Estonia (2002) | Haiti (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 15 counties (maakonnad, singular - maakond): Harjumaa (Tallinn), Hiiumaa (Kardla), Ida-Virumaa (Johvi), Jarvamaa (Paide), Jogevamaa (Jogeva), Laanemaa (Haapsalu), Laane-Virumaa (Rakvere), Parnumaa (Parnu), Polvamaa (Polva), Raplamaa (Rapla), Saaremaa (Kuressaare), Tartumaa (Tartu), Valgamaa (Valga), Viljandimaa (Viljandi), Vorumaa (Voru)
note: counties have the administrative center name following in parentheses |
9 departments (departements, singular - departement); Artibonite, Centre, Grand 'Anse, Nord, Nord-Est, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Est |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 16.4% (male 118,603; female 114,102)
15-64 years: 68.5% (male 466,882; female 502,343) 65 years and over: 15.1% (male 70,085; female 143,666) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.7% (male 1,637,853; female 1,575,893)
15-64 years: 53.6% (male 1,962,975; female 2,073,353) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 131,784; female 145,959) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | potatoes, vegetables; livestock and dairy products; fish | coffee, mangoes, sugarcane, rice, corn, sorghum; wood |
Airports | 32 (2001) | 12 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 24
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 6 (2002) |
total: 10
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 6 (2002) |
Area | total: 45,226 sq km
land: 43,211 sq km water: 2,015 sq km note: includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea |
total: 27,750 sq km
land: 27,560 sq km water: 190 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Hampshire and Vermont combined | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | After centuries of Danish, Swedish, German, and Russian rule, Estonia attained independence in 1918. Forcibly incorporated into the USSR in 1940, it regained its freedom in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since the last Russian troops left in 1994, Estonia has been free to promote economic and political ties with Western Europe. | The native Arawak 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 - 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 and after a prolonged struggle, became the first black republic to declare its independence in 1804. Haiti has been plagued by political violence for most of its history since then, and it is now one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. Over three decades of dictatorship followed by military rule ended in 1990 when Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE was elected president. Most of his term was usurped by a military takeover, but he was able to return to office in 1994 and oversee the installation of a close associate to the presidency in 1996. ARISTIDE won a second term as president in 2000, and took office early in 2001. However, a political crisis stemming from fraudulent legislative elections in 2000 has not yet been resolved. |
Birth rate | 8.96 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 34.06 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.89 billion
expenditures: $1.89 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2002 est.) |
revenues: $273 million
expenditures: $361 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY 00/01 est.) |
Capital | Tallinn | Port-au-Prince |
Climate | maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers | tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds |
Coastline | 3,794 km | 1,771 km |
Constitution | adopted 28 June 1992 | approved March 1987; suspended June 1988, with most articles reinstated March 1989; in October 1991, government claimed to be observing the constitution; return to constitutional rule, October 1994 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Estonia
conventional short form: Estonia local long form: Eesti Vabariik local short form: Eesti former: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form: Republic of Haiti
conventional short form: Haiti local long form: Republique d'Haiti local short form: Haiti |
Currency | Estonian kroon (EEK) | gourde (HTG) |
Death rate | 13.44 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 13.36 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.3 billion (2001 est.) | $1.2 billion (1999) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph M. DeTHOMAS
embassy: Kentmanni 20, 15099 Tallinn mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [372] 668-8100 FAX: [372] 668-8134 |
chief of mission: Ambassador James B. Foley
embassy: 5 Harry S Truman Boulevard, Port-au-Prince mailing address: P. O. Box 1761, Port-au-Prince telephone: [509] 222-0354, 222-0368, 222-0200, 222-0612 FAX: [509] 223-1641 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Sven JURGENSON
chancery: 1730 M Street NW, Suite 503, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 588-0101 FAX: [1] (202) 588-0108 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Chief of Mission Harry Frantz LEO
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, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | Russia continues to reject signing and ratifying the joint December 1996 technical border agreement with Estonia | despite efforts to control illegal migration, destitute Haitians continue to cross into Dominican Republic; claims US-administered Navassa Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $108 million (2000) | $120 million (FY02) |
