Compare Mauritius (2005) - Dominican Republic (2006)

Compare Mauritius (2005) z Dominican Republic (2006)

	Mauritius (2005)	Dominican Republic (2006)

Administrative divisions	9 districts and 3 dependencies; Agalega Islands, Black River, Cargados Carajos Shoals, Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Rodrigues, Savanne	31 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 district* (distrito); Azua, Baoruco, Barahona, Dajabon, Distrito Nacional*, Duarte, El Seibo, Elias Pina, 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, San Cristobal, San Jose de Ocoa, San Juan, San Pedro de Macoris, Sanchez Ramirez, Santiago, Santiago Rodriguez, Santo Domingo, Valverde
Age structure	0-14 years: 24.4% (male 151,043/female 148,847) 15-64 years: 69.1% (male 424,472/female 425,974) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 31,506/female 48,760) (2005 est.)	0-14 years: 32.6% (male 1,531,145/female 1,464,076) 15-64 years: 61.9% (male 2,902,098/female 2,782,608) 65 years and over: 5.5% (male 235,016/female 269,041) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish	sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs
Airports	6 (2004 est.)	33 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 2 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 14 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)	total: 19 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 10 (2006)
Area	total: 2,040 sq km land: 2,030 sq km water: 10 sq km note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues	total: 48,730 sq km land: 48,380 sq km water: 350 sq km
Area - comparative	almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC	slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire
Background	Discovered by the Portuguese in 1505, Mauritius was subsequently held by the Dutch, French, and British before independence was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather and declining sugar prices have slowed economic growth, leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community.	Explored and claimed by Christopher COLUMBUS on his first voyage in 1492, the island of Hispaniola became a springboard for Spanish conquest of the Caribbean and the American mainland. In 1697, Spain recognized French dominion over the western third of the island, which in 1804 became Haiti. The remainder of the island, by then known as Santo Domingo, sought to gain its own independence in 1821, but was conquered and ruled by the Haitians for 22 years; it finally attained independence as the Dominican Republic in 1844. In 1861, the Dominicans voluntarily returned to the Spanish Empire, but two years later they launched a war that restored independence in 1865. A legacy of unsettled, mostly non-representative rule followed, capped by the dictatorship of Rafael Leonidas TRUJILLO from 1930-1961. Juan BOSCH was elected president in 1962, but was deposed in a military coup in 1963. In 1965, the United States led an intervention in the midst of a civil war sparked by an uprising to restore BOSCH. In 1966, Joaquin BALAGUER defeated BOSCH in an election to become president. BALAGUER maintained a tight grip on power for most of the next 30 years when international reaction to flawed elections forced him to curtail his term in 1996. Since then, regular competitive elections have been held in which opposition candidates have won the presidency. Former President (1996-2000) Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna won election to a second term in 2004 following a constitutional amendment allowing presidents to serve more than one term.
Birth rate	15.62 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)	23.22 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $1.231 billion expenditures: $1.582 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)	revenues: $5.322 billion expenditures: $5.485 billion; including capital expenditures of $1.1 billion (2005)
Capital	Port Louis	name: Santo Domingo geographic coordinates: 18 28 N, 69 54 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)	tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall
Coastline	177 km	1,288 km
Constitution	12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992	28 November 1966; amended 25 July 2002
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Mauritius conventional short form: Mauritius	conventional long form: Dominican Republic conventional short form: The Dominican local long form: Republica Dominicana local short form: La Dominicana
Death rate	6.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)	5.73 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$1.78 billion (2004 est.)	$7.687 billion (2005 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador John PRICE embassy: 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Street, Port Louis mailing address: international mail: P. O. Box 544, Port Louis; US mail: American Embassy, Port Louis, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2450 telephone: [230] 202-4400 FAX: [230] 208-9534	chief of mission: Ambassador Hans H. HERTELL 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
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Usha JEETAH chancery: 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 441, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-1491, 1492 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0983	chief of mission: Ambassador Flavio Dario ESPINAL Jacobo chancery: 1715 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-6280 FAX: [1] (202) 265-8057 consulate(s) general: Anchorage, Boston, Chicago, Mayaguez (Puerto Rico), Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico)
Disputes - international	Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, were granted UK citizenship but no right to patriation in the UK; claims French-administered Tromelin Island	increasing numbers of illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage each year to Puerto Rico to find work
Economic aid - recipient	$42 million (1997)	$571.6 million (2004)
Economy - overview	Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has developed from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. For most of the period, annual growth has been in the order of 5% to 6%. This remarkable achievement has been reflected in more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved infrastructure. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on expanding local financial institutions and building a domestic information telecommunications industry. Mauritius has attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in India and South Africa, and investment in the banking sector alone has reached over $1 billion. Mauritius, with its strong textile sector, has been well poised to take advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).	The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean representative democracy that enjoyed strong GDP growth until 2003. 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. Growth turned negative in 2003 with reduced tourism, a major bank fraud, and limited growth in the US economy (the source of about 80% of export revenues), but recovered in 2004 and 2005. With the help of strict fiscal targets agreed in the 2004 renegotiation of an IMF standby loan, President FERNANDEZ has stabilized the country's financial situation. Although the economy continues to grow at a respectable rate, unemployment remains an important challenge. The country suffers from marked income inequality; the poorest half of the population receives less than one-fifth of GNP, while the richest 10% enjoys nearly 40% of national income. The Dominican Republic's development prospects improved with the ratification of the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) in September 2005.
