SURINAME
NEMCHICK
ECONOMY
 The mining industry accounts for more than one-third of the
gross domestic product (GDP). The bauxite and alumina
industry has traditionally set the pace for Suriname's economy.
Gold and oil are also an important industry.
 Agriculture is the main means of subsistence. However,
plantation agriculture is the weakest sector of the economy.
Suriname does export large amounts of rice, but it is generally a
food importer.
ECONOMY
 The country had an average annual growth rate of more
than 6 percent between 2003 and 2006. This stable rate of
growth declined as the bauxite and alumina industries had
lower production amounts during the global financial crisis
in 2008 and 2009. The economy was expected to grow by
only 1.2 percent in 2011.
JUDICIAL SYSTEM
 The constitution provides the right to a fair public trial before
a single judge, the right to legal counsel, and the right to appeal.
There is a Supreme Court and three cantonal courts.
 In 2003 Caribbean leaders met in Jamaica to establish the
Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). Suriname has signed and
ratified the treaty establishing the court. military courts follow
the same procedural rules as civil courts.
POLITICAL PARTIES
 Suriname's political parties tend to represent particular ethnic groups. The NPS
draws support from the Creole population. The Progressive Reform Party (VHP) is
East Indian. The Party for National Unity and Solidarity (KTPI) allied with these two
parties to form the National Front for Democracy in 1987 to defeat Bouterse's NDP.

May 2010 legislative elections, members of the NDP, KTPI, and a few other
parties teamed up to form a new coalition called the Mega Combination led by
Bouterse. The new coalition won 45 % of the vote (23 seats in the assembly). On July
19, 2010 Suriname's parliament elected Bouterse as president and began his term
August 12, 2010. Robert Ameerali of the Basic Party for Renewal and Democracy was
chosen as vice president
TRANSPORTATION
 Suriname has 1,200 kilometers (746 miles) of navigable
waterways. In 2008 the country had one merchant marine
ship. There are 166 kilometers (103 miles) of single-track
railway. Suriname has 4,304 kilometers (2,674 miles) of
roadways. Of these roads, 1,130 kilometers (702 miles) are
paved. There are 51 airports, but only 5 have paved runways.
Air travel carried 303,117 passengers in 2009.
INDUSTRY
 The major industries are mining and food processing. The
bauxite industry has developed into a complex of factories,
workshops, power stations, and laboratories. Low world prices
for bauxite and alumina in the 1990s and early 2000s reduced
the industry's development. In 2005 Suriname Aluminum
completed expansion of its alumina refinery in Paranam in an
effort to revitalize the industry. The refinery had a capacity of 2.2
million metric tons of alumina per year.
LANDFORMS & CLIMATE
 Suriname has heavy rainfall year-round. Feeds life sustaining
system of rivers, allowing 90% of land in Suriname to support
lush tropical rainforest ecosystem.
 The coastline consists largely of sandbanks and muddy
deposits carried by the ocean currents into the Amazon River.
 The south of the coastal plans is an area known as Zanderij
also known as White Sands Region.
LANDFORMS & CLIMATE
 These sandy hills rise into densely forested Mountain range that covers
interior areas in Suriname, comprises 80% of the country is covered in tropical
rainforests.
 The largest body of water in Suriname is WJ van Blommestein Meer also
known as Brokopondo Reservoir.
 There are 4 major seasons
 December-April: short, wet winter, short, dry spring
 April-August: very rainy storms and heavy rain
 August-December: very dry with rains, on average the temperature is 81
degrees
ENVIRONMENT
 There are 100 million acres of forest in the interior Amazon
River Basin that cover 80% of Suriname.
 They are also home to a staggering variety of flora and fauna
species: 130 reptile, 99 amphibian, 674 bird, 200 mammal, and
4,500 plant. However, the trade of endangered species is
widespread and unregulated, with the most prominent targets
being macaws, parakeets, songbirds, several types of reptiles,
various parrots, orchids, and sea turtle eggs.
ENVIRONMENT
 The country still relies on its colonial benefactor, the
Netherlands, for its economic well being. In an apparent effort to
sever its Dutch apron strings, Suriname has pursued an
environmentally devastating policy of rampant logging.
 Despite clear evidence that such logging is unprofitable, since
1995 the government has granted several contracts for huge
logging concessions to multinational corporations that have
proven to exercise poor, if any, environmental responsibility.
ENVIRONMENT
 Only 6% of the forests within National Forest Service areas are
protected by even minim The Natural Resources Ministry governs the
Forest Service, the Bureau of Lands, and the Foundation of Nature
Preservation.
 World Rainforest Movement spokesperson Marcus Colchester wrote
in 1995 that the government's policy of "embarking on a rapid expansion
of logging when the country cannot even police its existing forest
concessions is economic as well as environmental madness." al
environmental regulations.
ENVIRONMENT
 Decentralized by the effects of the 1986–1992 civil war, Suriname's
Forest Service consists of a small, underpaid staff of guards to patrol
protected forest areas. Its annual budget of up to $30,000 leaves nothing
for vital conservation programs.
 Some 12.3 million acres of land has been contracted to an Asian
logging industry triad based in Malaysia and Indonesia—a direct violation
of the Forestry Act. Some of these closed-door negotiations with the
government in 1994 to bid on Suriname's remaining forests caused an
international uproar.
ENVIRONMENT
 The Foundation for a Sustainable Suriname was
established in 1988 to combat the dumping of toxic waste
products throughout the country.
 In recent years, it has focused its attention on the
increasing air pollution in Paramaribo due to poor
maintenance of motor vehicles and the rapid growth of local
industries.
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES
 With one of the most ethnically diverse populations in the Western
Hemisphere, Suriname is home to some 20 commonly spoken languages
and many distinct cultures that make forming a national identity or
choosing a national language a daunting if not impossible prospect.
 Although Dutch—the language of Suriname's former colonial ruler—
remains the official language used in schools and government, its use in
everyday life has declined significantly, and the country's lingua franca is
shifting to English and Sranan Tongo (a native Creole dialect developed
by African slaves).
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES

As logging, mining, and oil drilling increase in Suriname's interior, the rights of the nation's
indigenous and Maroon tribal peoples are being threatened. Four distinct indigenous groups and six
Maroon groups exist in Suriname, and most live in autonomous, self-governing communities in the
rain-forested interior. In 1986, the Maroons (descendants of slaves who rebelled and escaped to the
interior) launched a civil war over logging and mining in their tribal lands.

Maroon and indigenous groups have launched numerous protests in recent years over logging
concessions, mercury pollution from gold mining, and proposed hydroelectric reservoirs on their
ancestral lands. As of 2002, government-sanctioned logging concessions covered about 60% of
Maroon and indigenous community land, and mining concessions covered more than one-third of
such land.
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES
 Suriname's poorly defined and patrolled borders with Guyana, French
Guiana, and Brazil have led to growing problems with drug trafficking
and illegal exploitation of natural resources. Suriname has long disputed
its boundaries with both Guyana and French Guiana.
 This fact, combined with the remote nature of most of its border
regions—which are covered in dense, sparsely populated rain forest—has
attracted significant crime to the Surinamese frontier.
FOODS & HOLIDAYS
 Suriname's food combines influences from the many cultures that
have settled there. Creole cuisine, which is native to Suriname, often uses
poultry; two popular dishes are pom, a dish of fowl and ground tayer
roots, and pastei, a chicken pie served with vegetables. Traditional
desserts include bojo, made with cassava.
 Indonesian cuisine is also popular. Indonesian foods are generally
spicy and are served with fried or boiled rice. Spicy Indian dishes are also
common, reflecting the presence of Indians in Suriname.
FOODS & HOLIDAYS
 A national holiday on November 25 commemorates
Suriname's independence from the Netherlands on that day in
1975. Autonomy came after 300 years under Dutch control.
 A national holiday on November 25 commemorates
Suriname's independence from the Netherlands on that day in
1975. Autonomy came after 300 years under Dutch control.
FOODS & HOLIDAYS
 Holi Phagwan, or Holi, is a Hindu festival celebrated in March or
April. The holiday commemorates an episode from Hindu mythology in
which a king who resents his son's worship of Lord Vishnu attempts to
kill his son by sending him into a fire with the son's aunt. The aunt is
believed to be impervious to fire, but because of her evilness in agreeing
to kill her nephew she burns to death, while her nephew survives. Holi is
commemorated in Suriname and in other countries with lively street
celebrations, the highlight of which is the throwing of colored water and
powder on other participants
FACTS & FIGURES
Population: 566,846 (estimate) (2013)
World Population Rank: 166 th (2013)
Population Density: 3.6 people per square kilometer (2013)
Population Distribution: 69% urban (2011)
FACTS & FIGURES
 Age Distribution: 0-14 years: 26.8% 15-24 years: 17.5% 25-54 years:
43.8% 55-64 years: 6.2% 65 years and over: 5.6% (2013)
 Median Age: 28.2 years (2013)
 Population Growth Rate: 1.2% per year (2013)
 Net Migration Rate: 0.6 (2013)
FACTS & FIGURES
 Average Life Expectancy: 71.1 years (2012)
 Average Life Expectancy, Male: 68.8 years (2012)
 Average Life Expectancy, Female: 73.6 years (2012)
 Crude Birth Rate: 17.4 per 1,000 people (2012)
FACTS & FIGURES
 Crude Death Rate: 6.2 per 1,000 people (2012)
 Maternal Mortality: 110 per 100,000 live births (2010)
 Infant Mortality: 27 per 1,000 live births (2010)
