Suriname — Country Profile
Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Suriname: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna Power score (--/100, ranked #-- of 195).
Last updated: October 2026
Suriname is in Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between French Guiana and Guyana. It covers 163,820 sq km. Terrain: mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps. Climate: tropical; moderated by trade winds.
| Capital | Paramaribo |
|---|---|
| Population | 653,605 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $12.316 billion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $19,400 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 2.8% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 16.2% (2024 est.) |
| Unemployment | 7.4% (2024 est.) |
| Public debt | 75.8% of GDP (2016 est.) |
| Exports | $2.793 billion (2024 est.) |
| Imports | $2.571 billion (2024 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 72.7 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 32.3 years (2025 est.) |
| Urbanization | 66.4% of total population (2023) |
| Government | presidential republic |
| Independence | 25 November 1975 (from the Netherlands) |
| Languages | Dutch (official), English (widely spoken), Sranang Tongo (Surinamese, sometimes called Taki-Taki, is the native language of Creoles and much of the younger population), Caribbean Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), Javanese |
Suriname’s GDP is $12.316 billion (2024 est.) in purchasing-power-parity terms. At official exchange rates it stands at $4.714 billion (2024 est.). Real GDP grew 2.8% (2024 est.). See where Suriname ranks among all 195 countries by GDP.
POWER --/100 — The Magna Power score is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — nine components, 135 indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum 0 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
Steadiness was the quarter's defining trait: no rupture, no windfall, no surprise strong enough to move the score.
The trajectory remains set by fundamentals that change over years, not quarters — and this quarter changed little.
- What drags it down: graded on patchy data (93% complete) — read the score as an order of magnitude; public debt above 76% of GDP — the budget's ball and chain
Timber, Hydropower, Bauxite, Gold, Nickel, Copper, Platinum, Iron ore.
Energy is the physical base of economic power — what a country can generate, move and burn decides what it can build, sell and defend.
| Electricity access | 99% (2022 est.) |
|---|---|
| Installed capacity mix (CIA) | fossil fuels: 57.1% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 0.6% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); hydroelectricity: 42% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) |
| Energy consumption per capita (CIA) | 60.896 million Btu/person (2023 est.) |
| Primary energy consumption (OWID) | 11.2 TWh (2023) |
| Electricity generation (OWID) | 2.1 TWh (2023) |
| Energy per capita (OWID) | 17,848 kWh per person (2023) |
| Electricity generation mix (OWID) | Oil 56.1%, Hydro 42.1%, Gas 0.9%, Solar 0.5% (2023) |
| Low-carbon share of electricity (OWID) | 43.0% (2023) |
| Carbon intensity of electricity (OWID) | 383.2 gCO2/kWh (2023) |
Sources: CIA World Factbook, Energy section; Our World in Data (IEA/Ember), 2023.
Trade shows what the world buys from a country and what the country must buy from the world — the balance between the two is a direct measure of economic leverage.
| Exports | $2.793 billion (2024 est.) |
|---|---|
| Imports | $2.571 billion (2024 est.) |
| Trade balance (calculated) | Surplus of $222.0 million (2024), calculated from the CIA export and import figures above. |
| Key industries | gold mining, oil, lumber, food processing, fishing |
Source: CIA World Factbook, Economy section.
Jennifer Geerlings-Simons — President. President Jennifer GEERLINGS-SIMONS (since 16 July 2025)
Suriname maintains 13 embassies and 7 consulates abroad, hosts 12 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to UN New York, OAS Washington. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 13 |
|---|---|
| Consulates abroad | 7 |
| Foreign missions hosted | 12 |
| Multilateral missions | UN New York, OAS Washington |
Source: Consular Affairs Center, diplomatic & consular networks database, Mar 2026 report (of-country ranking) https://zenodo.org/records/18917562 ; Jan 2026 report (in-country ranking) https://zenodo.org/records/18109976
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Coastal — 386 km of coastline. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 55 + 1 heliports (registration prefix PZ) |
| Major seaports | Moengo, Nieuw Nickerie, Paramaribo, Paranam |
| Pipelines | 50 km oil (2013) |
Major airports
Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport (PBM) — Paramaribo.
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28); theodora.com CIA mirror (CIA World Factbook Transportation section), scraped 2026-10-02
| Political system | presidential republic |
|---|---|
| Next election | No election currently scheduled. |
POWER --/100 Ranked #-- of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Suriname.
Historical timeline of Suriname
This profile covers the population, economy, natural resources, leaders, and history of Suriname — with the Bureau’s live national-power score of --/100, ranking #-- of 195 countries.
What is Suriname's power score?
Suriname has a Magna Power score of --/100. The score measures structural power — the proven capacity to shape events — across nine components.