Background: One of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere Haiti has been plagued by political violence for most of its history. Over three decades of dictatorship followed by military rule ended in 1990 when Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE was elected president. Most of his term was usurped by a military takeover but he was able to return to office in 1994 and oversee the installation of a close associate to the presidency in 1996. ARISTIDE won a second term as president in 2000 and took office early the following year.

Geographic coordinates: 19 00 N 72 25 W

Map reference: Central America and the Caribbean

Area
Total: 27,750 km²
Land: 27,560 km²
Water: 190 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries
Total: 275 km
Border countries: (1) Dominican Republic 275 km

Coastline: 1771 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 NM
Continental shelf: to depth of exploitation
Exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate: tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds

Terrain: mostly rough and mountainous

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
Extremes highest point: Chaine de la Selle 2,680 m

Natural resources: bauxite copper calcium carbonate gold marble hydropower

Land use
Arable land: 20%
Permanent crops: 13%
Permanent pastures: 18%
Forests and woodland: 5%
Other: 44% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 750 km² (1993 est.)

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

Geography
Note: shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is Haiti eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic)

Population
Note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.)
Growth rate: 1.4% (2001 est.)
Below poverty line: 80% (1998 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Haitian
Adjective: Haitian

Ethnic groups: black 95% mulatto and white 5%

Languages: French (official) Creole (official)

Religions
Note: roughly one-half of the population also practices Voodoo

Age structure
0-14 years: 40.31% (male 1,421,945; female 1,385,580)
15-64 years: 55.52% (male 1,869,323; female 1,997,246)
65 years and over: 4.17% (male 140,556; female 149,899) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.4% (2001 est.)

Birth rate: 31.68 births/1000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate: 15 deaths/1000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate: -2.64 migrant(s)/1000 population (2001 est.)

Environment
Current issues: extensive deforestation (much of the remaining forested land is being cleared for agriculture and used as fuel); soil erosion; inadequate supplies of potable water
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
International agreements signed but not ratified: Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.03 male/female
15-64 years: 0.94 male/female
65 years and over: 0.94 male/female
Total population: 0.97 male/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 95.23 deaths/1000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 49.38 years
Male: 47.67 years
Female: 51.17 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4.4 children born/woman (2001 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 5.17% (1999 est.)
People living with hivaids: 210,000 (1999 est.)
Deaths: 23,000 (1999 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 45%
Male: 48%
Female: 42.2% (1995 est.)

Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Haiti
Conventional short form: Haiti
Local long form: Republique d'Haiti
Local short form: Haiti

Government type: elected government

Capital: Port-au-Prince

Administrative divisions: 9 departments (departements singular - departement); Artibonite Centre Grand'Anse Nord Nord-Est Nord-Ouest Ouest Sud Sud-Est

Independence: 1 January 1804 (from France)

National holiday: Independence Day 1 January (1804)

Constitution: approved March 1987; suspended June 1988 with most articles reinstated March 1989; in October 1991 government claimed to be observing the constitution; return to constitutional rule October 1994

Legal system: based on Roman civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE (since 7 February 2001)
Head of government: Prime Minister Jean-Marie CHERESTAL (since 9 February 2001)
Cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 26 November 2000 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister appointed by the president, ratified by the Congress
Election results: Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE elected president; percent of vote - Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE 92%

Legislative branch
Elections: Senate - last held for two-thirds of seats 21 May 2000, with runoffs on 9 July boycotted by the opposition; about eight seats still disputed; election for remaining one-third held on 26 November 2000 (next to be held NA 2002); Chamber of Deputies - last held 21 May 2000, with runoffs on 30 July boycotted by the opposition; one vacant seat rerun 26 November 2000 (next election NA 2004)
Election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FL 26, independent 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FL 73, OPL 1, other minor parties and independents 9

Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Cour de Cassation

Political parties and leaders: Alliance for the Liberation and Advancement of Haiti or ALAH [Reynold GEORGES]; Assembly of Progressive National Democrats or RDNP [Leslie MANIGAT]; Convergence (opposition coalition composed of ESPACE OPL and MOCHRENA) [Gerard PIERRE-CHARLES Evans PAUL Luc MESADIEU Victor BENOIT]; Democratic Consultation Group coalition or ESPACE [Evans PAUL Victor Benoit] composed of the following parties: National Congress of Democratic Movements or KONAKOM National Progressive Revolutionary Party or PANPRA Generation 2004 and Haiti Can; Haitian Christian Democratic Party or PDCH [Marie-France CLAUDE]; Haitian Democratic Party or PADEM [Clark PARENT]; Lavalas Family or FL [Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE]; Mobilization for National Development or MDN [Hubert DE RONCERAY]; Movement for National Reconstruction or MRN [Rene THEODORE]; Movement for the Installation of Democracy in Haiti or MIDH [Marc BAZIN]; Movement for the Organization of the Country or MOP [Gesner COMEAU and Jean MOLIERE]; National Front for Change and Democracy or FNCD [Evans PAUL and Turneb DELPE]; New Christian Movement for a New Haiti or MOCHRENA [Luc MESADIEU]; Struggling People's Organization or OPL [Gerard PIERRE-CHARLES]

