 48,100 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 25 (1997) | 3 (2001) |
Terrain | rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed | generally undulating, with deep ravines and ancient volcanic peaks |
Total fertility rate | 2.97 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.69 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 13.8% (1999 est.) | 25.4% (2005) |
Waterways | none | - |