Haiti




                                 Geography


Location:
     Caribbean, in the northern Caribbean Sea, about 90 km southeast of
     Cuba
Map references:
     Central America and the Caribbean, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
     27,750 sq km
land area:
     27,560 sq km
comparative area:
     slightly larger than Maryland
Land boundaries:
     total 275 km, Dominican Republic 275 km
Coastline:
     1,771 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
     24 nm
continental shelf:
     to depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone:
     200 nm
territorial sea:
     12 nm
International disputes:
     claims US-administered Navassa Island
Climate:
     tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds
Terrain:
     mostly rough and mountainous
Natural resources:
     bauxite
Land use:
arable land:
     20%
permanent crops:
     13%
meadows and pastures:
     18%
forest and woodland:
     4%
other:
     45%
Irrigated land:
     750 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues:
     deforestation; soil erosion
natural hazards:
     lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms
     from June to October; occasional flooding and earthquakes




international agreements:
     party to - Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation; signed, but not
     ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the
     Sea, Nuclear Test Ban
Note:
     shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third
     is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic)


                                  People


Population:
     6,491,450 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
     1.63% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
     39.72 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
     18.78 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
     -4.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
     108.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
     45.11 years
male:
     43.45 years
female:
     46.85 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
     5.94 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
     Haitian(s)
adjective:
     Haitian
Ethnic divisions:
     black 95%, mulatto and European 5%
Religions:
     Roman Catholic 80% (of which an overwhelming majority also practice
     Voodoo), Protestant 16% (Baptist 10%, Pentecostal 4%, Adventist 1%,
     other 1%), none 1%, other 3% (1982)
Languages:
     French (official) 10%, Creole
Literacy:
     age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population:
     53%
male:
     59%
female:
     47%
Labor force:
     2.3 million




by occupation:
     agriculture 66%, services 25%, industry 9%
note:
     shortage of skilled labor, unskilled labor abundant (1982)


                                Government


Names:
conventional long form:
     Republic of Haiti
conventional short form:
local long form:
     Republique d'Haiti
local short form:
Digraph:
     HA
Type:
     republic
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:
     constitution approved March 1987, suspended June 1988, most articles
     reinstated March 1989; October 1991, government claims to be observing
     the Constitution
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 1991), ousted in a
     coup in September 1991, but still recognized by international
     community as Chief of State; election last held 16 December 1990 (next
     to be held by December 1995); results - Rev. Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE
     67.5%, Marc BAZIN 14.2%, Louis DEJOIE 4.9%
head of government:
     acting Prime Minister Robert MALVAL (since August 1993)
cabinet:
     Cabinet; chosen by prime minister in consultation with the president
Legislative branch:
     bicameral National Assembly (Assemblee Nationale)
Senate:
     elections last held 18 January 1993, widely condemned as illegitimate
     (next to be held December 1994); results - percent of vote NA; seats -
     (27 total) FNCD 12, ANDP 8, PAIN 2, MRN 1, RDNP 1, PNT 1, independent
     2




Chamber of Deputies:
     elections last held 16 December 1990, with runoff held 20 January 1991
     (next to be held by December 1994); results - percent of vote NA;
     seats - (83 total) FNCD 27, ANDP 17, PDCH 7, PAIN 6, RDNP 6, MDN 5,
     PNT 3, MKN 2, MODELH 2, MRN 1, independents 5, other 2
Judicial branch:
     Court of Appeal (Cour de Cassation)
Political parties and leaders:
     National Front for Change and Democracy (FNCD), including National
     Congress of Democratic Movements (CONACOM), Victor BENOIT, and
     National Cooperative Action Movement (MKN), Volvick Remy JOSEPH;
     Movement for the Installation of Democracy in Haiti (MIDH), Marc
     BAZIN; National Progressive Revolutionary Party (PANPRA), Serge
     GILLES; National Patriotic Movement of November 28 (MNP-28), Dejean
     BELIZAIRE; National Agricultural and Industrial Party (PAIN), Louis
     DEJOIE; Movement for National Reconstruction (MRN), Rene THEODORE;
     Haitian Christian Democratic Party (PDCH), Joseph DOUZE; Assembly of
     Progressive National Democrats (RDNP), Leslie MANIGAT; National Party
     of Labor (PNT), Thomas DESULME; Mobilization for National Development
     (MDN), Hubert DE RONCERAY; Democratic Movement for the Liberation of
     Haiti (MODELH), Francois LATORTUE; Haitian Social Christian Party
     (PSCH), Gregoire EUGENE; Movement for the Organization of the Country
     (MOP), Gesner COMEAU and Jean MOLIERE
Other political or pressure groups:
     Democratic Unity Confederation (KID); Roman Catholic Church;
     Confederation of Haitian Workers (CTH); Federation of Workers Trade
     Unions (FOS); Autonomous Haitian Workers (CATH); National Popular
     Assembly (APN); Revolutionary Front for Haitian Advancement and
     Progress (FRAPH)
Member of:
     ACCT, ACP, CARICOM (observer), CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, GATT, IADB,
     IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
     IOC, ITU, LAES, LORCS, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
     UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
     Ambassador Jean CASIMIR
chancery:
     2311 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
     (202) 332-4090 through 4092
FAX:
     (202) 745-7215
consulate(s) general:
     Boston, Chicago, Miami, New York, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
     Ambassador William Lacy SWING
embassy:
     Harry Truman Boulevard, Port-au-Prince
mailing address:
     P. O. Box 1761, Port-au-Prince
telephone:
     [509] 22-0354, 22-0368, 22-0200, or 22-0612




