Decent Work Country Programme 2019 to 2021
Publication year: 2022
Suriname is located in the South American continent with a population of approximately 573,0003
and
geographic size of slightly under 164,000km. It is a democratic country which became independent from
the Netherlands in 1975. Its Gross National Income (GNI) per capita is USD 5,1504
. In terms of human
development, in 2017 it was classified as an upper middle income country and ranks 100 out of 189 countries
on the Human Development Index (HDI). The population density is approximately 3.6 persons per square
kilometre, making it the lowest in the Latin America and Caribbean region. Most of the population lives in the
capital city of Paramaribo and surrounding areas, located on the country’s northern coast. However, there
are populations which live in the interior rural regions of Suriname. The relatively high cost of transportation
and communication challenges pose barriers to the provision of services.