Facts About Haiti

(From the CIA's WORLD FACTBOOK,
last updated November 1, 2005.)

Country Name

Republic of Haiti
Conventional Short Form: Haiti

Capital

Port-au-Prince

Languages

French, Creole (Kreyol*)

*Curator's note: Kreyol is the more widely spoken language in Haiti.

Ethnic Groups

Black: 95%
Mulatto and White: 5%

Population

8,121,622

Religions

(As of 1982)

Roman Catholic: 80%
Protestant: 16% (Baptist — 10%, Pentecostal — 4%, Adventist — 1%, other — 1%)
None: 1%
Other: 3%
Note: roughly half of the population practices Voodoo.*

*Curator's note: A popular saying about religious practice in Haiti is that Haitians are "95% Catholic and 100% Vodou."

Location

Caribbean, western one-third of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of the Dominican Republic.

Climate

Tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds.

Terrain

Mostly rough and mountainous

Natural Resources

Bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, hydropower.

Natural Hazards

Lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and is subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding and earthquakes; periodic droughts.

Environment — Current Issues

Extensive deforestation (much of the remaining forested land is being cleared for agriculture and used as fuel); soil erosion; inadequate supplies of potable water.

Literacy

(Defined as anyone age 15 and over who can read and write.)

52.9%

Government Type

Elected government

Chief of State:

Interim President Boniface ALEXANDRE (since 29 February 2004)

Note: Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE resigned as president on 29 February 2004.*

*Curator's note: A United States aircraft carried Jean-Bertrand Aristide to exile in Central Africa. While the official U.S. position is that Aristide resigned, Aristide maintains he was overthrown by the U.S.

Head of Government:

Interim Prime Minister Gerald LATORTUE (since 12 March 2004), chosen by extraconstitutional Council of Eminent Persons representing cross-section of political and civic interests.