International organization participation: ACCT ACP Caricom (observer) CCC ECLAC FAO G-77 IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Intelsat Interpol IOC IOM ITU LAES OAS OPANAL OPCW PCA UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UPU WCL WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTrO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Louis Harold JOSEPH
In the us chancery: 2,311 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 332-4,090
In the us fax: [1] (202) 745-7,215
In the us consulates general: Boston, Chicago, Miami, New York, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Brian Dean CURRAN
From the us embassy: 5 Harry Truman Boulevard, Port-au-Prince
From the us mailing address: P. O. Box 1761, Port-au-Prince
From the us telephone: [509] 222-0354, 222-0269, 222-0200, 223-4,776
From the us fax: [509] 23-1641

Flag description: two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a centered white rectangle bearing the coat of arms which contains a palm tree flanked by flags and two cannons above a scroll bearing the motto L'UNION FAIT LA FORCE (Union Makes Strength)

Economy overview: About 80% of the population lives in abject poverty. Nearly 70% of all Haitians depend on the agriculture sector which consists mainly of small-scale subsistence farming and employs about two-thirds of the economically active work force. The country has experienced little job creation since the former President PREVAL took office in February 1996 although the informal economy is growing. Following legislative elections in May 2000 fraught with irregularities international donors - including the US and EU - suspended almost all aid to Haiti. This destabilized the Haitian currency the gourde and combined with a 40% fuel price hike in September caused widespread price increases. Prices appear to have leveled off in January 2001.

Real gdp growth rate: 1.2% (2000 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $1800 (2000 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 32%
Industry: 20%
Services: 48% (1999 est.)

Agriculture products: coffee mangoes sugarcane rice corn sorghum; wood

Industries: sugar refining flour milling textiles cement tourism light assembly industries based on imported parts

Industrial production growth rate: 0.6% (1997 est.)

Labor force
Note: shortage of skilled labor, unskilled labor abundant (1998)
By occupation agriculture: 66%
By occupation services: 25%
By occupation industry: 9%

Unemployment rate: widespread unemployment and underemployment; more than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal jobs (1999)

Population below poverty line: 80% (1998 est.)

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

Budget
Revenues: $317 million
Expenditures: $362 million, including capital expenditures of $84 million (FY99/00 est.)

Fiscal year: 1 October - 30 September

Inflation rate consumer prices: 19% (2000 est.)

Exports: $186 million (f.o.b. 1999)
Commodities: manufactures coffee oils mangoes
Partners: US 89% EU 8% (1999)

Imports: $1.2 billion (c.i.f. 1999)
Commodities: food machinery and transport equipment fuels raw materials
Partners: US 60% EU 13% (1999)

Debt external: $1 billion (1998 est.)

Exchange rates: gourdes per US dollar - 23.761 (January 2001) 22.524 (2000) 17.965 (1999) 16.505 (1998) 17.311 (1997) 15.093 (1996)

Electricity
Production: 672 million kWh (1999)
Production by source fossil fuel: 52.83%
Production by source hydro: 47.17%
Production by source nuclear: 0%
Production by source other: 0% (1999)
Consumption: 625 million kWh (1999)
Exports: 0 kWh (1999)
Imports: 0 kWh (1999)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 60,000 (1997)
Mobile cellular: 0 (1995)

Telephone system
General assessment: domestic facilities barely adequate; international facilities slightly better
Domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay trunk service
International: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Internet
Country code: .ht
Service providers isps: 3 (2000)
Users: 6,000 (2000)

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $NA; note - mainly for police and security activities
Percent of gdp: NA%

Airports: 13 (2000 est.)
With paved runways total: 3
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 2 (2000 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 10
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 2
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.)

Railways
Total: 40 km (single track; privately owned industrial line) - closed in early 1990s
Narrow gauge: 40 km 0.760-m gauge

Waterways: NEGL; less than 100 km navigable

Merchant marine: none (2000 est.)

Disputes international: claims US-administered Navassa Island