Chapter XVIII: Front Matter (18)

Administrative divisions:
metropolitan Denmark - 14 counties (amter, singular - amt) and 2
boroughs* (amtskommuner, singular - amtskommune); Arhus, Bornholm,
Frederiksberg*, Frederiksborg, Fyn, Kobenhavn, Kobenhavns*,
Nordjylland, Ribe, Ringkobing, Roskilde, Sonderjylland, Storstrom,
Vejle, Vestsjalland, Viborg
note: see separate entries for the Faroe Islands and Greenland,
which are part of the Kingdom of Denmark and are self-governing
overseas administrative divisions

Independence:
first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became
a constitutional monarchy

National holiday:
none designated; Constitution Day, 5 June is generally viewed as
the National Day

Constitution:
5 June 1849 adoption of original constitution; a major overhaul of
5 June 1953 allowed for a unicameral legislature and a female chief
of state

Legal system:
civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen MARGRETHE II (since 14 January 1972); Heir
Apparent Crown Prince FREDERIK, elder son of the monarch (born 26
May 1968)
head of government: Prime Minister Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN (since 27
November 2001)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by
Parliament
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative
elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the
majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch

Legislative branch:
unicameral Parliament or Folketing (179 seats, including 2 from
Greenland and 2 from the Faroe Islands; members are elected by
popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve
four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 November 2001 (next to be held 8 February
2005)
election results: percent of vote by party - Liberal Party 31%,
Social Democrats 29%, Danish People's Party 12%, Conservative Party
9%, Socialist People's Party 6%, Social Liberal Party 5%, Christian
People's Party (now Christian Democrats) 2%, Unity List 2%; seats by
party - Liberal Party 56, Social Democrats 52, Danish People's Party
22, Conservative Party 16, Socialist People's Party 12, Social
Liberal Party 9, Christian People's Party (now Christian Democrats)
4, Unity List 4; note - does not include the 2 seats from Greenland
and the 2 seats from the Faroe Islands

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life)

Political parties and leaders:
Center Democratic Party [Mimi JAKOBSEN]; Christian Democrats (was
Christian People's Party) [Marianne KARLSMOSE]; Conservative Party
(sometimes known as Conservative People's Party) [Bendt BENDTSEN];
Danish People's Party [Pia KJAERSGAARD]; Liberal Party [Anders Fogh
RASMUSSEN]; Social Democratic Party [Mogens LYKKETOFT]; Social
Liberal Party (sometimes called the Radical Left) [Marianne JELVED,
leader; Soren BALD, chairman]; Socialist People's Party [Holger K.
NIELSEN]; Red-Green Unity List (bloc includes Left Socialist Party,
Communist Party of Denmark, Socialist Workers' Party) [collective
leadership]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB,
ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM,
IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer),
OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UN Security Council
(temporary), UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK,
UNMIL, UNMISET, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer),
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Ulrik Andreas FEDERSPIEL
consulate(s) general: Chicago and New York
FAX: [1] (202) 328-1470
telephone: [1] (202) 234-4300
chancery: 3200 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Stuart A. BERNSTEIN; note - will leave
15 January 2005
embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds Alle 24, 2100 Copenhagen
mailing address: PSC 73, APO AE 09716
telephone: [45] 35 55 31 44
FAX: [45] 35 43 02 23

Flag description:
red with a white cross that extends to the edges of the flag; the
vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side, and that
design element of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) was subsequently
adopted by the other Nordic countries of Finland, Iceland, Norway,
and Sweden

Economy Denmark

Economy - overview:
This thoroughly modern market economy features high-tech
agriculture, up-to-date small-scale and corporate industry,
extensive government welfare measures, comfortable living standards,
a stable currency, and high dependence on foreign trade. Denmark is
a net exporter of food and energy and enjoys a comfortable balance
of payments surplus. Government objectives include streamlining the
bureaucracy and further privatization of state assets. The
government has been successful in meeting, and even exceeding, the
economic convergence criteria for participating in the third phase
(a common European currency) of the European Economic and Monetary
Union (EMU), but Denmark has decided not to join 12 other EU members
in the euro; even so, the Danish Krone remains pegged to the euro.
Given the sluggish state of the European economy, growth in 2003 was
a mere 0.3%.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $167.2 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
0% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $31,100 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 2%
industry: 22.1%
services: 75.9% (2003 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
19.9% of GDP (2003)

Population below poverty line:
NA

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 24% (2000 est.)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
24.7 (1992)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.1% (2003 est.)

Labor force:
2.863 million (2003 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 4%, industry 17%, services 79% (2002 est.)

Unemployment rate:
6.1% (2003)

Budget:
revenues: $118.5 billion
expenditures: $116 billion, including capital expenditures of $500
million (2003 est.)

Public debt:
45% of GDP (2003)

Agriculture - products:
barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets; pork, dairy products; fish

Industries:
food processing, machinery and equipment, textiles and clothing,
chemical products, electronics, construction, furniture and other
wood products, shipbuilding, windmills

Industrial production growth rate:
0.3% (2003 est.)

