Guinea (2001) | Isle of Man (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 33 prefectures and 1 special zone (zone special)*; Beyla, Boffa, Boke, Conakry*, Coyah, Dabola, Dalaba, Dinguiraye, Dubreka, Faranah, Forecariah, Fria, Gaoual, Gueckedou, Kankan, Kerouane, Kindia, Kissidougou, Koubia, Koundara, Kouroussa, Labe, Lelouma, Lola, Macenta, Mali, Mamou, Mandiana, Nzerekore, Pita, Siguiri, Telimele, Tougue, Yomou | none; there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 24 local authorities each with its own elections |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
43.12% (male 1,637,000; female 1,645,786) 15-64 years: 54.19% (male 2,015,199; female 2,110,745) 65 years and over: 2.69% (male 84,586; female 120,554) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 17.4% (male 6,681/female 6,365)
15-64 years: 65.5% (male 24,693/female 24,482) 65 years and over: 17.1% (male 5,163/female 7,665) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber | cereals, vegetables; cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry |
Airports | 15 (2000 est.) | 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
5 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
245,857 sq km land: 245,857 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 572 sq km
land: 572 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly more than three times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Independent from France since 1958, Guinea did not hold democratic elections until 1993 when Gen. Lansana CONTE (head of the military government) was elected president of the civilian government. He was reelected in 1998. Unrest in Sierra Leone has spilled over into Guinea, threatening stability and creating a humanitarian emergency. | Part of the Norwegian Kingdom of the Hebrides until the 13th century when it was ceded to Scotland, the isle came under the British crown in 1765. Current concerns include reviving the almost extinct Manx Gaelic language. |
Birth rate | 39.78 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.18 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $417.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (2000 est.) |
revenues: $485 million
expenditures: $463 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY00/01 est.) |
Capital | Conakry | Douglas |
Climate | generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds | temperate; cool summers and mild winters; overcast about one-third of the time |
Coastline | 320 km | 160 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale) | unwritten; note - The Isle of Man Constitution Act of 1961 does not embody the unwritten Manx Constitution |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Guinea conventional short form: Guinea local long form: Republique de Guinee local short form: Guinee former: French Guinea |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Isle of Man |
Currency | Guinean franc (GNF) | - |
Death rate | 17.53 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.26 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.6 billion (1999 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | British crown dependency |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Charge d'Affaires Timberlake FOSTER embassy: Rue Ka 038, Conakry mailing address: B. P. 603, Conakry telephone: [224] 41 15 20, 41 15 21, 41 15 23 FAX: [224] 41 15 22 |
none (British crown dependency) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Mohamed Aly THIAM chancery: 2112 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-9420 FAX: [1] (202) 483-8688 |
none (British crown dependency) |
Disputes - international | border incursions by Revolutionary United Front combatants from Sierra Leone; civil war in that country has engendered a massive flow of refugees to southern Guinea and Liberia | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $359.2 million (1998) | NA |
Economy - overview | Guinea possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources, yet remains a poor underdeveloped nation. The country possesses over 30% of the world's bauxite reserves and is the second largest bauxite producer. The mining sector accounted for about 75% of exports in 1999. Long-run improvements in government fiscal arrangements, literacy, and the legal framework are needed if the country is to move out of poverty. The government made encouraging progress in budget management in 1997-99, and reform progress was praised in the World Bank/IMF October 2000 assessment. However, escalating fighting along the Sierra Leonean and Liberian borders will cause major economic disruptions. In addition to direct defense costs, the violence has led to a sharp decline in investor confidence. Foreign mining companies have reduced expatriate staff, while panic buying has created food shortages and inflation in local markets. Real GDP growth is expected to fall to 2% in 2001. | Offshore banking, manufacturing, and tourism are key sectors of the economy. The government's policy of offering incentives to high-technology companies and financial institutions to locate on the island has paid off in expanding employment opportunities in high-income industries. As a result, agriculture and fishing, once the mainstays of the economy, have declined in their shares of GDP. Trade is mostly with the UK. The Isle of Man enjoys free access to EU markets. |
Electricity - consumption | 697.5 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 750 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
46.67% hydro: 53.33% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 m |
lowest point: Irish Sea 0 m
