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Compare West Bank (2008) - Dominican Republic (2006)

Compare West Bank (2008) z Dominican Republic (2006)

 West Bank (2008)Dominican Republic (2006)
 West BankDominican Republic
Administrative divisions - 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: 42.4% (male 551,243/female 524,800)


15-64 years: 54.2% (male 704,209/female 670,382)


65 years and over: 3.4% (male 36,175/female 49,118) (2007 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 olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs
Airports 3 (2007) 33 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways total: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2007)
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: 19


1,524 to 2,437 m: 4


914 to 1,523 m: 5


under 914 m: 10 (2006)
Area total: 5,860 sq km


land: 5,640 sq km


water: 220 sq km


note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967
total: 48,730 sq km


land: 48,380 sq km


water: 350 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Delaware slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire
Background The September 1993 Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements provided for a transitional period of Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Under a series of agreements signed between May 1994 and September 1999, Israel transferred to the Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for Palestinian-populated areas of the West Bank and Gaza. Negotiations to determine the permanent status of the West Bank and Gaza stalled following the outbreak of an intifada in September 2000, as Israeli forces reoccupied most Palestinian-controlled areas. In April 2003, the Quartet (US, EU, UN, and Russia) presented a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005 based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. The proposed date for a permanent status agreement was postponed indefinitely due to violence and accusations that both sides had not followed through on their commitments. Following Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT's death in late 2004, Mahmud ABBAS was elected PA president in January 2005. A month later, Israel and the PA agreed to the Sharm el-Sheikh Commitments in an effort to move the peace process forward. In September 2005, Israel unilaterally withdrew all its settlers and soldiers and dismantled its military facilities in the Gaza Strip and withdrew settlers and redeployed soldiers from four small northern West Bank settlements. Nonetheless, Israel controls maritime, airspace, and most access to the Gaza Strip. A November 2005 PA-Israeli agreement authorized the reopening of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt under joint PA and Egyptian control. In January 2006, the Islamic Resistance Movement, HAMAS, won control of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). The international community refused to accept the HAMAS-led government because it did not recognize Israel, would not renounce violence, and refused to honor previous peace agreements between Israel and the PA. HAMAS took control of the PA government in March 2006, but President ABBAS had little success negotiating with HAMAS to present a political platform acceptable to the international community so as to lift economic sanctions on Palestinians. The PLC was unable to convene throughout most of 2006 as a result of Israel's detention of many HAMAS PLC members and Israeli-imposed travel restrictions on other PLC members. Violent clashes took place between Fatah and HAMAS supporters in the Gaza Strip in 2006 and early 2007, resulting in numerous Palestinian deaths and injuries. ABBAS and HAMAS Political Bureau Chief MISHAL in February 2007 signed the Mecca Agreement in Saudi Arabia that resulted in the formation of a Palestinian National Unity Government (NUG) headed by HAMAS member Ismail HANIYA. However, fighting continued in the Gaza Strip, and in June, HAMAS militants succeeded in a violent takeover of all military and governmental institutions in the Gaza Strip. ABBAS dismissed the NUG and through a series of presidential decrees formed a PA government in the West Bank led by independent Salam FAYYAD. HAMAS rejected the NUG's dismissal and has called for resuming talks with Fatah, but ABBAS has ruled out negotiations until HAMAS agrees to a return of PA control over the Gaza Strip and recognizes the FAYYAD-led government. FAYYAD and his PA government initiated a series of security and economic reforms to improve conditions in the West Bank. ABBAS participated in talks with Israel's Prime Minister OLMERT and secured the release of some Palestinian prisoners and previously withheld customs revenue. During a November 2007 international meeting in Annapolis Maryland, ABBAS and OLMERT agreed to resume peace negotiations with the goal of reaching a final peace settlement by the end of 2008. 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 30.99 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 23.22 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget revenues: $1.149 billion


expenditures: $2.31 billion


note: includes Gaza Strip (2006)
revenues: $5.322 billion


expenditures: $5.485 billion; including capital expenditures of $1.1 billion (2005)
Capital - 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 temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 1,288 km
Constitution - 28 November 1966; amended 25 July 2002
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: West Bank
conventional long form: Dominican Republic


