Guinea-Bissau (2006) | Barbados (2001) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos | 11 parishes; Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas; note - the city of Bridgetown may be given parish status |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 41.4% (male 297,623/female 298,942)
15-64 years: 55.6% (male 384,559/female 417,811) 65 years and over: 3% (male 18,048/female 25,046) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years:
21.68% (male 30,122; female 29,572) 15-64 years: 69.44% (male 93,283; female 97,915) 65 years and over: 8.88% (male 9,432; female 15,006) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish | sugarcane, vegetables, cotton |
Airports | 28 (2006) | 1 (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 (2006) |
total:
1 over 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 (2006) |
- |
Area | total: 36,120 sq km
land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
total:
430 sq km land: 430 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable political and military upheaval. In 1980, a military coup established authoritarian dictator Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA as president. Despite setting a path to a market economy and multiparty system, VIEIRA's regime was characterized by the suppression of political opposition and the purging of political rivals. Several coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him. In 1994 VIEIRA was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military mutiny and resulting civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIEIRA's ouster in May 1999. In February 2000, a transitional government turned over power to opposition leader Kumba YALA, after he was elected president in transparent polling. In September 2003, after only three years in office, YALA was ousted by the military in a bloodless coup, and businessman Henrique ROSA was sworn in as interim president. In August 2005, former President VIEIRA was re-elected president in the second round of presidential polling. Since formally assuming office in October 2005, Vieira has pledged to pursue economic development and national reconciliation. | The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Its economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance. |
Birth rate | 37.22 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 13.47 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
revenues:
$725.5 million expenditures: $750.6 million, including capital expenditures of $126.3 million (FY97/98 est.) |
Capital | name: Bissau
geographic coordinates: 11 51 N, 15 35 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Bridgetown |
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 | tropical; rainy season (June to October) |
Coastline | 350 km | 97 km |
Constitution | 16 May 1984; amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, NA 1996 | 30 November 1966 |
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:
none conventional short form: Barbados |
Currency | - | Barbadian dollar (BBD) |
Death rate | 16.53 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 8.53 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $941.5 million (2000 est.) | $425 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; the US Ambassador to Senegal is accredited to Guinea-Bissau | chief of mission:
Ambassador James A. DALEY embassy: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building, Broad Street, Bridgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; FPO AA 34055 telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950 FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington, DC; Guinea-Bissau's representative in Washington is Henrique Adriano DA SILVA, P.O. Box 33813, Washington, DC 20033, telephone: (301)947-3958 | chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael KING chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9200 FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467 consulate(s) general: Miami and New York consulate(s): Los Angeles |
Disputes - international | attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $115.4 million (1995) | $9.1 million (1995) |
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, offshore oil prospecting has begun and could lead to 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. In December 2003, the World Bank, IMF, and UNDP were forced to step in to provide emergency budgetary support in the amount of $107 million for 2004, representing over 80% of the total national budget. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in continued low growth in 2002-05. | Historically, the Barbadian economy had been dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities, but production in recent years has diversified into manufacturing and tourism. The start of the Port Charles Marina project in Speightstown helped the tourism industry continue to expand in 1996-2000. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners, and there is also a light manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, encourage direct foreign investment, and privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. Growth should remain steady in 2001, with new tourist facilities a plus factor. |
Electricity - consumption | 52.08 million kWh (2003) | 667.7 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 56 million kWh (2003) | 718 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: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing | pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers |
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:
Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity |
Ethnic groups | African 99% (includes Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% | black 80%, white 4%, other 16% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001)
note: since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc has been pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro |
Barbadian dollars per US dollar - 2.0000 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA (since 1 October 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Aristides GOMES (since 2 November 2005) cabinet: NA elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (no term limits); election last held 24 July 2005 (next to be held in 2010); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature election results: Joao Bernardo VIEIRA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Joao Bernardo VIEIRA 52.4%, Malan Bacai SANHA 47.6% |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996) head of government: Prime Minister Owen Seymour ARTHUR (since 6 September 1994); Deputy Prime Minister Billie MILLER (since 6 September 1994) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; prime minister appointed by the governor general |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $260 million (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber | sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components, clothing |
Exports - partners | India 72%, Nigeria 17.1%, Ecuador 4% (2005) | UK 14.8%, US 11.6%, Trinidad and Tobago 7.6%, Venezuela 6.1%, Jamaica 5.8% (1998) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident) |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $4 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 62%
industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.) |
agriculture:
4% industry: 16% services: 80% (1998) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $14,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.3% (2005 est.) | 2.8% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 00 N, 15 00 W | 13 10 N, 59 32 W |
Geography - note | this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland | easternmost Caribbean island |
Highways | - | total:
1,600 km paved: 1,578 km unpaved: 22 km (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $800.3 million (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products | consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components |
Imports - partners | Italy 25.3%, Senegal 18.6%, Portugal 15.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.3% (2005) | US 30.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 10.2%, Japan 8.3%, UK 7.7%, Canada 2.2% (1998) |
Independence | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) | 30 November 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.7% (2003 est.) | 0.8% (1996) |
Industries | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks | tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export |
Infant mortality rate | total: 105.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 115.53 deaths/1,000 live births female: 94.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
12.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (2002 est.) | 2% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 19 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 250 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices 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 of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services) |
Labor force | 480,000 (1999) | 136,000 (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 82%
industry and services: 18% (2000 est.) |
services 75%, industry 15%, agriculture 10% (1996 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 724 km
border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 8.31%
permanent crops: 6.92% other: 84.77% (2005) |
arable land:
37% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 12% other: 46% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages | English |
Legal system | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts |
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)
elections: last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 31.5%, PRS 24.8%, PUSD 16.1%, UE 4.1%, APU 1.3%, 13 other parties 22.2%; seats by party - PAIGC 45, PRS 35, PUSD 17, UE 2, APU 1 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Assembly (28 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 20 January 1999 (next to be held by January 2004) election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - BLP 26, DLP 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 46.87 years
male: 45.05 years female: 48.75 years (2006 est.) |
total population:
73.25 years male: 70.66 years female: 75.86 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:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 97.4% male: 98% female: 96.8% (1995 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
47 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 671,545 GRT/1,125,635 DWT ships by type: bulk 10, cargo 28, combination bulk 1, container 2, petroleum tanker 4, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Canada 2, Hong Kong 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force | Royal Barbados Defense Force (includes Ground Forces and Coast Guard), Royal Barbados Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $9.46 million (2005 est.) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.1% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
78,069 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
53,576 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) | Independence Day, 30 November (1966) |
Nationality | noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
noun:
Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial) adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial) |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires | infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides |
Natural resources | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum | petroleum, fish, natural gas |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | -0.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; Democratic Social Front or FDS; Electoral Union or UE; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Alberto NAMBEIA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Platform or UP (coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB); United Popular Alliance or APU; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL] | Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [David THOMPSON]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Richard HAYNES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Barbados Workers Union [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMMISSIONG]; People's Progressive Movement [Eric SEALY]; Worker's Party of Barbados [Dr. George BELLE] |
Population | 1,442,029 (July 2006 est.) | 275,330 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.07% (2006 est.) | 0.46% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Bridgetown, Speightstown (Port Charles Marina) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002) | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 237,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% | Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth:
1.01 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 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: country code - 245 |
general assessment:
NA domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system international: satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,600 (2003) | 108,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 67,000 (2005) | 8,013 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | NA (2005) | 1 (plus two cable channels) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east | relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region |
Total fertility rate | 4.86 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 1.64 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 11% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | four largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2006) | none |