Location

The latitude and longitude coordinates of Suriname place it on the northern part of the South American continent. The latitude and longitude coordinates of Suriname are 4°00 N and 56°00 W, respectively. Suriname’s latitude and longitude designations place it next to the North Atlantic Ocean, in the middle of French Guiana and Guyana. Suriname’s latitude and longitude designations give it an area of approximately 163,270 square kilometers. The longitude and latitude of the capital of Suriname, Paramaribo, are 5°50 N and 55°10 W respectively.

The names of the latitude and longitude of Suriname give the place a type of climate that is predominantly tropical. But mainly due to its geographical location, the country experiences many trade winds.

Time zone

Greenwich Mean Time (GMT): -3 (SRT)

Example: What is the time difference between the Netherlands and Suriname?

During summer time it is 5 hours earlier in Suriname.
During our winter time it is 4 hours earlier in Suriname.
Suriname is close to the equator. This means there are few differences in the time the sun rises and sets. The sun always rises between 6:00 AM and 7:00 AM in Suriname, and sets again between 6:00 PM and 7:00 PM.

Districts

The 10 (ten) districts are:

1. Brokopondo
2. Commewijne
3. Coronie
4. Marowijne
5. Nickerie
6. Para
7. Paramaribo
8. Saramacca
9. Sipaliwini
10. Wanica

Ethnic Groups (2012)

• 27.4% Indian
• 21.7% Maroons
• 15.7% Creole
• 13.7% Javanese
• 13.4% multiracial
• 3.8% indigenous
• 1.5% Chinese
• 0.3% European
• 1.9% Others

Currency

The Surinamese dollar (SRD) has been the official means of payment in Suriname (CBvS) since January 1, 2004. The SRD coins that are issued are 1 cent, 5 cents, 10 cents, 25 cents, SRD 1 and SRD 2.50. The national currency is the Surinamese dollar (=100 cents); code: SRD. As of January 1, 2004, the Surinamese guilder was replaced as the currency by the Surinamese dollar. The nominal value was thus reduced by a factor of a thousand. One thousand Surinamese guilders has therefore become 1 Surinamese dollar. A strange side effect is that the old currency, which was no longer used due to the devaluation, has suddenly become worth a thousandfold. Since the beginning of 2016, the fixed ratio against the US dollar has been abandoned and from March 2016 the rate was set through a number of weekly currency auctions. The price was then released and slowly increased.

Electricity

In Suriname the power sockets are of type A, B, C and F. The standard voltage is 110/220 V and the frequency is 60 Hz.

NV Energie Bedrijven Suriname (NV EBS) is a public limited company in Suriname that is responsible for the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. EBS employs more than 1,300 employees and supplies approximately 150,000 electricity connections. The company is 100% owned by the state of Suriname.

Tigri

The Tigri region is a forested area disputed by Guyana and Suriname since about 1840. This concerns the area between the Upper Corantijn River (also called the New River), the Coeroeni River and the Kutari River. River. This triangular area is known as the New River Triangle in Guyana. In 1969 the conflict escalated and since then it has been controlled by Guyana and claimed by Suriname. In 1971, both governments agreed that they would continue discussions on the border issue and withdraw their armed forces from the disputed triangle. Guyana has never adhered to this agreement. In Suriname it is considered part of the Coeroeni Resort located in the Sipaliwini District, while Guyana considers it part of the East Berbice-Corantijn region.

Seasons

Suriname has 4 (four) seasons and this is based on the amount of precipitation that falls.

• The little rainy season: from the beginning of December to the end of January.
• The short dry season: from the end of January to the end of April.
• The main rainy season: from the end of April to mid-August.
• The long dry season: from mid-August to early December.