Guinea (2006) | Eritrea (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 | 6 regions (zobatat, singular - zoba); Anseba, Debub, Debubawi K'eyih Bahri, Gash Barka, Ma'akel, Semenawi Keyih Bahri |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 44.4% (male 2,171,733/female 2,128,027)
15-64 years: 52.5% (male 2,541,140/female 2,542,847) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 134,239/female 172,236) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 44.8% (male 998,404; female 993,349)
15-64 years: 51.9% (male 1,140,892; female 1,166,481) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 72,776; female 75,405) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber | sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal; livestock, goats; fish |
Airports | 16 (2006) | 18 (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 (2006) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (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 (2006) |
total: 13
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 245,857 sq km
land: 245,857 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 121,320 sq km
land: 121,320 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly larger than Pennsylvania |
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. | Eritrea was awarded to Ethiopia in 1952 as part of a federation. Ethiopia's annexation of Eritrea as a province 10 years later sparked a 30-year struggle for independence that ended in 1991 with Eritrean rebels defeating governmental forces; independence was overwhelmingly approved in a 1993 referendum. A two-and-a-half-year border war with Ethiopia that erupted in 1998 ended under UN auspices on 12 December 2000. Eritrea currently hosts a UN peacekeeping operation that is monitoring a 25 km-wide Temporary Security Zone on the border with Ethiopia. An international commission, organized to resolve the border dispute, posted its findings in 2002 but final demarcation is on hold due to Ethiopian objections. |
Birth rate | 41.76 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 39.03 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $305.6 million
expenditures: $590.4 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
revenues: $235.7 million
expenditures: $375 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | name: Conakry
geographic coordinates: 9 31 N, 13 43 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Asmara (formerly Asmera) |
Climate | generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds | hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler and wetter in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually); semiarid in western hills and lowlands; rainfall heaviest during June-September except in coastal desert |
Coastline | 320 km | 2,234 km total; mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km |
Constitution | 23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale) | the transitional constitution, decreed on 19 May 1993, was replaced by a new constitution adopted on 23 May 1997, but not yet implemented |
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: State of Eritrea
conventional short form: Eritrea local long form: Hagere Ertra local short form: Ertra former: Eritrea Autonomous Region in Ethiopia |
Currency | - | nakfa (ERN) |
Death rate | 15.48 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 13.36 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $3.46 billion (2003 est.) | $311 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jackson C. MCDONALD
embassy: Koloma, Conakry, east of Hamdallaye Circle mailing address: B. P. 603, Transversale No. 2, Centre Administratif de Koloma, Commune de Ratoma, Conakry telephone: [224] 30-42-08-61 FAX: [224] 30-42-08-73 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Scott H. DELISI
embassy: Franklin D. Roosevelt Street, Asmara mailing address: P. O. Box 211, Asmara telephone: [291] (1) 120004 FAX: [291] (1) 127584 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Ibrihama Sory TRAORE
chancery: 2112 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 986-4300 FAX: [1] (202) 478-3800 |
chief of mission: Ambassador GIRMA Asmerom
chancery: 1708 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 319-1991 FAX: [1] (202) 319-1304 consulate(s) general: Oakland (California) |
Disputes - international | conflicts among rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in neighboring states have spilled over into Guinea, resulting in domestic instability; Sierra Leone has pressured Guinea to remove its forces from the town of Yenga, occupied since 1998 | Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by 2002 Ethiopia-Eritrea Border Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but demarcation has been delayed, despite intense international intervention, by Ethiopian insistence that the decision ignored "human geography," made technical errors in the delimitation, and incorrectly awarded Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war, and other areas to Eritrea and Eritrea's insistence on not deviating from the commission's decision; UN Peacekeeping Mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) continues to monitor a 25km-wide Temporary Security Zone in Eritrea until the demarcation; Sudan accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups; Eritrea protests Yemeni fishing around the Hanish Islands awarded to Eritrea by the ICJ in 1999 |
