SURINAME                                                                        
GEOGRAPHY                                                                       
Total area: 163,270 km2; land area: 161,470 km2                                 
                                                                                
Comparative area: slightly larger than Georgia                                  
                                                                                
Land boundaries: 1,707 km total; Brazil 597 km, French Guiana                   
510 km, Guyana 600 km                                                           
                                                                                
Coastline: 386 km                                                               
                                                                                
Maritime claims:                                                                
                                                                                
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;                                                
                                                                                
Territorial sea: 12 nm                                                          
                                                                                
Disputes: claims area in French Guiana between Litani Rivier and                
Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa); claims area in Guyana           
between New (Upper Courantyne) and Courantyne/Kutari Rivers (all                
headwaters of the Courantyne)                                                   
                                                                                
Climate: tropical; moderated by trade winds                                     
                                                                                
Terrain: mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps                 
                                                                                
Natural resources: timber, hydropower potential, fish, shrimp,                  
bauxite, iron ore, and small amounts of nickel, copper, platinum, gold          
                                                                                
Land use: arable land NEGL%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and                 
pastures NEGL%; forest and woodland 97%; other 3%; includes irrigated           
NEGL%                                                                           
                                                                                
Environment: mostly tropical rain forest                                        
                                                                                
PEOPLE                                                                          
Population: 402,385 (July 1991), growth rate 1.4% (1991)                        
                                                                                
Birth rate: 26 births/1,000 population (1991)                                   
                                                                                
Death rate: 6 deaths/1,000 population (1991)                                    
                                                                                
Net migration rate: - 6 migrants/1,000 population (1991)                        
                                                                                
Infant mortality rate: 39 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)                       
                                                                                
Life expectancy at birth: 66 years male, 71 years female (1991)                 
                                                                                
Total fertility rate: 2.9 children born/woman (1991)                            
                                                                                
Nationality: noun--Surinamer(s); adjective--Surinamese                          
                                                                                
Ethnic divisions: Hindustani (East Indian) 37.0%, Creole (black and             
mixed) 31.0%, Javanese 15.3%, Bush black 10.3%, Amerindian 2.6%, Chinese        
1.7%, Europeans 1.0%, other 1.1%                                                
                                                                                
Religion: Hindu 27.4%, Muslim 19.6%, Roman Catholic 22.8%,                      
Protestant (predominantly Moravian) 25.2%, indigenous beliefs                   
about 5%                                                                        
                                                                                
Language: Dutch (official); English widely spoken; Sranan Tongo                 
(Surinamese, sometimes called Taki-Taki) is native language of Creoles          
and much of the younger population and is lingua franca among others;           
also Hindi Suriname Hindustani (a variant of Bhoqpuri) and Javanese             
                                                                                
Literacy: 95% (male 95%, female 95%) age 15 and over can                        
read and write (1990 est.)                                                      
                                                                                
Labor force: 104,000 (1984)                                                     
                                                                                
Organized labor: 49,000 members of labor force                                  
                                                                                
GOVERNMENT                                                                      
Long-form name: Republic of Suriname                                            
                                                                                
Type: republic                                                                  
                                                                                
Capital: Paramaribo                                                             
                                                                                
Administrative divisions: 10 districts (distrikten,                             
singular--distrikt); Brokopondo, Commewijne, Coronie, Marowijne,                
Nickerie, Para, Paramaribo, Saramacca, Sipaliwini, Wanica                       
                                                                                
Independence: 25 November 1975 (from Netherlands; formerly                      
Netherlands Guiana or Dutch Guiana)                                             
                                                                                
Constitution: ratified 30 September 1987                                        
                                                                                
Legal system: NA                                                                
                                                                                
National holiday: Independence Day, 25 November (1975)                          
Executive branch: president, vice president and prime minister,                 
Cabinet of Ministers, Council of State; note--commander in chief of the         
National Army maintains significant power                                       
                                                                                
