Equatorial Guinea (2002) | Malawi (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas | 24 districts; Blantyre, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu, Chitipa, Dedza, Dowa, Karonga, Kasungu, Lilongwe, Machinga (Kasupe), Mangochi, Mchinji, Mulanje, Mwanza, Mzimba, Ntcheu, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Nsanje, Ntchisi, Rumphi, Salima, Thyolo, Zomba; note - there may be three new districts named Balaka, Likoma, and Phalombe |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42.4% (male 106,061; female 105,071)
15-64 years: 53.8% (male 128,489; female 139,732) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,385; female 10,406) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
44.43% (male 2,348,940; female 2,337,290) 15-64 years: 52.78% (male 2,741,622; female 2,825,966) 65 years and over: 2.79% (male 119,283; female 175,149) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber | tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses; cattle, goats |
Airports | 3 (2001) | 44 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
6 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
38 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 23 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 28,051 sq km
land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
118,480 sq km land: 94,080 sq km water: 24,400 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
Background | Composed of a mainland portion and five inhabited islands, Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. The tiny country, one of the smallest on the African continent, has been ruled by President OBIANG NGUEM MBASOGO since he seized power in a coup in 1979. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 legislative elections - were widely seen as being flawed. | Established in 1891, the British protectorate of Nyasaland became the independent nation of Malawi in 1964. After three decades of one-party rule, the country held multiparty elections in 1994 under a provisional constitution, which took full effect the following year. National multiparty elections were held again in 1999. |
Birth rate | 37.33 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 37.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $200 million
expenditures: $158 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues:
$490 million expenditures: $523 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
Capital | Malabo | Lilongwe |
Climate | tropical; always hot, humid | sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November) |
Coastline | 296 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995 | 18 May 1994 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Equatorial Guinea
conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial former: Spanish Guinea |
conventional long form:
Republic of Malawi conventional short form: Malawi former: British Central African Protectorate, Nyasaland Protectorate, Nyasaland |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States | Malawian kwacha (MWK) |
Death rate | 12.83 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 22.81 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $225 million (2000 est.) | $2.9 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador George McDade STAPLES; note - the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); the US ambassador to Cameroon is accredited to Equatorial Guinea; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo | chief of mission:
Ambassador Roger A. MEECE embassy: Area 40, Plot 24, Kenyatta Road mailing address: P. O. Box 30016, Lilongwe 3, Malawi telephone: [265] 773 166 FAX: [265] 770 471 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Pastor Micha ONDO BILE
chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 528-5252 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Paul Tony Steven KANDIERO chancery: 2408 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-1007 |
Disputes - international | tripartite maritime boundary and economic zone dispute with Cameroon and Nigeria is currently before the ICJ; maritime boundary dispute with Gabon because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay | dispute with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) |
Economic aid - recipient | $33.8 million (1995) (1995) | $427 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been unsuccessfully trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Businesses, for the most part, are owned by government officials and their family members. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Boosts in production and higher world oil prices stimulated growth in 2002, with oil accounting for 90% of increased exports. | Landlocked Malawi ranks among the world's least developed countries. The economy is predominately agricultural, with about 90% of the population living in rural areas. Agriculture accounts for 37% of GDP and 85% of export revenues. The economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations. In late 2000, Malawi was approved for relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program. The government faces strong challenges, e.g., to fully develop a market economy, to improve educational facilities, to face up to environmental problems, and to deal with the rapidly growing problem of HIV/AIDS. |
Electricity - consumption | 20.46 million kWh (2000) | 950 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 3 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 22 million kWh (2000) | 1.025 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 91%
hydro: 9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
2.44% hydro: 97.56% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m |
lowest point:
junction of the Shire River and international boundary with Mozambique 37 m highest point: Sapitwa 3,002 m |
Environment - current issues | tap water is not potable; deforestation | deforestation; land degradation; water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, industrial wastes; siltation of spawning grounds endangers fish populations |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish | Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuko, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro | Malawian kwachas per US dollar - 80.0946 (December 2000), 59.5438 (2000), 44.0881 (1999), 31.0727 (1998), 16.4442 (1997), 15.3085 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup)
head of government: Prime Minister Candido Muatetema RIVAS (since 26 February 2001); First Deputy Prime Minister Miguel OYONO NDONG (since NA January 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Demetrio Elo NDONG NZE FUMU (since NA January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud |
chief of state:
President Bakili MULUZI (since 21 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Bakili MULUZI (since 21 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: 36-member Cabinet named by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 15 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Bakili MULUZI reelected president; percent of vote - Bakili MULUZI (UDF) 51.4%, Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA (MCP-AFORD) 44.3% |
Exports | $2.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | $416 million (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, timber, cocoa | tobacco, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts, wood products |
