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DOMINICA
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Also known as: |
The Nature Island of the Caribbean |
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Motto: |
After the Good Lord we Love the
Earth |
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History |
Dominica was occupied first by the
Amerindians. It was sighted and named by Christopher Columbus in 1493.
The island changed hands several times in the 18th century, but France
ceded possession to Great Britain in 1763 and it
finally became a British colony in 1805. It was joined to the Leeward, then the
Windward Island, achieved a separate status in 1960, became a British
Associate in 1967, and gained independence on November 3, 1978. Dominica
was the last of the Caribbean islands to be colonized by Europeans, due
chiefly to the fierce resistance of the native Caribs. 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 3000 Carib Indians
still living on Dominica are the only pre-Columbian population remaining
in the eastern Caribbean. |
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Geography |
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Location: |
The most northerly and largest of the
Windward Islands situated between Guadeloupe to the north, and
Martinique to the south.
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Geographic
coordinates: |
15 25 N, 61 20 W |
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Area: |
total: 751 sq
km
country comparison to the world: 195
land: 751 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
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Land boundaries: |
0 km |
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Coastline: |
148 km
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Maritime claims: |
territorial
sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
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Climate: |
tropical;
moderated by northeast trade winds; heavy rainfall
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Terrain: |
rugged
mountains of volcanic origin
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Elevation extremes: |
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Morne Diablatins 1,447 m
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Natural resources: |
timber,
hydropower, arable land |
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Land use: |
arable land:
6.67%
permanent crops: 21.33%
other: 72% (2005) |
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Natural hazards: |
flash floods
are a constant threat; destructive hurricanes can be expected during the
late summer months
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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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People |
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Polpulation: |
72,660 (July
2009 est.) |
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Age structure: |
0-14 years:
24% (male 8,910/female 8,518)
15-64 years: 65.8% (male 24,532/female 23,301)
65 years and over: 10.2% (male 3,187/female 4,212) (2009 est.)
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Population growth rate: |
0.208% (2009
est.) |
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Birth rate: |
15.73
births/1,000 population (2009 est.) |
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Death rate: |
8.2
deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.) |
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Net migration rate: |
-5.45
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.) |
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Urbanization: |
urban
population: 74% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 0.2% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
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Sex ratio: |
at birth: 1.05
male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2009 est.) |
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noun: Dominican(s) |
adjective:
Dominican
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Ethnic groups: |
black 86.8%,
mixed 8.9%, Carib Amerindian 2.9%, white 0.8%, other 0.7% (2001 census)
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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)
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Languages: |
English
(official), French patois
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Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 94%
male: 94%
female: 94% (2003 est.)
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Government |
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Country Name: |
conventional
long form: Commonwealth of Dominica
conventional short form: Dominica
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Government type: |
parliamentary
democracy |
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Capital: |
name: Roseau
geographic coordinates: 15 18 N, 61 24 W
time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard
Time)
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Administrative divisions: |
10 parishes;
Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint
Luke, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick, Saint Paul, Saint Peter
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Independence: |
3 November
1978 (from the UK) |
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National holiday: |
Independence
Day, 3 November (1978)
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Constitution: |
3 November
1978
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Legal system: |
based on
English common law; accepts ICJ jurisdiction
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Executive branch: |
chief of
state: President Nicholas J. O. LIVERPOOL (since October 2003)
head of government: Prime
Minister Roosevelt SKERRIT (since 8 January 2004). Prime
Minister Roosevelt Skerrit is the
7th Prime Minister of
Dominica, born June 08, 1972. Vielle Case, Dominica)
He assumed
office January 8, 2004 he holds the ministerial portfolios of Finance,
Planning, National Security and Overseas Nationals.
Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit
began his college education at New Mexico State University and transferred
to the University of Mississippi, from where he graduated with a BA in
English and Psychology.
He has forged a close relationship with
leftist leaders
Fidel
Castro
and
Hugo
Chávez,
which has resulted in
Dominica receiving
substantial aid from
Cuba
and
Venezuela.