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (Assemblee                     
Nationale)                                                                      
                                                                                
Judicial branch: Supreme Court                                                  
                                                                                
Leaders:                                                                        
                                                                                
Chief of State and Head of Government--President                                
Ronald VENETIAAN (since 16 September 1991); Vice President and                  
Prime Minister Jules AJODHIA (since 16 September 1991)                          
                                                                                
Political parties and leaders:                                                  
                                                                                
traditional ethnic-based parties--The New Front (NF), Henck                     
ARRON, a coalition formed of four parties following the 24 December             
1990 military coup--Progressive Reform Party (VHP), Jaggernath LACHMON;         
National Party of Suriname (NPS), Henck ARRON;                                  
Indonesian Peasants Party (KTPI), Willy SOEMITA; and                            
Suriname Labor Party (SLP), Frank DERBY;                                        
                                                                                
promilitary New Democratic Party (NDP), Jules Albert WIJDENBOSCH,               
Frank PLAYFAIR;                                                                 
                                                                                
Democratic Alternative '91 (DA '91),                                            
Gerard BRUNINGS, a coalition of five parties formed in                          
January 1991--Alternative Forum, Gerard BRUNINGS, Winston JESSURUN;             
Reformed Progressive Party (HPP), Panalall PARMISSER;                           
Party for Brotherhood and Unity in Politics (BEP), Caprino ALLENDY;             
Pendawalima, Marsha JAMIN; and                                                  
Independent Progressive Group, Karam RAMSUNDERSINGH;                            
                                                                                
leftists--Revolutionary People's Party (RVP), Michael NAARENDORP;               
Progressive Workers and Farmers (PALU), Iwan KROLIS                             
                                                                                
Suffrage: universal at age 18                                                   
                                                                                
Elections:                                                                      
                                                                                
President--last held 6 September 1991 (next to be held May                      
1996);                                                                          
results--elected by the National Assembly--Ronald VENETIAAN (NF)                
80% (645 votes), Jules WIJDENBOSCH (NDP) 14% (115 votes), Hans PRADE            
(DA '91) 6% (49 votes)                                                          
                                                                                
National Assembly--last held 25 May 1991 (next to be held                       
May 1996);                                                                      
results--percent of vote NA;                                                    
seats--(51 total) NF 30, NDP 12, DA '91 9                                       
                                                                                
Member of: ACP, CARICOM (observer), ECLAC, FAO, GATT, G-77, IADB,               
IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IFAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LAES,               
LORCS, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO,        
WMO                                                                             
                                                                                
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Willem A. UDENHOUT; Chancery              
at Suite 108, 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008;                  
telephone (202) 244-7488 or 7490 through 7492; there is a Surinamese            
Consulate General in Miami;                                                     
                                                                                
US--Ambassador John (Jack) P. LEONARD; Embassy at Dr. Sophie                    
Redmonstraat 129, Paramaribo (mailing address is P. O. Box 1821,                
Paramaribo); telephone  597  72900, 77881, or 76459                             
                                                                                
Flag: five horizontal bands of green (top, double width), white,                
red (quadruple width), white, and green (double width); there is a large        
yellow five-pointed star centered in the red band                               
                                                                                
ECONOMY                                                                         
Overview: The economy is dominated by the bauxite industry, which               
accounts for about 70% of export earnings and 40% of tax revenues. The          
economy has been in trouble since the Dutch ended development aid in            
1982. A drop in world bauxite prices that started in the late 1970s and         
continued until late 1986, was followed by the outbreak of a guerrilla          
insurgency in the interior. The guerrillas targeted the economic                
infrastructure, crippling the important bauxite sector and shutting down        
other export industries. These problems have created high inflation,            
high unemployment, widespread black market activity, and a bad climate          
for foreign investment. A small gain in economic growth of 2.0% was             
registered in 1989 due to reduced guerrilla activity and improved               
international markets for bauxite.                                              
                                                                                
