Dominica was the last of the Caribbean islands to be colonized by Europeans due chiefly to the fierce resistance of the native Caribs. France ceded possession to Great Britain in 1763, which made the island a colony in 1805. In 1980, two years after independence, Dominica's fortunes improved when a corrupt and tyrannical administration was replaced by that of Mary Eugenia CHARLES, the first female prime minister in the Caribbean, who remained in office for 15 years. Some 3,000 Carib Indians still living on Dominica are the only pre-Columbian population remaining in the eastern Caribbean.

Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, about half way between Puerto Rico and Trinidad and Tobago

slightly more than four times the size of Washington, DC

tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds; heavy rainfall

rugged mountains of volcanic origin

timber, hydropower, arable land

flash floods are a constant threat; destructive hurricanes can be expected during the late summer months

known as "The Nature Island of the Caribbean" due to its spectacular, lush, and varied flora and fauna, which are protected by an extensive natural park system; the most mountainous of the Lesser Antilles, its volcanic peaks are cones of lava craters and include Boiling Lake, the second-largest, thermally active lake in the world

black 86.8%, mixed 8.9%, Carib Amerindian 2.9%, white 0.8%, other 0.7% (2001 census)

English (official), French patois

Roman Catholic 61.4%, Protestant 20.6% (Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Pentecostal 5.6%, Baptist 4.1%, Methodist 3.7%, Church of God 1.2%), Jehovah's Witnesses 1.2%, other Christian 7.7%, Rastafarian 1.3%, other or unspecified 1.6%, none 6.1% (2001 census)

73,126 (July 2012 est.)

15.6 births/1,000 population (2012 est.)

8.03 deaths/1,000 population (July 2012 est.)

-5.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2012 est.)

ROSEAU (capital) 14,000 (2009)

2.06 children born/woman (2012 est.)

0.5 physicians/1,000 population (1997)

3.8 beds/1,000 population (2009)

parliamentary democracy

10 parishes; Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Luke, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick, Saint Paul, Saint Peter

3 November 1978 (from the UK)

Independence Day, 3 November (1978)

common law based on the English model

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

unicameral House of Assembly (30 seats; 9 members appointed, 21 elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the Court of Appeal and the High Court (located in Saint Lucia; one of the six judges must reside in Dominica and preside over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction)

Dominica Freedom Party or DFP [Charles SAVARIN]; Dominica Labor Party or DLP [Roosevelt SKERRIT]; Dominica United Workers Party or UWP [Earl WILLIAMS]

Dominica Liberation Movement or DLM (a small leftist party)

ACP, AOSIS, C, Caricom, CDB, CELAC, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OIF, OPANAL, OPCW, Petrocaribe, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

the US does not have an embassy in Dominica; the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Dominica

green, with a centered cross of three equal bands - the vertical part is yellow (hoist side), black, and white and the horizontal part is yellow (top), black, and white; superimposed in the center of the cross is a red disk bearing a Sisserou parrot, unique to Dominica, encircled by 10 green, five-pointed stars edged in yellow; the 10 stars represent the 10 administrative divisions (parishes); green symbolizes the island's lush vegetation; the triple-colored cross represents the Christian Trinity; the yellow color denotes sunshine, the main agricultural products (citrus and bananas), and the native Carib Indians; black is for the rich soil and the African heritage of most citizens; white signifies rivers, waterfalls, and the purity of aspirations; the red disc stands for social justice

The Dominican economy has been dependent on agriculture - primarily bananas - in years past, but increasingly has been driven by tourism as the government seeks to promote Dominica as an "ecotourism" destination. In order to diversify the island's production base, the government also is attempting to develop an offshore financial sector and has signed an agreement with the EU to develop geothermal energy resources. In 2003, the government began a comprehensive restructuring of the economy - including elimination of price controls, privatization of the state banana company, and tax increases - to address an economic and financial crisis and to meet IMF requirements. This restructuring paved the way for an economic recovery and helped to reduce the debt burden, which remains at about 80% of GDP. Hurricane Dean struck the island in August 2007 causing damages equivalent to 20% of GDP. In 2009, growth slowed as a result of the global recession; it picked up only slightly in 2010-11.

$989.5 million (2011 est.)

$984.8 million (2010 est.)

$981.5 million (2009 est.)

$489 million (2011 est.)

30.3% of GDP (2011 est.)

7.6% of GDP (2011 est.)

78% of GDP (2009 est.)

85% of GDP (2006 est.)

6.5% (31 December 2010 est.)

6.5% (31 December 2009 est.)

9.19% (31 December 2011 est.)

9.475% (31 December 2010 est.)

$82.86 million (31 December 2011 est.)

$71.37 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$419.8 million (31 December 2011 est.)

$433 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$333.3 million (31 December 2011 est.)

$296.3 million (31 December 2010 est.)

bananas, citrus, mangos, root crops, coconuts, cocoa

soap, coconut oil, tourism, copra, furniture, cement blocks, shoes

-$111.3 million (2011 est.)

-$71.27 million (2010 est.)

$40.4 million (2011 est.)

$36.21 million (2010 est.)

bananas, soap, bay oil, vegetables, grapefruit, oranges

Japan 45.8%, Antigua and Barbuda 8.2%, Jamaica 7.3%, Guyana 7%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.5% (2011)

$207.1 million (2011 est.)

$197.7 million (2010 est.)

manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, food, chemicals

Japan 34.3%, US 15.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 14%, China 5.7%, Singapore 5.5% (2011)

East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar -

85.5 million kWh (2009 est.)

79.52 million kWh (2009 est.)

22,200 kW (2009 est.)

72.1% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)

0% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)

27% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)

0.9% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)

0 bbl/day (2011 est.)

0 bbl/day (2009 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2012 est.)

0 bbl/day (2008 est.)

918 bbl/day (2011 est.)

0 bbl/day (2008 est.)

912 bbl/day (2008 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2012 est.)

141,200 Mt (2010 est.)

no terrestrial TV service available; subscription cable TV provider offers some locally produced programming plus channels from the US, Latin America, and the Caribbean; state-operated radio broadcasts on 6 stations; privately-owned radio broadcasts on about 15 stations (2007)

no regular military forces; Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force (includes Coast Guard) (2011)

Dominica is the only Caribbean state to challenge Venezuela's sovereignty claim over Aves Island and joins the other island nations in challenging whether the feature sustains human habitation, a criterion under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which permits Venezuela to extend its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and continental shelf claims over a large portion of the eastern Caribbean Sea

transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; minor cannabis producer (2008)