conventional short form: The Dominican


local long form: Republica Dominicana


local short form: La Dominicana
Death rate 3.85 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 5.73 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external $NA $7.687 billion (2005 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US - 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 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 West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel withdrew from four settlements in the northern West Bank in August 2005; since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), headquartered in Jerusalem, monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region increasing numbers of illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage each year to Puerto Rico to find work
Economic aid - recipient $1.4 billion; (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.) $571.6 million (2004)
Economy - overview The West Bank - the larger of the two areas comprising the Palestinian Authority (PA) - has experienced a general decline in economic conditions since the second intifada began in September 2000. The downturn has been largely a result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of closures and access restrictions in response to security concerns in Israel - which disrupted labor and trading relationships. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in PA areas resulted in the destruction of capital, the disruption of administrative structures, and widespread business closures. International aid of at least $1.14 billion to the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2004 prevented the complete collapse of the economy and allowed some reforms in the government's financial operations. In 2005, high unemployment and limited trade opportunities - due to continued closures both within the West Bank and externally - stymied growth. Israel's and the international community's financial embargo of the PA when HAMAS ran the PA during March 2006 - June 2007 has interrupted the provision of PA social services and the payment of PA salaries. Since June the Fayyad government in the West Bank has restarted salary payments and the provision of services but would be unable to operate absent high levels of international assistance. 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 NA kWh 11.71 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports - 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports NA kWh 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants 12.6 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m


highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m
lowest point: Lago Enriquillo -46 m


highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m
Environment - current issues adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment 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, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution


signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% mixed 73%, white 16%, black 11%
Exchange rates new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.14 (2007), 4.4565 (2006), 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003) 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 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 $301 million f.o.b.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats, consumer goods
Exports - partners Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006) US 79%, Netherlands 2.4%, Mexico 1.9% (2005)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description - 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: 8%


industry: 13%


services: 79% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)
agriculture: 11.2%


industry: 30.6%


services: 58.2% (2003)
GDP - real growth rate -8% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.) 9.3% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates 32 00 N, 35 15 E 19 00 N, 70 40 W
Geography - note landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 West Bank settlements and 29 East Jerusalem settlements in addition to at least 20 occupied outposts (August 2005 est.) shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: 2.1%


highest 10%: 37.9% (1998)
Illicit drugs - 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 $2.44 billion c.i.f.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) 129,900 bbl/day (2003)
Imports - commodities food, consumer goods, construction materials foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and pharmaceuticals
Imports - partners Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006) US 50.2%, Colombia 6.2%, Mexico 5.8% (2005)
Independence - 27 February 1844 (from Haiti)
Industrial production growth rate 2.4% (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) 2% (2001 est.)
Industries generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco
Infant mortality rate total: 18.67 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 20.59 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 16.64 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 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) 3.6% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006) 4.2% (2005 est.)
International organization participation - 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 150 sq km; note - includes Gaza Strip (2003) 2,750 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch - 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 605,000 (2006) 2.3 million-2.6 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 18%


industry: 15%


services: 67% (2006)
agriculture: 17%


industry: 24.3%


services: 58.7% (1998 est.)
Land boundaries total: 404 km


border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km
total: 360 km


border countries: Haiti 360 km
Land use arable land: 16.9%


permanent crops: 18.97%


other: 64.13% (2001)
arable land: 22.49%


permanent crops: 10.26%


other: 67.25% (2005)
Languages Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) Spanish
Legal system - 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 - 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: 73.46 years


male: 71.68 years


female: 75.35 years (2007 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: 92.4%


male: 96.7%


female: 88% (2004 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 84.7%


male: 84.6%


female: 84.8% (2003 est.)
Location Middle East, west of Jordan Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti
Map references Middle East Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims none (landlocked) 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: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,587 GRT/1,165 DWT


by type: cargo 1 (2006)
Military branches - Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $0 (2002 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA 0% (2002 est.)
National holiday - Independence Day, 27 February (1844)
Nationality noun: NA


adjective: NA
noun: Dominican(s)


adjective: Dominican
Natural hazards droughts 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 nickel, bauxite, gold, silver
Net migration rate 2.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) -2.79 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Political parties and leaders - 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 - Citizen Participation Group (Participacion Ciudadania); Collective of Popular Organizations or COP; Foundation for Institution-Building and Justice (FINJUS)
Population 2,535,927


note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2004 est.)
9,183,984 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line 46% (2007 est.) 25%
Population growth rate 2.985% (2007 est.) 1.47% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations AM 0, FM 25, shortwave 0 (2008) 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 Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% Roman Catholic 95%
Sex ratio at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.736 male(s)/female


total population: 1.038 male(s)/female (2007 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 and compulsory; married persons regardless of age


note: members of the armed forces and national police cannot vote
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for fixed line services; the Palestinian JAWAL company provides cellular services


international: country code - 970 (2004)
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 349,000 (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) 894,500 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular 1.095 million (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) 3.623 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations 30 (2008) 25 (2003)
Terrain mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed
Total fertility rate 4.17 children born/woman (2007 est.) 2.83 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate 18.6% (2006) 17% (2005 est.)
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