Ghana (2005) | Equatorial Guinea (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions; Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Central, Eastern, Greater Accra, Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Volta, Western | 7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 37.1% (male 3,946,326/female 3,862,390)
15-64 years: 59.1% (male 6,203,035/female 6,235,107) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 366,472/female 416,523) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years:
42.56% (male 103,909; female 102,946) 15-64 years: 53.68% (male 124,808; female 136,088) 65 years and over: 3.76% (male 8,178; female 10,131) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, rice, coffee, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, corn, shea nuts, bananas; timber | coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber |
Airports | 12 (2004 est.) | 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total:
2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 239,460 sq km
land: 230,940 sq km water: 8,520 sq km |
total:
28,051 sq km land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Formed from the merger of the British colony of the Gold Coast and the Togoland trust territory, Ghana in 1957 became the first sub-Saharan country in colonial Africa to gain its independence. A long series of coups resulted in the suspension of the constitution in 1981 and a ban on political parties. A new constitution, restoring multiparty politics, was approved in 1992. Lt. Jerry RAWLINGS, head of state since 1981, won presidential elections in 1992 and 1996, but was constitutionally prevented from running for a third term in 2000. John KUFUOR, who defeated former Vice President Atta MILLS in a free and fair election, succeeded him. | Composed of a mainland portion and five inhabited islands, Equatorial Guinea has been ruled by ruthless leaders who have badly mismanaged the economy since independence from 190 years of Spanish rule in 1968. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 presidential and 1999 legislative elections were widely seen as being flawed. |
Birth rate | 23.97 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 37.72 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.17 billion
expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues:
$47 million expenditures: $43 million, including capital expenditures of $7 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | Accra | Malabo |
Climate | tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast; hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north | tropical; always hot, humid |
Coastline | 539 km | 296 km |
Constitution | approved 28 April 1992 | approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Ghana
conventional short form: Ghana former: Gold Coast |
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 |
Currency | - | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States |
Death rate | 10.84 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 13.11 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.396 billion (2004 est.) | $290 million (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mary Carlin YATES
embassy: 6th and 10th Lanes, 798/1 Osu, Accra mailing address: P. O. Box 194, Accra telephone: [233] (21) 775-347, 775-348 FAX: [233] (21) 701-813 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador John M. YATES; note - the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); US relations with Equatorial Guinea are handled through the US Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Alan J. KYEREMATEN
chancery: 3512 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 686-4520 FAX: [1] (202) 686-4527 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Teodoro BIYOGO NSUEA chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 528-5252 |
Disputes - international | Ghana struggles to accommodate returning nationals who worked in the cocoa plantations and escaped rebel fighting in Cote d'Ivoire | 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | $6.9 billion (1999) | $33.8 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Well endowed with natural resources, Ghana has roughly twice the per capita output of the poorer countries in West Africa. Even so, Ghana remains heavily dependent on international financial and technical assistance. Gold, timber, and cocoa production are major sources of foreign exchange. The domestic economy continues to revolve around subsistence agriculture, which accounts for 34% of GDP and employs 60% of the work force, mainly small landholders. Ghana opted for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) program in 2002. Priorities include tighter monetary and fiscal policies, accelerated privatization, and improvement of social services. Receipts from the gold sector helped sustain GDP growth in 2004. Inflation should ease, but remain a major internal problem. | 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 deterioration of the rural economy under successive brutal regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth. A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of the government's gross corruption and mismanagement. 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. The country responded favorably to the devaluation of the CFA franc in January 1994. Boosts in production and high world oil prices stimulated growth in 2000, with oil accounting for 90% of greatly increased exports. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.137 billion kWh (2002) | 19.5 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 500 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 200 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 6.922 billion kWh (2002) | 21 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
85.71% hydro: 14.29% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Afadjato 880 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m |
Environment - current issues | recurrent drought in north severely affects agricultural activities; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; poaching and habitat destruction threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water | tap water is not potable; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
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 |
Ethnic groups | black African 98.5% (major tribes - Akan 44%, Moshi-Dagomba 16%, Ewe 13%, Ga 8%, Gurma 3%, Yoruba 1%), European and other 1.5% (1998) | Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish |
Exchange rates | cedis per US dollar - 9,004.6 (2004), 8,677.4 (2003), 7,932.7 (2002), 7,170.8 (2001), 5,455.1 (2000) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1996); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: President John Agyekum KUFUOR (since 7 January 2001); Vice President Alhaji Aliu MAHAMA (since 7 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President John Agyekum KUFUOR (since 7 January 2001); Vice President Alhaji Aliu MAHAMA (since 7 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers; president nominates members subject to approval by Parliament elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 7 December 2004 (next to be held December 2008) election results: John Agyekum KUFUOR reelected president in election; percent of vote - John KUFUOR 53.4%, John Atta MILLS 43.7% |
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 to a seven-year term; election last held 25 February 1996 (next to be held NA February 2003); prime minister and vice prime ministers appointed by the president election results: President Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected with 98% of popular vote in elections marred by widespread fraud |
Exports | NA | $860 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | gold, cocoa, timber, tuna, bauxite, aluminum, manganese ore, diamonds | petroleum, timber, cocoa |