Electricity - production:
35.47 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
32.41 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports:
8.775 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports:
8.199 billion kWh (2001)

Oil - production:
346,200 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
218,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
332,100 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports:
195,000 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - proved reserves:
1.23 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production:
8.38 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
5.28 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports:
3.1 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:
81.98 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance:
$6.397 billion (2003)

Exports:
$64.16 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities:
machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products,
fish, chemicals, furniture, ships, windmills

Exports - partners:
Germany 18.7%, Sweden 12.6%, UK 8.5%, US 6.2%, Norway 5.7%, France
5.1%, Netherlands 4.7% (2003)

Imports:
$54.47 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for
industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods

Imports - partners:
Germany 23.1%, Sweden 13%, UK 7%, Netherlands 6.9%, France 4.9%,
Norway 4.5%, Italy 4.1% (2003)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold:
$37.98 billion (2003)

Debt - external:
$21.7 billion (2000)

Economic aid - donor:
ODA, $1.63 billion (1999)

Currency:
Danish krone (DKK)

Currency code:
DKK

Exchange rates:
Danish kroner per US dollar - 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002), 8.3228
(2001), 8.0831 (2000), 6.9762 (1999)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Denmark

Telephones - main lines in use:
3,610,100 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
4,785,300 (2003)

Telephone system:
general assessment: excellent telephone and telegraph services
domestic: buried and submarine cables and microwave radio relay form
trunk network, 4 cellular mobile communications systems
international: country code - 45; 18 submarine fiber-optic cables
linking Denmark with Canada, Faroe Islands, Germany, Iceland,
Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and UK; satellite earth
stations - 6 Intelsat, 10 Eutelsat, 1 Orion, 1 Inmarsat
(Blaavand-Atlantic-East); note - the Nordic countries (Denmark,
Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) share the Danish earth station
and the Eik, Norway, station for worldwide Inmarsat access (1997)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998)

Radios:
6.02 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998)

Televisions:
3.121 million (1997)

Internet country code:
.dk

Internet hosts:
1,219,925 (2004)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
13 (2000)

Internet users:
2.756 million (2002)

Transportation Denmark

Railways:
total: 3,002 km
standard gauge: 3,002 km 1.435-m gauge (595 km electrified) (2003)

Highways:
total: 71,591 km
paved: 71,591 km (including 880 km of expressways)
unpaved: 0 km (2000)

Waterways:
417 km (2001)

Pipelines:
condensate 12 km; gas 3,892 km; oil 455 km; oil/gas/water 2 km;
unknown (oil/water) 64 km (2004)

Ports and harbors:
Aabenraa, Aalborg, Aarhus, Copenhagen, Esbjerg, Fredericia,
Frederikshavn, Hirtshals, Kolding, Odense, Roenne (Bornholm), Vejle

Merchant marine:
total: 276 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,952,473 GRT/9,030,444 DWT
registered in other countries: 284 (2004 est.)
foreign-owned: Germany 1, Greece 1, Indonesia 2, Norway 5
by type: bulk 4, cargo 77, chemical tanker 36, container 83,
liquefied gas 15, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 27, rail car
carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 11,
short-sea/passenger 5, specialized tanker 4

Airports:
99 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 28
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 12
under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 69
914 to 1,523 m: 6
under 914 m: 63 (2004 est.)

Military Denmark

Military branches:
Royal Danish Army, Royal Danish Navy, Royal Danish Air Force, Home
Guard

Military manpower - military age and obligation:
18 years of age for compulsory and volunteer military service;
conscripts serve an initial training period that varies from 4 to 12
months according to specialization; reservists are assigned to
mobilization units following completion of their conscript service
(2004)

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 1,276,087 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 1,088,751 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 30,333 (2004 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$3,271.6 million (2003)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.6% (2003)

Transnational Issues Denmark

Disputes - international:
Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and
the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the
Rockall area) remains dormant; dispute with Iceland over the Faroe
Islands' fisheries median line boundary within 200 nm; disputes with
Iceland, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental
shelf boundary outside 200 nm; Faroese continue to study proposals
for full independence; uncontested dispute with Canada over Hans
Island sovereignty in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island
and Greenland

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005

======================================================================

@Dhekelia

Introduction Dhekelia

Background:
By terms of the 1960 Treaty of Establishment that created the
independent Republic of Cyprus, the UK retained full sovreignty and
jurisdiction over two areas of almost 254 square kilometers in
total: Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The larger of these of these is the
Dhekelia Sovereign Base Area, which is also referred to as the
Eastern Sovereign Base Area.

