Haiti (2002) | Netherlands Antilles (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 departments (departements, singular - departement); Artibonite, Centre, Grand 'Anse, Nord, Nord-Est, Nord-Ouest, Ouest, Sud, Sud-Est | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
note: each island has its own government |
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: 24.7% (male 27,383; female 26,122)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 69,233; female 75,956) 65 years and over: 8.1% (male 7,244; female 10,288) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, mangoes, sugarcane, rice, corn, sorghum; wood | aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit |
Airports | 12 (2001) | 5 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 2038 to 3047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 10
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 6 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 27,750 sq km
land: 27,560 sq km water: 190 sq km |
total: 960 sq km
land: 960 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin) |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | more than five times the size of Washington, DC |
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. | Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Saint Martin is shared with France; its northern portion is named Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe, and its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles. |
Birth rate | 31.42 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $273 million
expenditures: $361 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY00/01 est.) |
revenues: $710.8 million
expenditures: $741.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
Capital | Port-au-Prince | Willemstad |
Climate | tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds | tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 1,771 km | 364 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 | 29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended |
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: none
conventional short form: Netherlands Antilles local long form: none local short form: Nederlandse Antillen former: Curacao and Dependencies |
Currency | gourde (HTG) | Netherlands Antillean guilder (ANG) |
Death rate | 14.88 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.4 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.2 billion (1999) (1999) | $1.35 billion (1996) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 1954; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs |
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: Consul General Deborah A. BOLTON
consulate(s) general: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Willemstad AN, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 4613066 FAX: [599] (9) 4616489 |
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) |
none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Disputes - international | claims US-administered Navassa Island | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $730.6 million (1995) (1995) | IMF provided $61 million in 2000, and the Netherlands continued its support with $40 million |
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. | Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. Although GDP has declined or remained even in each of the past six years, the islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the region. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, the US and Mexico being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture. |
Electricity - consumption | 485.46 million kWh (2000) | 986.8 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 522 million kWh (2000) | 1.061 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 69%
hydro: 31% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Chaine de la Selle 2,680 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Scenery 862 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 | NA |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | black 95%, mulatto and white 5% | mixed black 85%, Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian |
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) | Netherlands Antillean guilders per US dollar - 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001), 1.79 (2000), 1.79 (1999), 1.79 (1998) |
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 BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Frits GOEDGEDRAG (since 1 July 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Mirna LOUISA-GODETT (since 11 August 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the Staten elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch for a six-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually elected prime minister by the Staten; election last held 18 January 2002 (next to be held by NA 2006) note: government coalition - PDB, DP-St. M, FOL, PLKP, PNP |
Exports | $326.6 million f.o.b. (2001) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | manufactures, coffee, oils, cocoa | petroleum products |
Exports - partners | US 90%, EU 6% (2000) | US 20.9%, Guatemala 12%, Venezuela 10.5%, Guyana 6.6%, Singapore 4.4%, Cuba 4% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
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) | white, with a horizontal blue stripe in the center superimposed on a vertical red band, also centered; five white, five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in the center of the blue band; the five stars represent the five main islands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $12 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2.4 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 30%
industry: 20% services: 50% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 15% services: 84% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -1.2% (2001 est.) | 0% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 00 N, 72 25 W | 12 15 N, 68 45 W |
Geography - note | shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic) | the five islands of the Netherlands Antilles are divided geographically into the Leeward Islands (northern) group (Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten) and the Windward Islands (southern) group (Bonaire and Curacao) |
Highways | total: 4,160 km
paved: 1,011 km unpaved: 3,149 km (1996) |
total: 600 km
paved: 300 km unpaved: 300 km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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 | transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money-laundering center |
Imports | $977.5 million c.i.f. (2001) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, raw materials | crude petroleum, food, manufactures |
Imports - partners | US 60%, EU 10.5%, Dominican Republic 3.7% (2000) | Venezuela 60.8%, Mexico 11.7%, US 9.7% (2002) |
Independence | 1 January 1804 (from France) | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Industrial production growth rate | 0.6% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Industries | sugar refining, flour milling, textiles, cement, light assembly industries based on imported parts | tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao) |
