Local form: Republique d'Haiti/Repiblik d' Ayiti

Size/Location: Haiti occupies the western third of the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean, which it shares with the Dominican Republic.  It is 10,714 square miles About the size of Maryland, Haiti is two-thirds mountainous, with the rest of the country marked by great valleys, extensive plateaus, and small plains

Population (2007 est.): 8,706,497 (growth rate: 2.5%); birth rate: 35.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 63.8/1000; life expectancy: 57; density per sq mi: 818 (CIA-World Fact Book, 2007)

Monetary Unit: Gourde

Language: Creole and French (both official)

Ethnicity/race: Black 95%, mulatto and white 5%

Religions: Roman Catholic 80%, Protestant 16% (Baptist 10%, Pentecostal 4%, Adventist 1%, other 1%), other 3%, none 1%. Note: roughly half the population practices Vaudou

Economy: Haiti remains the least-developed country in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest in the world. Comparative social and economic indicators show Haiti falling behind other low-income developing countries (particularly in the hemisphere) since the 1980s. Haiti now ranks 154th of 177 countries in the UN's Human Development Index (2006).

Approximately 80% of the population lives in abject poverty.  The Haitian economy remains one of the most underdeveloped in the Western Hemisphere. Its per capita income-$250-is considerably less than one-tenth the Latin American average.  Nearly 70.5% of all Haitians depend on the agriculture sector, which consists mainly of small-scale subsistence farming. The country has experienced shortages, severe trade deficits, and periodic high inflation.  Although the informal economy is growing, the country has experienced little formal job creation over the past decade.  Nearly 98 percent of the land is deforested

Health/Nutrition: Poverty contributes to poor health conditions and lack of proper nutrition. Malnutrition contributes to 60 percent of all deaths among children. Vaccination coverage for children is only about 25 percent, and only about one-fourth of the population has access to safe water. The infant mortality rate is 71 deaths for every 1,000 live births, more than twice the regional average. More than one-third of all children who survive their first birthday show signs of severe growth retardation because of lack of proper nutrition. Life expectancy is 57 years.

Education: High illiteracy contributes to Haiti's poor health, low economic production, and inability to compete in the global economy. Less than half the population is literate. Only about one child in five of secondary-school age actually attends secondary school. Lack of education contributes to Haiti's health problems including HIV/AIDS.

Source: http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107612.html