Guinea-Bissau (2007) | Mauritius (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos | 9 districts and 3 dependencies*; Agalega Islands*, Black River, Cargados Carajos Shoals*, Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Rodrigues*, Savanne |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 41.2% (male 302,408/female 303,786)
15-64 years: 55.8% (male 394,799/female 427,055) 65 years and over: 3% (male 18,463/female 26,269) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 25.1% (male 153,401; female 150,399)
15-64 years: 68.5% (male 413,660; female 415,534) 65 years and over: 6.4% (male 30,673; female 46,780) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish | sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish |
Airports | 27 (2007) | 5 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 24
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 19 (2007) |
total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 36,120 sq km
land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
total: 2,040 sq km
land: 2,030 sq km water: 10 sq km note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut | almost 11 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 2005, former President VIEIRA was re-elected president pledging to pursue economic development and national reconciliation. | Discovered by the Portuguese in 1505, Mauritius was subsequently held by the Dutch, French, and British before independence was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather and declining sugar prices have slowed economic growth, leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community. |
Birth rate | 36.81 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 16.1 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
revenues: $1.1 billion
expenditures: $1.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 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) |
Port Louis |
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, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May) |
Coastline | 350 km | 177 km |
Constitution | 16 May 1984; amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and in 1996 | 12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992 |
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: Republic of Mauritius
conventional short form: Mauritius |
Currency | - | Mauritian rupee (MUR) |
Death rate | 16.29 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 6.81 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $941.5 million (2000 est.) | $2.4 billion (2002 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 John PRICE
embassy: 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Street, Port Louis mailing address: international mail: P. O. Box 544, Port Louis; US mail: American Embassy, Port Louis, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2450 telephone: [230] 202-4400 FAX: [230] 208-9534 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: none; note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington, DC | chief of mission: Ambassador Usha JEETAH
chancery: 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 441, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-1491, 1492 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0983 |
Disputes - international | in 2006, political instability within Senegal's Casamance region resulted in thousands of Senegalese refugees, cross-border raids, and arms smuggling into Guinea-Bissau | Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation in 2001; claims French-administered Tromelin Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $79.12 million (2005) | $42 million (1997) |
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, resulted in continued low growth in 2002-06. | Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has developed from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. For most of the period, annual growth has been in the order of 5% to 6%. This remarkable achievement has been reflected in more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved infrastructure. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on foreign investment. Mauritius has attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in India and South Africa, and investment in the banking sector alone has reached over $1 billion. Mauritius, with its strong textile sector and responsible fiscal management, has been well poised to take advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The government is encouraging foreign investment in the information technology field. |
Electricity - consumption | 55.8 million kWh (2005) | 1.219 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 60 million kWh (2005) | 1.311 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 90.8%
hydro: 9.2% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Piton 828 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing | water pollution, degradation of coral reefs |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | African 99% (includes Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% | Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002)
note: since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc has been pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro |
Mauritian rupees per US dollar - 29.96 (2002), 29.13 (2001), 26.25 (2000), 25.19 (1999), 23.99 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA (since 1 October 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Martinho N'Dafa CABI (since 9 April 2007) 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 election results: Joao Bernardo VIEIRA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Joao Bernardo VIEIRA 52.4%, Malam Bacai SANHA 47.6% |
chief of state: President Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 7 October 2003) and Vice President (vacant; a new Vice President will be determined by assembly elections on NA December 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister Paul BERENGER (since 30 September 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president and vice president elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 25 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president, responsible to the National Assembly election results: Karl OFFMANN elected president and Raouf BUNDHUN elected vice president; percent of vote by the National Assembly - NA%; note - Karl OFFMANN and Raouf BUNDHUN stepped down on 30 September 2003 |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber | clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses |
Exports - partners | India 76.1%, Nigeria 18.1%, Italy 1.4% (2006) | UK 27.7%, France 25.5%, US 16.4%, Madagascar 6.2%, Belgium 5% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $12.15 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 62%
industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 6%
industry: 33% services: 61% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $10,100 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.1% (2006 est.) | 2.3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 00 N, 15 00 W | 20 17 S, 57 33 E |
Geography - note | this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland | the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs |
Highways | - | total: 1,926 km