Exports - partners | Mexico 69.8%, Netherlands 3.7%, UK 3% (2004) | US 62%, Spain 17%, China 9%, France 3%, Japan 3%, (1997) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Bolivia, which has a coat of arms centered in the yellow band | 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) |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $960 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 34.3%
industry: 24.2% services: 41.4% (2004 est.) |
agriculture:
20% industry: 60% services: 20% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.4% (2004 est.) | 12% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 N, 2 00 W | 2 00 N, 10 00 E |
Geography - note | Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake | insular and continental regions rather widely separated |
Highways | total: 46,176 km
paved: 8,496 km unpaved: 37,679 km (1999 est.) |
total:
2,880 km paved: 0 km unpaved: 2,880 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 30.1% (1999) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; major transit hub for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin and, to a lesser extent, South American cocaine destined for Europe and the US; widespread crime and money laundering problem, but the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center | - |
Imports | NA | $300 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs | manufactured goods and equipment |
Imports - partners | Nigeria 12.6%, China 11.4%, UK 6.6%, US 6.4%, France 4.9%, Netherlands 4.2% (2004) | US 35%, France 15%, Spain 10%, Cameroon 10%, UK 6% (1997) |
Independence | 6 March 1957 (from UK) | 12 October 1968 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.8% (2000 est.) | 7.4% (1994 est.) |
Industries | mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, small commercial ship building | petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas |
Infant mortality rate | total: 51.43 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 54.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
92.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 13% (2004 est.) | 6% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO (applicant) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 110 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Tribunal |
Labor force | 10.24 million (2004 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 60%, industry 15%, services 25% (1999 est.) | - |
Land boundaries | total: 2,094 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 549 km, Cote d'Ivoire 668 km, Togo 877 km |
total:
539 km border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.26%
permanent crops: 9.67% other: 74.07% (2001) |
arable land:
5% permanent crops: 4% permanent pastures: 4% forests and woodland: 46% other: 41% (1993 est.) |
Languages | English (official), African languages (including Akan, Moshi-Dagomba, Ewe, and Ga) | Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo |
Legal system | based on English common law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament (230 seats; note - increased from 200 seats in last election; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 December 2004 (next to be held December 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 128, NDC 92, other 10 |
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 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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 58.47 years
male: 57.7 years female: 59.26 years (2005 est.) |
total population:
53.95 years male: 51.89 years female: 56.07 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 74.8% male: 82.7% female: 67.1% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 78.5% male: 89.6% female: 68.1% (1995 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Cote d'Ivoire and Togo | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 19,086 GRT/26,185 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 3 foreign-owned: 1 (Brazil 1) (2005) |
total:
12 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 26,035 GRT/27,927 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 7, combination bulk 1, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Army, Navy, Air Force, Rapid Intervention Force, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $49.2 million (2004) | $3 million (FY97/98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (2004) | 0.6% (FY97/98) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
108,973 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
55,347 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 March (1957) | Independence Day, 12 October (1968) |
Nationality | noun: Ghanaian(s)
adjective: Ghanaian |
noun:
Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s) adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean |
Natural hazards | dry, dusty, northeastern harmattan winds occur from January to March; droughts | violent windstorms, flash floods |
Natural resources | gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite, manganese, fish, rubber, hydropower, petroleum, silver, salt, limestone | oil, petroleum, timber, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium |
Net migration rate | -0.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | NEGL migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | refined products 74 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Convention People's Party or CPP [Nii Noi DOWUONA, general secretary]; Every Ghanaian Living Everywhere or EGLE [Owuraku AMOFA, chairman]; Great Consolidated Popular Party or GCPP [Dan LARTY]; National Convention Party or NCP [Sarpong KUMA-KUMA]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [Dr. Huudu YAHAYA, general secretary]; New Patriotic Party or NPP [Samuel Arthur ODOI-SYKES]; People's Convention Party or PCP [P. K. DONKOH-AYIFI, acting chairman]; People's Heritage Party or PHP [Emmanuel Alexander ERSKINE]; People's National Convention or PNC [Edward MAHAMA]; Reform Party [Kyeretwie OPUKU, general secretary] | 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, mayor of Malabo]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 21,029,853
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 2005 est.) |
486,060 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 31.4% (1992 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.25% (2005 est.) | 2.46% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Takoradi, Tema | Bata, Luba, Malabo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 49, shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | - | 180,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 953 km
narrow gauge: 953 km 1.067-m gauge (2004) |
total:
0 km |
Religions | Christian 63%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 21% | nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
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 (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal adult |
Telephone system | general assessment: poor to fair system; Internet accessible; many rural communities not yet connected; expansion of services is underway
domestic: primarily microwave radio relay; wireless local loop has been installed international: country code - 233; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); microwave radio relay link to Panaftel system connects Ghana to its neighbors; fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 302,300 (2003) | 4,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 799,900 (2003) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 10 (2001) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central area | coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic |
Total fertility rate | 3.02 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 4.88 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (1997 est.) | 30% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | 1,293 km
note: 168 km for launches and lighters on Volta, Ankobra, and Tano rivers; 1,125 km of arterial and feeder waterways on Lake Volta (2003) |
none |