Haiti, with a land mass of some 27,700 km2, occupies the western
third of the island of Hispaniola, which it shares with the
Dominican Republic. Haiti's 2010 population was estimated at
10,303,698. With an annual growth rate of 2.2%, the country's
population is expected to reach 12.3 million by 2030. Total life
expectancy at birth was estimated at 62 years in 2008; crude
birth and death rates were 27 births and 9 deaths per 1,000
population, respectively, in 2009. The total fertility rate
(number of children per woman) declined from 4.7 (2000–2001) to
4.0 (2005–2006). Haiti's population is young, with more than 50%
under the age of 21 and 36.5% under the age of 15. Women
represent 51.8% of the population (86 men per 100 women in urban
areas and 98 men per 100 women in rural areas) (see Figure 1).
Haiti is divided into 10 departments, 41 arrondissements
(similar to districts), 135 communes (similar to parishes), and
565 communal sections. The two official languages of the country
are French and Creole but the