GDP: $1.35 billion, per capita $3,400; real growth rate 2.0%                    
(1989 est.)                                                                     
                                                                                
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 50% (1989 est.)                               
                                                                                
Unemployment rate: 33% (1990)                                                   
                                                                                
Budget: revenues $466 million; expenditures $716 million,                       
including capital expenditures of $123 million (1989 est.)                      
                                                                                
Exports: $425 million (f.o.b., 1988 est.);                                      
                                                                                
commodities--alumina, bauxite, aluminum, rice, wood and wood                    
products, shrimp and fish, bananas;                                             
                                                                                
partners--Norway 33%, Netherlands 20%, US 15%, FRG 9%,                          
Brazil 5%, UK 5%, Japan 3%, other 10%                                           
                                                                                
Imports: $370 million (f.o.b., 1988 est.);                                      
                                                                                
commodities--capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs, cotton,                  
consumer goods;                                                                 
                                                                                
partners--US 37%, Netherlands 15%, Netherlands Antilles 11%,                    
Trinidad and Tobago 9%, Brazil 5%, UK 3%, other 20%                             
                                                                                
External debt: $138 million (1990 est.)                                         
                                                                                
Industrial production: growth rate 16.4% (1988 est.); accounts                  
for 22% of GDP                                                                  
                                                                                
Electricity: 458,000 kW capacity; 2,018 million kWh produced,                   
5,090 kWh per capita (1990)                                                     
                                                                                
Industries: bauxite mining, alumina and aluminum production,                    
lumbering, food processing, fishing                                             
                                                                                
Agriculture: accounts for 11% of both GDP and labor force; paddy                
rice planted on 85% of arable land and represents 60% of total farm             
output; other products--bananas, palm kernels, coconuts, plantains,             
peanuts, beef, chicken; shrimp and forestry products of increasing              
importance; self-sufficient in most foods                                       
                                                                                
Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-83), $2.5                   
million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments          
(1970-87), $1.45 billion                                                        
                                                                                
Currency: Surinamese guilder, gulden, or florin (plural--guilders,              
gulden, or florins); 1 Surinamese guilder, gulden, or florin (Sf.) =            
100 cents                                                                       
                                                                                
Exchange rates: Surinamese guilders, gulden, or florins (Sf.)                   
per US$1--1.7850 (fixed rate)                                                   
                                                                                
Fiscal year: calendar year                                                      
                                                                                
COMMUNICATIONS                                                                  
Railroads: 166 km total; 86 km 1.000-meter gauge, government owned,             
and 80 km 1.435-meter standard gauge; all single track                          
                                                                                
Highways: 8,300 km total; 500 km paved; 5,400 km bauxite gravel,                
crushed stone, or improved earth; 2,400 km sand or clay                         
                                                                                
Inland waterways: 1,200 km; most important means of transport;                  
oceangoing vessels with drafts ranging from 4.2 m to 7 m can navigate           
many of the principal waterways                                                 
                                                                                
Ports: Paramaribo, Moengo                                                       
                                                                                
Merchant marine: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling                           
6,472 GRT/8,914 DWT; includes 2 cargo, 1 container                              
                                                                                
Civil air: 2 major transport aircraft                                           
                                                                                
Airports: 46 total, 42 usable; 6 with permanent-surface runways;                
none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;                   
1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m                                                    
                                                                                
Telecommunications: international facilities good; domestic radio               
relay system; 27,500 telephones; stations--5 AM, 14 FM, 6 TV, 1                 
shortwave; 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations                             
                                                                                
DEFENSE FORCES                                                                  
Branches: National Army (including Navy which is company-size,                  
small Air Force element), Civil Police                                          
                                                                                
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 107,544; 64,146 fit for                     
military service                                                                
                                                                                
Defense expenditures: $91 million, 7.2% of GDP (1990 est.)                      
                                                                                
