Much of the land is covered by tropical forest, with coastal plains rising to higher land in the interior. The population is ethnically extremely diverse, owing to the importation of African slave labour from the 17th century and of East Indian plantation workers in the 19th century. Agriculture remains underdeveloped, the rice industry being the only fully developed sector. The vast forests are largely unexploited. Fishing is important, especially for shrimps.
Hydroelectricity is a valuable source of power.
History Suriname was sighted by Columbus in 1498 and the first permanent settlement was established by the English in 1650. It was ceded to the Netherlands in 1667. The early years of independence also saw deepening ethnic and party strife. Civilian rule was outwardly restored in 1988 but the military remained the main source of power. After free elections in 1991 the opposition leader Runaldo Venetiaan became president and took steps to limit the power of the army.