Geography Dhekelia

Location:
on the southeast coast of Cyprus near Famagusta

Geographic coordinates:
34 59 N, 33 45 E

Map references:
Middle East

Area:
total: 130.8 sq km
note: area surrounds three Cypriot enclaves

Area - comparative:
about three-quarters the size of Washington, DC

Climate:
temperate; Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and cool winters

Environment - current issues:
netting and trapping of small migrant songbirds in the spring and
autumn

Geography - note:
British extraterritorial rights also extended to several small
off-post sites scattered across Cyprus

People Dhekelia

Population:
no indigenous personnel
note: approximately 2,200 military personnel are on the base; there
are another 5,000 British citizens who are families of military
personnel or civilian staff on both the bases of Akrotiri and
Dhekelia; Cyprus citizens work on the base, but do not live there

Government Dhekelia

Country name:
conventional long form: Dhekelia Sovereign Base Area
conventional short form: Dhekelia

Dependency status:
overseas territory of UK; administered by an administrator who is
also the Commander, British Forces Cyprus

Capital:
Episkopi; located in Akrotiri

Legal system:
the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply

Executive branch:
chief of state: Queen Elizabeth II (since 6 February 1952)
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the administrator is
appointed by the monarch
head of government: Administrator Maj. Gen. Peter Tomas Clayton
PEARSON (since 9 May 2003) note - reports to the British Ministry of
Defence

Diplomatic representation in the US:
none (overseas territory of the UK)

Diplomatic representation from the US:
none (overseas territory of the UK)

Flag description:
the flag of the UK is used

Economy Dhekelia

Economy - overview:
Economic activity is limited to providing services to the military
and their families located in Dhekelia. All food and manufactured
goods must be imported.

Military Dhekelia

Military - note:
includes Dheklia Garrison and Ayios Nikolaos Station connected by a
roadway

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005

======================================================================

@Djibouti

Introduction Djibouti

Background:
The French Territory of the Afars and the Issas became Djibouti in
1977. Hassan Gouled APTIDON installed an authoritarian one-party
state and proceeded to serve three consecutive six-year terms as
president. Unrest among the Afars minority during the 1990s led to
multi-party elections resulting in President Ismail Omar GUELLEH
attaining office in May 1999. A peace accord in 2001 ended the final
phases of a ten-year uprising by Afar rebels. Djibouti occupies a
very strategic geographic location at the mouth of the Red Sea and
serves as an important transshipment location for goods entering and
leaving the east African highlands. GUELLEH favors close ties to
France, which maintains a significant military presence in the
country.

Geography Djibouti

Location:
Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, between
Eritrea and Somalia

Geographic coordinates:
11 30 N, 43 00 E

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 23,000 sq km
water: 20 sq km
land: 22,980 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Massachusetts

Land boundaries:
total: 516 km
border countries: Eritrea 109 km, Ethiopia 349 km, Somalia 58 km

Coastline:
314 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate:
desert; torrid, dry

Terrain:
coastal plain and plateau separated by central mountains

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Lac Assal -155 m
highest point: Moussa Ali 2,028 m

Natural resources:
geothermal areas

Land use:
arable land: 0.04%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 99.96% (2001)

Irrigated land:
10 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
earthquakes; droughts; occasional cyclonic disturbances from the
Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and flash floods

Environment - current issues:
inadequate supplies of potable water; limited arable land;
desertification; endangered species

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
strategic location near world's busiest shipping lanes and close to
Arabian oilfields; terminus of rail traffic into Ethiopia; mostly
wasteland; Lac Assal (Lake Assal) is the lowest point in Africa

People Djibouti

Population:
466,900 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 43.2% (male 101,168; female 100,545)
15-64 years: 53.7% (male 131,320; female 119,387)
65 years and over: 3.1% (male 7,327; female 7,153) (2004 est.)

Median age:
total: 18.3 years
male: 18.8 years
female: 17.7 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.1% (2004 est.)

Birth rate:
40.39 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate:
19.42 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 105.54 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 97.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 113.3 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 43.12 years
male: 41.83 years
female: 44.44 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate:
5.48 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
2.9% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
9,100 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
690 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
typhoid fever, malaria
overall degree of risk: high (2004)

Nationality:
noun: Djiboutian(s)
adjective: Djiboutian

Ethnic groups:
Somali 60%, Afar 35%, French, Arab, Ethiopian, and Italian 5%

Religions:
Muslim 94%, Christian 6%

Languages:
French (official), Arabic (official), Somali, Afar

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 67.9%
male: 78%
female: 58.4% (2003 est.)

Government Djibouti

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Djibouti
conventional short form: Djibouti
former: French Territory of the Afars and Issas, French Somaliland

Government type:
republic

Capital:
Djibouti

Administrative divisions:
5 districts (cercles, singular - cercle); 'Ali Sabih, Dikhil,
Djibouti, Obock, Tadjoura

Independence:
27 June 1977 (from France)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 27 June (1977)

Constitution:
multiparty constitution approved by referendum 4 September 1992

Legal system:
based on French civil law system, traditional practices, and
Islamic law

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal adult

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Ismail Omar GUELLEH (since 8 May 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister DILEITA Mohamed Dileita (since 4
March 2001)
cabinet: Council of Ministers responsible to the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term;
election last held 9 April 1999 (next to be held NA 2005); prime
minister appointed by the president
election results: Ismail Omar GUELLEH elected president; percent of
vote - Ismail Omar GUELLEH 74.4%, IDRIS Moussa Ahmed 25.6%

Legislative branch:
unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (65 seats;
members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: last held 10 January 2003 (next to be held NA January
2008)
election results: percent of vote - RPP 62.2%, FRUD 36.9%; seats -
RPP 65, FRUD 0; note - RPP (the ruling party) dominated the election

