Suriname

Suriname is the only Dutch-speaking member of the Caribbean Development Bank and the smallest independent country on South American continent. Located between French Guiana and Guyana, Suriname was first explored by the Spaniards in the 16th century. It was settled by the English in the mid-17th century, and became a Dutch colony in 1667. Suriname gained its independence from the Netherlands in 1975. Suriname became a member of the Bank on September 17, 2013.