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Dominican Republic SOCIETY
Population: Annual rate of increase thought to
be
approximately 2.5 percent in mid-1980s. Projected total
population to be just over 7 million by mid-1990.
Language: Spanish.
Ethnic Groups: Majority of mid-1980s population
(approximately 73 percent) mulatto, a legacy of black
slavery
during colonial period. Approximately 16 percent of
Dominicans
white; 11 percent black.
Education and Literacy: An estimated 74 percent
of
population literate in 1986. Education system included six
years
of compulsory primary education, an additional six years
of
secondary education, and higher education at one of more
than
twenty-six postsecondary institutions. Major university
and sole
public institution was Autonomous University of Santo
Domingo
(Universidad Autónoma de Santa Domingo--UASD).
Health: State-funded health programs reached 78
to 89
percent of population. Facilities concentrated in Santo
Domingo
and Santiago de los Caballeros (Santiago); service in
rural areas
suffered accordingly. Main causes of death pulmonary
circulatory
diseases and intestinal diseases. Average life expectancy
62.6
years for 1980-84 period.
Religion: More than 90 percent Roman Catholic.
Protestant groups also active; Evangelicals most
successful in
attracting converts.
Data as of December 1989
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