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Cour Supreme

Political parties and leaders:
Democratic National Party or PND [ADEN Robleh Awaleh]; Democratic
Renewal Party or PRD [Abdillahi HAMARITEH]; Djibouti Development
Party or PDD [Mohamed Daoud CHEHEM]; Front pour la Restauration de
l'Unite Democratique or FRUD [Ali Mohamed DAOUD]; People's Progress
Assembly or RPP (governing party) [Ismail Omar GUELLEH]; Peoples
Social Democratic Party or PPSD [Moumin Bahdon FARAH]; Republican
Alliance for Democracy or ARD [Ahmed Dini AHMED]; Union for
Democracy and Justice or UDJ [leader NA]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
Union for Presidential Majority UMP (coalition includes RPP, FRUD,
PPSD and PND); Union for Democratic Changeover or UAD (opposition
coalition includes ARD, MRDD, UDJ, and PDD) [Ahmed Dini AHMED]

International organization participation:
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt,
ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, ITU, LAS, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador ROBLE Olhaye
FAX: [1] (202) 331-0302
telephone: [1] (202) 331-0270
chancery: Suite 515, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Marguerita RAGSDALE
embassy: Plateau du Serpent, Boulevard Marechal Joffre, Djibouti
mailing address: B. P. 185, Djibouti
telephone: [253] 35 39 95
FAX: [253] 35 39 40

Flag description:
two equal horizontal bands of light blue (top) and light green with
a white isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bearing a red
five-pointed star in the center

Economy Djibouti

Economy - overview:
The economy is based on service activities connected with the
country's strategic location and status as a free trade zone in
northeast Africa. Two-thirds of the inhabitants live in the capital
city, the remainder being mostly nomadic herders. Scanty rainfall
limits crop production to fruits and vegetables, and most food must
be imported. Djibouti provides services as both a transit port for
the region and an international transshipment and refueling center.
It has few natural resources and little industry. The nation is,
therefore, heavily dependent on foreign assistance to help support
its balance of payments and to finance development projects. An
unemployment rate of 50% continues to be a major problem. Inflation
is not a concern, however, because of the fixed tie of the franc to
the US dollar. Per capita consumption dropped an estimated 35% over
the last seven years because of recession, civil war, and a high
population growth rate (including immigrants and refugees). Faced
with a multitude of economic difficulties, the government has fallen
in arrears on long-term external debt and has been struggling to
meet the stipulations of foreign aid donors.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $619 million (2002 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
3.5% (2002 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2002 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 15.8%
services: 80.7% (2001 est.)

Population below poverty line:
50% (2001 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2% (2002 est.)

Labor force:
282,000 (2000)

Labor force - by occupation:
NA

Unemployment rate:
50% (2000 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $135 million
expenditures: $182 million, including capital expenditures of NA
(1999 est.)

Agriculture - products:
fruits, vegetables; goats, sheep, camels

Industries:
construction, agricultural processing

Industrial production growth rate:
3% (1996 est.)

Electricity - production:
180 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
167.4 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
11,300 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA (2001)

Oil - imports:
NA (2001)

Exports:
$155 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Exports - commodities:
reexports, hides and skins, coffee (in transit)

Exports - partners:
Somalia 63.9%, Yemen 22.5%, Ethiopia 4.7% (2003)

Imports:
$665 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Imports - commodities:
foods, beverages, transport equipment, chemicals, petroleum products

Imports - partners:
Saudi Arabia 19.7%, Ethiopia 10.9%, China 9.2%, France 6.5%, UK
5.1%, US 4.9% (2003)

Debt - external:
$366 million (2002 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$36 million (2001)

Currency:
Djiboutian franc (DJF)

Currency code:
DJF

Exchange rates:
Djiboutian francs per US dollar - 177.721 (2003), 177.721 (2002),
177.721 (2001), 177.721 (2000), 177.721 (1999)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Djibouti

Telephones - main lines in use:
9,500 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
23,000 (2003)

Telephone system:
general assessment: telephone facilities in the city of Djibouti
are adequate as are the microwave radio relay connections to
outlying areas of the country
domestic: microwave radio relay network
international: country code - 253; submarine cable to Jiddah, Suez,
Sicily, Marseilles, Colombo, and Singapore; satellite earth stations
- 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; Medarabtel regional
microwave radio relay telephone network

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (2001)

Radios:
52,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
1 (2002)

Televisions:
28,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.dj

Internet hosts:
702 (2004)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2000)

Internet users:
6,500 (2003)

Transportation Djibouti

Railways:
total: 100 km (Djibouti segment of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway)
narrow gauge: 100 km 1.000-m gauge
note: railway under joint control of Djibouti and Ethiopia (2003)

Highways:
total: 2,890 km
paved: 364 km
unpaved: 2,526 km (1999 est.)

Ports and harbors:
Djibouti

Merchant marine:
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,369 GRT/3,030 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2004 est.)

