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 Camp Canargus, Haiti
Cap-Haitien, Haiti
Port-Au-Prince / Aeroport International,
Haiti
Location: Caribbean, western one-third of the island of
Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean,
west of the Dominican Republic
Geographic coordinates: 19 00 N, 72 25 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 27,750 sq km
land: 27,560 sq km
water: 190 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries:
total: 275 km
border countries: 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
Climate: tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut
off trade winds
Terrain: mostly rough and mountainous
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Chaine de la Selle 2,680 m
Natural resources: bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold,
marble, hydropower
Land use:
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 13%
permanent pastures: 18%
forests and woodland: 5%
other: 44% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 750 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: lies in the middle of the hurricane belt
and 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
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification,
Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation
signed, but not ratified: Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test
Ban
Geography - note: shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican
Republic (western one-third is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the
Dominican Republic)
Background: One of the poorest countries in the Western
Hemisphere, Haiti has been plagued by political violence for most
of its history.
Over three decades of dictatorship followed by military rule ended
in 1990 when Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE was elected president.
Most of his term was usurped by a military takeover, but he was
able to return to office in 1994 and oversee the installation of
a close associate to the presidency in 1996.
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