Guinea (2005) | Macau (2004) | |
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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 (special administrative region of China) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 44.4% (male 2,123,207/female 2,079,475)
15-64 years: 52.4% (male 2,478,820/female 2,486,300) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 131,130/female 168,934) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 18% (male 41,460; female 38,595)
15-64 years: 74.2% (male 157,629; female 172,810) 65 years and over: 7.8% (male 14,380; female 20,412) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber | vegetables, livestock |
Airports | 16 (2004 est.) | 1 (2003 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: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 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.) |
- |
Area | total: 245,857 sq km
land: 245,857 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 25.4 sq km
land: 25.4 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC |
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. | Colonized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 20 December 1999. China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be practiced in Macau, and that Macau will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years. |
Birth rate | 42.03 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8.04 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $382.7 million
expenditures: $711.4 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $1.9 billion
expenditures: $1.68 billion, including capital expenditures of $194 million (2002) |
Capital | Conakry | - |
Climate | generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds | subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers |
Coastline | 320 km | 41 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale) | Basic Law, approved in March 1993 by China's National People's Congress, is Macau's "mini-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: Macau Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Macau local long form: Aomen Tebie Xingzhengqu (Chinese); Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (Portuguese) local short form: Aomen (Chinese); Macau (Portuguese) |
Currency | - | pataca (MOP) |
Death rate | 15.38 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 4.23 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.25 billion (2001 est.) | $121 million (2001 est.) |
Dependency status | - | special administrative region of China |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jackson MCDONALD
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 has no offices in Macau; US interests are monitored by the US Consulate General in Hong Kong |
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 |
none (special administrative region of China) |
Disputes - international | conflicts among rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in neighboring states has spilled over into Guinea, resulting in domestic instability; Sierra Leone pressures Guinea to remove its forces from the town of Yenga occupied since 1998 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $359.2 million (1998) | NA (1997) |
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, aggravating a loss in investor confidence. Foreign mining companies have reduced expatriate staff. Panic buying has created food shortages and inflation and caused riots in local markets. Guinea is not receiving multilateral aid. The IMF and World Bank cut off most assistance in 2003. Growth rose slightly in 2004, primarily due to increases in global demand and commodity prices on world markets. | Macau's well-to-do economy has remained one of the most open in the world since its reversion to China in 1999. The territory's net exports of goods and services account for roughly 41% of GDP with tourism and apparel exports as the mainstays. Although the territory was hit hard by the 1998 Asian financial crisis and the global downturn in 2001, its economy grew 9.5% in 2002. A rapid rise in the number of mainland visitors because of China's easing of restrictions on travel drove the recovery. The budget also returned to surplus in 2002 because of the surge in visitors from China and a hike in taxes on gambling profits, which generated about 70% of government revenue. The liberalization of Macao's gambling monopoly contributes to GDP growth, as the three companies awarded gambling licenses have pledged to invest $2.2 billion in the territory. Much of Macau's textile industry may move to the mainland as the Multi-Fiber Agreement is phased out. The territory may have to rely more on gambling and trade-related services to generate growth. The government estimated GDP growth at 4% in 2003 with the drop in large measure due to concerns over the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), but private sector analysts think the figure may have been higher because of the continuing boom in tourism. |
Electricity - consumption | 795.2 million kWh (2002) | 1.688 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 193 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 855 million kWh (2002) | 1.611 billion kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 m |
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Coloane Alto 172.4 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 | NA |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10% | Chinese 95%, Macanese (mixed Portuguese and Asian ancestry), Portuguese, other |
Exchange rates | Guinean francs per US dollar - 2,550 (2004), 1,984.9 (2003), 1,975.8 (2002), 1,950.6 (2001), 1,746.9 (2000) | patacas per US dollar - 8.0212 (2003), 8.0334 (2002), 8.0335 (2001), 8.0259 (2000), 7.9919 (1999) |
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 4 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 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 of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Edmund HO Hau-wah (since 20 December 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of all one government secretary, four legislators, four businessmen, and one pro-Beijing unionist elections: chief executive chosen by a 300-member selection committee for up to two five-year terms election results: Edmund HO Hau-wah reelected on 29 August 2004; received 296 votes in Election Committee out of 300 possible; 3 members submitted blank ballots; 1 member was absent |
Exports | NA | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products | clothing, textiles, footwear, cement, machines, and parts |
Exports - partners | France 17.7%, Belgium 14.7%, UK 14.7%, Switzerland 12.8%, Ukraine 4.2% (2004) | US 49.4%, China 14.1%, Germany 8.1%, Hong Kong 6.7%, UK 4.5% (2003) |
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 | light green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in center of arc and four smaller |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $9.1 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 25%
industry: 38.2% services: 36.8% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 12% services: 87% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $19,400 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2004 est.) | 4% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 11 00 N, 10 00 W | 22 10 N, 113 33 E |
Geography - note | the Niger and its important tributary the Milo have their sources in the Guinean highlands | essentially urban; one causeway and two bridges connect the two islands of Coloane and Taipa to the peninsula on mainland |
