Facts About Suriname
Background: Independence from the Netherlands was granted in
1975. Five years later the civilian government was replaced by a military
regime that soon declared a socialist republic. It continued to rule
through a succession of nominally civilian administrations until 1987,
when international pressure finally brought about a democratic election.
In 1989, the military overthrew the civilian government, but a
democratically elected government returned to power in 1991.
Government type: constitutional democracy
Capital: Paramaribo
Currency: 1 Surinamese guilder (SRG) = 100 cents
Geography of Suriname
Location: Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
French Guiana and Guyana
Geographic coordinates: 4 00 N, 56 00 W
Area:
total: 163,270 sq km
land: 161,470 sq km
water: 1,800 sq km
Land boundaries:
total: 1,707 km
border countries: Brazil 597 km, French Guiana 510 km, Guyana 600 km
Coastline: 386 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical; moderated by trade winds
Terrain: mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: unnamed location in the coastal plain -2 m
highest point: Wilhelmina Gebergte 1,286 m
Natural resources: timber, hydropower, fish, kaolin, shrimp, bauxite, gold, and
small amounts of nickel, copper, platinum, iron ore
Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 96%
other: 4% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 600 sq km (1993 est.)
Environment - current issues: deforestation as timber is cut for export;
pollution of inland waterways by small-scale mining activities
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94,
Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: mostly tropical rain forest; great diversity of flora and
fauna that, for the most part, is increasingly threatened by new development; relatively
small population, most of which lives along the coast.
People of Suriname
Most Surinamers live in the narrow, northern coastal plain. The
population is one of the most ethnically varied in the world. Each ethnic
group preserves its own culture and many institutions, including political
parties, tend to follow ethnic lines. Informal relationships vary: the upper
classes of all ethnic backgrounds mix freely; outside of the elite, social
relations tend to remain within ethnic groupings. All groups may be found in
the schools and workplace.
Population: 438,144 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 32%
15-64 years: 62%
65 years and over: 6%
Population growth rate: 0.65%
Birth rate: 21.08 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 5.69 deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate: -8.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population
Infant mortality rate: 25.06 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.36 years
male: 68.71 years
female: 74.14 years
Total fertility rate: 2.5 children born/woman
Nationality:
noun: Surinamer(s)
adjective: Surinamese
Ethnic groups: Hindustani (also known locally as "East Indians"; their
ancestors emigrated from northern India in the latter part of the 19th century) 37%,
Creole (mixed white and black) 31%, Javanese 15%, "Maroons" (their African
ancestors were brought to the country in the 17th and 18th centuries as slaves and escaped
to the interior) 10%, Amerindian 2%, Chinese 2%, white 1%, other 2%
Religions: Hindu 27.4%, Muslim 19.6%, Roman Catholic 22.8%, Protestant 25.2%
(predominantly Moravian), indigenous beliefs 5%
Languages: Dutch (official), English (widely spoken), Sranang Tongo (Surinamese,
sometimes called Taki-Taki, is native language of Creoles and much of the younger
population and is lingua franca among others), Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), Javanese
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93%
male: 95%
female: 91% (1995 est.)
SOURCES: The World Factbook, U.S. Department of State |