Compare Lesotho (2002) - Guinea (2004)

Compare Lesotho (2002) z Guinea (2004)

	Lesotho (2002)	Guinea (2004)

Administrative divisions	10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka	33 prefectures and 1 special zone (zone special); Beyla, Boffa, Boke, Conakry, Coyah, Dabola, Dalaba, Dinguiraye, Dubreka, Faranah, Forecariah, Fria, Gaoual, Gueckedou, Kankan, Kerouane, Kindia, Kissidougou, Koubia, Koundara, Kouroussa, Labe, Lelouma, Lola, Macenta, Mali, Mamou, Mandiana, Nzerekore, Pita, Siguiri, Telimele, Tougue, Yomou
Age structure	0-14 years: 39% (male 433,229; female 427,926) 15-64 years: 56.3% (male 600,476; female 642,538) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 43,691; female 60,094) (2002 est.)	0-14 years: 44.4% (male 2,075,652; female 2,032,936) 15-64 years: 52.4% (male 2,417,440; female 2,428,085) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 127,654; female 164,695) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock	rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber
Airports	28 (2001)	16 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002)	total: 5 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2002)	total: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 30,355 sq km land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 245,857 sq km land: 245,857 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland	slightly smaller than Oregon
Background	Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule.	Guinea has had only two presidents since gaining its independence from France in 1958. Lansana CONTE came to power in 1984, when the military seized the government after the death of the first president Sekou TOURE. Guinea did not hold democratic elections until 1993 when Gen. CONTE (head of the military government) was elected president of the civilian government. He was reelected in 1998 and again in 2003. Unrest in Sierra Leone and Liberia has spilled over into Guinea on several occasions over the past decade, threatening stability and creating humanitarian emergencies.
Birth rate	30.72 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)	42.26 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $76 million expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million	revenues: $410.7 million expenditures: $708.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (2003 est.)
Capital	Maseru	Conakry
Climate	temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers	generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	320 km
Constitution	2 April 1993	23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale)
Country name	conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland	conventional long form: Republic of Guinea conventional short form: Guinea local long form: Republique de Guinee local short form: Guinee former: French Guinea
Currency	loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR)	Guinean franc (GNF)
Death rate	16.81 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)	15.53 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$715 million (2001 est.)	$3.25 billion (2001 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Robert G. LOFTIS embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 312666 FAX: [266] 310116	chief of mission: Ambassador Barrie R. WALKLEY embassy: Rue Ka 038, Conakry mailing address: B. P. 603, Conakry telephone: [224] 41 15 20, 41 15 21, 41 15 23 FAX: [224] 41 15 22
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Lebohang Kenneth MOLEKO chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815	chief of mission: Ambassador Rafiou Alpha Oumar BARRY chancery: 2112 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 986-4300 FAX: [1] (202) 478-3010
Disputes - international	none	domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups in Guinea, domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone have created insurgencies, street violence, looting, arms trafficking, ethnic conflicts skirmishes, deaths, and refugees in border areas; in 2003, Guinea and Sierra Leone established a boundary commission to resolve a dispute over the town of Yenga
Economic aid - recipient	$123.7 million (1995) (1995)	$359.2 million (1998)
Economy - overview	Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho's primary natural resource is water. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, livestock, remittances from miners employed in South Africa, and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. The number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years. A small manufacturing base depends largely on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries. Agricultural products are exported primarily to South Africa. Proceeds from membership in a common customs union with South Africa form the majority of government revenue. Although drought has decreased agricultural activity over the past few years, completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, generating royalties for Lesotho. The pace of privatization has increased in recent years. In December 1999, the government embarked on a nine-month IMF staff-monitored program aimed at structural adjustment and stabilization of macroeconomic fundamentals. The government is in the process of applying for a three-year successor program with the IMF under its Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility. Lesotho has a marked inequality in income distribution and serious unemployment/underemployment problems that will not yield to short-run solutions.	Guinea possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources, yet remains an underdeveloped nation. The country possesses over 30% of the world's bauxite reserves and is the second-largest bauxite producer. The mining sector accounted for about 75% of exports in 1999. Long-run improvements in government fiscal arrangements, literacy, and the legal framework are needed if the country is to move out of poverty. Fighting along the Sierra Leonean and Liberian borders, as well as refugee movements, have caused major economic disruptions, including a loss in investor confidence. Foreign mining companies have reduced expatriate staff, while panic buying has created food shortages and inflation in local markets. Guinea is not receiving multilateral aid. The IMF and World Bank cut off most assistance in 2003. Growth should strengthen in 2004, however, because of a slowly improving security situation and increased investor confidence.