highest point: Snaefell 621 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification; soil contamination and erosion; overfishing, overpopulation in forest region | waste disposal (both household and industrial); transboundary air pollution |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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Ethnic groups | Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10% | Manx (Norse-Celtic descent), Briton |
Exchange rates | Guinean francs per US dollar - 1,855.0 (October 2000), 1,572.0 (2000), 1,387.4 (1999), 1,236.8 (1998), 1,095.3 (1997), 1,004.0 (1996) | Manx pounds per US dollar - 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003), 0.6672 (2002), 0.6947 (2001), 0.6609 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Lansana CONTE (head of military government since 5 April 1984, elected president 19 December 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Lamine SIDIME (since 8 March 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; candidate must receive a majority of the votes cast to be elected president; election last held 14 December 1998 (next to be held NA December 2003); the prime minister is appointed by the president election results: Lansana CONTE reelected president; percent of vote - Lansana CONTE (PUP) 56.1%, Mamadou Boye BA (UNR-PRP) 24.6%, Alpha CONDE (RPG) 16.6%, |
chief of state: Lord of Mann Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Lieutenant Governor Ian MACFADYEN (since 26 October 2002)
head of government: Chief Minister Donald GELLING (since 14 December 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor appointed by the monarch for a five-year term; the Chief Minister is elected by the Tynwald; election last held 14 December 2004 (next to be held December 2010) election results: Donald GELLING elected chief minister by the Tynwald; note - Richard CORKILL resigned 2 December 2004 |
Exports | $820 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $NA |
Exports - commodities | bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products | tweeds, herring, processed shellfish, beef, lamb |
Exports - partners | US, Benelux, Ukraine, Ireland (1999) | UK (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Rwanda, which has a large black letter R centered in the yellow band | red with the Three Legs of Man emblem (Trinacria), in the center; the three legs are joined at the thigh and bent at the knee; in order to have the toes pointing clockwise on both sides of the flag, a two-sided emblem is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
22.3% industry: 35.3% services: 42.4% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 13% services: 86% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $28,500 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 11 00 N, 10 00 W | 54 15 N, 4 30 W |
Geography - note | - | one small islet, the Calf of Man, lies to the southwest, and is a bird sanctuary |
Highways | total:
30,500 km paved: 5,033 km unpaved: 25,467 km (1996) |
total: 800 km
paved: 800 km unpaved: 0 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.6% highest 10%: 32% (1994) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $634 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $NA |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs | timber, fertilizers, fish |
Imports - partners | France, Belgium, US, Cote d'Ivoire (1999) | UK (2000) |
Independence | 2 October 1958 (from France) | none (British crown dependency) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.2% (1994) | 3.2% (FY96/97) |
Industries | bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light manufacturing and agricultural processing industries | financial services, light manufacturing, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 129.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 5.93 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6% (2000 est.) | 3.6% (March 2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MINURSO, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 930 sq km (1993 est.) | 0 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | High Court of Justice (justices are appointed by the Lord Chancellor of England on the nomination of the lieutenant governor) |
Labor force | 3 million (1999) | 39,690 (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% (2000 est.) | agriculture, forestry and fishing 3%, manufacturing 11%, construction 10%, transport and communication 8%, wholesale and retail distribution 11%, professional and scientific services 18%, public administration 6%, banking and finance 18%, tourism 2%, entertainment and catering 3%, miscellaneous services 10% |
Land boundaries | total:
3,399 km border countries: Cote d'Ivoire 610 km, Guinea-Bissau 386 km, Liberia 563 km, Mali 858 km, Senegal 330 km, Sierra Leone 652 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 22% forests and woodland: 59% other: 17% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 9%
permanent crops: 0% other: 91% (permanent pastures, forests, mountain, and heathland) (2002) |
Languages | French (official), each ethnic group has its own language | English, Manx Gaelic |
Legal system | based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree; legal codes currently being revised; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | English common law and Manx statute |
Legislative branch | unicameral People's National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale Populaire (114 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 11 June 1995 (next scheduled for 26 November 2000 postponed indefinitely due to border fighting with rebels from Sierra Leone and Liberia) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PUP 71, RPG 19, PRP 9, UNR 9, UPG 2, PDG-AST 1, UNP 1, PDG-RDA 1, other 1 |
