Paracel Islands (2003) | Guinea-Bissau (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 41.9% (male 281,394; female 282,641)
15-64 years: 55.2% (male 353,755; female 388,968) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 17,130; female 21,591) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish |
Airports | 1 (2002) | 28 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 25
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2002) |
Area | total: NA sq km
land: NA sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 36,120 sq km
land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | NA | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut |
Background | The Paracel Islands are surrounded by productive fishing grounds and by potential oil and gas reserves. In 1932, French Indochina annexed the islands and set up a weather station on Pattle Island; maintenance was continued by its successor, Vietnam. China has occupied the Paracel Islands since 1974, when its troops seized a South Vietnamese garrison occupying the western islands. The islands are claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam. | In 1994, 20 years after independence from Portugal, the country's first multiparty legislative and presidential elections were held. An army uprising that triggered a bloody civil war in 1998, created hundreds of thousands of displaced persons. The president was ousted by a military junta in May 1999. An interim government turned over power in February 2000 when opposition leader Kumba YALA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by its crippled economy devastated in the civil war. |
Birth rate | - | 38.95 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | - | Bissau |
Climate | tropical | tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds |
Coastline | 518 km | 350 km |
Constitution | - | 16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Paracel Islands |
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 |
Currency | - | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States; previously the Guinea-Bissau peso (GWP) was used |
Death rate | - | 15.05 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $931 million (1999 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; for the time being, US embassy Dakar is responsible for covering Guinea-Bissau: telephone - [221] 823-4296; FAX - [221] 822-5903 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Henrique Adriano DA SILVA
chancery: 1511 K Street NW, Suite 519, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950 FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954 |
Disputes - international | occupied by China, but claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam | Senegalese separatists disrupt legal border trade with smuggling, cattle rustling, and other illegal activities |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $115.4 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | China announced plans in 1997 to open the islands for tourism. | 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 1999-2001. 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, unexploited offshore oil reserves could provide 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. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 55.8 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | - | 60 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Rocky Island 14 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing |
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 |
Ethnic groups | - | African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% |
Exchange rates | - | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997)
note: as of 1 May 1997, Guinea-Bissau adopted the XOF franc as the national currency; since 1 January 1999, the XOF franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF francs per euro |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: President Kumba YALA (since 18 February 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Mario PIRES (since 17 November 2002) cabinet: NA elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 28 November 1999 and 16 January 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the legislature election results: Kumba YALA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Kumba YALA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28% |
Exports | - | $80 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | - | cashew nuts 70%, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber |
Exports - partners | - | India 51.4%, Italy 2.7%, South Korea 2.0%, Belgium 2.0% (2000) |
Fiscal 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 |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.2 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 54%
industry: 15% services: 31% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $900 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 7.2% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 16 30 N, 112 00 E | 12 00 N, 15 00 W |
Geography - note | composed of 130 small coral islands and reefs divided into the northeast Amphitrite Group and the western Crescent Group | this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland |
Highways | - | total: 4,400 km
paved: 453 km unpaved: 3,947 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 42% (1991) (1991) |
Imports | - | $55.2 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | - | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | - | Portugal 30%, Senegal 14.6%, Thailand 8.5%, China 5.7% (2000) |
Independence | - | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | 2.6% (1997 est.) |
Industries | - | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
Infant mortality rate | - | 108.54 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 5% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | - | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km (1998 est.) | 170 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consists of nine justices who are 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) |
Labor force | - | 480,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture 82% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 724 km
border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 10.67%
permanent crops: 1.78% other: 87.55% (1998 est.) |
Languages | - | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
Legal system | - | NA |
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 November 1999 (next to be held 20 April 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRS 37, RGB 27, PAIGC 25, 11 remaining seats went to 5 of the remaining 10 parties that fielded candidates |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 49.8 years
male: 47.47 years female: 52.2 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 34% male: 50% female: 18% (2000 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Asia, group of small islands and reefs in the South China Sea, about one-third of the way from central Vietnam to the northern Philippines | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | NA | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | occupied by China | - |
Military branches | - | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $5.6 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.8% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 313,573 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 178,404 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) |
Nationality | - | noun: Guinean (s)
adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | typhoons | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires |
Natural resources | none | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, unexploited deposits of petroleum |
Net migration rate | - | -1.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Francisco BENANTE]; Front for the Liberation and Independence of Guinea or FLING [Francois MENDY]; Guinea-Bissau Resistance-Ba Fata Movement or RGB-MB [Helder Vaz LOPES]; Guinean Civic Forum or FCG [Antonieta Rosa GOMES]; International League for Ecological Protection or LIPE [Alhaje Bubacar DJALO, president]; National Union for Democracy and Progress or UNDP [Abubacer BALDE, secretary general]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Kumba YALA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Victor Sau'de MARIA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | no indigenous inhabitants
note: there are scattered Chinese garrisons (July 2003 est.) |
1,345,479 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 2.23% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | small Chinese port facilities on Woody Island and Duncan Island being expanded | Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002) |
Radios | - | 49,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | - | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 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: NA |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 10,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 0 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | - | NA (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low and flat | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east |
Total fertility rate | - | 5.13 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | - | NA% |
Waterways | none | several rivers are accessible to coastal shipping |