| 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. |
| Location: |
Caribbean,
western one-third of the island of Hispaniola, between the
Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of the
Dominican Republic |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
19 00 N, 72 25 W |
| Map
references: |
Central America
and the Caribbean |
| Area: |
total:
27,750 sq km
land: 27,560 sq km
water: 190 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly smaller
than Maryland |
| Land
boundaries: |
total:
275 km
border countries: Dominican Republic 275 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
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 sq km (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 |
| 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 |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the
Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer
Protection
signed, but not ratified: Hazardous Wastes,
Nuclear Test Ban |
| Geography
- note: |
shares island of
Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is
Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic) |
| Population: |
6,964,549
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.) |
| 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/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
15 deaths/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
-2.64 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.94 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
95.23
deaths/1,000 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.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
5.17% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
210,000 (1999
est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
23,000 (1999
est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun:
Haitian(s)
adjective: Haitian |
| Ethnic
groups: |
black 95%,
mulatto and white 5% |
| Religions: |
Roman Catholic
80%, Protestant 16% (Baptist 10%, Pentecostal 4%, Adventist
1%, other 1%), none 1%, other 3% (1982)
note: roughly one-half of the population also
practices Voodoo |
| Languages: |
French
(official), Creole (official) |
| 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 |
| 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: |
bicameral
National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale consists of the
Senate (27 seats; members serve six-year terms; one-third
elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies (83
seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve
four-year terms)
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] |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
Autonomous
Haitian Workers or CATH; Confederation of Haitian Workers or
CTH; Federation of Workers Trade Unions or FOS; National
Popular Assembly or APN; Papaye Peasants Movement or MPP;
Popular Organizations Gathering Power or PROP; Roman
Catholic Church |
| 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
chancery: 2311 Massachusetts Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 332-4090
FAX: [1] (202) 745-7215
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Miami,
New York, and San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Brian Dean CURRAN
embassy: 5 Harry Truman Boulevard,
Port-au-Prince
mailing address: P. O. Box 1761, Port-au-Prince
telephone: [509] 222-0354, 222-0269, 222-0200,
223-4776
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. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $12.7 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
1.2% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $1,800 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
32%
industry: 20%
services: 48% (1999 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
80% (1998 est.) |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
19% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
3.6 million
(1995)
note: shortage of skilled labor, unskilled
labor abundant (1998) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture 66%,
services 25%, industry 9% |
| Unemployment
rate: |
widespread
unemployment and underemployment; more than two-thirds of
the labor force do not have formal jobs (1999) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$317 million
expenditures: $362 million, including capital
expenditures of $84 million (FY99/00 est.) |
| Industries: |
sugar refining,
flour milling, textiles, cement, tourism, light assembly
industries based on imported parts |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
0.6% (1997 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
672 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
52.83%
hydro: 47.17%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
625 million kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
coffee, mangoes,
sugarcane, rice, corn, sorghum; wood |
| Exports: |
$186 million
(f.o.b., 1999) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
manufactures,
coffee, oils, mangoes |
| Exports
- partners: |
US 89%, EU 8%
(1999) |
| Imports: |
$1.2 billion
(c.i.f., 1999) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
food, machinery
and transport equipment, fuels, raw materials |
| Imports
- partners: |
US 60%, EU 13%
(1999) |
| Debt
- external: |
$1 billion (1998
est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$730.6 million
(1995) |
| 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) |
| Fiscal
year: |
1 October - 30
September |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
60,000 (1997) |
| Telephones
- 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) |
| Radio
broadcast stations: |
AM 41, FM 26,
shortwave 0 (1999) |
| Television
broadcast stations: |
2 (plus a cable
TV service) (1997) |
| Televisions: |
38,000 (1997) |
| Internet
country code: |
.ht |
| Internet
Service Providers (ISPs): |
3 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
6,000 (2000) |
| Railways: |
total:
40 km (single track; privately owned industrial line) -
closed in early 1990s
narrow gauge: 40 km 0.760-m gauge |
| Highways: |
total:
4,160 km
paved: 1,011 km
unpaved: 3,149 km (1996) |
| Waterways: |
NEGL; less than
100 km navigable |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Cap-Haitien,
Gonaives, Jacmel, Jeremie, Les Cayes, Miragoane,
Port-au-Prince, Port-de-Paix, Saint-Marc |
| Merchant
marine: |
none (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
10
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
Haitian National
Police (HNP)
note: the regular Haitian Army, Navy, and Air
Force have been demobilized but still exist on paper until
constitutionally abolished |
| Military
manpower - military age: |
18 years of age |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age
15-49: 1,635,253 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age
15-49: 888,305 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - reaching military age annually: |
males:
87,049 (2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$NA; note -
mainly for police and security activities |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
NA% |
| Disputes
- international: |
claims
US-administered Navassa Island |
| Illicit
drugs: |
major Caribbean
transshipment point for cocaine en route to the US and
Europe; vulnerable to money laundering |
|