Airports:
13 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1524 to 2437 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 10
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)

Military Djibouti

Military branches:
Djibouti National Army (including Navy and Air Force)

Military manpower - military age and obligation:
18 years of age (est.); no conscription (2001)

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 108,771 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 64,540 (2004 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$26.5 million (2003)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
4.4% (2003)

Transnational Issues Djibouti

Disputes - international:
Djibouti maintains economic ties and border accords with
"Somaliland" leadership while maintaining some political ties to
various factions in Somalia including the Somali Transitional
National Government in Mogadishu

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 25,474 (Somalia) (2004)

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005

======================================================================

@Dominica

Introduction Dominica

Background:
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.

Geography Dominica

Location:
Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic
Ocean, about one-half of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and
Tobago

Geographic coordinates:
15 25 N, 61 20 W

Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean

Area:
total: 754 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 754 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly more than four times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
148 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm

Climate:
tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds; heavy rainfall

Terrain:
rugged mountains of volcanic origin

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Morne Diablatins 1,447 m

Natural resources:
timber, hydropower, arable land

Land use:
arable land: 6.67%
permanent crops: 20%
other: 73.33% (2001)

Irrigated land:
NA sq km

Natural hazards:
flash floods are a constant threat; destructive hurricanes can be
expected during the late summer months

Environment - current issues:
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

Geography - note:
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

People Dominica

Population:
69,278 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 27.3% (male 9,563; female 9,349)
15-64 years: 64.8% (male 23,097; female 21,804)
65 years and over: 7.9% (male 2,209; female 3,256) (2004 est.)

Median age:
total: 29 years
male: 28.7 years
female: 29.4 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate:
-0.45% (2004 est.)

Birth rate:
16.25 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate:
6.9 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate:
-13.87 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 14.75 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 9.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 19.49 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 74.38 years
male: 71.48 years
female: 77.43 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.98 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA

Nationality:
noun: Dominican(s)
adjective: Dominican

Ethnic groups:
black, mixed black and European, European, Syrian, Carib Amerindian

Religions:
Roman Catholic 77%, Protestant 15% (Methodist 5%, Pentecostal 3%,
Seventh-Day Adventist 3%, Baptist 2%, other 2%), none 2%, other 6%

Languages:
English (official), French patois

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 94%
male: 94%
female: 94% (2003 est.)

Government Dominica

Country name:
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Dominica
conventional short form: Dominica

Government type:
parliamentary democracy; republic within the Commonwealth

Capital:
Roseau

Administrative divisions:
10 parishes; Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John,
Saint Joseph, Saint Luke, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick, Saint Paul,
Saint Peter

Independence:
3 November 1978 (from UK)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 3 November (1978)

Constitution:
3 November 1978

Legal system:
based on English common law

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Nicholas J. O. LIVERPOOL (since October
2003)
elections: president elected by the House of Assembly for a
five-year term; election last held 1 October 2003 (next to be held
NA October 2008); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: Nicholas LIVERPOOL elected president; percent of
legislative vote - NA
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the
prime minister
head of government: Prime Minister Roosevelt SKERRIT (since 8
January 2004); note - assumed post after death of Prime Minister
Pierre CHARLES

Legislative branch:
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

Judicial branch:
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)

Political parties and leaders:
Dominica Freedom Party or DFP [Charles SAVARIN]; Dominica Labor
Party or DLP [Roosevelt SKERRIT]; United Workers Party or UWP
[Edison JAMES]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
Dominica Liberation Movement or DLM (a small leftist party)

International organization participation:
ACCT, ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO
(subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW,
UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Swinburne LESTRADE
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016
telephone: [1] (202) 364-6781
consulate(s) general: New York
FAX: [1] (202) 364-6791

Diplomatic representation from the US:
the US does not have an embassy in Dominica; the US Ambassador to
Barbados, Ambassador Mary E. KRAMER, is accredited to Dominica

Flag description:
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)

Economy Dominica

Economy - overview:
The Dominican economy depends on agriculture, primarily bananas,
and remains highly vulnerable to climatic conditions and
international economic developments. Production of bananas dropped
precipitously in 2003, a major reason for the 1% decline in GDP.
Tourism increased in 2003 as the government sought to promote
Dominica as an "ecotourism" destination. Development of the tourism
industry remains difficult, however, because of the rugged
coastline, lack of beaches, and the absence of an international
airport. The government began a comprehensive restructuring of the
economy in 2003 - including elimination of price controls,
privatization of the state banana company, and tax increases - to
address Dominica's economic crisis and to meet IMF targets. In order
to diversify the island's production base the government is
attempting to develop an offshore financial sector and is planning
to construct an oil refinery on the eastern part of the island.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $380 million (2002 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
-1% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $5,400 (2002 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 18%
industry: 24%
services: 58% (2002 est.)

Population below poverty line:
30% (2002 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
25,000 (1999 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 40%, industry and commerce 32%, services 28%

Unemployment rate:
23% (2000 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $73.9 million
expenditures: $84.4 million, including capital expenditures of NA
(2001)

Agriculture - products:
bananas, citrus, mangoes, root crops, coconuts, cocoa; forest and
fishery potential not exploited

Industries:
soap, coconut oil, tourism, copra, furniture, cement blocks, shoes

Industrial production growth rate:
-10% (1997 est.)

