Haiti: Economy
Republique d'Haiti

Economy - overview:

About 80% of the population lives in abject poverty. Nearly 70% of all Haitians depend on the agriculture sector, which consists mainly of small-scale subsistence farming and employs about two-thirds of the economically active work force. The country has experienced little job creation since the former President PREVAL took office in February 1996, although the informal economy is growing. Following legislative elections in May 2000, fraught with irregularities, international donors - including the US and EU - suspended almost all aid to Haiti. This destabilized the Haitian currency, the gourde, and, combined with a 40% fuel price hike in September, caused widespread price increases. Prices appear to have leveled off in January 2001.

GDP:	purchasing power parity - $12.7 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:

1.2% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita:

purchasing power parity - $1,800 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture:  32% industry:  20% services:  48% (1999 est.)

Population below poverty line:

80% (1998 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

lowest 10%:  NA% highest 10%:  NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

19% (2000 est.)

Labor force:

3.6 million (1995) note:  shortage of skilled labor, unskilled labor abundant (1998)

Labor force - by occupation:

agriculture 66%, services 25%, industry 9%

Unemployment rate:

widespread unemployment and underemployment; more than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal jobs (1999)

Budget:

revenues:  $317 million expenditures:  $362 million, including capital expenditures of $84 million (FY99/00 est.)

Industries:

sugar refining, flour milling, textiles, cement, tourism, light assembly industries based on imported parts

Industrial production growth rate:

0.6% (1997 est.)

Electricity - production:

672 million kWh (1999)

Electricity - production by source:

fossil fuel:  52.83% hydro:  47.17% nuclear:  0% other:  0% (1999)

Electricity - consumption:

625 million kWh (1999)

Electricity - exports:

0 kWh (1999)

Electricity - imports:

0 kWh (1999)

Agriculture - products:

coffee, mangoes, sugarcane, rice, corn, sorghum; wood

Exports:

$186 million (f.o.b., 1999)

Exports - commodities:

manufactures, coffee, oils, mangoes

Exports - partners:

US 89%, EU 8% (1999)

Imports:

$1.2 billion (c.i.f., 1999)

Imports - commodities:

food, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, raw materials

Imports - partners:

US 60%, EU 13% (1999)

Debt - external:

$1 billion (1998 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:

$730.6 million (1995)

Currency:

gourde (HTG)

Currency code:

HTG

Exchange rates:

gourdes per US dollar - 23.761 (January 2001), 22.524 (2000), 17.965 (1999), 16.505 (1998), 17.311 (1997), 15.093 (1996)

Fiscal year:

1 October - 30 September

Source: CIA World Factbook 2001
(In general, information available as of 1 January 2001 was used in the preparation of this edition.)

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