Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is located on the island of Hispanola located in the Caribbean
Sea. It takes up about 2/3 of the island which it shares with Haiti. Dominican
Republic's total area is 48,734 square kilometers. The Dominican Republic Jas a tropical
maritime climate. The temperatures are moderated though by the ocean currents and
year-round trade winds. The average temperature is around 720F and 800F, it hardly ever
drops below 600F and it also hardly ever riser above 900F. It isn't uncommon though to
get frost in the higher elevations. Dominican Republic's rainy season is between May and
November rainfall is the heaviest in the north and east of the country. Although
agriculture is the most important resource in the Dominican Republic it has many mineral
resources. Some of these resources are nickel being the leading export as well as
bauxite, gold, and rock salt.
The population of the Dominican Republic is around 7.8 million. Close to 40% of that
population is under the age of 16. More and more Dominicans are migrating to the cities
for a better chance at life. This has greatly effected the rural population by shrinking
it steadily. About half of the total population is located between Santiago de los
Caballeros and San Pedro de Macoris.
Another 1/3 of the population is located in the capitol city of Santo Domingo and between
the cities of La Romana and San Cristobal. The annual growth rate is estimated to be at
1.71% for the next couple of years until the year 2000. Mulattos form the largest ethnic
group in the Dominican Republic being roughly 73% of the population. The next largest
group is 16% Caucasian and 11% Black. The life expectancy from birth is for males 65
years and for females 69 years. Out of 100,000 live births 61.4% of the babies die.
The start religion for the Dominican Republic is Roman Catholicism. Over 90% of the
population is Catholic. Free public education is offered through the high school level
and attendance is mandatory through the 6th grade. A lot of the Dominicans don't finish
school for various reasons. Although 3/4 of the residents start school only about 1/3
finish. Some of the urban families send their children to private schools called
colegios. As for after high school there is universities and trade schools.
The Dominican Republic currently has about 1 telephone per every 24 people in the
country. There are roughly 16 million long distance calls and 5 million international
calls made in the country every year. There is 11,400 Km of roads in the Dominican
Republic and 49% of that amount of roads are paved.
There is a railway in the Dominican Republic but it seldom transports people. The
railroad is mainly used for the transportation of sugar.
The system of government used is Parliamentary democracy and the head of state and head
of government is President Joaquin Balaguer. The Vice President is Carlos A. Morales
Troncoso. There are three major political parties in the Dominican Republic. They are:
the Social Christian Reformist Party, the Dominican Revolutionary Party, the Dominican
Democratic Party, and the two minor parties: the Movimiento Popular Dominicano and the
Movimiento de Intergracion Democratica.
The military is headed by the President as supreme commander. The total strength of the
armed forces is around 20,800 people. Out of those people 13,000 belong to the Army
4,000 belong to the Navy and 3,800 belong to the Air Force. The national military
expenditures were estimated to be 61 million in 1989 which was 1.2% of the GDP. The US
has a sort of alliance with the Dominican Republic supplying them with goods and helping
the country when things get rough.
The currency used in the Dominican Republic is the Dominican Republic Peso. The per
capita income rate is about 790 American dollars a year.
The average inflation rate is 1.7%. Of the total land area of the Dominican Republic 49%
is classified to be farmland used for agriculture. The agriculture in the country
produces 15% of the GDP. The main industry of the Dominican Republic is food processing
of all kinds of different products but mainly sugar. The manufacturing accounts for 17%
of the GDP.
The Dominican Republic's main imports are petroleum, petroleum products, foodstuffs, and
machinery. The countries main exports are sugar and ferronickel. The US is the
Dominican Republic's main trading partner but it also trades with Venezuela, Mexico, and
the Netherlands Antilles.
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