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Compare British Virgin Islands (2008) - Guinea-Bissau (2001)
Compare British Virgin Islands (2008) z Guinea-Bissau (2001)
| British Virgin Islands (2008) | Guinea-Bissau (2001) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.2% (male 2,410/female 2,337)
15-64 years: 74.5% (male 9,004/female 8,534) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 665/female 602) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years:
42.09% (male 276,312; female 277,536) 15-64 years: 55.05% (male 344,493; female 379,889) 65 years and over: 2.86% (male 16,850; female 20,742) (2001 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish |
| Airports | 3 (2007) | 29 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total:
3 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
total:
26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2000 est.) |
| Area | total: 153 sq km
land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke |
total:
36,120 sq km land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
| Area - comparative | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut |
| Background | First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. | In 1994, 20 years after independence from Portugal, the country's first multiparty legislative and presidential elections were held. An army uprising that triggered a bloody civil war in 1998, created hundreds of thousands of displaced persons. The president was ousted by a military junta in May 1999. An interim government turned over power in February 2000 when opposition leader Koumba YALLA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by a crippled economy devastated by civil war and the military's predilection for governmental meddling. |
| Birth rate | 14.82 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 39.29 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $204.7 million
expenditures: $180.4 million (2004) |
revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
| Capital | name: Road Town
geographic coordinates: 18 27 N, 64 37 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Bissau |
| Climate | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds | tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds |
| Coastline | 80 km | 350 km |
| Constitution | 13 June 2007 | 16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996 |
| Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
conventional long form:
Republic of Guinea-Bissau conventional short form: Guinea-Bissau local long form: Republica da Guine-Bissau local short form: Guine-Bissau former: Portuguese Guinea |
| Currency | - | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States; previously the Guinea-Bissau peso (GWP) was used |
| Death rate | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 15.33 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Debt - external | $36.1 million (1997) | $964 million (1998 est.) |
| Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | the US Embassy suspended operations on 14 June 1998 in the midst of violent conflict between forces loyal to then President VIEIRA and military-led junta |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Mario LOPES DA ROSA chancery: Suite 519, 1511 K Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950 FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954 |
| Disputes - international | none | none |
| Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $115.4 million (1995) |
| Economy - overview | The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 820,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 2005. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, made the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the US dollar as its currency since 1959. | One of the 20 poorest countries in the world, Guinea-Bissau depends mainly on farming and fishing. Cashew crops have increased remarkably in recent years, and the country now ranks sixth in cashew production. Guinea-Bissau exports fish and seafood along with small amounts of peanuts, palm kernels, and timber. Rice is the major crop and staple food. However, intermittent fighting between Senegalese-backed government troops and a military junta destroyed much of the country's infrastructure and caused widespread damage to the economy in 1998; the civil war led to a 28% drop in GDP that year, with partial recovery in 1999-2000. Before the war, trade reform and price liberalization were the most successful part of the country's structural adjustment program under IMF sponsorship. The tightening of monetary policy and the development of the private sector had also begun to reinvigorate the economy. Because of high costs, the development of petroleum, phosphate, and other mineral resources is not a near-term prospect. However, unexploited offshore oil reserves could provide much-needed revenue in the long run. |
| Electricity - consumption | 41.85 million kWh (2005) | 51.2 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production | 45 million kWh (2005) | 55 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
| Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments) | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing |
| Environment - international agreements | - | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | black 83%, other 17% (includes white, Indian, Asian and mixed) | African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% |
| Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); Guinea-Bissauan pesos per US dollar - 26,373 (1996)
note: as of 1 May 1997, Guinea-Bissau adopted the CFA franc as the national currency; since 1 January 1999, the CFA franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 CFA francs per euro |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor David PEAREY (since 18 April 2006)
head of government: Premier Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 23 August 2007) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the House of Assembly elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed premier by the governor |
chief of state:
President Koumba YALLA (since 18 February 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Faustino IMBALI (since 20 March 2001) cabinet: NA elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 28 November 1999 and 16 January 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature election results: Koumba YALLA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Koumba YALLA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28% |
| Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | $80 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand | cashew nuts 70%, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber (1996) |
| Exports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006) | India 59%, Singapore 12%, Italy 10% (1998) |
| Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
| Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and green with a vertical red band on the hoist side; there is a black five-pointed star centered in the red band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
| GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.1 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.8%
industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
agriculture:
54% industry: 15% services: 31% (1997 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2002 est.) | 7.6% (2000 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 30 N, 64 30 W | 12 00 N, 15 00 W |
| Geography - note | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico | - |
| Highways | - | total:
4,400 km paved: 453 km unpaved: 3,947 km (1996) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
0.5% highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
| Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering | - |
| Imports | 604.3 bbl/day (2004) | $55.2 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products (1996) |
| Imports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006) | Portugal 26%, France 8%, Senegal 8%, Netherlands 7% (1998) |
| Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 2.6% (1997 est.) |
| Industries | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 16.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
110.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2005) | 3% (2000 est.) |
| International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS, UNESCO (associate), UPU | ACCT (associate), ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | NA | 17 sq km (1993 est.) |
| Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices who are appointed by the president and serve at his pleasure; final court of appeals in criminal and civil cases); Regional Courts (one in each of nine regions; first court of appeals for Sectoral Court decisions; hear all felony cases and civil cases valued at over $1,000); 24 Sectoral Courts (judges are not necessarily trained lawyers; they hear civil cases under $1,000 and misdemeanor criminal cases) |
| Labor force | 12,770 (2004) | 480,000 |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 0.6%
industry: 40% services: 59.4% (2005) |
agriculture 78% |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
724 km border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
| Land use | arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (2005) |
arable land:
11% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 38% forests and woodland: 38% other: 12% (1993 est.) |
| Languages | English (official) | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
| Legal system | English law | NA |
| Legislative branch | unicameral House of Assembly (13 elected seats and 1 non-voting ex officio member in the attorney general; members are elected by direct popular vote, 1 member from each of nine electoral districts, 4 at-large members; to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 August 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - VIP 45.2%, NDP 39.6%, independent 15.2%; seats by party - VIP 10, NDP 2, independent 1 |
unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (100 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve a maximum of four years)
elections: last held 28 November 1999 (next to be held by NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRS 37, RGB 27, PAIGC 25, 11 remaining seats went to 5 of the remaining 10 parties that fielded candidates |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 76.86 years
male: 75.71 years female: 78.07 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
49.42 years male: 47.12 years female: 51.78 years (2001 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 53.9% male: 67.1% female: 40.7% (1997 est.) |
| Location | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Merchant marine | - | none (2000 est.) |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
| Military branches | - | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $8 million (FY96) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.8% (FY96) |
| Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
305,071 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
173,703 (2001 est.) |
| National holiday | Territory Day, 1 July (1956) | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) |
| Nationality | noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
noun:
Guinean (s) adjective: Guinean |
| Natural hazards | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires |
| Natural resources | NEGL | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, unexploited deposits of petroleum |
| Net migration rate | 8.83 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -1.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Political parties and leaders | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Francisco BENANTE]; Front for the Liberation and Independence of Guinea or FLING [Francois MENDY]; Guinea-Bissau Resistance-Ba Fata Movement or RGB-MB [Helder Vaz LOPES]; Guinean Civic Forum or FCG [Antonieta Rosa GOMES]; International League for Ecological Protection or LIPE [Alhaje Bubacar DJALO, president]; National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Abubacer BALDE, secretary general]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Koumba YALLA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Victor Sau'de MARIA] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
| Population | 23,552 (July 2007 est.) | 1,315,822 (July 2001 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 50% (1991 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 1.923% (2007 est.) | 2.23% (2001 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | - | Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Radios | - | 49,000 (1997) |
| Railways | - | 0 km |
| Religions | Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, other 2%, none 2% (1991) | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.031 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.055 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.105 male(s)/female total population: 1.053 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-284; connected via submarine cable to Bermuda; the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable provides connectivity to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean (2007) |
general assessment:
small system domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications international: NA |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 11,700 (2002) | 8,000 (1997) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 8,000 (2002) | NA |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus 1 cable company) (1997) | 2 (1997) |
| Terrain | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east |
| Total fertility rate | 1.72 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 5.2 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 3.6% (1997) | NA% |
| Waterways | - | several rivers are accessible to coastal shipping |
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