Guinea (2004) | Guinea-Bissau (2001) | |
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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 | 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: 44.4% (male 2,075,652; female 2,032,936)
15-64 years: 52.4% (male 2,417,440; female 2,428,085) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 127,654; female 164,695) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
42.09% (male 276,312; female 277,536) 15-64 years: 55.05% (male 344,493; female 379,889) 65 years and over: 2.86% (male 16,850; female 20,742) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish |
Airports | 16 (2003 est.) | 29 (2000 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 (2004 est.) |
total:
3 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 11
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total:
26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 245,857 sq km
land: 245,857 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
36,120 sq km land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut |
Background | Guinea has had only two presidents since gaining its independence from France in 1958. Lansana CONTE came to power in 1984, when the military seized the government after the death of the first president Sekou TOURE. Guinea did not hold democratic elections until 1993 when Gen. CONTE (head of the military government) was elected president of the civilian government. He was reelected in 1998 and again in 2003. Unrest in Sierra Leone and Liberia has spilled over into Guinea on several occasions over the past decade, threatening stability and creating humanitarian emergencies. | In 1994, 20 years after independence from Portugal, the country's first multiparty legislative and presidential elections were held. An army uprising that triggered a bloody civil war in 1998, created hundreds of thousands of displaced persons. The president was ousted by a military junta in May 1999. An interim government turned over power in February 2000 when opposition leader Koumba YALLA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by a crippled economy devastated by civil war and the military's predilection for governmental meddling. |
Birth rate | 42.26 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 39.29 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $410.7 million
expenditures: $708.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (2003 est.) |
revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | Conakry | Bissau |
Climate | generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds | 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 | 320 km | 350 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale) | 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 Guinea
conventional short form: Guinea local long form: Republique de Guinee local short form: Guinee former: French Guinea |
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 |
Currency | Guinean franc (GNF) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States; previously the Guinea-Bissau peso (GWP) was used |
Death rate | 15.53 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 15.33 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.25 billion (2001 est.) | $964 million (1998 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Barrie R. WALKLEY
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 |
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Rafiou Alpha Oumar BARRY
chancery: 2112 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 986-4300 FAX: [1] (202) 478-3010 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Mario LOPES DA ROSA chancery: Suite 519, 1511 K Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950 FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954 |
Disputes - international | domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups in Guinea, domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone have created insurgencies, street violence, looting, arms trafficking, ethnic conflicts skirmishes, deaths, and refugees in border areas; in 2003, Guinea and Sierra Leone established a boundary commission to resolve a dispute over the town of Yenga | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $359.2 million (1998) | $115.4 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Guinea possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources, yet remains an 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. Fighting along the Sierra Leonean and Liberian borders, as well as refugee movements, have caused major economic disruptions, including a loss in investor confidence. Foreign mining companies have reduced expatriate staff, while panic buying has created food shortages and inflation in local markets. Guinea is not receiving multilateral aid. The IMF and World Bank cut off most assistance in 2003. Growth should strengthen in 2004, however, because of a slowly improving security situation and increased investor confidence. | One of the 20 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 1999-2000. 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 735.2 million kWh (2001) | 51.2 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 790.6 million kWh (2001) | 55 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification; soil contamination and erosion; overfishing, overpopulation in forest region; poor mining practices have led to environmental damage | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing |
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 |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10% | African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% |
Exchange rates | Guinean francs per US dollar - NA (2003), 1,975.84 (2002), 1,950.56 (2001), 1,746.87 (2000), 1,387.4 (1999) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); Guinea-Bissauan pesos per US dollar - 26,373 (1996)
note: as of 1 May 1997, Guinea-Bissau adopted the CFA franc as the national currency; since 1 January 1999, the CFA franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 CFA francs per euro |
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 Cellou Dalein DIALLO (since 9 December 2004) 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 21 December 2003 (next to be held NA December 2008); the prime minister is appointed by the president election results: Lansana CONTE reelected president; percent of vote - Lansana CONTE (PUP) 95.3%, Mamadou Boye BARRY (UPR) 4.6% |
chief of state:
President Koumba YALLA (since 18 February 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Faustino IMBALI (since 20 March 2001) 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 NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature election results: Koumba YALLA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Koumba YALLA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $80 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products | cashew nuts 70%, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber (1996) |