Economy - overview | Estonia, as a new member of the World Trade Organization, is steadily moving toward a modern market economy with increasing ties to the West, including the pegging of its currency to the euro. A major goal is accession to the EU, possibly by 2004. The state of the economy is greatly influenced by developments in Finland, Sweden, and Germany, three major trading partners. The trade deficit is a negative factor, whereas the internal government surplus is a plus. | About 80% of the population lives in abject poverty. Nearly 70% of all Haitians depend on the agriculture sector, which consists mainly of small-scale subsistence farming and employs about two-thirds of the economically active work force. Following legislative elections in May 2000, fraught with irregularities, international donors - including the US and EU - suspended almost all aid to Haiti. The economy shrank an estimated 1.2% in 2001 and an estimated 0.9% in 2002. The contraction will likely intensify in 2003 unless a political agreement with donors is reached on economic policy. Suspended aid and loan disbursements totaled more than $500 million at the start of 2003. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.362 billion kWh (2000) | 539.4 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 1.2 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 7.056 billion kWh (2000) | 580 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 60.3%
hydro: 39.7% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Suur Munamagi 318 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Chaine de la Selle 2,680 m |
Environment - current issues | air polluted with sulfur dioxide from oil-shale burning power plants in northeast; however, the amount of pollutants emitted to the air have fallen steadily, the emissions of 2000 were 4.6 times smaller than in 1980; the amount of unpurified wastewater discharged to water bodies fell 20 times in 2000 compared to 1980; in connection with the start-up of new water purification plants, the pollution load of wastewater decreased; Estonia has more than 1,400 natural and manmade lakes, the smaller of which in agricultural areas need to be monitored; coastal seawater is polluted in certain locations | 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: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ship Pollution, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban |
Ethnic groups | Estonian 65.3%, Russian 28.1%, Ukrainian 2.5%, Belarusian 1.5%, Finn 1%, other 1.6% (1998) | black 95%, mulatto and white 5% |
Exchange rates | krooni per US dollar - 17.518 (January 2002), 17.538 (2001), 16.969 (2000), 14.678 (1999), 14.075 (1998), 13.882 (1997); note - the kroon is tied to the euro at a fixed rate of 15.65 krooni per euro | gourdes per US dollar - 29.25 (2002), 24.43 (2001), 21.17 (2000), 16.94 (1999), 16.77 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Arnold RUUTEL (since 8 October 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Siim KALLAS (since 28 January 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, approved by Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; if he or she does not secure two-thirds of the votes after three rounds of balloting in the Parliament, then an electoral assembly (made up of Parliament plus members of local governments) elects the president, choosing between the two candidates with the largest percentage of votes; election last held 21 September 2001 (next to be held in the fall of 2006); prime minister nominated by the president and approved by Parliament election results: Arnold RUUTEL elected president on 21 September 2001 by a 367-member electoral assembly that convened following Parliament's failure in August to elect then-President MERI's successor; on the second ballot of voting, RUUTEL received 188 votes to Parliament Speaker Toomas SAVI's 155; the remaining 24 ballots were either left blank or invalid |
chief of state: President Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE (since 7 February 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Yvon NEPTUNE (since 4 March 2002); note - former Prime Minister CHERESTAL resigned in January 2002 cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 26 November 2000 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister appointed by the president, ratified by the National Assembly election results: Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE elected president; percent of vote - Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE 92% |
Exports | $3.4 billion f.o.b. (2002) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment 33%, wood and paper 15%, textiles 14%, food products 8%, furniture 7%, metals, chemical products (2001) | manufactures, coffee, oils, cocoa |
Exports - partners | Finland 33.8%, Sweden 14%, Latvia 6.9%, Germany 6.9%, UK 4.2 (2001) | US 83.9%, Dominican Republic 6.6%, Canada 2.4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white | 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 - $15.2 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10.6 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6%
industry: 29% services: 66% (2001) |
agriculture: 30%
industry: 20% services: 50% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $10,900 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.4% (2002 est.) | -0.9% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 59 00 N, 26 00 E | 19 00 N, 72 25 W |
Geography - note | the mainland terrain is flat, boggy, and partly wooded; offshore lie more than 1,500 islands | shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic) |
Highways | total: 30,300 km
paved: 29,200 km (including 75 km of expressways); note - these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather unpaved: 1,100 km (2000) |
total: 4,160 km
paved: 1,011 km unpaved: 3,149 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 30% (1998) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Southwest Asia and the Caucasus via Russia, cocaine from Latin America to Western Europe and Scandinavia, and synthetic drugs from Western Europe to Scandinavia; increasing domestic drug abuse problem; possible precursor manufacturing and/or trafficking | major Caribbean transshipment point for cocaine en route to the US and Europe; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Haiti for illicit financial transactions; pervasive corruption |