Exports - partners | China 24%, Japan 7%, US 7%, South Korea 5% (1999) | South Africa 16%, Germany 16%, US 15%, Netherlands 7%, Japan (1999) |
Fiscal year | 1 January - 31 December | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice) | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.04 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $9.4 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 20%
industry: 60% services: 20% (1999 est.) |
agriculture:
37% industry: 29% services: 34% (1998 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $900 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6% (2001 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 N, 10 00 E | 13 30 S, 34 00 E |
Geography - note | insular and continental regions rather widely separated | landlocked |
Highways | total: 2,880 km
paved: 0 km unpaved: 2,880 km (1996) |
total:
16,451 km paved: 3,126 km unpaved: 13,325 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $736 million f.o.b. (2001) | $435 million (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum sector equipment, manufactured goods and equipment | food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment |
Imports - partners | US 60%, France 12%, Spain 8%, Italy 6% (1999) | South Africa 43%, Zimbabwe 14%, UK 5%, Germany 5%, Zambia, Japan, US (1999) |
Independence | 12 October 1968 (from Spain) | 6 July 1964 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.4% (1994 est.) | NA% |
Industries | petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas | tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods |
Infant mortality rate | 90.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 121.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6% (2001 est.) | 29.5% (2000) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO (applicant) | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2002) | 8 (2001) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 280 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Tribunal | Supreme Court of Appeal; High Court (chief justice appointed by the president, puisne judges appointed on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission); magistrate's courts |
Labor force | NA | 3.5 million |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 86% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 539 km
border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km |
total:
2,881 km border countries: Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 km |
Land use | arable land: 4.63%
permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
34% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 39% other: 7% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo | English (official), Chichewa (official), other languages important regionally |
Legal system | partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom | based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (80 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - PDGE 80%, UP 6%, CPDS 5%; seats by party - PDGE 75, UP 4 and CPDS 1 note: opposition parties have refused to take up their seats in the House to protest widespread irregularities in the 1999 legislative elections |
unicameral National Assembly (193 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 15 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - UDF 48%, MCP 34%, AFORD 15%, others 3%; seats by party - UDF 94, MCP 66, AFORD 29, others 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 54.35 years
male: 52.26 years female: 56.5 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
37.08 years male: 36.61 years female: 37.55 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 78.5% male: 89.6% female: 68.1% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 58% male: 72.8% female: 43.4% (1999 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon | Southern Africa, east of Zambia |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 14,413 GRT/16,251 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 3, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2002 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Rapid Intervention Force, National Police | Army (includes Air Wing and Naval Detachment), Police (includes paramilitary Mobile Force Unit) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $27.5 million (FY01) | $9.5 million (FY00/01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.5% (FY01) | 0.76% (FY00/01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 112,664 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,466,708 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 57,194 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,265,893 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 October (1968) | Independence Day, 6 July (1964) |
Nationality | noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s)
adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean |
noun:
Malawian(s) adjective: Malawian |
Natural hazards | violent windstorms, flash floods | NA |
Natural resources | oil, petroleum, timber, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium | limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite |
Net migration rate | NEGL migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP [Andres Moises Bda ADA]; Progressive Democratic Alliance or ADP [Victorino Bolekia BONAY]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO] | Alliance for Democracy or AFORD [Chakufwa CHIHANA, president]; Malawi Congress Party or MCP [Gwanda CHAKUAMBA, president, John TEMBO, vice president]; Malawi Democratic Party or MDP [Kampelo KALUA, president]; National Independence Party; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Eston KAKHOME, president]; United Democratic Front or UDF [Bakili MULUZI] - governing party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 498,144 (July 2002 est.) | 10,548,250
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 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 54% (FY90/91 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.45% (2002 est.) | 1.5% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bata, Luba, Malabo | Chipoka, Monkey Bay, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Chilumba |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2002) | AM 9, FM 4 (plus 15 repeater stations), shortwave 3 (1998) |
Radios | 180,000 (1997) | 2.6 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 0 km | total:
789 km narrow gauge: 789 km 1.067-m gauge |
Religions | nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices | Protestant 55%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 20%, indigenous beliefs |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal adult | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: poor system with adequate government services
domestic: NA international: international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment:
NA domestic: fair system of open-wire lines, microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 6,000 (1998) | 37,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 300 (1998) | 7,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 1 (1999) |
Terrain | coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic | narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains |
Total fertility rate | 4.81 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 5.18 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 30% (1998 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | none | 144 km
note: on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire Riverall |