Country Profile: The Dominican Republic

Geography

In the Caribbean Sea. The eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola. 28 percent of the Domincan Republic is forest (compared to 1 percent for Haiti, on the western side of the island). Capital: Santo Domingo

Economy

Figures unless otherwise stated are from the CIA Factbook.

Estimated per capita GDP (2009 U.S. dollars)

2009: $8,300
2008: $8,300
2007: $8,000

GDP annual real (not per capita) growth rate estimate

2009: 1.8%
2008: 5.3%
2007: 8.5%

Unemployment rate

2009: 15.1 %
2008: 14.1%

Public debt

2009: 41.5 % of GDP

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
2005: top ten percent of the population, 38.7%; bottom ten percent, 1.5%

Exports: ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, meats, consumer goods, baseball players. As of 2003 84 percent of its exports went to the United States.

Population

Living in an urban area: 69% (2008)

July 2009: 9.65 million. Growth rate: 1.489% (ranks 90th)
July 2008: 9.5 million

Density: 206 persons per square kilometer (2005).

Migrations

2009: More people leaving than arriving -- a net loss of 2.2 persons per 1,000 population.

Health

Infant mortality (deaths before the age of one year per 1,000 live births)

2009: 25.96
2008: 26.93

Average life expectancy at birth

2009: 73.7 years
2008: 73.39
2005: 67.26

Living with HIV/AIDS, ages 15 to 49: 1.7 percent (2003).

SOURCES:
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/