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Compare Guinea-Bissau (2008) - Solomon Islands (2006)

Compare Guinea-Bissau (2008) z Solomon Islands (2006)

 Guinea-Bissau (2008)Solomon Islands (2006)
 Guinea-BissauSolomon Islands
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 provinces and 1 capital territory*; Central, Choiseul, Guadalcanal, Honiara*, Isabel, Makira, Malaita, Rennell and Bellona, Temotu, Western
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: 41.3% (male 116,370/female 111,834)


15-64 years: 55.4% (male 154,793/female 151,308)


65 years and over: 3.3% (male 8,696/female 9,437) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish cocoa beans, coconuts, palm kernels, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit; timber; cattle, pigs; fish
Airports 27 (2007) 35 (2006)
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


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
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: 33


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 9


under 914 m: 23 (2006)
Area total: 36,120 sq km


land: 28,000 sq km


water: 8,120 sq km
total: 28,450 sq km


land: 27,540 sq km


water: 910 sq km
Area - comparative slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut slightly smaller than Maryland
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. The UK established a protectorate over the Solomon Islands in the 1890s. Some of the bitterest fighting of World War II occurred on this archipelago. Self-government was achieved in 1976 and independence two years later. Ethnic violence, government malfeasance, and endemic crime have undermined stability and civil society. In June 2003, Prime Minister Sir Allen KEMAKEZA sought the assistance of Australia in reestablishing law and order; the following month, an Australian-led multinational force arrived to restore peace and disarm ethnic militias. The Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) has been very effective in restoring law and order and rebuilding government institutions.
Birth rate 36.81 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 30.01 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget revenues: $NA


expenditures: $NA
revenues: $49.7 million


expenditures: $75.1 million; including capital expenditures of NA (2003)
Capital name: Bissau


geographic coordinates: 11 51 N, 15 35 W


time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
name: Honiara


geographic coordinates: 9 26 S, 159 57 E


time difference: UTC+11 (16 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
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 monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather
Coastline 350 km 5,313 km
Constitution 16 May 1984; amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and in 1996 7 July 1978
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: Solomon Islands


local long form: none


local short form: Solomon Islands


former: British Solomon Islands
Death rate 16.29 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 3.92 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external $941.5 million (2000 est.) $166 million (2004)
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 the US does not have an embassy in Solomon Islands (embassy closed July 1993); the ambassador to Papua New Guinea is accredited to the Solomon Islands
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: none; note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington, DC chief of mission: Ambassador Collin David BECK


chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400L, New York, NY 10017


telephone: [1] (212) 599-6192, 6193


FAX: [1] (212) 661-8925
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 Australian Defense Force leads the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) at the invitation of the Solomon Islands' Government to maintain civil and political order and reinforce regional security
Economic aid - recipient $79.12 million (2005) $122 million annually, mainly from Australia (2004 est.)
Economy - overview One of the five 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. Offshore oil prospecting is underway in several sectors but has not yet led to commercially viable crude deposits. 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. Higher raw material prices boosted growth to 3.7% in 2007. The bulk of the population depends on agriculture, fishing, and forestry for at least part of its livelihood. Most manufactured goods and petroleum products must be imported. The islands are rich in undeveloped mineral resources such as lead, zinc, nickel, and gold. Prior to the arrival of the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI), severe ethnic violence, the closing of key businesses, and an empty government treasury culminated in economic collapse. RAMSI has enabled a return to law and order, a new period of economic stability, and modest growth as the economy rebuilds.
Electricity - consumption 55.8 million kWh (2005) 51.15 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2005) 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2005) 0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production 60 million kWh (2005) 55 million kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mount Makarakomburu 2,447 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing deforestation; soil erosion; many of the surrounding coral reefs are dead or dying
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, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling


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% Melanesian 94.5%, Polynesian 3%, Micronesian 1.2%, other 1.1%, unspecified 0.2% (1999 census)
Exchange rates Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003)


note: since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc has been pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro
Solomon Islands dollars per US dollar - 7.5299 (2005), 7.4847 (2004), 7.5059 (2003), 6.7488 (2002), 5.278 (2001)
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 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%, Malam Bacai SANHA 47.6%
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Nathaniel WAENA (since 7 July 2004)


head of government: Prime Minister Manasseh SOGAVARE (since 4 May 2006); note - Prime Minister Snyder RINI, elected on 18 April 2006 and sworn in on 20 April 2006, resigned on 26 April prior to no confidence vote in parliament; SOGAVARE elected on 4 May


cabinet: Cabinet consists of 20 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament


elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of Parliament for up to five years (eligible for a second term); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by Parliament; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament
Exports 0 bbl/day (2004) NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber timber, fish, copra, palm oil, cocoa
Exports - partners India 76.1%, Nigeria 18.1%, Italy 1.4% (2006) China 40.7%, South Korea 13.2%, Thailand 6.9%, Japan 6.3%, Philippines 4.5%, Italy 4.1% (2005)
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 divided diagonally by a thin yellow stripe from the lower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is blue with five white five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern; the lower triangle is green
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 62%


