Home

Geography of Dominican Republic

Location:Caribbean, eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Haiti
Geographic coordinates:19 00 N, 70 40 W
Map references:Central America and the Caribbean
Area:total: 48,730 sq km
land: 48,380 sq km
water: 350 sq km
Area - comparative:slightly more than twice the size of New Hampshire
Land boundaries:total: 360 km
border countries: Haiti 360 km
Coastline:1,288 km
Maritime claims: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
Climate:tropical maritime; little seasonal temperature variation; seasonal variation in rainfall
Terrain:rugged highlands and mountains with fertile valleys interspersed
Elevation extremes:lowest point: Lago Enriquillo -46 m
highest point: Pico Duarte 3,175 m
Natural resources:nickel, bauxite, gold, silver
Land use:arable land: 22.49%
permanent crops: 10.26%
other: 67.25% (2005)
Irrigated land:2,750 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding; periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:water shortages; soil eroding into the sea damages coral reefs; deforestation
Environment - international agreements: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
Geography - note:shares island of Hispaniola with Haiti

Dominican Republic Quickstats

  • Population: 9,365,818 (July 2007 est.)
  • Area: 48,730 sq km
  • Density:
  • GDP (total): $77.09 billion (2006 est.)
  • GDP (per capita): $8,400 (2006 est.)
  • Literacy: 87%

Languages of Dominican Republic

Useful to know

  • Currency: Dominican peso (DOP)
  • Dial code: +1-809

International Trade

External sites

More Resources

Recent blog posts