Main page Compare countries Index countries Index fields

Query:
##ciekawa_strona##

Compare Guinea-Bissau (2003) - Eritrea (2001)

Compare Guinea-Bissau (2003) z Eritrea (2001)

 Guinea-Bissau (2003)Eritrea (2001)
 Guinea-BissauEritrea
Administrative divisions 9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos 8 provinces (singular - awraja); Akale Guzay, Barka, Denkel, Hamasen, Sahil, Semhar, Senhit, Seraye

note:
in May 1995 the National Assembly adopted a resolution stating that the administrative structure of Eritrea, which had been established by former colonial powers, would consist of only six provinces when the new constitution, then being drafted, became effective in 1997; the new provinces, the names of which had not been recommended by the US Board on Geographic Names for recognition by the US Government, pending acceptable definition of the boundaries, were: Anseba, Debub, Debubawi Keyih Bahri, Gash-Barka, Maakel, and Semanawi Keyih Bahri; more recently, it has been reported that these provinces have been redesignated regions and renamed Southern Red Sea, Northern Red Sea, Anseba, Gash-Barka, Southern, and Central
Age structure 0-14 years: 41.9% (male 284,150; female 285,370)


15-64 years: 55.2% (male 358,891; female 392,703)


65 years and over: 2.9% (male 17,285; female 22,428) (2003 est.)
0-14 years:
42.85% (male 922,691; female 918,916)

15-64 years:
53.87% (male 1,147,927; female 1,167,705)

65 years and over:
3.28% (male 71,232; female 69,798) (2001 est.)
Agriculture - products rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal; livestock, goats; fish
Airports 28 (2002) 20 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 3


over 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002)
total:
2

over 3,047 m:
1

2,438 to 3,047 m:
1 (2000 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 25


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 20 (2002)
total:
18

over 3,047 m:
2

2,438 to 3,047 m:
2

1,524 to 2,437 m:
5

914 to 1,523 m:
7

under 914 m:
2 (2000 est.)
Area total: 36,120 sq km


land: 28,000 sq km


water: 8,120 sq km
total:
121,320 sq km

land:
121,320 sq km

water:
0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut slightly larger than Pennsylvania
Background 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. A military junta ousted the president in May 1999. An interim government turned over power in February 2000 when opposition leader Kumba YALA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by its crippled economy, devastated in the civil war. 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.
Birth rate 38.41 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) 42.52 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Budget revenues: $NA


expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
revenues:
$283.9 million

expenditures:
$351.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.)
Capital Bissau Asmara (formerly Asmera)
Climate tropical; 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 350 km 2,234 km total; mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km
Constitution 16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996 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-Bissau


conventional short form: Guinea-Bissau


local long form: Republica da Guine-Bissau


local short form: Guine-Bissau


former: Portuguese 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 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 nakfa (ERN)
Death rate 16.62 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) 12.07 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Debt - external $941.5 million (2000 est.) $281 million (2000 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US 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; for the time being, US embassy Dakar is responsible for covering Guinea-Bissau: telephone - [221] 823-4296; FAX - [221] 822-5903 chief of mission:
Ambassador William D. CLARKE