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the
president on the advice of the prime minister |
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Legislative branch: |
unicameral
House of Assembly (30 seats; 9 members appointed, 21 elected by popular
vote; to serve five-year terms)
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
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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)
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Political parties and leaders:
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Dominica
Freedom Party or DFP [Charles SAVARIN]; Dominica Labor Party or DLP
[Roosevelt SKERRIT]; Dominica United Workers Party or UWP [Earl
WILLIAMS]
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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, WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WTO
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of
mission: Ambassador (vacant);
Charge d'Affaires: Judith Ann ROLLE
chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016
telephone: [1] (202) 364-6781
FAX: [1] (202) 364-6791
consulate(s) general: New York
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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the US does
not have an embassy in Dominica; the US Ambassador to Barbados is
accredited to Dominica
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Date of CARICOM Membership: |
1 May 1974 |
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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)
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Economy |
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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 and has developed a new tourism development plan with
assistance from the EU. Hurricane Dean struck the island in August 2007
causing damages equivalent to 20% of GDP. In 2003, the government began
a comprehensive restructuring of the economy - including elimination of
price controls, privatization of the state banana company, and tax
increases - to address Dominica's economic and financial crisis of
2001-02 and to meet IMF targets. This restructuring paved the way for
the current economic recovery - real growth for 2006 reached a
two-decade high - and will help to reduce the debt burden, which remains
at about 100% of GDP. In order to diversify the island's production
base, the government is attempting to develop an offshore financial
sector and has signed an agreement with the EU to develop geothermal
energy resources. |
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$719.6 million (2008 est.) |
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GDP (official exchange rate):
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$364 million (2008 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate: |
2.6% (2008 est.) |
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GDP - per capita (PPP): |
$9,900 (2008 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector: |
agriculture: 17.7%
industry: 32.8%
services: 49.5% (2004 est.) |
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Labor force: |
25,000 (2000 est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation: |
agriculture: 40%
industry: 32%
services: 28% (2000 est.) |
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Budget: |
revenues: $73.9 million
expenditures: $84.4 million (2001) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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2.7% (2007 est.) |
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Agriculture - products: |
bananas, citrus, mangoes, root crops,
coconuts, cocoa; forest and fishery potential not exploited |
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Industries: |
soap, coconut oil, tourism, copra,
furniture, cement blocks, shoes |
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Exports: |
$94 million (2006) |
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Exports - commodities: |
bananas, soap, bay oil, vegetables,
grapefruit, oranges |
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Exports - partners: |
Japan 29.8%, China 25.2%, Jamaica 6.2%,
Antigua and Barbuda 6%, Guyana 5.1%, UK 4.2% (2008) |
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Imports: |
$296 million (2006) |
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Imports - commodities: |
manufactured goods, machinery and
equipment, food, chemicals |
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Imports - partners: |
Japan 42.5%, US 16.7%, China 13.6%,
Trinidad and Tobago 8.3% (2008) |
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Exchange rates: |
East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar
- 2.7 (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003) |
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Business Hours: |
Commercial: 8:00-17:00 hrs Monday to Friday
Government: 8:00-14:00 hrs Monday to
Friday
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National Holidays: |
New Year's Day (01 January); Carnival
(Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday); Good Friday, Easter Monday; Labor
Day (01 May); Whit Monday (50 days after Easter Sunday); August
Monday (First Monday in August); Independence Day (03 November);
Community Day of Service (04 November); Christmas Day (25 December);
Boxing Day (26 December) |
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Communications |
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Telephones: |
17,500 (2008) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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100,000 (2008) |
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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 |
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Radio broadcast stations: |
AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 0 (2003) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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1 (2004) |
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Internet country code: |
.dm |
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Internet hosts: |
29 (2008) |
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Internet users: |
26,500 (2006) |
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Transportation: |
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Airports: |
2 (2009) Main Airport: Canefield; Melville
Hall |
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Airports - with paved runways: |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2009) |
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Roadways: |
total: 780 km
country comparison to the world: 188
paved: 393 km
unpaved: 387 km (2000) |
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Merchant marine: |
total: 53
country comparison to the world: 69
by type: bulk carrier 14, cargo 27, chemical tanker 3, petroleum tanker
5, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, vehicle carrier 1
foreign-owned: 47 (Australia 2, Estonia 7, Greece 10, India 2, Latvia 1,
Norway 1, Russia 3, Saudi Arabia 2, Singapore 7, Syria 2, Turkey 5,
Ukraine 4, UAE 1) (2008) |
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Ports and terminals: |
Portsmouth, Roseau |
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Military |
no regular military forces; Commonwealth of
Dominica Police Force (includes Coast Guard) (2008) |
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Source of Information: the Central Intelligence Agency |
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Items of Interest |
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National Anthem: |
Isle of Beauty
Isle of beauty, isle of splendor,
Isle of all so sweet and fair,
All must surely gaze in wonder,
At thy gifts so rich and rare,
Rivers, valleys, hills and mountains,
All these gifts we we extol,
Healthy lands so like all fountains,
Giving cheer, that warms the soul.
Dominica God hath blest thee,
With a clime benign and bright,
Pastures green and flowers of beauty,
Filling all with pure delight,
And a people strong and healthy,
Full of Godly reverent fear,
May we ever seek to praise thee,
For these gifts so rich and rare.
Come ye forward, sons and daughters,
Of this Gem beyond compare,
Strive for honor sons and daughters,
Do the right be firm be fair.
Toil with hearts and hands and voices,
We must prosper! Sound the call,
In which everyone rejoices
"All for Each and Each for All!"
(Words by W.O.M. Pond, Music by L.M.
Christian)
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Highest National Award: |
Sisserou Award of Honour |
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Favourite local Cuisine: |
Mountain Chicken (Leptodactylus
fallax - Frog); Lobster Dominic |
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Government web page: |
http://www.dominica.gov.dm/cms/ |
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