CUBA'S VITAL STATISTICS

Area: 110 860 square km

Population: 11,224,000 {2002 estimate}

Annual Population Growth: 0.9 percent {1991-99}

Urbanization: 75 percent

Capital: Havana, pop. 2,200,000

Main Cities:

Camaguey: 740,000 Holguín: 985,000 Matanzas: 610,000 Pinar del Río: 695,000 Santa Clara: 810,000 Santiago de Cuba: 990,000

Religion: secular, most of those who practice religion are Roman Catholic, but traditional Afro-Cuban paganism has a large following, 4 percent Protestant

Language: Spanish

Climate: subtropical with a wet season from May to October and a dry season from November to April. Average annual temperature is 24 C, with little variation, January and February are the coolest months.

Time: GMT -5, Daylight saving time operates April - October ( Since 2005 the country has remained in the Daylite saving time due to an energy saving measure. It has been stated that this will continue until October 2006) In other words Cuba is presently operating at GMT -4 all year long)

Currency: peso {25 pesos approximately to US   $ 1 }

Business Hours: Mon. - Fri. 8 30 A.M. - 12 30 P.M. 1 30 P.M. - 5 00 P.M.

Literacy: 98 percent

Life Expectancy: 76,6 years

Annual Birth Rate: 12.08 per 1,000 {2002}

Mortality Rate: 7.35 per 1,000 {2002}

Infant Mortality Rate: 7.27 per 1,000 {2002}