Infant mortality rate | 93.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 10.71 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 11.54 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14% (2001 est.) | 0.4% (2002 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 | Caricom (observer), ECLAC (associate), Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), WCL, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | 6 |
Irrigated land | 750 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour de Cassation | Joint High Court of Justice (judges appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 3.6 million (1995)
note: shortage of skilled labor, unskilled labor abundant (2001) (1995) |
89,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 66%, services 25%, industry 9% | agriculture 1%, industry 13%, services 86% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 360 km
border countries: Dominican Republic 360 km |
total: 10.2 km
border countries: Guadeloupe (Saint Martin) 10.2 km |
Land use | arable land: 20.32%
permanent crops: 12.7% other: 66.98% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 0% other: 90% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Creole (official) | Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect) predominates, English widely spoken, Spanish |
Legal system | based on Roman civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence |
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 |
unicameral States or Staten (22 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 18 January 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FOL 5, PAR 4, PNP 3, PLKP 2, DP-St.M 2, UPB 2, DP 1, MAN 1, PDB 1, WIPM 1 note: the government of Prime Minister Mirna LOUISA-GODETT is a coalition of several parties; current seats by party - PAR 4, PNP 3, FOL 2, MAN 2, UPB 2, DP-St. M 2, PDB 1, SEA 1, WIPM 1, other 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.55 years
male: 47.88 years female: 51.29 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 75.38 years
male: 73.16 years female: 77.7 years (2003 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: 96.7% male: 96.7% female: 96.8% (2003 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 | Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - one includes Curacao and Bonaire north of Venezuela; the other is east of the Virgin Islands |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: to depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive fishing zone: 12 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | total: 147 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,122,189 GRT/1,398,649 DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 56, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 1, combination ore/oil 3, container 27, liquefied gas 5, multi-functional large-load carrier 15, passenger 1, refrigerated cargo 27, roll on/roll off 8, specialized tanker 1 note: includes foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 3, Denmark 2, Germany 43, Monaco 8, Netherlands 52, New Zealand 1, Norway 3, Peru 1, Spain 1, Sweden 3, UK 5 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
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 |
no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Netherlands Navy, Marine Corps, Royal Netherlands Air Force, National Guard, Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $50 million (FY00) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.3% (FY00) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,691,585 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 55,155 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 919,275 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 30,840 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | 20 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 87,049 (2002 est.) | males: 1,643 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 January (1804) | Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April |
Nationality | noun: Haitian(s)
adjective: Haitian |
noun: Dutch Antillean(s)
adjective: Dutch Antillean |
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 | Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt and are rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October |
Natural resources | bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, hydropower | phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only) |
Net migration rate | -2.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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] | Antillean Restructuring Party or PAR [Miguel POURIER]; C 93 [Stanley BROWN]; Democratic Party of Bonaire or PDB [Jopi ABRAHAM]; Democratic Party of Curacao or DP [Errol HERNANDEZ]; Democratic Party of Sint Eustatius or DP-St. E [Julian WOODLEY]; Democratic Party of Sint Maarten or DP-St. M [Sarah WESCOTT-WILLIAMS]; Foundation Energetic Management Anti-Narcotics or FAME [Eric LODEWIJKS]; Labor Party People's Crusade or PLKP [Errol COVA]; National People's Party or PNP [Susanne F. C. CAMELIA-ROMER]; New Antilles Movement or MAN [Kenneth GIJSBERTHA]; Patriotic Union of Bonaire or UPB [Ramon BOOI]; Patriotic Movement of Sint Maarten or SPA [Vance JAMES, Jr.]; People's Party or PAPU [Richard Hodi]; Pro Curacao Party or PPK [Winston LOURENS]; Saba Democratic Labor Movement [Steve HASSELL]; Saba Unity Party [Carmen SIMMONDS]; St. Eustatius Alliance or SEA [Kenneth VAN PUTTEN]; Serious Alternative People's Party or Sapp [Julian ROLLOCKS]; Social Action Cause or KAS [Benny DEMEI]; Windward Islands People's Movement or WIPM [Will JOHNSTON]; Workers' Liberation Front or FOL [Anthony GODETT, Rignald LAK, Editha WRIGHT]
note: political parties are indigenous to each island |
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 | NA |
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.) |
216,226 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 80% (1998 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.42% (2002 est.) | 0.9% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cap-Haitien, Gonaives, Jacmel, Jeremie, Les Cayes, Miragoane, Port-au-Prince, Port-de-Paix, Saint-Marc | Kralendijk, Philipsburg, Willemstad |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 41, FM 26, shortwave 0 (1999) | AM 9, FM 4, shortwave 0 (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.) |
0 km |
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 |
Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Seventh-Day Adventist |
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: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
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: generally adequate facilities
domestic: extensive interisland microwave radio relay links international: submarine cables - 2; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 60,000 (1997) | 76,000 (1995) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1995) | 13,977 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (plus a cable TV service) (1997) | 3 (there is also a cable service, which supplies programs received from various US satellite networks and two Venezuelan channels) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly rough and mountainous | generally hilly, volcanic interiors |
Total fertility rate | 4.3 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 2.04 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | widespread unemployment and underemployment; more than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal jobs (2001) (2001) | 15% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | NEGL; less than 100 km navigable | none |