Imports | $4.4 billion f.o.b. (2002) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 33.5%, chemical products 11.6%, textiles 10.3%, foodstuffs 9.4%, transportation equipment 8.9% (2001) | food, manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, raw materials |
Imports - partners | Finland 18%, Germany 11%, Sweden 9%, China 9%, Russia 8% (2001) | US 53.4%, Dominican Republic 5.3%, Colombia 3.4% (2002) |
Independence | regained on 20 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 1 January 1804 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | NA |
Industries | engineering, electronics, wood and wood products, textile; services; transit, information technology, telecommunications | sugar refining, flour milling, textiles, cement, light assembly industries based on imported parts |
Infant mortality rate | 12.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 76.01 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 81.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 70.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.7% (2002) | 11.9% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNTSO, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACCT, ACP, Caricom, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 38 (2001) | 3 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1998 est.) | 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | National Court (chairman appointed by Parliament for life) | Supreme Court or Cour de Cassation |
Labor force | 608,600 (2001 est.) | 3.6 million
note: shortage of skilled labor, unskilled labor abundant (1995) |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 20%, agriculture 11%, services 69% (1999 est.) | agriculture 66%, services 25%, industry 9% |
Land boundaries | total: 633 km
border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km |
total: 360 km
border countries: Dominican Republic 360 km |
Land use | arable land: 26.5%
permanent crops: 0.35% other: 73.15% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 20.32%
permanent crops: 12.7% other: 66.98% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Estonian (official), Russian, Ukrainian, Finnish, other | French (official), Creole (official) |
Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | based on Roman civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Riigikogu (101 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - Center Party 25.4%, Res Publica 24.6%, Reform Party 17.7%, Estonian People's Union 13%, Pro Patria Union (Fatherland League) 7.3% People's Party Moodukad 7%; seats by party - Center Party 28, Res Publica 28, Reform Party 19, Estonian People's Union 13, Pro Patria Union 7, People's Party Moodukad 6 |
bicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale consists of the Senate (27 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies (83 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held for two-thirds of seats 21 May 2000, with runoffs on 9 July boycotted by the opposition; seven seats still disputed; election for remaining one-third held on 26 November 2000 (next to be held NA 2002); Chamber of Deputies - last held 21 May 2000, with runoffs on 30 July boycotted by the opposition; one vacant seat rerun 26 November 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FL 26, independent 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FL 73, MOCHRENA 3, PLB 2, OPL 1, vacant 1, other minor parties and independents 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.02 years
male: 64.03 years female: 76.31 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 51.61 years
male: 50.36 years female: 52.92 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (1998 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 52.9% male: 54.8% female: 51.2% (2003 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia | 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 | Europe | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: limits fixed in coordination with neighboring states
territorial sea: 12 NM |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: to depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 37 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 245,958 GRT/193,042 DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 13, container 5, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 9, short-sea passenger 6 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Liberia 1 (2002 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Estonia Defense Forces (including Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force), Republic Security Forces (internal and border troops), Volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit), Maritime Border Guard, Coast Guard
note: Border Guards and Ministry of Internal Affairs become part of the Estonian Defense Forces in wartime; the Coast Guard is subordinate to the Ministry of Defense in peacetime and the Estonian Navy in wartime |
Haitian National Police (HNP)
note: the regular Haitian Army, Navy, and Air Force have been demobilized but still exist on paper until or unless they are constitutionally abolished |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $155 million (2002 est.) | $50 million (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (2002 est.) | 1.3% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 359,902 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,735,845 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 282,716 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 944,474 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 11,164 (2002 est.) | males: 94,349 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 was the date of independence from Soviet Russia, 20 August 1991 was the date of reindependence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 1 January (1804) |
