Dominican Republic

• tropical maritime;
• little seasonal temperature variation;
• seasonal variation in rainfall

total:

3.39 cu km/yr (32%/2%/66%)

per capita:

381 cu m/yr (2000)

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

• water shortages;
• soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs;
• deforestation

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Law of the Sea

noun:

Dominican(s)

adjective:

Dominican

at birth:

1.04 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.86 male(s)/female

total population:

1.03 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

degree of risk:

high

food or waterborne diseases:

bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases:

dengue fever and malaria

water contact disease:

leptospirosis (2009)

conventional long form:

Dominican Republic

conventional short form:

The Dominican

local long form:

Republica Dominicana

local short form:

La Dominicana

name:

Santo Domingo

geographic coordinates:

18 28 N, 69 54 W

time difference:

UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

• 18 years of age, universal and compulsory;
• married persons regardless of age;
• note - members of the armed forces and national police cannot vote

chief of state:

• President Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna (since 16 August 2004);
• Vice President Rafael ALBURQUERQUE de Castro (since 16 August 2004);
• note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:

President Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna (since 16 August 2004); Vice President Rafael ALBURQUERQUE de Castro (since 16 August 2004)

cabinet:

Cabinet nominated by the president; (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website)

elections:

president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held on 16 May 2008 (next to be held in May 2012)

election results:

Leonel FERNANDEZ reelected president; percent of vote - Leonel FERNANDEZ 53.6%, Miguel VARGAS 41%, Amable ARISTY less than 5%

• Dominican Liberation Party or PLD [Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna];
• Dominican Revolutionary Party or PRD [Ramon ALBURQUERQUE];
• National Progressive Front [Vincent CASTILLO, Pelegrin CASTILLO];
• Social Christian Reformist Party or PRSC [Enrique ANTUN]

• Citizen Participation Group (Participacion Ciudadania);
• Collective of Popular Organizations or COP;
• Foundation for Institution-Building and Justice (FINJUS)

chief of mission:

Ambassador Anibal de Jesus de CASTRO Rodriguez

chancery:

1715 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 332-6280

FAX:

[1] (202) 265-8057

consulate(s) general:

Anchorage, Boston, Chicago, Mayaguez (Puerto Rico), Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Sun Valley (California)

chief of mission:

Ambassador Raul H. YZAGUIRRE

embassy:

corner of Calle Cesar Nicolas Penson and Calle Leopoldo Navarro, Santo Domingo

mailing address:

Unit 5500, APO AA 34041-5500

telephone:

[1] (809) 221-2171

FAX:

[1] (809) 686-7437

• a centered white cross that extends to the edges divides the flag into four rectangles - the top ones are blue (hoist side) and red, and the bottom ones are red (hoist side) and blue;
• a small coat of arms featuring a shield supported by a laurel branch (left) and a palm branch (right) is at the center of the cross;
• above the shield a blue ribbon displays the motto, DIOS, PATRIA, LIBERTAD (God, Fatherland, Liberty), and below the shield, REPUBLICA DOMINICANA appears on a red ribbon;
• in the shield a bible is opened to a verse that reads "Y la verdad nos hara libre" (And the truth shall set you free);
• blue stands for liberty, white for salvation, and red for the blood of heroes

name:

"Himno Nacional" (National Anthem)

lyrics/music:

Emilio PRUD"HOMME/Jose REYES

note: adopted 1934; also known as "Quisqueyanos valientes" (Valient Sons of Quisqueye); the anthem never refers to the people as Dominican but rather calls them "Quisqueyanos," a reference to the indigenous name of the island

agriculture:

14.6%

industry:

22.3%

services:

63.1% (2005)

lowest 10%:

1.7%

highest 10%:

37.8% (2007)

general assessment:

relatively efficient system based on island-wide microwave radio relay network

domestic:

fixed-line teledensity is about 10 per 100 persons; multiple providers of mobile-cellular service with a subscribership of roughly 75 per 100 persons

international:

• country code - 1-809;
• landing point for the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1), Antillas 1, and the Fibralink submarine cables that provide links to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and US;
• satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2009)

• combination of state-owned and privately-owned broadcast media;
• 1 state-owned television network and a number of private TV networks;
• networks operate repeaters to extend signals throughout country;
• combination of state-owned and privately-owned radio stations;
• more than 300 radio stations operating (2007)

total:

142 km

country comparison to the world: 125

standard gauge:

142 km 1.435-m gauge (2010)

total:

19,705 km

country comparison to the world: 110

paved:

9,872 km

unpaved:

9,833 km (2002)

total:

1

country comparison to the world: 154

by type:

cargo 1

registered in other countries:

1 (Panama 1) (2008)

• 16-21 years of age for compulsory military service;
• recruits must be Dominican Republic citizens;
• women may volunteer (2010)

males age 16-49:

2,580,083

females age 16-49:

2,464,698 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49:

2,188,358

females age 16-49:

2,090,180 (2010 est.)

male:

100,047

female:

96,302 (2010 est.)

• Haitian migrants cross the porous border into the Dominican Republic to find work;
• illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage each year to Puerto Rico to find better work

current situation:

• the Dominican Republic is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor;
• a large number of Dominican women are trafficked into prostitution and sexual exploitation throughout the Dominican Republic, the Caribbean, Europe, South America, the Middle East, and the United States;
• child sex tourism is a problem;
• forced labor of adults exists in construction, some agricultural production, and the domestic service sectors

tier rating:

• Tier 2 Watch List - the Government of the Dominican Republic does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking;
• however, it is making significant efforts to do so;
• despite some progress, most notably in the area of identifying and protecting a greater number of trafficking victims, the government did not demonstrate overall increased efforts over the previous reporting period in prosecuting trafficking offenders, including officials complicit in forced prostitution and forced labor (2011)

• transshipment point for South American drugs destined for the US and Europe;
• has become a transshipment point for ecstasy from the Netherlands and Belgium destined for US and Canada;
• substantial money laundering activity in particular by Colombian narcotics traffickers;
• significant amphetamine consumption (2008)