Electricity - consumption	100 million kWh (2000)	735.2 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2000)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	100 million kWh note: electricity supplied by South Africa (2000)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	0 kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2000)	790.6 million kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 m
Environment - current issues	population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa	deforestation; inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification; soil contamination and erosion; overfishing, overpopulation in forest region; poor mining practices have led to environmental damage
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%,	Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10%
Exchange rates	maloti per US dollar - 11.58786 (January 2002), 8.60918 (2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997); note - the Lesotho loti is at par with the South African rand which is also legal tender; maloti is the plural form of loti	Guinean francs per US dollar - NA (2003), 1,975.84 (2002), 1,950.56 (2001), 1,746.87 (2000), 1,387.4 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995, while his father was in exile head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998) cabinet: Cabinet elections: none; according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution which came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to determine who is next in the line of succession, who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age, and may even depose the monarch	chief of state: President Lansana CONTE (head of military government since 5 April 1984, elected president 19 December 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Cellou Dalein DIALLO (since 9 December 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; candidate must receive a majority of the votes cast to be elected president; election last held 21 December 2003 (next to be held NA December 2008); the prime minister is appointed by the president election results: Lansana CONTE reelected president; percent of vote - Lansana CONTE (PUP) 95.3%, Mamadou Boye BARRY (UPR) 4.6%
Exports	$250 million f.o.b. (2001 est.)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals	bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products
Exports - partners	South African Customs Union 53.9%, North America 45.6% (1999)	South Korea 14.8%, Spain 10.7%, US 10.1%, France 9.2%, Russia 9%, Ireland 7.9%, Belgium 6.4%, Germany 5.6%, Ukraine 5.3% (2003)
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	calendar year
Flag description	divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the upper half is white, bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a green triangle in the corner	three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
GDP	purchasing power parity - $5.3 billion (2001 est.)	purchasing power parity - $19.02 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 18% industry: 38% services: 44% (2001)	agriculture: 24.9% industry: 38.2% services: 36.9% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $2,450 (2001 est.)	purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	2.6% (2001 est.)	3% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates	29 30 S, 28 30 E	11 00 N, 10 00 W
Geography - note	landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level	the Niger and its important tributary the Milo have their sources in the Guinean highlands
Highways	total: 4,955 km paved: 887 km unpaved: 4,068 km (1996)	total: 30,500 km paved: 5,033 km unpaved: 25,467 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 1% highest 10%: 43% (1986-87)	lowest 10%: 2.6% highest 10%: 32% (1994)
Imports	$720 million f.o.b. (2001 est.)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products	petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs
Imports - partners	South African Customs Union 89.5%, Asia 7% (1999)	France 16.8%, China 9.3%, Belgium 7.1%, Italy 6.6%, Netherlands 5.4%, UK 5.4%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.8%, US 4.5% (2003)
Independence	4 October 1966 (from UK)	2 October 1958 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	15.5% (1999 est.)	3.2% (1994)
Industries	food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism	bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light manufacturing and agricultural processing industries
Infant mortality rate	82.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)	total: 91.82 deaths/1,000 live births male: 97.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 86.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6.9% (2001 est.)	14.8% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	1 (2000)	-
Irrigated land	10 sq km (1998 est.)	950 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court	Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel
Labor force	700,000 economically active	3 million (1999)
Labor force - by occupation	86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa	agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% (2000 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 909 km border countries: South Africa 909 km	total: 3,399 km border countries: Cote d'Ivoire 610 km, Guinea-Bissau 386 km, Liberia 563 km, Mali 858 km, Senegal 330 km, Sierra Leone 652 km
Land use	arable land: 10.71% permanent crops: 0% other: 89.29% (1998 est.)	arable land: 3.63% permanent crops: 2.58% other: 93.79% (2001)
Languages	Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa	French (official), each ethnic group has its own language
Legal system	based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree; legal codes currently being revised; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 80 to 120 in the May 2002 election elections: last held 25 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 54%, BNP 21%, LPC 7%, other 18%; seats by party - LCD 76, BNP 21, LPC 5, other 18	unicameral People's National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale Populaire (114 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 30 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PUP 61.6%, UPR 26.6%, other 11.8%; seats by party - PUP 85, UPR 20, other 9
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 47 years male: 46.3 years female: 47.8 years (2002 est.)	total population: 49.7 years male: 48.45 years female: 50.99 years (2004 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 72% female: 93% (1999 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 35.9% male: 49.9% female: 21.9% (1995 est.)
