Aminet 6/Aminet 6 - June 1995.iso/Aminet/docs/misc/wfbook93_texi.lha/texi/103.data

Text File | 1995-03-27 | 10.6 KB | 379 lines

@node Geography (Haiti)
@section Geography (Haiti)

@display

Location:
  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 km2
 land area:
  27,560 km2
 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 km2 (1989 est.)
Environment:
  lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from
  June to October; occasional flooding and earthquakes; deforestation; soil
  erosion
Note:
  shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is
  Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic)



@end display

@node People (Haiti)
@section People (Haiti)

@display

Population:
  6,384,877 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
  1.68% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
  40.77 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
  18.88 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
  -5.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
  109.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
 total population:
  45.45 years
 male:
  43.88 years
 female:
  47.11 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
  6.05 children born/woman (1993 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)
 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)



@end display

@node Government (Haiti)
@section Government (Haiti)

@display

Names:
 conventional long form:
  Republic of Haiti
 conventional short form:
  Haiti
 local long form:
  Republique d'Haiti
 local short form:
  Haiti
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)
Constitution:
  27 August 1983, suspended February 1986; draft 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
National holiday:
  Independence Day, 1 January (1804)
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)
Suffrage:
  18 years of age; universal
Elections:
 Chamber of Deputies:
  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
 President:
  last held 16 December 1990 (next election to be held by December 1995);
  results - Rev. Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE 67.5%, Marc BAZIN 14.2%, Louis DEJOIE
  4.9%



@end display

@node Government (Haiti 2. usage)
@section Government (Haiti 2. usage)

@display

 Senate:
  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
Executive branch:
  president, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
Legislative branch:
  bicameral National Assembly (Assemblee Nationale) consisting of an upper
  house or Senate and a lower house or Chamber of Deputies
Judicial branch:
  Court of Appeal (Cour de Cassation)
Leaders:
 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
 Head of Government:   de facto Prime Minister Marc BAZIN (since NA June 1992)
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:
  [phone] through 4092
 consulates general:
  Boston, Chicago, Miami, New York, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
US diplomatic representation:
 chief of mission:
  Special Charge d'Affaires Charles REDMAN
 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] 23-9007
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)



@end display

@node Economy (Haiti)
@section Economy (Haiti)

@display

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.
National product:
  GDP - exchange rate conversion - $2.2 billion (1991 est.)
National product real growth rate:
  -4% (FY91 est.)
National product per capita:
  $340 (1991 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  20% (FY91 est.)
Unemployment rate:
  25-50% (1991)
Budget:
  revenues $300 million; expenditures $416 million, including capital
  expenditures of $145 million (1990 est.)
Exports:
  $146 million (f.o.b., 1991 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:
  $252 million (f.o.b., 1991 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 -2.0% (1991 est.); accounts for 15% of GDP
Electricity:
  217,000 kW capacity; 480 million kWh produced, 75 kWh per capita (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
Economic aid:
  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



@end display

@node Economy (Haiti 2. usage)
@section Economy (Haiti 2. usage)

@display

Exchange rates:
  gourdes (G) per US$1 - 8.4 (December 1991), fixed rate of 5.000 through
  second quarter of 1991)
Fiscal year:
  1 October - 30 September



@end display

@node Communications (Haiti)
@section Communications (Haiti)

@display

Railroads:
  40 km 0.760-meter narrow gauge, single-track, privately owned industrial
  line
Highways:
  4,000 km total; 950 km paved, 900 km otherwise improved, 2,150 km unimproved
Inland waterways:
  negligible; less than 100 km navigable
Ports:
  Port-au-Prince, Cap-Haitien
Airports:
 total:
  13
 usable:
  10
 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



@end display

@node Defense Forces (Haiti)
@section Defense Forces (Haiti)

@display

Branches:
  Army (including Police), Navy, Air Force
Manpower availability:
  males age 15-49 1,289,310; fit for military service 695,997; reach military
  age (18) annually 60,588 (1993 est.)
Defense expenditures:
  exchange rate conversion - $34 million, 1.5% of GDP (1988 est.)



@end display