Equatorial Guinea (2008) | Togo (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas | 5 regions (regions, singular - region); De La Kara, Des Plateaux, Des Savanes, Centrale, Maritime |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 41.5% (male 114,816/female 113,688)
15-64 years: 54.8% (male 145,740/female 156,097) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,957/female 11,903) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 44.5% (male 1,211,252; female 1,203,564)
15-64 years: 53% (male 1,404,763; female 1,473,360) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 57,535; female 78,825) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber | coffee, cocoa, cotton, yams, cassava (tapioca), corn, beans, rice, millet, sorghum; livestock; fish |
Airports | 5 (2007) | 9 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 5
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total: 28,051 sq km
land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 56,785 sq km
land: 54,385 sq km water: 2,400 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly smaller than West Virginia |
Background | Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO has ruled the country since 1979 when he seized power in a coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 and 2004 legislative elections - were widely seen as flawed. The president exerts almost total control over the political system and has discouraged political opposition. Equatorial Guinea has experienced rapid economic growth due to the discovery of large offshore oil reserves, and in the last decade has become Sub-Saharan Africa's third largest oil exporter. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, there have been few improvements in the population's living standards. | French Togoland became Togo in 1960. Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA, installed as military ruler in 1967, is Africa's longest-serving head of state. Despite the facade of multiparty elections instituted in the early 1990s, the government continues to be dominated by President EYADEMA, whose Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) party has maintained power almost continually since 1967. In addition, Togo has come under fire from international organizations for human rights abuses and is plagued by political unrest. Most bilateral and multilateral aid to Togo remains frozen. |
Birth rate | 35.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 35.23 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $4.849 billion
expenditures: $2.481 billion (2007 est.) |
revenues: $232 million
expenditures: $252 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.) |
Capital | name: Malabo
geographic coordinates: 3 45 N, 8 47 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Lome |
Climate | tropical; always hot, humid | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
Coastline | 296 km | 56 km |
Constitution | approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995 | multiparty draft constitution approved by High Council of the Republic 1 July 1992; adopted by public referendum 27 September 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Equatorial Guinea
conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial/Republique de Guinee equatoriale local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial/Guinee equatoriale former: Spanish Guinea |
conventional long form: Togolese Republic
conventional short form: Togo local long form: Republique Togolaise local short form: none former: French Togoland |
Currency | - | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 15.01 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 11.51 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $288 million (31 December 2007 est.) | $1.4 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Donald C. JOHNSON
embassy: adjacent to the golf course at the base of Mont Febe; note - relocated embassy is opened for limited functions; inquiries should continue to be directed to the US Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon mailing address: B.P. 817, Yaounde, Cameroon; US Embassy Yaounde, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2520 telephone: [237] 220 15 00 FAX: [237] 220 16 20 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Gregory ENGLE
embassy: Angle Rue Kouenou and Rue 15 Beniglato, Lome mailing address: B. P. 852, Lome telephone: [228] 221 29 91 through 221 29 94 FAX: [228] 221 79 52 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Purificacion ANGUE ONDO
chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 518-5252 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Akoussoulelou BODJONA
chancery: 2208 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-4212 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3190 |
Disputes - international | in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River and imprecisely defined maritime coordinates in the ICJ decision delay final delimitation; UN urges Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane and lesser islands and to create a maritime boundary in the hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay | in 2001 Benin claimed Togo moved boundary monuments - joint commission presently resurveying the boundary |
Economic aid - recipient | $39 million (2005) | ODA $80 million (2000 est.) |
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 trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Government officials and their family members own most businesses. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Growth remained strong in 2007, led by oil. Equatorial Guinea now has the fourth highest per capita income in the world, after Luxembourg, Bermuda, and Jersey. | This small sub-Saharan economy is heavily dependent on both commercial and subsistence agriculture, which provides employment for 65% of the labor force. Some basic foodstuffs must still be imported. Cocoa, coffee, and cotton generate about 40% of export earnings, with cotton being the most important cash crop. Togo is the world's fourth-largest producer of phosphate, but production fell an estimated 22% in 2002 due to power shortages and the cost of developing new deposits. The government's decade-long effort, supported by the World Bank and the IMF, to implement economic reform measures, encourage foreign investment, and bring revenues in line with expenditures has moved slowly. Progress depends on following through on privatization, increased openness in government financial operations, progress toward legislative elections, and continued support from foreign donors. |
Electricity - consumption | 26.04 million kWh (2005) | 614.5 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 520 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by Ghana (2001) |
Electricity - production | 28 million kWh (2005) | 101.6 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 98.7%
hydro: 1.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Agou 986 m |
Environment - current issues | tap water is not potable; deforestation | deforestation attributable to slash-and-burn agriculture and the use of wood for fuel; water pollution presents health hazards and hinders the fishing industry; air pollution increasing in urban areas |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Fang 85.7%, Bubi 6.5%, Mdowe 3.6%, Annobon 1.6%, Bujeba 1.1%, other 1.4% (1994 census) | native African (37 tribes; largest and most important are Ewe, Mina, and Kabre) 99%, European and Syrian-Lebanese less than 1% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 481.83 (2007), 522.4 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998) |
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 Ricardo Mangue Obama NFUBEA (since 14 August 2006); First Deputy Prime Minister Mercelino Oyono NTUTUMU (since 15 June 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits); election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held in 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 Gen. Gnassingbe EYADEMA (since 14 April 1967)
head of government: Prime Minister Koffi SAMA (since 29 June 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president and the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 1 June 2003 (next to be held NA June 2008); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Gnassingbe EYADEMA reelected president; percent of vote - Gnassingbe EYADEMA 57.2%, Emmanuel Akitani BOB 34.1%, Yawovi AGBOYIBO 5.2%, Maurice Dahuku PERE 2.3%, Edem KODJO 1.0% |
Exports | 371,700 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa | reexports, cotton, phosphates, coffee, cocoa |