Electricity - production:
72.41 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
67.35 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
600 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA (2001)

Oil - imports:
NA (2001)

Exports:
$39 million f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities:
bananas, soap, bay oil, vegetables, grapefruit, oranges

Exports - partners:
UK 20%, Jamaica 18.5%, Antigua and Barbuda 7.7%, US 7.7%, Guyana
6.2%, Japan 6.2%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.6% (2003)

Imports:
$98.2 million f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities:
manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, food, chemicals

Imports - partners:
US 18.5%, China 18%, Trinidad and Tobago 14.6%, Japan 6.3%, South
Korea 5.4%, UK 5.4% (2003)

Debt - external:
$161.5 million (2001)

Economic aid - recipient:
$22.8 million (2003 est.)

Currency:
East Caribbean dollar (XCD)

Currency code:
XCD

Exchange rates:
East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7
(2001), 2.7 (2000), 2.7 (1999)

Fiscal year:
1 July - 30 June

Communications Dominica

Telephones - main lines in use:
23,700 (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
9,400 (2002)

Telephone system:
general assessment: NA
domestic: fully automatic network
international: country code - 1-767; microwave radio relay and SHF
radiotelephone links to Martinique and Guadeloupe; VHF and UHF
radiotelephone links to Saint Lucia

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 0 (2004)

Radios:
46,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
1 (2004)

Televisions:
6,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.dm

Internet hosts:
681 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
16 (2000)

Internet users:
12,500 (2002)

Transportation Dominica

Highways:
total: 780 km
paved: 393 km
unpaved: 387 km (1999 est.)

Ports and harbors:
Portsmouth, Roseau

Merchant marine:
total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 13,771 GRT/19,736 DWT
by type: cargo 3, container 2, petroleum tanker 1
foreign-owned: Bahamas 1, Cyprus 1, Estonia 1, Greece 1, Panama 1,
Singapore 1 (2004 est.)

Airports:
2 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.)

Military Dominica

Military branches:
no regular military forces; Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force
(including Coast Guard)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
NA

Transnational Issues Dominica

Disputes - international:
joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves
Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under UNCLOS, which
permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large
portion of the Caribbean Sea

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

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005

======================================================================

@Dominican Republic

Introduction Dominican Republic

Background:
Explored and claimed by 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 for much of
its subsequent history was brought to an end in 1966 when Joaquin
BALAGUER became president. He 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. The Dominican economy has had
one of the fastest growth rates in the hemisphere over the past
decade.

Geography Dominican Republic

Location:
Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between
the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti

Geographic coordinates:
19 00 N, 70 40 W

Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean

Area:
total: 48,730 sq km
land: 48,380 sq km
water: 350 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire

Land boundaries:
total: 360 km
border countries: Haiti 360 km

Coastline:
1,288 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 6 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate:
tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal
variation in rainfall

Terrain:
rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Lago Enriquillo -46 m
highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m

Natural resources:
nickel, bauxite, gold, silver

Land use:
arable land: 22.65%
permanent crops: 10.33%
other: 67.02% (2001)

Irrigated land:
2,590 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe
storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts

Environment - current issues:
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

Geography - note:
shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti

People Dominican Republic

Population:
8,833,634 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 33.3% (male 1,502,062; female 1,435,135)
15-64 years: 61.4% (male 2,767,880; female 2,658,861)
65 years and over: 5.3% (male 219,230; female 250,466) (2004 est.)

Median age:
total: 23.7 years
male: 23.5 years
female: 23.9 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate:
1.33% (2004 est.)

Birth rate:
23.6 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate:
7.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate:
-3.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio:
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: 0.88 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 33.28 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 30.68 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 35.75 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 67.63 years
male: 65.98 years
female: 69.35 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate:
2.89 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1.7% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
88,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
7,900 (2003 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Dominican(s)
adjective: Dominican

Ethnic groups:
white 16%, black 11%, mixed 73%

Religions:
Roman Catholic 95%

Languages:
Spanish

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84.7%
male: 84.6%
female: 84.8% (2003 est.)

Government Dominican Republic

Country name:
conventional long form: Dominican Republic
conventional short form: The Dominican
local long form: Republica Dominicana
local short form: La Dominicana

Government type:
representative democracy

Capital:
Santo Domingo

Administrative divisions:
31 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 district*
(distrito); Azua, Baoruco, Barahona, Dajabon, Distrito Nacional*,
Duarte, Elias Pina, El Seibo, 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, Sanchez Ramirez, San Cristobal, San Jose de Ocoa,
San Juan, San Pedro de Macoris, Santiago, Santiago Rodriguez, Santo
Domingo, Valverde

Independence:
27 February 1844 (from Haiti)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 27 February (1844)

Constitution:
28 November 1966, amended 25 July 2002

Legal system:
based on French civil codes; undergoing modification in 2004
towards an accusatory system

Suffrage:
18 years of age, universal and compulsory; married persons
regardless of age
note: members of the armed forces and national police cannot vote