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 Henrique Adriano DA SILVA


chancery: 1511 K Street NW, Suite 519, Washington, DC 20005


telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950


FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954
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
Disputes - international separatist war in Senegal's Casamance region results in refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling and other illegal activities, and political instability in Guinea-Bissau as a result of the 12 December 2000 peace agreement ending a two-year war with Ethiopia, the UN will administer a 25-km wide temporary security zone within Eritrea until a joint boundary commission delimits and demarcates a final boundary
Economic aid - recipient $115.4 million (1995) $77 million (1999)
Economy - overview One of the 10 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 1999-2002. 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. The inequality of income distribution is one of the most extreme in the world. The government and international donors continue to work out plans to forward economic development from a lamentably low base. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in low growth in 2002 and dim prospects for 2003. With independence from Ethiopia on 24 May 1993, Eritrea faced the economic problems of a small, desperately poor country. The economy is largely based on subsistence agriculture, with 80% of the population involved in farming and herding. The small industrial sector consists mainly of light industries with outmoded technologies. Domestic output (GDP) is substantially augmented by worker remittances from abroad. Government revenues come from custom duties and taxes on income and sales. Road construction is a top domestic priority. In the long term, Eritrea may benefit from the development of offshore oil, offshore fishing, and tourism. Eritrea's economic future depends on its ability to master fundamental social and economic problems, e.g., by reducing illiteracy, promoting job creation, expanding technical training, attracting foreign investment, and streamlining the bureaucracy. Eritrea's agriculture over the last two years was severely weakened by war and drought, and many farmlands must wait to be demined. Another major difficulty is the ports, which prior to the war were Ethiopia's preferred outlets but since have seen trade dry up.
Electricity - consumption 51.15 million kWh (2001) 153.5 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh NA kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh NA kWh (1999)
Electricity - production 55 million kWh (2001) 165 million kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2001)
fossil fuel:
100%

hydro:
0%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m
lowest point:
near Kulul within the Denakil depression -75 m

highest point:
Soira 3,018 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing deforestation; desertification; soil erosion; overgrazing; loss of infrastructure from civil warfare
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Wetlands


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 African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% ethnic Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%
Exchange rates Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998)


note: as of 1 May 1997, Guinea-Bissau adopted the XOF franc as the national currency; since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro
nakfa per US dollar = 9.5 (January 2000), 7.6 (January 1999), 7.2 (March 1998 est.)
Executive branch chief of state: President Henrique ROSA (interim; since 28 September 2003); note - a September 2003 coup overthrough the elected government of Kumba YALA; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 to 28 September 2003


head of government: Prime Minister Artur SANHA (since 28 September 2003)


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: Kumba YALA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Kumba YALA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28%


note: a bloodless coup led to the dissolution of the elected government of Kumba YALA in September 2003; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 September 2003 until stepping aside on 28 September 2003 with the establishment of a caretaker government
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

elections:
president elected by the National Assembly; election last held 8 June 1993 (next tentatively scheduled for December 2001)

election results:
ISAIAS Afworki elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - ISAIAS Afworki 95%
Exports NA (2001) $26 million (f.o.b., 1999)
Exports - commodities cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures
Exports - partners India 51.5%, Uruguay 19.5%, Thailand 19.4% (2002) Sudan 27.2%, Ethiopia 26.5%, Japan 13.2%, UAE 7.3%, Italy 5.3% (1998)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description 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 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 - $901.4 million (2002 est.) purchasing power parity - $2.9 billion (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 62%


industry: 12%


services: 26% (1999 est.)
agriculture:
16%

industry:
27%

services:
57% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $700 (2002 est.) purchasing power parity - $710 (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate -4.3% (2002 est.) -1% (2000 est.)
Geographic coordinates 12 00 N, 15 00 W 15 00 N, 39 00 E
Geography - note this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland 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: 4,400 km


paved: 453 km


unpaved: 3,947 km (1999 est.)
total:
3,850 km

paved:
810 km

unpaved:
3,040 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 0.5%


highest 10%: 42.4% (1991)
lowest 10%:
NA%

highest 10%:
NA%
Imports NA (2001) $560 million (c.i.f., 1999)
Imports - commodities foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods
Imports - partners Senegal 19.6%, Portugal 19.1%, India 15.3%, Taiwan 5.1% (2002) Italy 17.4%, UAE 16.2%, Germany 5.7%, UK 4.5%, Korea 4.4% (1998)
Independence 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) 24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia)
Industrial production growth rate 2.6% (1997 est.) NA%
Industries agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles
Infant mortality rate total: 110.29 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 120.99 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 99.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
75.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 4% (2002 est.) 14% (2000 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 2 (2002) 4 (2000)
Irrigated land 170 sq km (1998 est.) 280 sq km (1993 est.)
Judicial branch 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) Supreme Court; 10 provincial courts; 29 district courts
Labor force 480,000 NA
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 82% (2000 est.) agriculture 80%, industry and services 20%
Land boundaries total: 724 km