FAX:
     [509] 23-1641
Flag:
     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 75% of the population live in abject poverty. Agriculture is
     mainly small-scale subsistence farming and employs nearly
     three-fourths of the work force. The majority of the population does
     not have ready access to safe drinking water, adequate medical care,
     or sufficient food. Few social assistance programs exist, and the lack
     of employment opportunities remains one of the most critical problems
     facing the economy, along with soil erosion and political instability.
     Trade sanctions applied by the Organization of American States in
     response to the September 1991 coup against President ARISTIDE have
     further damaged the economy. Output continued to drop in 1993 although
     not as sharply as in 1992.
National product:
     GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $5.2 billion (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate:
     -13% (FY92 est.)
National product per capita:
     $800 (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
     20% (FY92 est.)
Unemployment rate:
     25%-50% (1991)
Budget:
revenues:
     $300 million
expenditures:
     $416 million, including capital expenditures of $145 million (1990
     est.)
Exports:
     $135 million (f.o.b., 1992 est.)
commodities:
     light manufactures 65%, coffee 19%, other agriculture 8%, other 8%
partners:
     US 84%, Italy 4%, France 3%, other industrial countries 6%, less
     developed countries 3% (1987)
Imports:
     $423 million (f.o.b., 1992 est.)
commodities:
     machines and manufactures 34%, food and beverages 22%, petroleum
     products 14%, chemicals 10%, fats and oils 9%
partners:
     US 64%, Netherlands Antilles 5%, Japan 5%, France 4%, Canada 3%,
     Germany 3% (1987)
External debt:
     $838 million (December 1990)




Industrial production:
     growth rate -2% (1991 est.); accounts for 15% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
     217,000 kW
production:
     480 million kWh
consumption per capita:
     75 kWh (1992)
Industries:
     sugar refining, textiles, flour milling, cement manufacturing,
     tourism, light assembly industries based on imported parts
Agriculture:
     accounts for 28% of GDP and employs around 70% of work force; mostly
     small-scale subsistence farms; commercial crops - coffee, mangoes,
     sugarcane, wood; staple crops - rice, corn, sorghum; shortage of wheat
     flour
Illicit drugs:
     transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana en route to the US and
     Europe
Economic aid:
recipient:
     US commitments, including Ex-Im (1970-89), $700 million; Western
     (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $770
     million
Currency:
     1 gourde (G) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates:
     gourdes (G) per US$1 - 12.00 (1 July 1993), 8.4 (December 1991), fixed
     rate of 5.000 through second quarter of 1991
Fiscal year:
     1 October - 30 September


                              Communications


Railroads:
     40 km 0.760-meter narrow gauge, single-track, privately owned
     industrial line
Highways:
total:
     4,000 km
paved:
     950 km
unpaved:
     otherwise improved 900 km; unimproved earth 2,150 km
Inland waterways:
     negligible; less than 100 km navigable
Ports:
     Port-au-Prince, Cap-Haitien; six minor ports
Airports:
total:
     14
usable:
     11




with permanent-surface runways:
     3
with runways over 3,659 m:
     0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
     1
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
     3
Telecommunications:
     domestic facilities barely adequate, international facilities slightly
     better; 36,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 33 AM, no FM, 4 TV, 2
     shortwave; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station


                              Defense Forces


Branches:
     Army (including Police), Navy, Air Force
Manpower availability:
     males age 15-49 1,313,265; fit for military service 709,712; reach
     military age (18) annually 62,488 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
     exchange rate conversion - $34 million, 1.5% of GDP (1988 est.)