Norfolk Island (2005) | Dominica (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | none (territory of Australia) | 10 parishes; Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Luke, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick, Saint Paul, Saint Peter |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9% 65 years and over: 15.9% (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 28.3% (male 10,052; female 9,800)
15-64 years: 63.8% (male 23,011; female 21,782) 65 years and over: 7.9% (male 2,245; female 3,268) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry | bananas, citrus, mangoes, root crops, coconuts, cocoa; forest and fishery potential not exploited |
Airports | 1 (2004 est.) | 2 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 754 sq km
land: 754 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly more than four times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Two British attempts at establishing the island as a penal colony (1788-1814 and 1825-55) were ultimately abandoned. In 1856, the island was resettled by Pitcairn Islanders, descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. | Dominica was the last of the Caribbean islands to be colonized by Europeans, due chiefly to the fierce resistance of the native Caribs. France ceded possession to Great Britain in 1763, which made the island a colony in 1805. In 1980, two years after independence, Dominica's fortunes improved when a corrupt and tyrannical administration was replaced by that of Mary Eugenia CHARLES, the first female prime minister in the Caribbean, who remained in office for 15 years. Some 3,000 Carib Indians still living on Dominica are the only pre-Columbian population remaining in the eastern Caribbean. |
Birth rate | NA | 17.3 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $20 million
expenditures: $20 million, including capital expenditures of $2 million (FY99/00) |
revenues: $72 million
expenditures: $79.9 million, including capital expenditures of $11.5 million (FY97/98) |
Capital | Kingston | Roseau |
Climate | subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation | tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds; heavy rainfall |
Coastline | 32 km | 148 km |
Constitution | Norfolk Island Act of 1979 | 3 November 1978 |
Country name | conventional long form: Territory of Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Dominica
conventional short form: Dominica |
Currency | - | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | NA | 7.11 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $150 million (2000) (2000) |
Dependency status | territory of Australia; Canberra administers Commonwealth responsibilities on Norfolk Island through the Department of Environment, Sport, and Territories | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of Australia) | the US does not have an embassy in Dominica; US interests are served by the embassy in Bridgetown, Barbados |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of Australia) | chief of mission: Ambassador Swinburne LESTRADE
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 364-6781 FAX: [1] (202) 364-6791 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $24.4 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily increased over the years and has brought a level of prosperity unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural sector has become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs. | The Dominican economy depends on agriculture, primarily bananas, and remains highly vulnerable to climatic conditions. Hurricane Luis devastated the country's banana crop in 1995 after tropical storms wiped out a quarter of the 1994 crop. The subsequent recovery has been fueled by increases in construction, soap production, and tourist arrivals. Development of the tourism industry remains difficult however, because of the rugged coastline, lack of beaches, and the absence of an international airport. Economic growth is sluggish, and unemployment is greater than 20%. The government has been attempting to develop an offshore financial sector in order to diversify the island's production base. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 62.31 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | 67 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 48%
hydro: 52% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Morne Diablatins 1,447 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | NA |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesians | black, mixed black and European, European, Syrian, Carib Amerindian |
Exchange rates | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and Australia are represented by Administrator Grant TAMBLING (since 1 November 2003)
head of government: Assembly President and Chief Minister Geoffrey Robert GARDNER (since 5 December 2001) cabinet: Executive Council is made up of four of the nine members of the Legislative Assembly; the council devises government policy and acts as an advisor to the administrator elections: the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia; chief minister elected by the Legislative Assembly for a term of not more than three years; election last held 20 Ocotber 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: Geoffrey Robert GARDNER elected chief minister; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - 17.2% |
chief of state: President Vernon Lordon SHAW (since 6 October 1998)
head of government: Prime Minister Pierre CHARLES (since 1 October 2000); note - assumed post after death of Prime Minister Roosevelt DOUGLAS cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister elections: president elected by the House of Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 6 October 1998 (next to be held NA October 2003); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Vernon Lordon SHAW elected president; percent of legislative vote - NA% |
Exports | $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY99/00) | $49 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados | bananas, soap, bay oil, vegetables, grapefruit, oranges |
Exports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe | Caricom countries 47%, UK 36%, US 7% (1996 est.) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider white band | green, with a centered cross of three equal bands - the vertical part is yellow (hoist side), black, and white and the horizontal part is yellow (top), black, and white; superimposed in the center of the cross is a red disk bearing a sisserou parrot encircled by 10 green, five-pointed stars edged in yellow; the 10 stars represent the 10 administrative divisions (parishes) |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $262 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
agriculture: 18%
