Cuba, General Information.

Area: 110,860 sq km (42,803 sq miles).

Population: 11,160,200 (official estimate 1999).

Population Density: 100.7 per sq km.

Capital: Havana. Population: 2,189,716 (1999).

Geography: Cuba is the largest Caribbean island, about the size of England, and the most westerly of the Greater Antilles group, lying 145km (90 miles) south of Florida. A quarter of the country is fairly mountainous. West of Havana is the narrow Sierra de los Organos, rising to 750m (2461ft) and containing the Guaniguanicos hills in the west. South of the Sierra is a narrow strip of 2320 sq km (860 sq miles) where the finest Cuban tobacco is grown. The Trinidad Mountains, starting in the centre, rise to 1100m (3609ft) in the east. Encircling the port of Santiago are the rugged mountains of the Sierra Maestra. A quarter of the island is covered with mountain forests of pine and mahogany.

Government: Socialist Republic. Gained independence from Spain in 1898. Head of State and Government: President Fidel Castro Ruz since 1959.

Language: The official language is Spanish.

Religion: Roman Catholic majority.

Time: GMT - 5.

Electricity: 110/120 volts AC, 60Hz. American-style flat two-pin plugs are generally used, except in certain large hotels where the European round two-pin plug is standard.

Communications:

Telephone: IDD to Havana only. Country code: 53. Outgoing international code: 119. Phonecards for both internal and external calls are readily available from shops and kiosks (tourists must pay in US dollars). Some calls must be made through the international operator, and may be subject to delays.

Mobile telephone: Phones from the UK cannot be used. Cellular handsets can be hired from Cubacel. Roaming agreements exist with Canada and some European and Latin American countries, although not with the USA or UK. For further details check online (website: www.cubacel.com). GSM 900 network by C_Com has limited coverage.

Fax: Services are widely available.

Internet: Available at hotels and some Internet cafes. ISPs are limited. The main providers include Cubaweb (website: www.cubaweb.cu).

Telegram: These may be sent from all post offices in Havana and from RCA offices in major hotels in large towns.

Post: Letters to Western Europe can take several weeks. It is advisable to use the airmail service.

Press: Papers are in Spanish, although the Communist Party daily newspaper, Granma, publishes a weekly edition, called Granma International, in English, German, Portuguese and French. There is also a fortnightly international newspaper, Prisma de Cuba y las Américas, published in Spanish and English. All media is government controlled.

BBC World Service and Voice of America frequencies: From time to time these change.

MHz 15.19 12.10 6.195 5.975

MHz 13.79 9.455 6.130 5.995