Economic aid - recipient | $237.5 million (2003) | $77 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | Guinea possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources, yet remains an underdeveloped nation. The country possesses almost half of the world's bauxite reserves and is the second-largest bauxite producer. The mining sector accounted for over 70% of exports in 2004. 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. 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 2005, primarily due to increases in global demand and commodity prices on world markets. | Since independence from Ethiopia on 24 May 1993, Eritrea has faced the economic problems of a small, desperately poor country. Like the economies of many African nations, the economy is largely based on subsistence agriculture, with 80% of the population involved in farming and herding. The Ethiopian-Eritrea war in 1998-2000 severely hurt Eritrea's economy. GDP growth fell to zero in 1999 and to -12.1% in 2000. The May 2000 Ethiopian offensive into northern Eritrea caused some $600 million in property damage and loss, including losses of $225 million in livestock and 55,000 homes. The attack prevented planting of crops in Eritrea's most productive region, causing food production to drop by 62%. Even during the war, Eritrea developed its transportation infrastructure, asphalting new roads, improving its ports, and repairing war damaged roads and bridges. Since the war ended, the government has maintained a firm grip on the economy, expanding the use of the military and party-owned businesses to complete Eritrea's development agenda. Erratic rainfall and the delayed demobilization of agriculturalists from the military kept cereal production well below normal, holding down growth in 2002. Eritrea's economic future depends upon its ability to master social problems such as illiteracy, unemployment, and low skills, and to open its economy to private enterprise so the diaspora's money and expertise can foster economic growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 720.8 million kWh (2003) | 205.1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh NA kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh NA kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 775 million kWh (2003) | 220.5 million kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 m |
lowest point: near Kulul within the Denakil depression -75 m
highest point: Soira 3,018 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; desertification; soil erosion; overgrazing; loss of infrastructure from civil warfare |
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
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10% | ethnic Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%, other 3% |
Exchange rates | Guinean francs per US dollar - 2,550 (2005), 2,225 (2004), 1,984.9 (2003), 1,975.8 (2002), 1,950.6 (2001) | nakfa (ERN) per US dollar - NA (2003), 13.9582 (2002), 11.3095 (2001), 9.5 (2000), 7.6 (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: vacant; note - Prime Minister Cellou Dalein DIALLO was dismissed on 5 April 2006 cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits); candidate must receive a majority of the votes cast to be elected president; election last held 21 December 2003 (next to be held December 2010); 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 ISAIAS Afworki (since 8 June 1993); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly
head of government: President ISAIAS Afworki (since 8 June 1993); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly cabinet: State Council is the collective executive authority; members appointed by the president elections: president elected by the National Assembly; election last held 8 June 1993 (next election date uncertain as the National Assembly did not hold a presidential election in December 2001 as anticipated) election results: ISAIAS Afworki elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - ISAIAS Afworki 95% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products | livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures (2000) |
Exports - partners | Russia 14.6%, South Korea 11.3%, Spain 10.2%, Ukraine 7.9%, US 6.1%, Ireland 6%, France 5.7%, Germany 5%, Belgium 4.5% (2005) | Malaysia 65.1%, Italy 10.4%, France 4.4% (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 | red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) dividing the flag into two right triangles; the upper triangle is green, the lower one is blue; a gold wreath encircling a gold olive branch is centered on the hoist side of the red triangle |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $3.3 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 23.7%
industry: 36.2% services: 40.1% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 12.4%
industry: 25.3% services: 62.4% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $700 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2005 est.) | 2% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 11 00 N, 10 00 W | 15 00 N, 39 00 E |
Geography - note | the Niger and its important tributary the Milo have their sources in the Guinean highlands | strategic geopolitical position along world's busiest shipping lanes; Eritrea retained the entire coastline of Ethiopia along the Red Sea upon de jure independence from Ethiopia on 24 May 1993 |
Highways | - | total: 4,010 km
paved: 874 km unpaved: 3,136 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 32% (1994) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs | machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods (2000) |
Imports - partners | China 8.5%, US 7.3%, France 7.2%, Cote d'Ivoire 5.2%, Italy 4.7%, Belgium 4.1% (2005) | US 39.7%, Italy 19.1%, Turkey 6.8%, Russia 5.4%, France 4.7% (2003) |
Independence | 2 October 1958 (from France) | 24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA |
Industries | bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light manufacturing and agricultural processing industries | food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles |
Infant mortality rate | total: 90 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 95.16 deaths/1,000 live births female: 84.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 75.59 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 83.03 deaths/1,000 live births female: 67.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 25% (2005 est.) | 12.3% (2003) |
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, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, AU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (observer), IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
Irrigated land | 950 sq km (2003) | 220 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | High Court - regional, subregional, and village courts; also have military and special courts |
Labor force | 3 million (1999) | NA (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 80%
industry and services: 20% (2000 est.) |
agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% |
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: 1,626 km
