Compare Congo, Republic of the (2008) - Guinea-Bissau (2005)

Compare Congo, Republic of the (2008) z Guinea-Bissau (2005)

	Congo, Republic of the (2008)	Guinea-Bissau (2005)

Administrative divisions	10 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 commune; Bouenza, Brazzaville, Cuvette, Cuvette-Ouest, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha	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: 46.3% (male 885,039/female 873,753) 15-64 years: 50.8% (male 958,992/female 973,445) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 44,994/female 64,387) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 41.5% (male 293,280/female 294,483) 15-64 years: 55.5% (male 376,719/female 409,402) 65 years and over: 3% (male 17,865/female 24,278) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products	rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish
Airports	31 (2007)	28 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 5 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2007)	total: 3 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 9 (2007)	total: 25 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 342,000 sq km land: 341,500 sq km water: 500 sq km	total: 36,120 sq km land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Montana	slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut
Background	Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a democratically elected government took office in 1992. A brief civil war in 1997 restored former Marxist President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, and ushered in a period of ethnic and political unrest. Southern-based rebel groups agreed to a final peace accord in March 2003, but the calm is tenuous and refugees continue to present a humanitarian crisis. The Republic of Congo was once one of Africa's largest petroleum producers, but with declining production it will need to hope for new offshore oil finds to sustain its oil earnings over the long term.	Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable upheaval. The founding government consisted of a single party system and command economy. In 1980, a military coup established Joao VIEIRA as president and a path to a market economy and multiparty system was implemented. A number of coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him and in 1994 he was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military coup attempt and civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIEIRA's ouster in 1999. In February 2000, an interim government turned over power when opposition leader Kumba YALA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. YALA was ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2003, and Henrique ROSA was sworn in as President. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by its crippled economy, devastated in the civil war.
Birth rate	42.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	37.65 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $3.639 billion expenditures: $2.104 billion (2007 est.)	revenues: NA expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA
Capital	name: Brazzaville geographic coordinates: 4 15 S, 15 17 E time difference: UTC+1 (six hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	Bissau
Climate	tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to October); persistent high temperatures and humidity; particularly enervating climate astride the Equator	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	169 km	350 km
Constitution	approved by referendum 20 January 2002	16 May 1984; amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of the Congo conventional short form: Congo (Brazzaville) local long form: Republique du Congo local short form: none former: Middle Congo, Congo/Brazzaville, Congo	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
Death rate	12.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	16.53 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$5 billion (2000 est.)	$941.5 million (2000 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Robert WEISBERG embassy: BDEAC Building, 4th Floor, Brazzaville mailing address: NA telephone: [242] 81-1480 FAX:: [243] 81-5324	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; US embassy Dakar is responsible for covering Guinea-Bissau: telephone - [221] 823-4296; FAX - [221] 822-5903
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Serge MOMBOULI chancery: 4891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1860	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Henrique Adriano DA SILVA chancery: 1511 K Street NW, Suite 519, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950 FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954
Disputes - international	Congo hosts about 63,000 refugees from neighboring states, primarily from the Pool border area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area	attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region
Economic aid - recipient	$1.449 billion (2005)	$115.4 million (1995)
Economy - overview	The economy is a mixture of subsistance agriculture, an industrial sector based largely on oil, and support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings through oil-backed loans that have contributed to a growing debt burden and chronic revenue shortfalls. Economic reform efforts have been undertaken with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. However, the reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. Economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. The current administration presides over an uneasy internal peace and faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. Recovery of oil prices has boosted the economy's GDP and near-term prospects. In March 2006, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) treatment for Congo.	One of the 10 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 1999-2002. 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. The inequality of income distribution is one of the most extreme in the world. The government and international donors continue to work out plans to forward economic development from a lamentably low base. In December 2003, the World Bank, IMF, and UNDP were forced to step in to provide emergency budgetary support in the amount of $107 million for 2004, representing over 80% of the total national budget. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in continued low growth in 2004.
Electricity - consumption	5.272 billion kWh (2005)	51.15 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	1.8 billion kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	6 million kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	7.341 billion kWh (2005)	55 million kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Berongou 903 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m
Environment - current issues	air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation	deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans and other 3%	African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1%
Exchange rates	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 483.6 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003)	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000) note: since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro
Executive branch	chief of state: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); head of government: Prime Minister Isidore MVOUBA (since 7 January 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held in 2009) election results: Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO reelected president; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO 89.4%, Joseph Kignoumbi Kia MBOUNGOU 2.7%	chief of state: President Henrique ROSA (interim; since 28 September 2003); note - a September 2003 coup overthrew the elected government of Kumba YALA; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 to 28 September 2003 head of government: Prime Minister Carlos GOMES Junior (since 9 May 2004) 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 May 2005); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature election results: Kumba YALA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Kumba YALA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28% note: a bloodless coup led to the dissolution of the elected government of Kumba YALA in September 2003; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 September 2003 until stepping aside on 28 September 2003 with the establishment of a caretaker government
