CAPITAL SANTO DOMINGO - POPULATION 9.2 MILLION - AREA 48,730 SQ KM - OFFICIAL LANGUAGE SPANISH
One of the Caribbean's most visited destinations, the Dominican Republic is an all-singing, all-dancing tourist magnet with beautiful beaches and fully inclusive resorts galore. The republic comprises two-thirds of the large island of Hispaniola; the other third is taken up by Haiti, with whom the Republic keeps cordial, though not especially friendly, relations. Despite fantastic natural resources, diving, whale-watching and beachside lounging, friendly locals and a phenomenal annual tourism growth rate doing wonders for the economy, the nation does have its darker side. In 2006, Bajos de Haina, located just 19km from the capital, was named one of the world's 10 most polluted places (dubbed the 'Dominican Chernobyl'), due to severe lead poisoning, which has affected almost all of the town's population. This is a problem that this Caribbean gem has yet to completely fix.
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