border countries: Djibouti 109 km, Ethiopia 912 km, Sudan 605 km |
Land use | arable land: 4.47%
permanent crops: 2.64% other: 92.89% (2005) |
arable land: 4.95%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 95.02% (2001) |
Languages | French (official); note - each ethnic group has its own language | Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages |
Legal system | based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree; legal codes currently being revised; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | primary basis is the Ethiopian legal code of 1957, with revisions; new civil, commercial, and penal codes have not yet been promulgated; also relies on customary and post-independence-enacted laws and, for civil cases involving Muslims, Sharia law |
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 in 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 Assembly (150 seats; term limits not established)
elections: in May 1997, following the adoption of the new constitution, 75 members of the PFDJ Central Committee (the old Central Committee of the EPLF), 60 members of the 527-member Constituent Assembly, that had been established in 1997 to discuss and ratify the new constitution, and 15 representatives of Eritreans living abroad were formed into a Transitional National Assembly to serve as the country's legislative body until countrywide elections to a National Assembly were held; although only 75 of 150 members of the Transitional National Assembly were elected, the constitution stipulates that once past the transition stage, all members of the National Assembly will be elected by secret ballot of all eligible voters; National Assembly elections scheduled for December 2001 were postponed indefinitely |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.5 years
male: 48.34 years female: 50.7 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 52.7 years
male: 51.32 years female: 54.12 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: NA
total population: 58.6% male: 69.9% female: 47.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone | Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 16,069 GRT/19,549 DWT
by type: bulk 1, cargo 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 registered in other countries: 1 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, Presidential Guard (2006) | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $119.7 million (2005 est.) | $77.9 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.9% (2005 est.) | 11.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | NA (2004) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 2 October (1958) | Independence Day, 24 May (1993) |
Nationality | noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
noun: Eritrean(s)
adjective: Eritrean |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season | frequent droughts; locust swarms |
Natural resources | bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish, salt | gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: as a result of conflict in neighboring countries, Guinea is host to approximately 141,500 refugees from Cote d'Ivoire, Liberia, and Sierra Leone (2006 est.) |
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: UNHCR began repatriating about 150,000 Eritrean refugees from Sudan in 2001 following the restoration of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 2000 (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 of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general]; Union for Progress and Renewal or UPR [Ousmane BAH] | People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, the only party recognized by the government [ISAIAS Afworki]; note - a National Assembly committee drafted a law on political parties in January 2001, but the full National Assembly has not yet debated or voted on it |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Student and teacher unions | Eritrean Islamic Jihad or EIJ [leader NA] (also including Eritrean Islamic Jihad Movement or EIJM (also known as the Abu Sihel Movement) [leader NA]); Eritrean Islamic Salvation or EIS (also known as the Arafa Movement) [leader NA]; Eritrean Liberation Front or ELF [ABDULLAH Muhammed]; Eritrean National Alliance or ENA (a coalition including EIJ, EIS, ELF, and a number of ELF factions) [HERUY Tedla Biru]; Eritrean Public Forum or EPF [ARADOM Iyob] |
Population | 9,690,222 (July 2006 est.) | 4,447,307 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 40% (2003 est.) | 53% (1993/94) |
Population growth rate | 2.63% (2006 est.) | 2.57% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Assab (Aseb), Massawa (Mits'iwa) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4 (one station is inactive), FM 1 (plus 7 repeaters), shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 2, FM NA, shortwave 2 (2000) |
Railways | total: 837 km
standard gauge: 175 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 662 km 1.000-m gauge (2005) |
total: 306 km
narrow gauge: 306 km 0.950-m gauge note: railway is being rebuilt; 117 km open (2003) |
Religions | Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7% | Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant |
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 (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 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: inadequate
domestic: very inadequate; most telephones are in Asmara; government is seeking international tenders to improve the system (2002) international: country code - 291; note - international connections exist |
Telephones - main lines in use | 26,200 (2003) | 38,100 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 189,000 (2005) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 6 low-power stations (2001) | 1 (2000) |
Terrain | generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior | dominated by extension of Ethiopian north-south trending highlands, descending on the east to a coastal desert plain, on the northwest to hilly terrain and on the southwest to flat-to-rolling plains |
Total fertility rate | 5.79 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 5.67 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA (2003 est.) |
Waterways | 1,300 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft) (2005) | - |