Map of Dominica | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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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.


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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 reference: Central America and the Caribbean

Area
Total: 754 km²
Land: 754 km²
Water: 0 km²
Comparative: slightly more than four times the size of Washington DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 148 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

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

Terrain: rugged mountains of volcanic origin

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

Natural resources: timber hydropower arable land

Land use
Arable land: 6.67%
Permanent crops: 21.33%
Other: 72% (2005)

Irrigated land: NA

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

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

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


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Population: 72,386 (July 2007 est.)
Growth rate: 0.184% (2007 est.)
Below poverty line: 30% (2002 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Dominican
Adjective: Dominican

Ethnic groups: black 86.8% mixed 8.9% Carib Amerindian 2.9% white 0.8% other 0.7% (2001 census)

Languages: English (official) French patois

Religions: Roman Catholic 61.4% Seventh Day Adventist 6% Pentecostal 5.6% Baptist 4.1% Methodist 3.7% Church of God 1.2% Jehovah's Witnesses 1.2% other Christian 7.7% Rastafarian 1.3% other or unspecified 1.6% none 6.1% (2001 census)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 25.6% (male 9,481/female 9,048)
15-64 years: 64.2% (male 23,822/female 22,656)
65 years and over: 10.2% (male 3,165/female 4,214) (2007 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age
Total: 29.1 years
Male: 28.7 years
Female: 29.6 years (2007 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.184% (2007 est.)

Birth rate: 15.75 births/1000 population (2007 est.)

Death rate: 8.44 deaths/1000 population (2007 est.)

Net migration rate: -5.47 migrant(s)/1000 population (2007 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

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

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.048 male/female
15-64 years: 1.051 male/female
65 years and over: 0.751 male/female
Total population: 1.015 male/female (2007 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 14.61 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 19.68 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 9.29 deaths/1000 live births (2007 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 75.1 years
Male: 72.17 years
Female: 78.18 years (2007 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.12 children born/woman (2007 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: NA
People living with hivaids: NA
Deaths: NA

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
Total population: 94%
Male: 94%
Female: 94% (2003 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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

Government type: parliamentary democracy

Capital
Name: Roseau
Geographic coordinates: 15 18 N, 61 24 W
Time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

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

Dependent areas

Independence: 3 November 1978 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day 3 November (1978)

Constitution: 3 November 1978

Legal system: based on English common law

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Nicholas J. O. LIVERPOOL (since October 2003)
Head of government: Prime Minister Roosevelt SKERRIT (since 8 January 2004)
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 1 October 2003 (next to be held in October 2008); prime minister appointed by the president
Election results: Nicholas LIVERPOOL elected president; percent of legislative vote - NA%

Legislative branch
Elections: last held 5 May 2005 (next to be held by 5 August 2010); 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 (12 May 2005) plus a 90-day grace period
Election results: percent of vote by party - DLP 52.1%, UWP 43.6%, DFP 3.2%, other 1.1%; seats by party - DLP 12, UWP 8, independent 1

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]; Dominica United Workers Party or UWP [Earl WILLIAMS]

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

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: vacant
In the us chancery: 3,216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,016
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 364-6,781
In the us fax: [1] (202) 364-6,791
In the us consulates general: New York
From the us: the US does not have an embassy in Dominica; the US Ambassador to Barbados 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)

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: The Dominican economy depends on agriculture primarily bananas and remains highly vulnerable to climatic conditions and international economic developments. Tourism has increased as the government seeks 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.

Real gdp purchasing power parity: $485 million (2006 est.)

Real gdp growth rate: 3.1% (2005 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $3,800 (2005 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 17.7%
Industry: 32.8%
Services: 49.5% (2004 est.)

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.)

Labor force: 25,000 (1999 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 40%
By occupation industry: 32%
By occupation services: 28% (2000 est.)

Unemployment rate: 23% (2000 est.)

Youth unemployment

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

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $73.9 million
Expenditures: $84.4 million (2001)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June

Inflation rate consumer prices: -0.1% (2005 est.)

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $74 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Commodities: bananas soap bay oil vegetables grapefruit oranges
Partners: UK 24.8% Jamaica 12.3% Antigua and Barbuda 9.8% Guyana 8.3% China 7.9% Trinidad and Tobago 5.4% Saint Lucia 4.5% (2006)

Imports: $234 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Commodities: manufactured goods machinery and equipment food chemicals
Partners: US 25.2% China 22.6% Trinidad and Tobago 13.7% South Korea 4.8% (2006)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $213 million (2004)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2006) 2.7 (2005) 2.7 (2004) 2.7 (2003) 2.7 (2002)


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Electricity
Production: 80 million kWh (2005)
Consumption: 74.4 million kWh (2005)
Exports: 0 kWh (2005)
Imports: 0 kWh (2005)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2005 est.)
Consumption: 0 m³ (2005 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 21,000 (2004)
Mobile cellular: 41,800 (2004)

Telephone system
General assessment: NA
Domestic: fully automatic network
International: country code - 1-767; landing point for the East Caribbean Fiber Optic System (ECFS) submarine cable with links to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean extending from the British Virgin Islands to Trinidad; microwave radio relay and SHF radiotelephone links to Martinique and Guadeloupe; VHF and UHF radiotelephone links to Saint Lucia

Broadcast media

Internet
Country code: .dm
Hosts: 257 (2007)
Users: 26,000 (2005)

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: NA (2006)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 2 (2007)
With paved runways total: 2
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 2 (2007)

Heliports

Pipelines

Railways

Roadways
Total: 780 km
Paved: 393 km
Unpaved: 387 km (1999)

Waterways

Merchant marine
Total: 53 ships (1000 GRT or over) 716,435 GRT/1,252,537 DWT
By type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 30, chemical tanker 2, container 1, petroleum tanker 7, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, vehicle carrier 1
Foreign owned: 50 (Estonia 8, Greece 8, India 2, Latvia 2, Lebanon 1, Norway 1, NZ 3, Russia 2, Saudi Arabia 1, Singapore 8, Syria 2, Turkey 9, Ukraine 3) (2007)

Ports and terminals: Portsmouth Roseau


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Disputes international: Dominica is the only Caribbean state to challenge Venezuela's sovereignty claim over Aves Island and joins the other island nations in challenging whether the feature sustains human habitation a criterion under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) which permits Venezuela to extend its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and continental shelf claims over a large portion of the eastern Caribbean Sea

Refugees and internally displaced persons

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