Location	Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa	Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone
Map references	Africa	Africa
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	-	total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,344 GRT/5,003 DWT by type: cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: Iraq 1 (2003 est.)
Military - note	The Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs.	-
Military branches	Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; including Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police	Army, Navy, Air Force, Republican Guard, Presidential Guard, National Gendarmerie, General Directorate of National Police
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$34 million (1999)	$58.5 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA%	1.7% (2003)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 526,332 (2002 est.)	males age 15-49: 2,108,948 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 283,203 (2002 est.)	males age 15-49: 1,064,965 (2004 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 4 October (1966)	Independence Day, 2 October (1958)
Nationality	noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural) adjective: Basotho	noun: Guinean(s) adjective: Guinean
Natural hazards	periodic droughts	hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season
Natural resources	water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals	bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish
Net migration rate	-0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)	-3.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: as a result of conflict in neighboring countries, Guinea is host to approximately 150,000 Liberian and Sierra Leonean refugees (2004 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Tseliso MAKHAKHE]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justine Metsing LEKHANYA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Phebe MOTEBANO, chairwoman; Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; Lesotho People's Congress or LPC [Kelebone MAOPE]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Charles MOFELI]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP and Setlamo Alliance [Vincent MALEBO]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Chief Peete Nkoebe PEETE]; Sefate Democratic Party or SDP [Bofihla NKUEBE]	Democratic Party of Guinea-African Democratic Rally or PDG-RDA [El Hadj Ismael Mohamed Gassim GUSHEIN]; National Union for Progress or UPN [Mamadou Bhoye BARRY]; Party for Unity and Progress or PUP [Lansana CONTE] - the governing party; People's Party of Guinea or PPG [Pascal TOLNO]; Rally for the Guinean People or RPG [Alpha CONDE]; Union for Progress and Renewal or UPR [Siradiou DIALLO]; Union for Progress of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general]; Union of Republican Forces or UFR [Sidya TOURE]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	NA
Population	2,207,954 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.)	9,246,462 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	49% (1999 est.)	40% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate	1.33% (2002 est.)	2.37% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	none	Boke, Conakry, Kamsar
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 4 (one station is inactive), FM 1 (plus 7 repeaters), shortwave 3 (2001)
Radios	NA (2002)	-
Railways	total: 2.6 km; note - owned by, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa narrow gauge: 2.6 km 1.067-m gauge (1995)	total: 837 km standard gauge: 175 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 662 km 1.000-m gauge (2003)
Religions	Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20%	Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: rudimentary system domestic: consists of a few landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: poor to fair system of open-wire lines, small radiotelephone communication stations, and new microwave radio relay system domestic: microwave radio relay and radiotelephone communication international: country code - 224; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	22,200 (2000)	26,200 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	21,600 (2000)	111,500 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2000)	6 low-power stations (2001)
Terrain	mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains	generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior
Total fertility rate	4.01 children born/woman (2002 est.)	5.87 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	45% (2000 est.)	NA (2002 est.)
Waterways	none	1,295 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft) (2003)

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.