Haiti (2002) | Australia (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 departments (departements, singular - departement); Artibonite, Centre, Grand 'Anse, Nord, Nord-Est, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Est | 6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 39.5% (male 1,414,052; female 1,377,693)
15-64 years: 56.3% (male 1,924,867; female 2,049,952) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 142,657; female 154,501) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 19.8% (male 2,038,809/female 1,943,563)
15-64 years: 67.2% (male 6,815,600/female 6,695,189) 65 years and over: 12.9% (male 1,145,274/female 1,452,002) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, mangoes, sugarcane, rice, corn, sorghum; wood | wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry |
Airports | 12 (2001) | 448 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 305
over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 131 914 to 1,523 m: 139 under 914 m: 13 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 10
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 6 (2002) |
total: 143
1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 112 under 914 m: 14 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 27,750 sq km
land: 27,560 sq km water: 190 sq km |
total: 7,686,850 sq km
land: 7,617,930 sq km water: 68,920 sq km note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states |
Background | 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. | Aboriginal settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia about 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession in the name of Great Britain. Six colonies were created in the late 18th and 19th centuries; they federated and became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901. The new country took advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop its agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. In recent decades, Australia has transformed itself into an internationally competitive, advanced market economy. It boasted one of the OECD's fastest growing economies during the 1990's, a performance due in large part to economic reforms adopted in the 1980's. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef. |
Birth rate | 31.42 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 12.26 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $273 million
expenditures: $361 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY00/01 est.) |
revenues: $222.7 billion
expenditures: $221.7 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Port-au-Prince | Canberra |
Climate | tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds | generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north |
Coastline | 1,771 km | 25,760 km |
Constitution | 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 | 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Haiti
conventional short form: Haiti local long form: Republique d'Haiti local short form: Haiti |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia
conventional short form: Australia |
Currency | gourde (HTG) | - |
Death rate | 14.88 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 7.44 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.2 billion (1999) (1999) | $308.7 billion (3rd quarter, 2004 est.) |
Dependent areas | - | Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island, Macquarie Island |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Roger NORIEGA
embassy: 5 Harry S Truman Boulevard, Port-au-Prince mailing address: P. O. Box 1761, Port-au-Prince telephone: [509] 222-0354, 222-0269, 222-0200, 222-0327 FAX: [509] 223-1641, 222-0200, extension 460 |
chief of mission: William A. STANTON, Charge d'Affaires ad interim
embassy: Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2600 mailing address: APO AP 96549 telephone: [61] (02) 6214-5600 FAX: [61] (02) 6214-5970 consulate(s) general: Melbourne, Perth, Sydney |
Diplomatic representation in the US | 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) |
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael J. THAWLEY
chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 797-3000 FAX: [1] (202) 797-3168 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco |
Disputes - international | claims US-administered Navassa Island | East Timor and Australia continue to meet but disagree over how to delimit a permanent maritime boundary and share unexploited petroleum resources that fall outside the Joint Petroleum Development Area covered by the 2002 Timor Sea Treaty; East Timor dispute hampers creation of a revised maritime boundary with Indonesia (see also Ashmore and Cartier Islands dispute); regional states express concern over Australia's 2004 declaration of a 1,000-nautical mile-wide maritime indentification zone; Australia asserts land and maritime claims to Antarctica (see Antarctica); in 2004 Australia submitted claims to UNCLOS to extend its continental margin from both its mainland and Antarctic claims |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $894 million (FY99/00) |
Economic aid - recipient | $730.6 million (1995) (1995) | - |
Economy - overview | 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. The country has experienced little job creation since the former President PREVAL took office in February 1996, although the informal economy is growing. 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 the contraction will likely intensify in 2002 unless a political agreement with donors is reached and aid restored. | Australia has an enviable Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP on par with the four dominant West European economies. Rising output in the domestic economy, robust business and consumer confidence, and rising exports of raw materials and agricultural products are fueling the economy. Australia's emphasis on reforms, low inflation, and growing ties with China are other key factors behind the economy's strength. The impact of drought, weak foreign demand, and strong import demand pushed the trade deficit up from $8 billion in 2002, to $18 billion in 2003, and to $13 billion in 2004. One other concern is the rapid increase in domestic housing prices, which have raised the prospect that interest rates will need to be raised to prevent a speculative bubble. |
