Oman (2001) | Guinea (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 regions (mintaqat, singular - mintaqah) and 2 governorates* (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah) Ad Dakhiliyah, Al Batinah, Al Wusta, Ash Sharqiyah, Az Zahirah, Masqat, Musandam*, Zufar*; note - the US Embassy in Oman reports that Masqat is a governorate, but this has not been confirmed by the US Board of Geographic Names (BGN) | 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:
41.51% (male 554,727; female 533,627) 15-64 years: 56.12% (male 894,978; female 576,672) 65 years and over: 2.37% (male 32,863; female 29,331) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 44.4% (male 2,123,207/female 2,079,475)
15-64 years: 52.4% (male 2,478,820/female 2,486,300) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 131,130/female 168,934) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish | rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber |
Airports | 143 (2000 est.) | 16 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
6 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
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:
137 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 56 914 to 1,523 m: 37 under 914 m: 36 (2000 est.) |
total: 11
1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
212,460 sq km land: 212,460 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 Kansas | slightly smaller than Oregon |
Background | In 1970, QABOOS bin Said Al Said ousted his father and has ruled as sultan ever since. His extensive modernization program has opened the country to the outside world and has preserved a long-standing political and military relationship with the UK. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with all Middle Eastern countries. | 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 | 37.96 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 42.03 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$4.7 billion expenditures: $5.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $490 million (1999) |
revenues: $382.7 million
expenditures: $711.4 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Muscat | Conakry |
Climate | dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south | generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds |
Coastline | 2,092 km | 320 km |
Constitution | none; note - on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a royal decree promulgating a new basic law which, among other things, clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the government, establishes a bicameral legislature, and guarantees basic civil liberties for Omani citizens | 23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale) |
Country name | conventional long form:
Sultanate of Oman conventional short form: Oman local long form: Saltanat Uman local short form: Uman former: Muscat and Oman |
conventional long form: Republic of Guinea
conventional short form: Guinea local long form: Republique de Guinee local short form: Guinee former: French Guinea |
Currency | Omani rial (OMR) | - |
Death rate | 4.1 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.38 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $4.5 billion (2000 est.) | $3.25 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador John B. CRAIG embassy: Jameat A'Duwal Al Arabiya Street, Al Khuwair area, Muscat mailing address: international: P. O. Box 202, Code No. 115, Medinat Al-Sultan Qaboos, Muscat telephone: [968] 698989 FAX: [968] 699189 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Jackson MCDONALD
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 Abdallah bin Muhammad bin Aqil al-DHAHAB chancery: 2535 Belmont Road, NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-1980 through 1981, 1988 FAX: [1] (202) 745-4933 |
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 | boundary with the UAE has not been bilaterally defined; northern section in the Musandam Peninsula is an administrative boundary | conflicts among rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in neighboring states has spilled over into Guinea, resulting in domestic instability; Sierra Leone pressures Guinea to remove its forces from the town of Yenga occupied since 1998 |
Economic aid - recipient | $76.4 million (1995) | $359.2 million (1998) |
Economy - overview | Oman's economic performance improved significantly in 2000 due largely to the upturn in oil prices. The government is moving ahead with privatization of its utilities, the development of a body of commercial law to facilitate foreign investment, and increased budgetary outlays. Oman continues to liberalize its markets and joined the World Trade Organization (WTrO) in November 2000. | 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, aggravating a loss in investor confidence. Foreign mining companies have reduced expatriate staff. Panic buying has created food shortages and inflation and caused riots in local markets. Guinea is not receiving multilateral aid. The IMF and World Bank cut off most assistance in 2003. Growth rose slightly in 2004, primarily due to increases in global demand and commodity prices on world markets. |
Electricity - consumption | 8.026 billion kWh (1999) | 795.2 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 8.63 billion kWh (1999) | 855 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Arabian Sea 0 m highest point: Jabal Shams 2,980 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 m |
Environment - current issues | rising soil salinity; beach pollution from oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources | 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, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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 | Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi), African | Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10% |
Exchange rates | Omani rials per US dollar - 0.3845 (fixed rate since 1986) | Guinean francs per US dollar - 2,550 (2004), 1,984.9 (2003), 1,975.8 (2002), 1,950.6 (2001), 1,746.9 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said Al Said (since 23 July 1970); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
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 4 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 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 | $11.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles | bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products |
Exports - partners | Japan 27%, China 12%, Thailand 18%, UAE 12%, South Korea 12%, US (1999) | France 17.7%, Belgium 14.7%, UK 14.7%, Switzerland 12.8%, Ukraine 4.2% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of white, red, and green of equal width with a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the national emblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two crossed swords in scabbards) in white is centered at the top of the vertical band | three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $19.6 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
3% industry: 40% services: 57% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 25%
industry: 38.2% services: 36.8% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,700 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.6% (2000 est.) | 1% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 00 N, 57 00 E | 11 00 N, 10 00 W |