Nationality | noun: Estonian(s)
adjective: Estonian |
noun: Haitian(s)
adjective: Haitian |
Natural hazards | sometimes flooding occurs in the spring | 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 | oil shale, peat, phosphorite, clay, limestone, sand, dolomite, arable land, sea mud | bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -0.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -4.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | natural gas 2,000 km (2002) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Center Party of Estonia (Keskerakond) [Edgar SAVISAAR, chairman]; Estonian People's Union (Rahsaliit) [Villu REILJAN]; Estonian Reform Party (Reformierakond) [Siim KALLAS]; Estonian United Russian People's Party or EUVRP; Moderates (Moodukad) [Ivari PADAR]; Pro Patria Union (Isamaaliit League) [Tunne KELAM, chairman]; Res Publica [Juhan Parts]; Russian Baltic Party [Sergei IVANOV] | Alliance for the Liberation and Advancement of Haiti or ALAH [Reynold GEORGES]; Assembly of Progressive National Democrats or RDNP [Leslie MANIGAT]; Convergence (opposition coalition composed of ESPACE, OPL, and MOCHRENA) [Gerard PIERRE-CHARLES, Evans PAUL, Luc MESADIEU, Victor BENOIT]; Democratic Consultation Group coalition or ESPACE [Evans PAUL, Victor BENOIT] composed of the following parties: National Congress of Democratic Movements or KONAKOM, National Progressive Revolutionary Party or PANPRA, Generation 2004, and Haiti Can; Haitian Christian Democratic Party or PDCH [Marie-France CLAUDE]; Haitian Democratic Party or PADEM [Clark PARENT]; Lavalas Family or FL [Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE]; Mobilization for National Development or MDN [Hubert DE RONCERAY]; Movement for National Reconstruction or MRN [Rene THEODORE]; Movement for the Installation of Democracy in Haiti or MIDH [Marc BAZIN]; Movement for the Organization of the Country or MOP [Gesner COMEAU and Jean MOLIERE]; National Cooperative Action Movement or MKN [Volrick Remy JOSEPH]; National Front for Change and Democracy or FNCD [Evans PAUL and Turneb DELPE]; New Christian Movement for a New Haiti or MOCHRENA [Luc MESADIEU]; Open the Gate or PLB [Renaud BERNARDIN]; Struggling People's Organization or OPL [Gerard PIERRE-CHARLES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Autonomous Haitian Workers or CATH; Confederation of Haitian Workers or CTH; Federation of Workers Trade Unions or FOS; National Popular Assembly or APN; Papaye Peasants Movement or MPP; Popular Organizations Gathering Power or PROP; Roman Catholic Church |
Population | 1,415,681 (July 2002 est.) | 7,527,817
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 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% (2000) | 80% (2002 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.52% (2002 est.) | 1.67% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Haapsalu, Kunda, Muuga, Paldiski, Parnu, Tallinn | Cap-Haitien, Gonaives, Jacmel, Jeremie, Les Cayes, Miragoane, Port-au-Prince, Port-de-Paix, Saint-Marc |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 98, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 41, FM 26, shortwave 0 (1999) |
Radios | 1.01 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 968 km common carrier lines only; does not include dedicated industrial lines
broad gauge: 968 km 1.520-m gauge (132 km electrified) (2001) |
total: 40 km
narrow gauge: 40 km 0.760-m gauge; single-track note: privately owned industrial line; closed in early 1990s (2001 est.) |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Estonian Orthodox, Baptist, Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Word of Life, Jewish | Roman Catholic 80%, Protestant 16% (Baptist 10%, Pentecostal 4%, Adventist 1%, other 1%), none 1%, other 3% (1982)
note: roughly half of the population also practices Voodoo |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal for all Estonian citizens | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: foreign investment in the form of joint business ventures greatly improved telephone service; substantial fiber-optic cable systems carry telephone, TV, and radio traffic in the digital mode; internet services are available throughout most of the country - only about 11,000 subscriber requests were unfilled by September 2000
domestic: a wide range of high quality voice, data, and internet services is available throughout the country international: fiber-optic cables to Finland, Sweden, Latvia, and Russia provide worldwide packet-switched service; two international switches are located in Tallinn (2001) |
general assessment: domestic facilities barely adequate; international facilities slightly better
domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay trunk service international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 501,691 (2000) | 60,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 711,000 (yearend 2001) | over 180,000 (January 2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (2001) | 2 (plus a cable TV service) (1997) |
Terrain | marshy, lowlands; flat in the north, hilly in the south | mostly rough and mountainous |
Total fertility rate | 1.24 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4.86 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 12.4% (2001) | widespread unemployment and underemployment; more than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal jobs (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 320 km (perennially navigable) (2002) | NEGL; less than 100 km navigable |