Exports - partners | South Korea 14.8%, Spain 10.7%, US 10.1%, France 9.2%, Russia 9%, Ireland 7.9%, Belgium 6.4%, Germany 5.6%, Ukraine 5.3% (2003) | India 59%, Singapore 12%, Italy 10% (1998) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green; 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 | purchasing power parity - $19.02 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.1 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 24.9%
industry: 38.2% services: 36.9% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
54% industry: 15% services: 31% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2003 est.) | 7.6% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 11 00 N, 10 00 W | 12 00 N, 15 00 W |
Geography - note | the Niger and its important tributary the Milo have their sources in the Guinean highlands | - |
Highways | total: 30,500 km
paved: 5,033 km unpaved: 25,467 km (1999 est.) |
total:
4,400 km paved: 453 km unpaved: 3,947 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 32% (1994) |
lowest 10%:
0.5% highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
Imports | NA (2001) | $55.2 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products (1996) |
Imports - partners | France 16.8%, China 9.3%, Belgium 7.1%, Italy 6.6%, Netherlands 5.4%, UK 5.4%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.8%, US 4.5% (2003) | Portugal 26%, France 8%, Senegal 8%, Netherlands 7% (1998) |
Independence | 2 October 1958 (from France) | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.2% (1994) | 2.6% (1997 est.) |
Industries | bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light manufacturing and agricultural processing industries | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
Infant mortality rate | total: 91.82 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 97.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 86.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
110.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14.8% (2003 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACCT (associate), ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 950 sq km (1998 est.) | 17 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices who are 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 | 3 million (1999) | 480,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% (2000 est.) | agriculture 78% |
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 |
total:
724 km border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.63%
permanent crops: 2.58% other: 93.79% (2001) |
arable land:
11% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 38% forests and woodland: 38% other: 12% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official), each ethnic group has its own language | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
Legal system | based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree; legal codes currently being revised; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | NA |
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 30 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PUP 61.6%, UPR 26.6%, other 11.8%; seats by party - PUP 85, UPR 20, other 9 |
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 November 1999 (next to be held by NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRS 37, RGB 27, PAIGC 25, 11 remaining seats went to 5 of the remaining 10 parties that fielded candidates |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.7 years
male: 48.45 years female: 50.99 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
49.42 years male: 47.12 years female: 51.78 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 35.9% male: 49.9% female: 21.9% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 53.9% male: 67.1% female: 40.7% (1997 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,344 GRT/5,003 DWT
by type: cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: Iraq 1 (2003 est.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Republican Guard, Presidential Guard, National Gendarmerie, General Directorate of National Police | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $58.5 million (2003) | $8 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (2003) | 2.8% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,108,948 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
305,071 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,064,965 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
173,703 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 2 October (1958) | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) |
Nationality | noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
noun:
Guinean (s) adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires |
Natural resources | bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, unexploited deposits of petroleum |
Net migration rate | -3.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: as a result of conflict in neighboring countries, Guinea is host to approximately 150,000 Liberian and Sierra Leonean refugees (2004 est.) |
-1.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party of Guinea-African Democratic Rally or PDG-RDA [El Hadj Ismael Mohamed Gassim GUSHEIN]; National Union for Progress or UPN [Mamadou Bhoye BARRY]; Party for Unity and Progress or PUP [Lansana CONTE] - the governing party; People's Party of Guinea or PPG [Pascal TOLNO]; Rally for the Guinean People or RPG [Alpha CONDE]; Union for Progress and Renewal or UPR [Siradiou DIALLO]; Union for Progress of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general]; Union of Republican Forces or UFR [Sidya TOURE] | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Francisco BENANTE]; 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 [Koumba YALLA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Victor Sau'de MARIA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 9,246,462 (July 2004 est.) | 1,315,822 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 40% (2003 est.) | 50% (1991 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.37% (2004 est.) | 2.23% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Boke, Conakry, Kamsar | Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4 (one station is inactive), FM 1 (plus 7 repeaters), shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 49,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 837 km
standard gauge: 175 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 662 km 1.000-m gauge (2003) |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7% | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
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: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 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: country code - 224; 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: NA |
Telephones - main lines in use | 26,200 (2003) | 8,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 111,500 (2003) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 6 low-power stations (2001) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east |
Total fertility rate | 5.87 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 5.2 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA (2002 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 1,295 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft) (2003) | several rivers are accessible to coastal shipping |