The Dominican Republic features vast croplands in the northeast and the southern coastal area, though a majority of farmers are involved in self-sufficiency. Sugarcane is one of the top crops in the country. In 1992, the country produced 6.8 million tons of sugar. Other major crop yields –according to stats revealed in 1999- were bananas (565,000 tons), rice (514,000 tons), mango (191,000 tons), cassava (145,000 tons), tomatoes (89,000 tons), cacao (47,000 tons), coffee (38,000 tons) and tobacco (20,000 tons). By 1992, the country estimated a 2.3 million head of cattle, followed by similar headcounts of pigs (750,000) and fowl birds (30 million), basically used for domestic consumption.
Most commodities exported by the Dominican Republic consist of iron ore, nickel, sugar, cacao, molasses, coffee, gold and tobacco. In the early 1990s, the country collected $562 million worth of exports
Consumer Price Index: 100 in 1990; 133 in 1994. Annual growth: 2.3% (1992-2000). Children per woman: 2.5 (1992). Daily calorie intake: 2,460. Life expectancy of 68 years for men and 72 years for women. Mortality rate: 21.3. Birth rate: 23,9
In the early 1990s, the country bought nearly $2.2 billion in imports. The US remains the nation’s top trade partner, in addition to Venezuela, Mexico, the Netherlands, Puerto Rico and Japan. Its main imports are machinery, spare parts, iron ore and steel, as well as foodstuffs, oil and its byproducts, cars, cotton, manufactured goods, chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
Top industrial activities in the Dominican Republic are linked to sugar refinement, cement, breweries, cigars and cigarettes, wheat flour and rum. Footwear, textiles –chiefly shirts and palm-fiber hats- fertilizers, molasses, furniture, building materials and refined oil. Mostly all of the country’s electricity is generated by thermo plants. In the early 1990s, the country was in a position to generate as many as 1.4 million kilowatts, yet it produced little more than 5.3 million kilowatts. Bauxite –one of the nation’s top mining product- virtually ran on empty in the 1980s. In 1993, mining output peaked 35,400 tons of iron ore and nickel combined, 11,369 oz. of gold and 53,496 oz. of silver.
The fishing industry is underdeveloped due to lack of proper equipment and tackles for high-sea catch, as well as scarcity of freezing containers for the preservation of fish. Top catches are bonito, tuna and mackerel, that tabbed 21,700 tons combined in 1999.
The Dominican Republic’s main resources are all crops. In general, the country is blessed with fertile lands, except in the southwest part of the island nation where a huge savannah of xerophyllic vegetation abounds. The valley’s soils are great for crops and many hillsides are carpeted by an assortment of pinewood and timberlands. The country is equally blessed with valuable deposits of nickel, gold and silver. The Dominican economy is basically based on tourism and seaport free trade zones where several international companies have set up shop. Agriculture also takes up a major slice of the economic pie, employing 46% of the country’s total workforce, followed by mining, that according to estimates provided by the Central Bank.
In 1991, the road system of the Dominican Republic had some 120,000 kilometers, with just 48 percent paved. There are more that 1,600 kilometers of railroads -all of private ownership- to serve the sugar industry. In addition to Santo Domingo, other major seaports are San Felipe de Puerto Plata in the Atlantic coast and Barahona in the Caribbean-bathed southwest. The country has six airports for serving a number of domestic and international carriers.
