Flag and facts
hand Drawn Flag
The Dominican Republic’s modern history started in 1492 when Christopher Columbus visited the island of Hispaniola. This was around the time when the Spanish monarchy claimed much of Latin America as their own, so they did the same with this island. The Dominican Republic was called Santo Domingo and the western half of Hispaniola was called Saint Domingue (Dominque). So, in the 17th Century, the French took control of the left side of Hispaniola as a colony. Then, in 1822, the newly independent republic of Haiti assumed control of Santo Domingo. At that time, the flag of Haiti was just two horizontal stripes of red and blue, which inspired the squares of red and blue on the flag today. Of course, This was the D.R.’s flag until a revolutionary group known as La Trinitaria put the white cross on the flag to show their Christian heritage. On February 27, 1844, La Trinitaria broke out into revolution, and the next day their flag was hoisted. This movement led to the constitution and official independence of the country on November 6, 1844. After this, the order of red and blue on the flag was made to alternate, and a coat of arms was placed on it. On it is a central shield with the flag colors, a bible, a cross, and the branches of laurel and palm. Lastly, there is a banner on the top that translates in Latin from “Dios, Patria, Libertad” to “God, Fatherland, Liberty”. This flag has continued to the present day.
D.R.
Flag
The Dominican Republic has a strong economy that is the fastest growing in the Caribbean. The D.R.’s economy is strongest and most profitable in its service sector which takes up about ⅗’s of the GDP. Millions of tourists come yearly to D.R., contributing much money to the economy. The Industry sector, on the other hand, takes up about ⅓ of the GDP. Agriculture is the biggest industry in the Dominican Republic; the country produces most of the food it consumes. Despite this, some of the crops like bananas, coffee beans, and cacao pods are exported. Other exports include gold and tobacco. Refined and crude petroleum are imported to meet the country's energy needs. Additionally, the Dominican Republic’s biggest trade partner is the United States. Within the Industry sector, multiple minerals such as Bauxite and ferronickel are mined. There are a lot of options in terms of transportation to get in, out, and around the Dominican Republic. There are three main airfields in the D.R. with the main one being just outside of Santo Domingo. Goods are mainly trucked between Santo Domingo and the Cibao Valley, but also through freight on ships. The most important of these ports is in Samaná Bay, one of the largest ports in the Caribbean. The real GDP per capita of the Dominican Republic is 23,100. It’s almost 7 times Haiti’s, but 20,000 less than Puerto Rico’s. The poverty rate is relatively high at 16.9%. This is also in comparison to the national average which is usually 11 - 12%. The Dominican dollar has an exchange rate of about 62 Dominican dollars per U.S. dollar. The Dominican Republic possesses an increasingly powerful economy compared to other countries in the Caribbean, with a strong service and industrial sector.