Nord-Est Department

Nord-Est (English: "North-East") is one of the ten departments (French: "départments", singular "départment") of Haiti. It is in the northeastern corner of the country, along the border with the Dominican Republic. Its capital is Fort-Liberté.
After the Haitian Revolution, the country was divided into only three departments: Nord, Ouest and Sud. The "Nord-Est" department was part of the "Nord" department.
Geography.
The "Départment du Nord-Est", with an area of 1,805 km², is the second smallest department of Haiti; only the Nippes department is smaller.
The department is bordered to the north by the Atlantic Ocean, to the west by the Nord Department and to the south by the Centre Department. It borders the Dominican Republic to the east.
The only important river in the province is the Dajabón River, known also as "Massacre". This river marks the Dominican-Haitian border from the Dominican city of Dajabón to its mouth.
The "Massif du Nord" mountain range, known in the Dominican Republic as "Cordillera Central", runs from the northwest to the southeast along the southern half of the department.
The "Pleine du Nord" (in English, "Northern Plain"), with several savannas, is in the northern half of the department.
Population.
The department had, in the 2003 census, a population of 308,385 persons: 150,525 men and 157,860 women, with 117,872 (38.22%) living in cities and towns. The population density was, in that year, of 171 persons/km².
The main cities are Fort-Liberté (the capital) and Ouanaminthe.
Administrative division.
The department is divided into four "arrondissements" (like districts) and 13 "communes" (like municipalities). The "arrondissements" and their "communes" are:
Economy.
The main economic activity in the department is agriculture, with many very small farms where beans, peanut, maize and other things are grown. In the mountains, coffee is grown.
Fishing is an important activity along the coast, and commerce is the main activity in Ouanaminthe.