border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km
total:
1,630 km

border countries:
Djibouti 113 km, Ethiopia 912 km, Sudan 605 km
Land use arable land: 10.67%


permanent crops: 1.78%


other: 87.55% (1998 est.)
arable land:
12%

permanent crops:
1%

permanent pastures:
49%

forests and woodland:
6%

other:
32% (1998 est.)
Languages Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages Afar, Amharic, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages
Legal system NA operates on the basis of transitional laws that incorporate pre-independence statutes of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front, revised Ethiopian laws, customary laws, and post independence enacted laws
Legislative branch unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (100 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve a maximum of four years); note - President YALA dissolved the National People's Assembly in November 2002, elections for a new legislature were scheduled to fall in February 2003 but were then postponed to April, then July, and were last scheduled to occur in September 2003


elections: last held 28 November 1999 (next to be held NA September 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
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 which 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 country-wide elections to a National Assembly are held; only 75 members will be elected to the National Assembly - the other 75 will be members of the Central Committee of the PFDJ; parliamentary elections are now scheduled for NA December 2001
Life expectancy at birth total population: 46.97 years


male: 45.09 years


female: 48.91 years (2003 est.)
total population:
56.18 years

male:
53.73 years

female:
58.71 years (2001 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 42.4%


male: 58.1%


female: 27.4% (2003 est.)
definition:
NA

total population:
25%

male:
NA%

female:
NA%
Location Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan
Map references Africa Africa
Maritime claims exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
territorial sea:
12 NM
Merchant marine none (2002 est.) total:
5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 16,069 GRT/19,549 DWT

ships by type:
bulk 1, cargo 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.)
Military branches People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force Army, Navy, Air Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure $5.6 million (FY02) $160 million (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.8% (FY02) 29.4% (2000 est.)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 318,711 (2003 est.) -
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 181,318 (2003 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day, 24 September (1973) 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; brush fires frequent droughts; locust swarms
Natural resources fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, unexploited deposits of petroleum gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish
Net migration rate -1.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) 7.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

note:
according to the UNHCR, about 150,000 Eritrean refugees in Sudan have registered for voluntary repatriation, following the restoration of diplomatic relations between Eritrea and Sudan in January 2000
Political parties and leaders 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 [Kumba YALA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Victor Sau'de MARIA] People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, the only party recognized by the government [ISAIAS Afworki, PETROS Solomon]; note - the National Assembly has appointed a committee to draft a law on political parties
Political pressure groups and leaders NA Eritrean Islamic Jihad or EIJ; Eritrean Liberation Front or ELF [ABDULLAH Muhammed]; Eritrean Liberation Front-Revolutionary Council or ELF-RC [Ahmed NASSER]; Eritrean Liberation Front-United Organization or ELF-UO [Mohammed Said NAWD]
Population 1,360,827 (July 2003 est.) 4,298,269 (July 2001 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% NA%
Population growth rate 2.02% (2003 est.) 3.84% (2001 est.)
Ports and harbors Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim Assab (Aseb), Massawa (Mits'iwa)
Radio broadcast stations AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002) AM 2, FM 1, shortwave 2 (2000)
Radios - 345,000 (1997)
Railways 0 km total:
317 km

narrow gauge:
317 km 0.950-m gauge (1999)

note:
links Ak'ordat and Asmara with the port of Massawa; nonoperational since 1978 except for about a 5 km stretch that was reopened in Massawa in 1994; rehabilitation of the remainder and of the rolling stock is under way
Religions indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant
Sex ratio 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: 0.77 male(s)/female


total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
0.98 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
1.02 male(s)/female

total population:
0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: small system


domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications


international: NA
general assessment:
NA

domestic:
very inadequate; most telephones are in Asmara; government is seeking international tenders to improve the system

international:
NA
Telephones - main lines in use 10,000 (2001) 23,578 (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular 0 (2001) NA
Television broadcast stations NA (1997) 1 (2000)
Terrain mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east 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 5.07 children born/woman (2003 est.) 5.87 children born/woman (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% NA%
Waterways several rivers are accessible to coastal shipping none
Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.