Exports - partners | China 30.9%, US 22.2%, Spain 12.6%, Taiwan 10.6%, Portugal 6.1% (2006) | Ghana 17.7%, Benin 13.3%, Burkina Faso 8.2%, Philippines 4.9%, Niger 4.1% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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) | five equal horizontal bands of green (top and bottom) alternating with yellow; there is a white five-pointed star on a red square in the upper hoist-side corner; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $7.594 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2.8%
industry: 92.5% services: 4.6% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: 42%
industry: 21% services: 37% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,400 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 12.7% (2007 est.) | 2.9% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 N, 10 00 E | 8 00 N, 1 10 E |
Geography - note | insular and continental regions widely separated | the country's length allows it to stretch through six distinct geographic regions; climate varies from tropical to savanna |
Highways | - | total: 7,520 km
paved: 2,376 km unpaved: 5,144 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transit hub for Nigerian heroin and cocaine traffickers; money laundering not a significant problem |
Imports | 1,026 bbl/day (2004) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum sector equipment, other equipment | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US 37.7%, Spain 9.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.9%, France 6.1%, South Korea 6.1%, UK 5.8%, Italy 5% (2006) | France 21.3%, China 17%, Netherlands 6.5%, Germany 5.3%, UK 4.8%, Italy 4.4% (2002) |
Independence | 12 October 1968 (from Spain) | 27 April 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 14.1% (2007 est.) | NA% |
Industries | petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas | phosphate mining, agricultural processing, cement; handicrafts, textiles, beverages |
Infant mortality rate | total: 87.15 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 93.17 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 68.73 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 76.58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 60.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.5% (2007 est.) | 4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTO (observer) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIPONUH, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 3 (2001) |
Irrigated land | NA | 70 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Tribunal | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme |
Labor force | NA | 1.74 million (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 65%, industry 5%, services 30% (1998 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 539 km
border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km |
total: 1,647 km
border countries: Benin 644 km, Burkina Faso 126 km, Ghana 877 km |
Land use | arable land: 4.63%
permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (2005) |
arable land: 41.37%
permanent crops: 1.84% other: 56.79% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Spanish 67.6% (official), other 32.4% (includes French (official), Fang, Bubi) (1994 census) | French (official and the language of commerce), Ewe and Mina (the two major African languages in the south), Kabye (sometimes spelled Kabiye) and Dagomba (the two major African languages in the north) |
Legal system | partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom | French-based court system |
Legislative branch | unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (100 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 25 April 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDGE 98, CPDS 2 note: Parliament has little power since the constitution vests all executive authority in the president |
unicameral National Assembly (81 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 27 October 2002 (next NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPT 72, RSD 3, UDPS 2, Juvento 2, MOCEP 1, independents 1 note: two opposition parties boycotted the election, the Union of the Forces for Change, and the Action Committee for Renewal |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.51 years
male: 48.11 years female: 50.95 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 53.43 years
male: 51.47 years female: 55.45 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85.7% male: 93.3% female: 78.4% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 60.9% male: 75.4% female: 46.9% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Benin and Ghana |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 30 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,745 GRT/3,434 DWT
by type: cargo 1 (2007) |
total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,918 GRT/3,852 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1, specialized tanker 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Greece 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | National Guard (Guardia Nacional (Army), with Coast Guard (Navy) and Air Wing) (2008) | Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $23.72 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.1% (2006 est.) | 1.8% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,270,146 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 666,132 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 12 October (1968) | Independence Day, 27 April (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s)
adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean |
noun: Togolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Togolese |
Natural hazards | violent windstorms, flash floods | hot, dry harmattan wind can reduce visibility in north during winter; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, timber, gold, bauxite, diamonds, tantalum, sand and gravel, clay | phosphates, limestone, marble, arable land |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 42 km; condensate/gas 5 km; gas 80 km; oil 54 km (2007) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MICO 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 [Avelino MOCACHE]; Popular Union or UP | Juvento [Monsilia DJATO]; Movement of the Believers of Peace and Equality or MOCEP [leader NA]; Rally for the Support for Development and Democracy or RSDD [Hanay OLYMPIO]; Rally of the Togolese People or RPT [President Gnassingbe EYADEMA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Gagou KOKOU]
note: Rally of the Togolese People or RPT, led by President EYADEMA, was the only party until the formation of multiple parties was legalized 12 April 1991 |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 551,201 (July 2007 est.) | 5,429,299
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 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 32% (1989 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.015% (2007 est.) | 2.37% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Kpeme, Lome |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2001) | AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 525 km
narrow gauge: 525 km 1.000-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices | indigenous beliefs 51%, Christian 29%, Muslim 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.934 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.752 male(s)/female total population: 0.957 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA years of age; universal adult |
Telephone system | general assessment: digital fixed-line network in most major urban areas and good mobile coverage
domestic: fixed-line density is about 2 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular subscribership has been increasing and in 2005 stood at about 20 percent of the population international: country code - 240; international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: fair system based on a network of microwave radio relay routes supplemented by open-wire lines and a mobile cellular system
domestic: microwave radio relay and open-wire lines for conventional system; cellular system has capacity of 10,000 telephones international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Symphonie |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,000 (2005) | 25,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 96,900 (2005) | 2,995 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | 3 (plus two repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic | gently rolling savanna in north; central hills; southern plateau; low coastal plain with extensive lagoons and marshes |
Total fertility rate | 4.48 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 4.97 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 30% (1998 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | - | 50 km (Mono river) |