 Doctors: 0.9 per 1,000 people (2004)
POLITICAL MAP
POLITICAL MAP
 Latitude & Longitude
 Capital- 55 Latitude, 4 Longitude
 Northernmost City-55 Latitude, 3 Longitude
 Southernmost City-57 Latitude, 8 Longitude
 Easternmost City-54 Latitude, 7 Longitude
 Westernmost City-58 Latitude, 5 Longitude
SURINAME’S FLAG
SURINAME’S CAPITAL:
PARAMARIBO
GOVERNMENT
 The nation's 1975 Constitution was suspended by military
leader Desi Bouterse in August 1985. On September 30, 1987, a
new Constitution was approved by popular referendum. The
1987 Constitution provides for a strong presidential form of
government but also calls for the military, as "the vanguard of
the people,'' to retain a certain amount of power under civilian
rule. It also provides for the protection of a wide array of human
rights.
GOVERNMENT
 The present Constitution establishes the president as head of government, head of state,
head of the armed forces, and leader of the Security Council, which takes power during
wartime or when the country is under siege. The president also appoints and leads the
Cabinet of Ministers and is chairperson of the State Council, which may overrule cabinet
decisions and veto laws approved by the National Assembly.
 The State Council comprises 2 trade union representatives, 1 employer association
representative, 1 army representative, and 10 political party representatives from the
legislature. The council advises the president and the legislature and is empowered to
suspend any laws approved by the legislature. The president and a vice president (prime
minister) are elected for five-year terms by a two-thirds vote of the assembly. The president
appoints cabinet members from among assembly members.
GOVERNMENT
 The 51 members of the unicameral National Assembly are elected to five-year
terms by popular vote. The assembly, which shares legislative power with the
president, vice president, and cabinet, has the right to amend any law proposed by
the government.

In the event of an impasse in the assembly (for example, if a two-thirds
agreement cannot be reached on the selection of the president), a United People's
Assembly, which includes members of local councils, is convened to help make a
decision. The assembly may amend the Constitution with a two-thirds vote.
 The judicial system consists of a High Court of Justice, whose six judges are
nominated for life, and three cantonal courts.
GOVERNMENT
 Local Government
 Suriname is divided into nine administrative districts.
 Election Qualifications
 Citizens 18 years of age and older are entitled to vote.
WORK CONSULTED FOR
ABC CLIO

"Suriname: Food and Holidays." World Geography: Understanding a Changing World. ABC-
CLIO, 2013. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

"Suriname: Landforms & Climate." World Geography: Understanding a Changing World. ABC-
CLIO, 2013. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

"Suriname: Environment." World Geography: Understanding a Changing World. ABC-CLIO,
2013. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

"Suriname: Contemporary Issues." World Geography: Understanding a Changing World. ABC-
CLIO, 2013. Web. 9 Dec. 2013

"Suriname: Government." World Geography: Understanding a Changing World. ABC-CLIO,
2013. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

"Political Map." Map. World Geography: Understanding a Changing World. ABC-CLIO, 2013.
Web. 9 Dec. 2013.
WORKS CONSULTED FOR
JUNIOR ENCYCLOPEDIA
 "Suriname." Junior Worldmark Encyclopedia of the
Nations. Ed. Timothy L. Gall and Susan Bevan Gall. Online
ed. Detroit: U*X*L, 2012. Student Resource Center - Junior.
Gale. West Mifflin Area School District. 9 Dec. 2013