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); note - the president is both the chief of state and
head of government
cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the president
elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket
by popular vote for four-year terms; 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%

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 Chamber of Deputies 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 NA May
2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 16 May 2002 (next to be held
NA May 2006)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - PRD 29, PLD 2, PRSC 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote
by party - NA; seats by party - PRD 73, PLD 41, PRSC 36

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are appointed by a the
National Judicial Council comprised of the President, the leaders of
both chambers of congress, the President of the Supreme Court, and
an opposition or non-governing party member)

Political parties and leaders:
Dominican Liberation Party or PLD [Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna];
Dominican Revolutionary Party or PRD [Vicente Sanchez BARET]; Social
Christian Reformist Party or PRSC [Enrique ATUN]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
Collective of Popular Organizations or COP; Citizen Participation
Group (Participacion Ciudadania); Foundation for
Institution-Building (FINJUS)

International organization participation:
ACP, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU,
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
ISO (subscriber), 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

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador-designate Flavio Dario Espinal JACOBO
consulate(s): Mobile
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Mayaguez (Puerto Rico), Miami, New
Orleans, New York, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
FAX: [1] (202) 265-8057
telephone: [1] (202) 332-6280
chancery: 1715 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

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

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

Economy Dominican Republic

Economy - overview:
The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean representative democracy
which enjoyed GDP growth of more than 7% in 1998-2000. Growth
subsequently plummeted as part of the global economic slowdown.
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. 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. Growth turned negative in 2003 with
reduced tourism, a major bank fraud, and limited growth in the US
economy, the source of 87% of export revenues. Resumption of a badly
needed IMF loan was slowed due to government repurchase of
electrical power plants.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $52.71 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
-0.7% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $6,000 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 10.7%
industry: 31.5%
services: 57.8% (2003)

Investment (gross fixed):
19.9% of GDP (2003)

Population below poverty line:
25%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.1%
highest 10%: 37.9% (1998)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
47.4 (1998)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
27.5% (2003 est.)

Labor force:
2.3 million - 2.6 million (2000 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 17%, industry 24.3%, services and government 58.7%
(1998 est.)

Unemployment rate:
16.5% (2003 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $2.601 billion
expenditures: $3.353 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.1
billion (2003 est.)

Public debt:
59.4% of GDP (2003)

Agriculture - products:
sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes,
corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs

Industries:
tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles,
cement, tobacco

Industrial production growth rate:
2% (2001 est.)

Electricity - production:
9.186 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
8.543 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
129,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA (2001)

Oil - imports:
NA (2001)

Current account balance:
$867 million (2003)

Exports:
$5.524 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities:
ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats,
consumer goods

Exports - partners:
US 83.8%, Canada 1.5%, Haiti 1.5% (2003)

Imports:
$7.911 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities:
foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics, chemicals and
pharmaceuticals

Imports - partners:
US 52.1%, Venezuela 11.9%, Mexico 4.7%, Colombia 4.2% (2003)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold:
$261 million (2003)

Debt - external:
$6.567 billion (2003 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$239.6 million (1995)

Currency:
Dominican peso (DOP)

Currency code:
DOP

Exchange rates:
Dominican pesos per US dollar - 30.8307 (2003), 18.6098 (2002),
16.9516 (2001), 16.415 (2000), 16.0331 (1999)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Dominican Republic

Telephones - main lines in use:
901,800 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
2,120,400 (2003)

Telephone system:
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)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 120, FM 56, shortwave 4 (1998)

Radios:
1.44 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
25 (2003)

Televisions:
770,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.do

Internet hosts:
64,197 (2003)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
24 (2000)

Internet users:
500,000 (2003)

Transportation Dominican Republic

Railways:
total: 1,743 km
standard gauge: 375 km 1.435-m gauge
note: additional 1,226 km operated by sugar companies in 1.076-m,
0.889-m, and 0.762-m gauges (2003)
narrow gauge: 142 km 0.762-m gauge

Highways:
total: 12,600 km
paved: 6,224 km
unpaved: 6,376 km (1999)

Ports and harbors:
Barahona, La Romana, Manzanillo, Puerto Plata, San Pedro de
Macoris, Santo Domingo

Merchant marine:
total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 11,230 GRT/17,011 DWT
by type: cargo 1, petroleum tanker 2
registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.)
foreign-owned: Pakistan 1, Singapore 1

Airports:
31 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 13
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.)

