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DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Map of DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
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Location:
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Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti |
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Geographic coordinates:
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19 00 N, 70 40 W |
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Area:
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total: 48,730 sq km
land: 48,380 sq km
water: 350 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 360 km
border countries: Haiti 360 km |
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Coastline:
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1,288 km |
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Maritime claims:
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measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
territorial sea: 6 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
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Climate:
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tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall |
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Terrain:
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rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Lago Enriquillo -46 m
highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m |
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Natural resources:
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nickel, bauxite, gold, silver |
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Land use:
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arable land: 22.49%
permanent crops: 10.26%
other: 67.25% (2005) |
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Irrigated land:
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2,750 sq km (2003) |
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Total renewable water resources:
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21 cu km (2000) |
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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total: 3.39 cu km/yr (32%/2%/66%)
per capita: 381 cu m/yr (2000) |
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Natural hazards:
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lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts |
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Environment - current issues:
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water shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; deforestation |
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Environment - international agreements:
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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 |
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Population:
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9,507,133 (July 2008 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 31.8% (male 1,537,981/female 1,482,546)
15-64 years: 62.4% (male 3,029,349/female 2,905,471)
65 years and over: 5.8% (male 255,898/female 295,888) (2008 est.) |
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Dominican Republic
conventional short form: The Dominican
local long form: Republica Dominicana
local short form: La Dominicana |
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Government type:
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democratic republic |
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Capital:
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name: Santo Domingo
geographic coordinates: 18 28 N, 69 54 W
time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
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Administrative divisions:
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31 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 district* (distrito); Azua, Bahoruco, Barahona, Dajabon, Distrito Nacional*, Duarte, El Seibo, Elias Pina, Espaillat, Hato Mayor, Independencia, La Altagracia, La Romana, La Vega, Maria Trinidad Sanchez, Monsenor Nouel, Monte Cristi, Monte Plata, Pedernales, Peravia, Puerto Plata, Salcedo, Samana, San Cristobal, San Jose de Ocoa, San Juan, San Pedro de Macoris, Sanchez Ramirez, Santiago, Santiago Rodriguez, Santo Domingo, Valverde |
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Independence:
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27 February 1844 (from Haiti) |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day, 27 February (1844)
Source: http://cia.gov
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