bicameral Tynwald consists of the Legislative Council (an 11-member body composed of the President of Tynwald, the Lord Bishop of Sodor and Man, a nonvoting attorney general, and 8 others named by the House of Keys) and the House of Keys (24 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Keys - last held 22 November 2001 (next to be held November 2006) election results: House of Keys - percent of vote by party - Man Labor Party 17.3%, Alliance for Progressive Government 14.6%; seats by party - Man Labor Party 2, Alliance for Progressive Government 3, independents 19 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
45.91 years male: 43.49 years female: 48.42 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.34 years
male: 74.98 years female: 81.87 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 35.9% male: 49.9% female: 21.9% (1995 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone | Western Europe, island in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | total: 267 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,834,626 GRT/11,354,689 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 31, cargo 54, chemical tanker 45, combination ore/oil 1, container 15, liquefied gas 46, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 53, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 10, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 5 foreign-owned: 253 (Australia 1, Bahamas 8, Denmark 39, France 2, Germany 55, Greece 20, Hong Kong 3, Italy 7, Japan 4, Netherlands 2, New Zealand 1, Norway 18, Singapore 2, Sweden 1, Turkey 2, United Kingdom 86, United States 2) registered in other countries: 9 (2005) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Republican Guard, Presidential Guard, paramilitary National Gendarmerie, National Police Force (Surete National) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $56 million (FY96) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY96) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,764,912 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
891,166 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 2 October (1958) | Tynwald Day, 5 July |
Nationality | noun:
Guinean(s) adjective: Guinean |
noun: Manxman (men), Manxwoman (women)
adjective: Manx |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season | NA |
Natural resources | bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish | none |
Net migration rate | -2.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: as a result of civil war in neighboring countries, Guinea is host to almost half a million Liberian and Sierra Leonean refugees |
5.33 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party of Guinea or PDG-AST [Marcel CROS]; Democratic Party of Guinea-African Democratic Rally or PDG-RDA [El Hadj Ismael Mohamed Gassim GUSHEIN]; National Union for Progress or UNP [Paul Louis FABER]; Party for Unity and Progress or PUP [Lansana CONTE] - the governing party; Party for Renewal and Progress or PRP [Siradiou DIALLO]; Rally for the Guinean People or RPG [Alpha CONDE]; Union for Progress of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general]; Union for the New Republic or UNR [Mamadou Boye BA]; Union of Republican Forces or UFR [Sidya TOURE] | Man Labor Party [leader NA]; Alliance for Progressive Government [leader NA]; Man Nationalist Party [leader NA]
note: most members sit as independents |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 7,613,870 (July 2001 est.) | 75,049 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 40% (1994 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.96% (2001 est.) | 0.52% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Boke, Conakry, Kamsar | Castletown, Douglas, Ramsey |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 8, shortwave 3 (1998) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 357,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
1,086 km standard gauge: 279 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 807 km 1.000-m gauge (includes 662 km in common carrier service from Kankan to Conakry) |
total: 61 km (35 km electrified) (2003) |
Religions | Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7% | Anglican, Roman Catholic, Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Society of Friends |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
poor to fair system of open-wire lines, small radiotelephone communication stations, and new microwave radio relay system domestic: microwave radio relay and radiotelephone communication international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: landline, telefax, mobile cellular telephone system international: fiber-optic cable, microwave radio relay, satellite earth station, submarine cable |
Telephones - main lines in use | 20,000 (1997) | 51,000 (1999) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,868 (1997) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (1997) | 0 (receives broadcasts from the UK and satellite) (1999) |
Terrain | generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior | hills in north and south bisected by central valley |
Total fertility rate | 5.39 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.65 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 0.6% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | 1,295 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft) | - |