industry: 23% services: 59% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | -3.2% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 29 02 S, 167 57 E | 15 25 N, 61 20 W |
Geography - note | most of the 32-km coastline consists of almost inaccessible cliffs, but the land slopes down to the sea in one small southern area on Sydney Bay, where the capital of Kingston is situated | known as "The Nature Island of the Caribbean" due to its spectacular, lush, and varied flora and fauna, which are protected by an extensive natural park system; the most mountainous of the Lesser Antilles, its volcanic peaks are cones of lava craters and include Boiling Lake, the second-largest, thermally active lake in the world |
Highways | total: 80 km
paved: 53 km unpaved: 27 km (2001) |
total: 780 km
paved: 390 km unpaved: 390 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; minor cannabis producer; anti-money-laundering enforcement is weak, making the country particularly vulnerable to money laundering |
Imports | $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92) | $132 million c.i.f. (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | NA | manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, food, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe | US 41%, Caricom countries 25%, UK 13%, Netherlands, Canada (1996 est.) |
Independence | none (territory of Australia) | 3 November 1978 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | -10% (1997 est.) |
Industries | tourism, light industry, ready mixed concrete | soap, coconut oil, tourism, copra, furniture, cement blocks, shoes |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
15.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 1% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | UPU | ACCT, ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM (observer), OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 16 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the Court of Appeal and the High Court (located in Saint Lucia; one of the six judges must reside in Dominica and preside over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction) |
Labor force | 1,345 | 25,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | tourism 90%, subsistence agriculture 10% | agriculture 40%, industry and commerce 32%, services 28% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 4%
permanent crops: 16% other: 80% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), Norfolk a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian | English (official), French patois |
Legal system | based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and acts; English common law applies in matters not covered by either Australian or Norfolk Island law | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members elected by electors who have nine equal votes each but only four votes can be given to any one candidate; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 20 October 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9 (note - no political parties) |
unicameral House of Assembly (30 seats, 9 appointed senators, 21 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 31 January 2000 (next to be held by 17 July 2005) note - tradition dictates that the election will be held within five years of the last election, but technically it is five years from the first seating of parliament (17 April 2000) plus a 90 day grace period election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party -DLP 10, UWP 9, DFP 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total population: 73.86 years
male: 70.98 years female: 76.88 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | NA | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 94% male: 94% female: 94% (1970 est.) |
Location | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, about one-half of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Oceania | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of Australia | - |
Military branches | - | Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force (including Special Service Unit, Coast Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | NA% |
National holiday | Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June (1856) | Independence Day, 3 November (1978) |
Nationality | noun: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s) |
noun: Dominican(s)
adjective: Dominican |
Natural hazards | typhoons (especially May to July) | flash floods are a constant threat; destructive hurricanes can be expected during the late summer months |
Natural resources | fish | timber, hydropower, arable land |
Net migration rate | NA | -18.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | none | Dominica Freedom Party or DFP [Charles SAVARIN]; Dominica Labor Party or DLP [Pierre CHARLES]; United Workers Party or UWP [Edison JAMES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | Dominica Liberation Movement or DLM (a small leftist party) |
Population | 1,828 (July 2005 est.) | 70,158 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.01% (2005 est.) | -0.81% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; loading jetties at Kingston and Cascade | Portsmouth, Roseau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005) | AM 3, FM 10, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 46,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Anglican 34.9%, Roman Catholic 11.7%, Uniting Church in Australia 11.2%, Seventh-Day Adventist 2.8%, Australian Christian 2.4%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, other 2.7%, unspecified 15.3%, none 18.1% (2001 census) | Roman Catholic 77%, Protestant 15% (Methodist 5%, Pentecostal 3%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3%, Baptist 2%, other 2%), none 2%, other 6% |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate
domestic: free local calls international: country code - 672; undersea coaxial cable links with Australia, New Zealand, and Canada; satellite earth station |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fully automatic network international: microwave radio relay and SHF radiotelephone links to Martinique and Guadeloupe; VHF and UHF radiotelephone links to Saint Lucia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2,532; note - a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits (2004) | 19,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island referendum) (2002) | 461 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (local programming station plus two repeaters that bring in Australian programs by satellite) (2005) | 0 (however, there is one cable television company) (1997) |
Terrain | volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains | rugged mountains of volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | NA | 2.01 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0% | 23% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |