2. Cuba!
Capital
Havana
23°8′N 82°23′W
Official language
Spanish
GDP (nominal)2010 esti
mate - Total $57.49
billion (68th) - Per
capita$5,100 (90th)
3. History
In the 1820s, when the rest of Spain's empire in Latin America rebelled
and formed independent states, Cuba remained loyal. Although there
was agitation for independence, the Spanish Crown gave Cuba the
motto La Siempre Fidelísima Isla ("The Always Most Faithful Island").
This loyalty was due partly to Cuban settlers' dependence on Spain for
trade, their desire for protection from pirates and against a slave
rebellion, and partly because they feared the rising power of the United
States more than they disliked Spanish rule.
4. Revolution
The Cuban Revolution was an
armed revolt by Fidel
Castro's 26th of July
Movement against the regime
of Cuban dictator Fulgencio
Batista between 1953 and 1959.
Batista was finally ousted on 1
January 1959, and was replaced by
a revolutionary government led
by Castro. This government later
reformed along communist lines,
becoming the
present Communist Party of
Cuba in October 1965
5. Climate
The local climate is tropical,
moderated by northeasterly trade
winds that blow year-round. In
general (with local variations), there
is a drier season from November to
April, and a rainier season from May
to October. The average temperature
is 21 °C (69.8 °F) in January and 27
°C(80.6 °F) in July. The warm
temperatures of the Caribbean Sea
and the fact that Cuba sits across the
entrance to the Gulf of Mexico
combine to make the country prone
to frequent hurricanes. These are
most common in September and
October.
6. Geography
Cuba is an archipelago of islands located in
the northern Caribbean Sea at the
confluence with the Gulf of Mexico and the
Atlantic Ocean. It lies between
latitudes 19° and 24°N, and
longitudes 74° and 85°W. The United States
lies to the north-west, the Bahamas to the
north,Haiti to the east, Jamaica and
the Cayman Islands to the south,
and Mexico to the west. Cuba is the
principal island, surrounded by four
smaller groups of islands: the Colorados
Archipelago on the northwestern coast,
the Sabana-Camagüey Archipelago on the
north-central Atlantic coast, the Jardines
de la Reina on the south-central coast and
the Canarreos Archipelago on the
southwestern coast.
7. Natural Resources
The most important mineral resource
is nickel, of which Cuba has the
world's second largest reserves (after
Russia). Sherritt International of
Canada operates a large nickel
mining facility in Moa. Cuba is the
world's fifth-largest producer of
refined cobalt, a byproduct of nickel
mining operations. Recent oil
exploration has revealed that the
North Cuba Basin could produce
approximately 4.6 billion barrels
(730,000,000 m3) to 9.3 billion barrels
(1.48×109 m3) of oil. In 2006, Cuba
started to test-drill these locations for
possible exploitation
8. Demographics
According to the census of 2002, the
population was 11,177,743
5,597,233 men
5,580,510 women.
The racial make-up was
7,271,926 whites,
1,126,894 blacks
2,778,923 mulattoes
The Institute for Cuban and Cuban-
American Studies at the University of
Miami says that 62% is black, whereas
statistics from the Cuban census state
that 65.05% of the population was
white in 2002
9. Health
Historically, Cuba has ranked high
in numbers of medical personnel
and has made significant
contributions to world health since
the 19th century.Today, Cuba has
universal health care and although
shortages of medical supplies
persist, there is no shortage of
medical personnel. Primary care is
available throughout the island and
infant and maternal mortality rates
compare favorably with those in
developed nations
10. People
Immigration and emigration have played a
prominent part in the demographic profile
of Cuba during the 20th century.
During the 18th, 19th, and the early part of
the 20th century large waves of
Canarian, Catalan, Andalusian, Galician,
and other Spanish people immigrated to
Cuba.
Between 1900 and 1930 close to a million
Spaniards arrived from Spain.
Other foreign immigrants include:
French, Portuguese, Italian, Russian, Dutch,
Greek, British, Irish, and other ethnic
groups, including a small number of
descendants of U.S. citizens who arrived in
Cuba in the late 19th and early 20th
centuries