Exports	20,750 bbl/day (2004)	NA
Exports - commodities	petroleum, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds	cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber
Exports - partners	US 35.9%, China 31.4%, Taiwan 9.9%, South Korea 8% (2006)	India 52.1%, US 22.2%, Nigeria 13.2% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is red note: uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia	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 - composition by sector	agriculture: 5.6% industry: 57.1% services: 37.3% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 62% industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $700 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	2.8% (2007 est.)	2.6% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	1 00 S, 15 00 E	12 00 N, 15 00 W
Geography - note	about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or along the railroad between them	this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland
Highways	-	total: 4,400 km paved: 453 km unpaved: 3,947 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 0.5% highest 10%: 42.4% (1991)
Imports	11,410 bbl/day (2004)	NA
Imports - commodities	capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs	foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products
Imports - partners	France 23.5%, China 13.2%, US 7.6%, India 7%, Italy 5.6%, Belgium 5.3% (2006)	Senegal 44.6%, Portugal 13.8%, China 4.2% (2004)
Independence	15 August 1960 (from France)	24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal)
Industrial production growth rate	-1% (2007 est.)	2.6% (1997 est.)
Industries	petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes	agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks
Infant mortality rate	total: 83.26 deaths/1,000 live births male: 88.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 77.42 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 107.17 deaths/1,000 live births male: 117.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 96.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	7% (2007 est.)	4% (2002 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	20 sq km (2003)	170 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Cour Supreme	Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices 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	NA	480,000 (1999)
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture 82% (2000 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 5,504 km border countries: Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon 1,903 km	total: 724 km border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km
Land use	arable land: 1.45% permanent crops: 0.15% other: 98.4% (2005)	arable land: 10.67% permanent crops: 8.82% other: 80.51% (2001)
Languages	French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread)	Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages
Legal system	based on French civil law system and customary law	NA
Legislative branch	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (66 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the National Assembly (137 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 11 July 2002 (next to be held in 2008); National Assembly - last held 24 June and 5 August 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FDP 56, other 10; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PCT 46, MCDDI 11, UPADS 11, MAR 5, MSD 5, independents 37, other 22	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 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 31.5%, PRS 24.8%, PUSD 16.1%, UE 4.1%, APU 1.3%, 13 other parties 22.2%; seats by party - PAIGC 45, PRS 35, PUSD 17, UE 2, APU 1
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 53.29 years male: 52.1 years female: 54.52 years (2007 est.)	total population: 46.61 years male: 44.77 years female: 48.52 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83.8% male: 89.6% female: 78.4% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 42.4% male: 58.1% female: 27.4% (2003 est.)
Location	Western Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and Gabon	Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal
Map references	Africa	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	registered in other countries: 1 (Congo, Democratic Republic of the 1) (2007)	-
Military branches	Congolese Armed Forces (Forces Armees Congolaises, FAC): Army, Navy, Congolese Air Force (Armee de l'Air Congolaise), Gendarmerie, Special Presidential Security Guard (GSSP) (2008)	People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$8.9 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	3.1% (2006)	3.1% (2004)
National holiday	Independence Day, 15 August (1960)	Independence Day, 24 September (1973)
Nationality	noun: Congolese (singular and plural) adjective: Congolese or Congo	noun: Guinean(s) adjective: Guinean
Natural hazards	seasonal flooding	hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires
Natural resources	petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, gold, magnesium, natural gas, hydropower	fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum
Net migration rate	-3.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-1.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	gas 89 km; liquid petroleum gas 4 km; oil 758 km (2007)	-
Political parties and leaders	Action Movement for Renewal or MAR; Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development or MCDDI [Michel MAMPOUYA]; Congolese Labour Party or PCT; Movement for Solidarity and Development or MSD; Pan-African Union for Social Development or UPADS [Martin MBERI]; Rally for Democracy and Social Progress or RDPS [Jean-Pierre Thystere TCHICAYA, president]; Rally for Democracy and the Republic or RDR [Raymond Damasge NGOLLO]; Union for Democracy and Republic or UDR; Union of Democratic Forces or UFD [Sebastian EBAO]; many less important parties	African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; 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 [Kumba YALA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Platform or UP [coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Congolese Trade Union Congress or CSC; General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students or UGEEC; Revolutionary Union of Congolese Women or URFC; Union of Congolese Socialist Youth or UJSC	NA
Population	3,800,610 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)	1,416,027 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	NA
Population growth rate	2.639% (2007 est.)	1.96% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 3 (2001)	AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002)
Railways	total: 894 km narrow gauge: 894 km 1.067-m gauge (2006)	-
Religions	Christian 50%, animist 48%, Muslim 2%	indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.013 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.985 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.699 male(s)/female total population: 0.988 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out of order; fixed-line infrastructure inadequate providing less than 1 connection per 100 persons; mobile-cellular subscribership has surged reaching 16 per 100 persons domestic: primary network consists of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable international: country code - 242; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: small system domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications international: country code - 245
Telephones - main lines in use	15,900 (2005)	10,600 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	490,000 (2005)	1,300 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2001)	NA (1997)
Terrain	coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin	mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east
Total fertility rate	5.99 children born/woman (2007 est.)	4.93 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	NA%	NA (1998)
Waterways	1,125 km (commercially navigable on Congo and Oubanqui rivers) (2006)	4 largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2004)

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