industry: 12%


services: 26% (1999 est.)
agriculture: 42%


industry: 11%


services: 47% (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 3.7% (2007 est.) 4.4% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates 12 00 N, 15 00 W 8 00 S, 159 00 E
Geography - note this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland strategic location on sea routes between the South Pacific Ocean, the Solomon Sea, and the Coral Sea
Government - note - June 2003 Prime Minister Sir Allan KEMAKEZA sought the intervention of Australia to aid in restoring order; parliament approved the request for intervention in July 2003; troops from Australia, NZ, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga arrived 24 July 2003; by 2006, the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) had been scaled back to 259 police officers and 20 military, in addition to civilian technical advisers; in response to rioting that broke out in mid-April 2006, Australia dispatched an addtional 220 troops and 70 police officers to help restore order
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 -
Imports 2,463 bbl/day (2004) NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products food, plant and equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals
Imports - partners Portugal 18.7%, Senegal 16.3%, Italy 13%, Pakistan 4.5% (2006) Australia 25.8%, Singapore 25.3%, NZ 4.6%, Fiji 4.2%, Papua New Guinea 4.1% (2005)
Independence 24 September 1973 (declared); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) 7 July 1978 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate 4.7% (2003 est.) NA%
Industries agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks fish (tuna), mining, timber
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: 20.63 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 23.54 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 17.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 4% (2002 est.) 6.6% (2005 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, 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 ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land 250 sq km (2003) NA
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) Court of Appeal
Labor force 480,000 (1999) 249,200 (1999)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 82%


industry and services: 18% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 75%


industry: 5%


services: 20% (2000 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: 0.62%


permanent crops: 2.04%


other: 97.34% (2005)
Languages Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua franca; English is official but spoken by only 1%-2% of the population


note: 120 indigenous languages
Legal system based on French civil law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction English common law, which is widely disregarded
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 Parliament (50 seats; members elected from single-member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 5 April 2006 (next to be held in 2010)


election results: percent of vote by party - National Party 6.9%, SIPRA 6.3%, Democratic 4.9%, PAP 6.3%, LAFARI 2.8%, Liberal 5%, SOCRED 4.3%, independents 60.3%; seats by party - National Party 4, SIPRA 4, Democratic 3, PAP 3, LAFARI 2, Liberal 2, SOCRED 2, independents 30
Life expectancy at birth total population: 47.18 years


male: 45.37 years


female: 49.04 years (2007 est.)
total population: 72.91 years


male: 70.4 years


female: 75.55 years (2006 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: NA


male: NA


female: NA
Location Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Papua New Guinea
Map references Africa Oceania
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines


territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm
Military branches People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP): Army, Navy, Air Force; paramilitary force no regular military forces; Royal Solomon Islands Police (RSIP)
Military expenditures - dollar figure - NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 3.1% (2005 est.) NA
National holiday Independence Day, 24 September (1973) Independence Day, 7 July (1978)
Nationality noun: Guinean(s)


adjective: Guinean
noun: Solomon Islander(s)


adjective: Solomon Islander
Natural hazards hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires typhoons, but rarely destructive; geologically active region with frequent earth tremors; volcanic activity
Natural resources fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum fish, forests, gold, bauxite, phosphates, lead, zinc, nickel
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 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 Association of Independent Members or AIM [Thomas CHAN]; Christian Alliance Solomon Islands or CASI [Edward RONIA]; LAFARI Party [John GARO]; National Party [Francis HILLY]; People's Alliance Party or PAP [Sir Allan KEMAKEZA]; Social Credit Party or SOCRED [Manasseh Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon First Party [David QUAN]; Solomon Islands Democratic Party [Gabriel SURI]; Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU]; Solomon Islands Liberal Party [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]; Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement or SIPRA [Job D. TAUSINGA]; United Party [Sir Peter KENILOREA]


note: in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid coalitions
Political pressure groups and leaders NA Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM); Malaita Eagle Force (MEF); note - these rival armed ethnic factions crippled the Solomon Islands in a wave of violence from 1999 to 2003
Population 1,472,780 (July 2007 est.) 552,438 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% NA%
Population growth rate 2.052% (2007 est.) 2.61% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2001) AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 1 (2004)
Religions indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% Church of Melanesia 32.8%, Roman Catholic 19%, South Seas Evangelical 17%, Seventh-Day Adventist 11.2%, United Church 10.3%, Christian Fellowship Church 2.4%, other Christian 4.4%, other 2.4%, unspecified 0.3%, none 0.2% (1999 census)
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: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female


total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 21 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: NA


domestic: NA


international: country code - 677; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 10,200 (2005) 7,400 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular 95,000 (2005) 6,000 (2005)
Television broadcast stations NA (2005) -
Terrain mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east mostly rugged mountains with some low coral atolls
Total fertility rate 4.79 children born/woman (2007 est.) 3.91 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% NA%
Waterways rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2007) -
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