paved: 1,868 km (including 44 km of expressways) unpaved: 58 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | increasingly important transit country for South American cocaine enroute to Europe; enabling environment for trafficker operations thanks to pervasive corruption; archipelago-like geography around the capital facilitates drug smuggling | minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally; significant offshore financial industry creates potential for money laundering, but corruption levels are relatively low and the government appears generally to be committed to regulating its banking industry |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products | manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Portugal 18.8%, Senegal 16.3%, Italy 13%, Pakistan 4.5% (2006) | France 18.4%, South Africa 13.5%, India 7.8%, China 4.5%, UK 4.2% (2002) |
Independence | 24 September 1973 (declared); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) | 12 March 1968 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.7% (2003 est.) | 8% (2000 est.) |
Industries | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks | food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing; chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 103.5 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 113.7 deaths/1,000 live births female: 93.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 16.11 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.98 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (2002 est.) | 6.4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CPLP, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 250 sq km (2003) | 200 sq km (1998 est.) |
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 |
Labor force | 480,000 (1999) | 514,000 (1995) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 82%
industry and services: 18% (2000 est.) |
construction and industry 36%, services 24%, agriculture and fishing 14%, trade, restaurants, hotels 16%, transportation and communication 7%, finance 3% (1995) |
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: 49.26%
permanent crops: 2.96% other: 47.78% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages | English (official), Creole, French (official), Hindi, Urdu, Hakka, Bhojpuri |
Legal system | based on French civil law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on French civil law system with elements of English common law in certain areas |
Legislative branch | unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (100 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
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 |
unicameral National Assembly (66 seats; 62 elected by popular vote, 4 appointed by the election commission from the losing political parties to give representation to various ethnic minorities; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 11 September 2000 (next to be held by September 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - MSM/MMM 52.3%, MLP/PMSD 36.9%, OPR 10.8%; seats by party - MSM/MMM 54, MLP/PMSD 6, OPR 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 47.18 years
male: 45.37 years female: 49.04 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 71.8 years
male: 67.82 years female: 75.85 years (2003 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 can read and write
total population: 85.6% male: 88.6% female: 82.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Africa | Political Map of the World |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 23,455 GRT/27,102 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1, combination bulk 4, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience:, Belgium 1, India 3, Norway 1, Switzerland 2 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP): Army, Navy, Air Force; paramilitary force | National Police Force (includes the paramilitary Special Mobile Force or SMF and National Coast Guard) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $9.712 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.1% (2005 est.) | 0.2% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 341,029 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 171,556 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) | Independence Day, 12 March (1968) |
Nationality | noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
noun: Mauritian(s)
adjective: Mauritian |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires | cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards |
Natural resources | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum | arable land, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; Party for Social Renewal or PRS [Kumba YALA]; Democratic Social Front or FDS; Electoral Union or UE; Guinea-Bissau Civic Forum/Social Democracy or FCGSD [Antonieta Rosa GOMES]; Guinea-Bissau Democratic Party or PDG; Guinea-Bissau Socialist Democratic Party or PDSG [Serifo BALDE]; Labor and Solidarity Party or PST [Iancuba INDJAI]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Party for Renewal and Progress or PRP; Progress Party or PP [Ibrahima SOW]; Union for Change or UM [Amine SAAD]; Union of Guinean Patriots or UPG [Francisca VAZ]; United Platform or UP (coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB); United Popular Alliance or APU; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD | Hizbullah [Cehl Mohamed FAKEEMEEAH]; Mauritian Labor Party or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]; Mauritian Militant Movement or MMM [Paul BERENGER] - in coalition with MSM; Mauritian Social Democrat Party or PMSD [Charles Xavier-Luc DUVAL]; Militant Socialist Movement or MSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH] - governing party; Rodrigues Movement or MR [Joseph (Nicholas) Von MALLY]; Rodrigues Peoples Organization or OPR [Serge CLAIR] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | various labor unions |
Population | 1,472,780 (July 2007 est.) | 1,210,447 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 10% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.052% (2007 est.) | 0.84% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Port Louis |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2001) | AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% | Hindu 52%, Christian 28.3% (Roman Catholic 26%, Protestant 2.3%), Muslim 16.6%, other 3.1% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 0.995 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.924 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.703 male(s)/female total population: 0.945 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 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; fixed-line teledensity less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular teledensity reached 7 per 100 in 2005 international: country code - 245 |
general assessment: small system with good service
domestic: primarily microwave radio relay trunk system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); new microwave link to Reunion; HF radiotelephone links to several countries |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,200 (2005) | 280,900 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 95,000 (2005) | 180,000 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | NA (2005) | 2 (plus several repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east | small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau |
Total fertility rate | 4.79 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.98 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 8.8% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2007) | none |