Geography - note | strategic location on Musandam Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil | the Niger and its important tributary the Milo have their sources in the Guinean highlands |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
32,800 km paved: 9,840 km (including 550 km of expressways) unpaved: 22,960 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%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 32% (1994) |
Imports | $4.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, livestock, lubricants | petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | UAE 26% (largely reexports), Japan 16%, UK 9%, Italy 7%, Germany 6%, US (1999) | Cote d'Ivoire 15.5%, France 9%, Belgium 6.1%, China 6%, South Africa 4.8% (2004) |
Independence | 1650 (expulsion of the Portuguese) | 2 October 1958 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (2000 est.) | 3.2% (1994) |
Industries | crude oil production and refining, natural gas production, construction, cement, copper | bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light manufacturing and agricultural processing industries |
Infant mortality rate | 22.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 90.37 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 95.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 84.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.8% (2000 est.) | 18% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, 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 | 580 sq km (1993 est.) | 950 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court
note: the nascent civil court system, administered by region, has non-Islamic judges as well as traditional Islamic judges |
Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 850,000 (1997 est.) | 3 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,374 km border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 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:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 0% other: 95% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 3.63%
permanent crops: 2.58% other: 93.79% (2001) |
Languages | Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects | French (official), each ethnic group has its own language |
Legal system | based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate appeal to the monarch; 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 Majlis Oman consists of an upper chamber or Majlis al-Dawla (48 seats; members appointed by the monarch; has advisory powers only) and a lower chamber or Majlis al-Shura (83 seats; members elected by limited suffrage, however, the monarch makes final selections and can negate election results; body has some limited power to propose legislation, but otherwise has only advisory powers)
elections: last held NA September 2000 (next to be held NA September 2003) election results: NA; note - two women were elected for the first time to Majlis al-Shura, about 100,000 people voted |
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:
72.04 years male: 69.9 years female: 74.29 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 49.36 years
male: 48.19 years female: 50.57 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: approaching 80% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 35.9% male: 49.9% female: 21.9% (1995 est.) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone |
Map references | Middle East | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 18,167 GRT/11,307 DWT ships by type: cargo 2, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary (includes Royal Oman Police) | Army (includes Presidential Guard, Republican Guard), Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, General Directorate of National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $2.4 billion (FY00) | $56.7 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 13% (FY00) | 1.7% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
771,919 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
429,811 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 14 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
26,469 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Birthday of Sultan QABOOS, 18 November (1940) | Independence Day, 2 October (1958) |
Nationality | noun:
Omani(s) adjective: Omani |
noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust storms in interior; periodic droughts | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season |
Natural resources | petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas | bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish, salt |
Net migration rate | 0.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -2.99 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 (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 1,300 km; natural gas 1,030 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | none | 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 of Democratic Forces of Guinea or UFDG [Mamadou BA]; Union of Republican Forces or UFR [Sidya TOURE]; Union for Progress and Renewal or UPR [Siradiou DIALLO]; Union for Progress of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 2,622,198
note: includes 527,078 non-nationals (July 2001 est.) |
9,467,866 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 40% (2003 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.43% (2001 est.) | 2.37% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Matrah, Mina' al Fahl, Mina' Raysut | Kamsar |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) | AM 4 (one station is inactive), FM 1 (plus 7 repeaters), shortwave 3 (2001) |
Radios | 1.4 million (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 837 km
standard gauge: 175 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 662 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Ibadhi Muslim 75%, Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, Hindu | Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.55 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.12 male(s)/female total population: 1.3 male(s)/female (2001 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 (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | in Oman's most recent elections in 2000, limited to approximately 175,000 Omanis chosen by the government to vote in elections for the Majlis ash-Shura | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
modern system consisting of open wire, microwave, and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable domestic: open wire, microwave, radiotelephone communications, and a domestic satellite system with 8 earth stations international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat |
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 | 201,000 (1997) | 26,200 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 59,822 (1997) | 111,500 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 13 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1999) | 6 low-power stations (2001) |
Terrain | central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south | generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior |
Total fertility rate | 6.04 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.83 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA (2002 est.) |
Waterways | none | 1,295 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft) (2003) |