Electricity - consumption	1.707 billion kWh (2002)	11.71 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	1.836 billion kWh (2002)	12.6 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Piton 828 m	lowest point: Lago Enriquillo -46 m highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m
Environment - current issues	water pollution, degradation of coral reefs	water shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; deforestation
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups	Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%	mixed 73%, white 16%, black 11%
Exchange rates	Mauritian rupees per US dollar - 27.499 (2004), 27.902 (2003), 29.962 (2002), 29.129 (2001), 26.25 (2000)	Dominican pesos per US dollar - 30.409 (2005), 42.12 (2004), 30.831 (2003), 18.61 (2002), 16.952 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 7 October 2003) and Vice President Abdool Raouf BUNDHUN (since 25 February 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Paul BERENGER (since 30 September 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president and vice president elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 25 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president, responsible to the National Assembly election results: Karl OFFMANN elected president and Raouf BUNDHUN elected vice president; percent of vote by the National Assembly - NA%; note - Karl OFFMANN stepped down on 30 September 2003	chief of state: President Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna (since 16 August 2004); Vice President Rafael ALBURQUERQUE de Castro (since 16 August 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna (since 16 August 2004); Vice President Rafael ALBURQUERQUE de Castro (since 16 August 2004) cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 16 May 2004 (next to be held in May 2008) election results: Leonel FERNANDEZ elected president; percent of vote - Leonel FERNANDEZ (PLD) 57.1%, Rafael Hipolito MEJIA Dominguez (PRD) 33.7%, Eduardo ESTRELLA (PRSC) 8.7%
Exports	NA	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses	ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats, consumer goods
Exports - partners	UK 33.1%, France 20.4%, US 14.8%, Madagascar 5.1%, Italy 4.1% (2004)	US 79%, Netherlands 2.4%, Mexico 1.9% (2005)
Fiscal year	1 July - 30 June	calendar year
Flag description	four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green	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 featuring a shield supported by an olive branch (left) and a palm branch (right) is at the center of the cross; above the shield a blue ribbon displays the motto, DIOS, PATRIA, LIBERTAD (God, Fatherland, Liberty), and below the shield, REPUBLICA DOMINICANA appears on a red ribbon
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 7.6% industry: 30% services: 62.4% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 11.2% industry: 30.6% services: 58.2% (2003)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $12,800 (2004 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	4.7% (2004 est.)	9.3% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	20 17 S, 57 33 E	19 00 N, 70 40 W
Geography - note	the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs	shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti
Highways	total: 2,000 km paved: 1,960 km (including 60 km of expressways) unpaved: 40 km (2002)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	lowest 10%: 2.1% highest 10%: 37.9% (1998)
Illicit drugs	minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally; significant offshore financial industry creates potential for money laundering, but corruption levels are relatively low and the government appears generally to be committed to regulating its banking industry	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; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor the Dominican Republic for illicit financial transactions
Imports	NA	129,900 bbl/day (2003)
Imports - commodities	manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals	foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals
Imports - partners	South Africa 11.3%, China 9.4%, India 9.3%, France 9.2%, Bahrain 5.3%, Japan 4.1% (2004)	US 50.2%, Colombia 6.2%, Mexico 5.8% (2005)
Independence	12 March 1968 (from UK)	27 February 1844 (from Haiti)
Industrial production growth rate	8% (2000 est.)	2% (2001 est.)