Electricity - consumption | 485.46 million kWh (2000) | 195.6 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 522 million kWh (2000) | 210.3 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 69%
hydro: 31% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Chaine de la Selle 2,680 m |
lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m
highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m |
Environment - current issues | extensive deforestation (much of the remaining forested land is being cleared for agriculture and used as fuel); soil erosion; inadequate supplies of potable water | soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources |
Environment - international agreements | 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 |
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | black 95%, mulatto and white 5% | Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1% |
Exchange rates | gourdes per US dollar - 26.674 (January 2002), 26.339 (2001), 22.524 (2000), 17.965 (1999), 16.505 (1998), 17.311 (1997) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) |
Executive branch | 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% |
chief of state: Queen of Australia ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Michael JEFFERY (since 11 August 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister John Winston HOWARD (since 11 March 1996); Deputy Prime Minister Mark VAILE (since 6 July 2005) cabinet: Prime Minister nominates, from among members of Parliament, candidates who are subsequently sworn in by the Governor General to serve as government ministers elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is sworn in as prime minister by the governor general note: government coalition - Liberal Party and National Party |
Exports | $326.6 million f.o.b. (2001) | 523,400 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | manufactures, coffee, oils, cocoa | coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment |
Exports - partners | US 90%, EU 6% (2000) | Japan 18.6%, China 9.2%, US 8.1%, South Korea 7.7%, New Zealand 7.4%, India 4.6%, UK 4.2% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | 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) | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant known as the Commonwealth Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901; the star depicts one point for each of the six original states and one representing all of Australia's internal and external territories; the remaining half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four larger, seven-pointed stars |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $12 billion (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 30%
industry: 20% services: 50% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 3.4%
industry: 28.2% services: 68.4% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $30,700 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -1.2% (2001 est.) | 3.5% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 00 N, 72 25 W | 27 00 S, 133 00 E |
Geography - note | shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic) | world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; the invigorating tropical sea breeze known as the "Fremantle Doctor" affects the city of Perth on the west coast, and is one of the most consistent winds in the world |
Highways | total: 4,160 km
paved: 1,011 km unpaved: 3,149 km (1996) |
total: 811,603 km
paved: 314,090 km (including 18,619 km of expressways) unpaved: 497,513 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 25.4% (1994) |
Illicit drugs | 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 | Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate |
Imports | $977.5 million c.i.f. (2001) | 530,800 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, raw materials | machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US 60%, EU 10.5%, Dominican Republic 3.7% (2000) | US 14.8%, China 12.7%, Japan 11.8%, Germany 5.8%, Singapore 4.4%, UK 4.1% (2004) |
Independence | 1 January 1804 (from France) | 1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.6% (1997 est.) | 1.9% (2004 est.) |
Industries | sugar refining, flour milling, textiles, cement, light assembly industries based on imported parts | mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel |
Infant mortality rate | 93.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 4.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.08 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14% (2001 est.) | 2.3% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, Caricom, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ANZUS, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CP, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, Paris Club, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMEE, UNMISET, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WToO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 750 sq km (1998 est.) | 24,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour de Cassation | High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general) |
Labor force | 3.6 million (1995)
note: shortage of skilled labor, unskilled labor abundant (2001) (1995) |
10.35 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 66%, services 25%, industry 9% | agriculture 3.6%, industry 26.4%, services 70% (2004 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 360 km
border countries: Dominican Republic 360 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 20.32%
permanent crops: 12.7% other: 66.98% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 6.55% (includes about 27 million hectares of cultivated grassland)
permanent crops: 0.04% other: 93.41% (2001) |
Languages | French (official), Creole (official) | English 79.1%, Chinese 2.1%, Italian 1.9%, other 11.1%, unspecified 5.8% (2001 Census) |
Legal system | based on Roman civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | 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 |
bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats - 12 from each of the six states and two from each of the two mainland territories; one-half of state members are elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms while all territory members are elected every three years) and the House of Representatives (150 seats; members elected by popular preferential voting to serve terms of up to three-years; no state can have fewer than five representatives)
elections: Senate - last held 9 October 2004 (next to be held no later than June 2008); House of Representatives - last held 9 October 2004 (next to be called no later than November 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party (for session beginning on 1 July 2005) - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 39, Australian Labor Party 28, Democrats 4, Australian Greens 4, Family First Party 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 87, Australian Labor Party 60, independents 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.55 years
male: 47.88 years female: 51.29 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 80.39 years
male: 77.52 years female: 83.4 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 45% male: 48% female: 42.2% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (1980 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, western one-third of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of the Dominican Republic | Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Oceania |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: to depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 55 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,531,461 GRT/1,999,409 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 16, cargo 7, chemical tanker 3, container 1, liquefied gas 4, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 8, roll on/roll off 5 foreign-owned: 16 (France 1, Germany 3, Japan 1, Philippines 1, Saudi Arabia 1, United Kingdom 2, United States 7) registered in other countries: 35 (2005) |
Military branches | 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 |
Australian Defense Force (ADF): Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force, Special Operations Command |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $50 million (FY00) | $16.65 billion (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.3% (FY00) | 2.7% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,691,585 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 919,275 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 87,049 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 January (1804) | Australia Day, 26 January (1788) |
Nationality | noun: Haitian(s)
adjective: Haitian |
noun: Australian(s)
adjective: Australian |
Natural hazards | lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding and earthquakes; periodic droughts | cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires |
Natural resources | bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, hydropower | bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum |
Net migration rate | -2.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 3.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate/gas 492 km; gas 28,680 km; liquid petroleum gas 240 km; oil 4,773 km; oil/gas/water 110 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | 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] | Australian Democrats [Lyn ALLISON]; Australian Labor Party [Kim BEAZLEY]; Australian Progressive Alliance [Meg LEES]; Australian Greens [Bob BROWN]; Liberal Party [John Winston HOWARD]; The Nationals [Mark VAILE]; One Nation Party [Len HARRIS]; Family First Party [Steve FIELDING] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | 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 | 7,063,722
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 2002 est.) |
20,090,437 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 80% (1998 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.42% (2002 est.) | 0.87% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cap-Haitien, Gonaives, Jacmel, Jeremie, Les Cayes, Miragoane, Port-au-Prince, Port-de-Paix, Saint-Marc | Brisbane, Dampier, Fremantle, Gladstone, Hay Point, Melbourne, Newcastle, Port Hedland, Port Kembla, Port Walcott, Sydney |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 41, FM 26, shortwave 0 (1999) | AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 415,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 40 km
narrow gauge: 40 km 0.760-m gauge; single-track note: privately owned industrial line; closed in early 1990s (2001 est.) |
total: 54,439 km (3859 km electrified)
broad gauge: 5,434 km 1.600-m gauge standard gauge: 34,110 km 1.435-m gauge (1,397 km electrified) narrow gauge: 14,895 km 1.067-m gauge (2,462 km electrified) dual gauge: 213 km dual gauge (2004) |
Religions | 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 |
Catholic 26.4%, Anglican 20.5%, other Christian 20.5%, Buddhist 1.9%, Muslim 1.5%, other 1.2%, unspecified 12.7%, none 15.3% (2001 Census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
Telephone system | 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) |
general assessment: excellent domestic and international service
domestic: domestic satellite system; much use of radiotelephone in areas of low population density; rapid growth of mobile cellular telephones international: country code - 61; submarine cables to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean), 2 Inmarsat (Indian and Pacific Ocean regions) (1998) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 60,000 (1997) | 10.815 million (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1995) | 14.347 million (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (plus a cable TV service) (1997) | 104 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rough and mountainous | mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 4.3 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.76 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | widespread unemployment and underemployment; more than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal jobs (2001) (2001) | 5.1% (December 2004 est.) |
Waterways | NEGL; less than 100 km navigable | 2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2004) |