Military Dominican Republic

Military branches:
Army, Navy, Air Force

Military manpower - military age and obligation:
18 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 2,354,800 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 1,474,978 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 90,434 (2004 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$180 million (1998)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.1% (1998)

Transnational Issues Dominican Republic

Disputes - international:
despite efforts to control illegal migration, destitute Haitians
fleeing poverty and violence continue to cross into the Dominican
Republic; illegal migration of Dominicans and other nationals across
the Mona Passage to Puerto Rico has increased in the last year

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

This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005

======================================================================

@East Timor

Introduction East Timor

Background:
The Portuguese began to trade with the island of Timor in the early
16th century and colonized it in mid-century. Skirmishing with the
Dutch in the region eventually resulted in an 1859 treaty in which
Portugal ceded the western portion of the island. Imperial Japan
occupied East Timor during 1942-1945, but Portugal resumed colonial
authority after the Japanese defeat in World War II. East Timor
declared itself independent from Portugal on 28 November 1975 and
was invaded and occupied by Indonesian forces nine days later. It
was incorporated into Indonesia in July 1976 as the province of East
Timor. An unsuccessful campaign of pacification followed over the
next two decades, during which an estimated 100,000 to 250,000
individuals lost their lives. On 30 August 1999, in a UN-supervised
popular referendum, an overwhelming majority of the people of East
Timor voted for independence from Indonesia. Between the referendum
and the arrival of a multinational peacekeeping force in late
September 1999, anti-independence Timorese militias - organized and
supported by the Indonesian military - commenced a large-scale,
scorched-earth campaign of retribution. The militias killed
approximately 1,300 Timorese and forcibly pushed 300,000 people into
West Timor as refugees. The majority of the country's
infrastructure, including homes, irrigation systems, water supply
systems, and schools, and nearly 100% of the country's electrical
grid were destroyed. On 20 September 1999 the Australian-led
peacekeeping troops of the International Force for East Timor
(INTERFET) deployed to the country and brought the violence to an
end. On 20 May 2002, East Timor was internationally recognized as an
independent state.

Geography East Timor

Location:
Southeastern Asia, northwest of Australia in the Lesser Sunda
Islands at the eastern end of the Indonesian archipelago; note -
East Timor includes the eastern half of the island of Timor, the
Oecussi (Ambeno) region on the northwest portion of the island of
Timor, and the islands of Pulau Atauro and Pulau Jaco

Geographic coordinates:
8 50 S, 125 55 E

Map references:
Southeast Asia

Area:
total: 15,007 sq km
land: NA sq km
water: NA sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly larger than Connecticut

Land boundaries:
total: 228 km
border countries: Indonesia 228 km

Coastline:
706 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: NA nm
extended fishing zone: NA nm
exclusive economic zone: NA nm
continental shelf: NA nm
exclusive fishing zone: NA nm

Climate:
tropical; hot, humid; distinct rainy and dry seasons

Terrain:
mountainous

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Timor Sea, Savu Sea, and Banda Sea 0 m
highest point: Foho Tatamailau 2,963 m

Natural resources:
gold, petroleum, natural gas, manganese, marble

Land use:
arable land: 4.71%
other: 94.62% (2001)
permanent crops: 0.67%

Irrigated land:
1,065 sq km (est.)

Natural hazards:
floods and landslides are common; earthquakes, tsunamis, tropical
cyclones

Environment - current issues:
widespread use of slash and burn agriculture has led to
deforestation and soil erosion

Environment - international agreements:
NA

Geography - note:
Timor comes from the Malay word for "East;" the island of Timor is
part of the Malay Archipelago and is the largest and easternmost of
the Lesser Sunda Islands

People East Timor

Population:
1,019,252
note: other estimates range as low as 800,000 (July 2004 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 37.8% (male 196,007; female 189,584)
15-64 years: 59.2% (male 308,254; female 295,584)
65 years and over: 2.9% (male 14,663; female 15,160) (2004 est.)

Median age:
total: 20 years
male: 20.1 years
female: 19.9 years (2004 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.11% (2004 est.)

Birth rate:
27.46 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate:
6.36 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 48.86 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 42.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 55.34 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 65.56 years
male: 63.31 years
female: 67.92 years (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate:
3.7 children born/woman (2004 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA

Nationality:
noun: Timorese
adjective: Timorese

Ethnic groups:
Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian), Papuan, small Chinese minority

Religions:
Roman Catholic 90%, Muslim 4%, Protestant 3%, Hindu 0.5%, Buddhist,
Animist (1992 est.)

Languages:
Tetum (official), Portuguese (official), Indonesian, English
note: there are about 16 indigenous languages; Tetum, Galole,
Mambae, and Kemak are spoken by significant numbers of people

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 58.6% (2002)

Government East Timor

Country name:
conventional long form: Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
conventional short form: East Timor
local short form: Timor Lorosa'e [Tetum]; Timor-Leste [Portuguese]
former: Portuguese Timor
local long form: Republika Demokratika Timor Lorosa'e [Tetum];
Republica Democratica de Timor-Leste [Portuguese]

Government type:
Republic

Capital:
Dili

Administrative divisions:
13 administrative districts; Aileu, Ainaro, Baucau, Bobonaro
(Maliana), Cova-Lima (Suai), Dili, Ermera, Lautem (Los Palos),
Liquica, Manatuto, Manufahi (Same), Oecussi (Ambeno), Viqueque

Independence:
28 November 1975 (date of proclamation of independence from
Portugal); note - 20 May 2002 is the official date of international
recognition of East Timor's independence from Indonesia

National holiday:
Independence Day, 28 November (1975)

Constitution:
22 March 2002 (based on the Portuguese model)

Legal system:
UN-drafted legal system based on Indonesian law remains in place
but will be replaced by civil and penal codes based on Portuguese
law (2004)

Suffrage:
17 years of age; universal