Industries	food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing; chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery; tourism	tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco
Infant mortality rate	total: 15.03 deaths/1,000 live births male: 17.74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)	total: 28.25 deaths/1,000 live births male: 30.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	4.5% (2004 est.)	4.2% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO	ACP, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (suspended), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW (signatory), PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	200 sq km (2000 est.)	2,750 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court	Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are appointed by the National Judicial Council comprised of the president, the leaders of both chambers of congress, the president of the Supreme Court, and an additional non-governing party congressional representative)
Labor force	560,000 (2004 est.)	2.3 million-2.6 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture and fishing 14%, construction and industry 36%, transportation and communication 7%, trade, restaurants, hotels 16%, finance 3%, other services 24% (1995)	agriculture: 17% industry: 24.3% services: 58.7% (1998 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 360 km border countries: Haiti 360 km
Land use	arable land: 49.26% permanent crops: 2.96% other: 47.78% (2001)	arable land: 22.49% permanent crops: 10.26% other: 67.25% (2005)
Languages	Creole 80.5%, Bhojpuri 12.1%, French 3.4% (official), other 3.7%, unspecified 0.3% (2000 census)	Spanish
Legal system	based on French civil law system with elements of English common law in certain areas	based on French civil codes; Criminal Procedures Code modified in 2004 to include important elements of an accusatory system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral National Assembly (66 seats; 62 elected by popular vote, 4 appointed by the election commission from the losing political parties to give representation to various ethnic minorities; members serve five-year terms) elections: last held on 11 September 2000 (next to be held September 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - MSM/MMM 52.3%, MLP/PMSD 36.9%, OPR 10.8%; seats by party - MSM/MMM 54, MLP/PMSD 6, OPR 2	bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate or Senado (32 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Camara de Diputados (150 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 16 May 2002 (next to be held in May 2006); House of Representatives - last held 16 May 2002 (next to be held in May 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRD 29, PLD 2, PRSC 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRD 73, PLD 41, PRSC 36
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 72.38 years male: 68.4 years female: 76.41 years (2005 est.)	total population: 71.73 years male: 70.21 years female: 73.33 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.6% male: 88.6% female: 82.7% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 84.7% male: 84.6% female: 84.8% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar	Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti
Map references	Political Map of the World	Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin	territorial sea: 6 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 22,946 GRT/27,102 DWT by type: bulk carrier 4, passenger/cargo 2, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 6 (India 4, Switzerland 2) (2005)	total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,587 GRT/1,165 DWT by type: cargo 1 (2006)
Military branches	National Police Force (includes the paramilitary Special Mobile Force or SMF and National Coast Guard)	Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$12.5 million (2004)	$0 (2002 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	0.2% (2004)	0% (2002 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 12 March (1968)	Independence Day, 27 February (1844)
Nationality	noun: Mauritian(s) adjective: Mauritian	noun: Dominican(s) adjective: Dominican
Natural hazards	cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards	lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts
Natural resources	arable land, fish	nickel, bauxite, gold, silver
Net migration rate	-0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)	-2.79 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Hizbullah [Cehl Mohamed FAKEEMEEAH]; Mauritian Labor Party or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]; Mauritian Militant Movement or MMM [Paul BERENGER] - in coalition with MSM; Mauritian Social Democrat Party or PMSD [Charles Xavier-Luc DUVAL]; Militant Socialist Movement or MSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH] - governing party; Rodrigues Movement or MR [Joseph (Nicholas) Von MALLY]; Rodrigues Peoples Organization or OPR [Serge CLAIR]	Dominican Liberation Party or PLD [Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna]; Dominican Revolutionary Party or PRD [Ramon ALBURQUERQUE]; National Progressive Front [Vincent CASTILLO, Pelegrin CASTILLO]; Social Christian Reformist Party or PRSC [Enrique ATUN]
Political pressure groups and leaders	various labor unions	Citizen Participation Group (Participacion Ciudadania); Collective of Popular Organizations or COP; Foundation for Institution-Building and Justice (FINJUS)
Population	1,230,602 (July 2005 est.)	9,183,984 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	10% (2001 est.)	25%
Population growth rate	0.84% (2005 est.)	1.47% (2006 est.)
Ports and harbors	Port Louis	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002)	AM 120, FM 56, shortwave 4 (1998)
Railways	-	total: 517 km standard gauge: 375 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 142 km 0.762-m gauge note: additional 1,226 km operated by sugar companies in 1.076 m, 0.889 m, and 0.762-m gauges (2005)
Religions	Hindu 48%, Roman Catholic 23.6%, other Christian 8.6%, Muslim 16.6%, other 2.5%, unspecified 0.3%, none 0.4% (2000 census)	Roman Catholic 95%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2005 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age, universal and compulsory; married persons regardless of age note: members of the armed forces and national police cannot vote
Telephone system	general assessment: small system with good service domestic: primarily microwave radio relay trunk system international: country code - 230; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); new microwave link to Reunion; HF radiotelephone links to several countries; fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia	general assessment: NA domestic: relatively efficient system based on island-wide microwave radio relay network international: country code - 1-809; 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	348,200 (2003)	894,500 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	462,400 (2003)	3.623 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	2 (plus several repeaters) (1997)	25 (2003)
Terrain	small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau	rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed
Total fertility rate	1.96 children born/woman (2005 est.)	2.83 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	10.8% (2004 est.)	17% (2005 est.)

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