Highways | total: 30,500 km
paved: 5,033 km unpaved: 25,467 km (1999 est.) |
total: 271 km
paved: 271 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 32% (1994) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | NA | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs | clothing, textiles, yarn, foodstuffs, fuel, automobiles, capital goods |
Imports - partners | Cote d'Ivoire 15.5%, France 9%, Belgium 6.1%, China 6%, South Africa 4.8% (2004) | China 43%, Hong Kong 12.7%, Japan 8.7%, Taiwan 5.6% (2003) |
Independence | 2 October 1958 (from France) | none (special administrative region of China) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.2% (1994) | NA |
Industries | bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light manufacturing and agricultural processing industries | tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, footwear, toys |
Infant mortality rate | total: 90.37 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 95.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 84.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 4.39 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 18% (2004 est.) | -2.6% (2003 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 | IMF, IMO (associate), Interpol (sub-bureau), ISO (correspondent), UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate), WTO |
Irrigated land | 950 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | The Court of Final Appeal in the Macau Special Administrative Region |
Labor force | 3 million (1999) | 214,000 (2002) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% (2000 est.) | manufacturing 20%, construction 7%, transport and communications 6%, wholesale and retail trade 15%, restaurants and hotels 12%, gambling 7%, public sector 8%, other services and agriculture 25% (2002 est.) |
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: 0.34 km
regional border: China 0.34 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.63%
permanent crops: 2.58% other: 93.79% (2001) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% note: "green areas" represent 22.4% (2001) |
Languages | French (official), each ethnic group has its own language | Portuguese, Chinese (Cantonese) |
Legal system | based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree; legal codes currently being revised; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Portuguese civil law system |
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 Legislative Council or LEGCO (27 seats; 10 elected by popular vote, 10 by indirect vote, and sevem appointed by the chief executive; members serve four-year terms); number of legislators will increase to 29 from September 2005
elections: last held 23 September 2001 (next to be September 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats by political bloc - Entertainment Industry 3, pro-democracy 2, pro-Beijing Labor Union 2, pro-Beijing Neighborhood Association 2, pro-business 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.36 years
male: 48.19 years female: 50.57 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 82.03 years
male: 79.2 years female: 84.99 years (2004 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: 94.5% male: 97.2% female: 92% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone | Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China |
Map references | Africa | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
not specified |
Merchant marine | - | none |
Military branches | Army (includes Presidential Guard, Republican Guard), Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, General Directorate of National Police | responsibility for defense reverted to China on 20 December 1999; there are local police forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $56.7 million (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (2004) | - |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 125,060 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 68,913 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 2 October (1958) | National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 20 December 1999 is celebrated as Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day |
Nationality | noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
noun: Chinese
adjective: Chinese |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season | typhoons |
Natural resources | bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish, salt | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -2.99 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 (2005 est.) |
4.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 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 of Democratic Forces of Guinea or UFDG [Mamadou BA]; Union of Republican Forces or UFR [Sidya TOURE]; Union for Progress and Renewal or UPR [Siradiou DIALLO]; Union for Progress of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general] | Some civic associations operate as de facto political parties: Electoral Union; Pro-Macao and Flower of Friendship and Development of Macao; Associacao para a Defesa dos Interesses de Macao; Centro Democratico de Macao; Grupo Independente de Macao; Macau Economic Promotion Association; Progress Promotion Union; Development Union |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Catholic Church [LAI Hung-sing, bishop]; Macau Society of Tourism and Entertainment or STDM [Stanley HO, managing director]; Union for Democracy Development [Antonio NG Kuok-cheong, leader] |
Population | 9,467,866 (July 2005 est.) | 445,286 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 40% (2003 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.37% (2005 est.) | 0.87% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Kamsar | Macau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4 (one station is inactive), FM 1 (plus 7 repeaters), shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 837 km
standard gauge: 175 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 662 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
- |
Religions | Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7% | Buddhist 50%, Roman Catholic 15%, none and other 35% (1997 est.) |
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 (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | direct election 18 years of age, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past seven years; indirect election limited to organizations registered as "corporate voters" (257 are currently registered) and a 300-member Election Committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies |
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: fairly modern communication facilities maintained for domestic and international services
domestic: NA international: country code - 853; HF radiotelephone communication facility; access to international communications carriers provided via Hong Kong and China; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 26,200 (2003) | 174,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 111,500 (2003) | 364,000 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 low-power stations (2001) | 1 (2003) |
Terrain | generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior | generally flat |
Total fertility rate | 5.83 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 0.93 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA (2002 est.) | 6.3% (2003) |
Waterways | 1,295 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft) (2003) | - |