dominican republic

Dominican Republic

Introduction

The island of Hispaniola is the second largest in the Caribbean, after Cuba, and is home to the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The population of the DR is about 10 million made up of a mixture of Spanish, original Tainos, Africans, Haitians and others. The official language is Spanish and the capital city of Santo Domingo was the first city established by the Spanish in the New World, Tourism is now massively important to the island`s economy.

Geography

It is a mountainous country with Pico Duarte the highest peak at 10,000 ft the highest in the whole Caribbean. There are four main mountain ranges: in the north the Cordillera Septentrional; the Cordillera Central the highest in the Caribbean; the Sierra de Neiba in the south west; and in the south the Sierra de Bahoruco.

Economy

The economy is dominated by the Services industries of communications, tourism, real estate, transport and storage, which account for 54% GDP. The manufacturing of sugar, coke, grains, drinks, tobacco, textiles and oil products accounts for 21% GDP. Agriculture of sugar, rice, banana, cocoa and poultry is 8% of GDP. Mining and construction is 5%. Economic growth in 2009 was 3.5% and GDP per capita was around $5k. Main export markets are the U.S. Haiti and Europe. The main imports are food, consumer goods, cars and fuels. Over a million Dominicans work in the U.S. and the money they send back home is equivalent of 10% GDP!

Government

The Dominic Republic is a democratic republic. The President is head of the executive and armed forces and is elected for a 4 year term. He also appoints the governors of the 31 provinces. The 124 municipal districts are run by mayors and councils who are elected at the same time as Congress. There are 3 main political parties, all of whom have been in power on and off for the last 40 years. Leonel Fernández has been president since 2008.

Santo Domingo

The capital and largest city in the DR has a population of 2.5 million. It was founded by Columbus` brother, Bartholomew in 1496 and the first main settlement in America. A hurricane destroyed the first city in 1502 so it had to be rebuilt. However the remnants can still be seen today, protected as a World Heritage Site. The city was strategically positioned at the mouth of the Ozama River and was historically the main staging post for the conquest of the New World. It has many old colonial buildings of great interest, and one of the most famous is the Catedral Santa Maria La Menor, known as America`s first cathedral, La Catedral Primada de America.

10 Other interesting facts about Dominican Republic

1. The national flower is the West Indian Mahogany (Swietenia Mahagon)

2. It has a tropical climate and often suffers strong hurricanes.

3. The national bird is the Palmchat (Cigua Palmera).

4. The Peso is the national currency.

5. There are more Dominicans living in New York than in the second most populous city Santiago.

6. It is the only country in the world which has an image of the Bible on its flag.

7. The `Merengue` style of music was invented in the DR.

8. Baseball is the national game and some of the best players in the world are Dominicans.

9. It became independent from Spain in 1844 and Independence Day is celebrated on 27 February.

10. One of the favourite foods is Mangu, a puree of mashed plantains.

11. A world famous song `Ojala que llueva café` by Juan Luis Guerra epitomises the Dominican fun for life.