Puerto Rico (2005) | Guinea-Bissau (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | none (commonwealth associated with the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 78 municipalities (municipios, singular - municipio) at the second order; Adjuntas, Aguada, Aguadilla, Aguas Buenas, Aibonito, Anasco, Arecibo, Arroyo, Barceloneta, Barranquitas, Bayamon, Cabo Rojo, Caguas, Camuy, Canovanas, Carolina, Catano, Cayey, Ceiba, Ciales, Cidra, Coamo, Comerio, Corozal, Culebra, Dorado, Fajardo, Florida, Guanica, Guayama, Guayanilla, Guaynabo, Gurabo, Hatillo, Hormigueros, Humacao, Isabela, Jayuya, Juana Diaz, Juncos, Lajas, Lares, Las Marias, Las Piedras, Loiza, Luquillo, Manati, Maricao, Maunabo, Mayaguez, Moca, Morovis, Naguabo, Naranjito, Orocovis, Patillas, Penuelas, Ponce, Quebradillas, Rincon, Rio Grande, Sabana Grande, Salinas, San German, San Juan, San Lorenzo, San Sebastian, Santa Isabel, Toa Alta, Toa Baja, Trujillo Alto, Utuado, Vega Alta, Vega Baja, Vieques, Villalba, Yabucoa, Yauco | 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: 22% (male 441,594/female 421,986)
15-64 years: 65.5% (male 1,228,583/female 1,337,066) 65 years and over: 12.4% (male 211,283/female 276,120) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years:
42.09% (male 276,312; female 277,536) 15-64 years: 55.05% (male 344,493; female 379,889) 65 years and over: 2.86% (male 16,850; female 20,742) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, coffee, pineapples, plantains, bananas, livestock products, chickens | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish |
Airports | 30 (2004 est.) | 29 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 17
over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
total:
3 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 13
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.) |
total:
26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 9,104 sq km
land: 8,959 sq km water: 145 sq km |
total:
36,120 sq km land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Rhode Island | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut |
Background | Populated for centuries by aboriginal peoples, the island was claimed by the Spanish Crown in 1493 following Columbus' second voyage to the Americas. In 1898, after 400 years of colonial rule that saw the indigenous population nearly exterminated and African slave labor introduced, Puerto Rico was ceded to the US as a result of the Spanish-American War. Puerto Ricans were granted US citizenship in 1917. Popularly-elected governors have served since 1948. In 1952, a constitution was enacted providing for internal self government. In plebiscites held in 1967, 1993, and 1998, voters chose to retain commonwealth status. | 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 Koumba YALLA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by a crippled economy devastated by civil war and the military's predilection for governmental meddling. |
Birth rate | 13.93 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 39.29 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $6.7 billion
expenditures: $9.6 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (FY99/00) |
revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | San Juan | Bissau |
Climate | tropical marine, mild; little seasonal temperature variation | 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 | 501 km | 350 km |
Constitution | ratified 3 March 1952, approved by US Congress 3 July 1952, effective 25 July 1952 | 16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
conventional short form: Puerto Rico |
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 | 7.86 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 15.33 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $964 million (1998 est.) |
Dependency status | commonwealth associated with the US | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (commonwealth associated with 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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (commonwealth associated with the US) | chief of mission:
Ambassador Mario LOPES DA ROSA chancery: Suite 519, 1511 K Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 347-3950 FAX: [1] (202) 347-3954 |
Disputes - international | increasing numbers of illegal migrants from the Dominican Republic cross the Mona Passage to Puerto Rico each year looking for work | none |
Economic aid - recipient | NA (2001) | $115.4 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Puerto Rico has one of the most dynamic economies in the Caribbean region. A diverse industrial sector has far surpassed agriculture as the primary locus of economic activity and income. Encouraged by duty-free access to the US and by tax incentives, US firms have invested heavily in Puerto Rico since the 1950s. US minimum wage laws apply. Sugar production has lost out to dairy production and other livestock products as the main source of income in the agricultural sector. Tourism has traditionally been an important source of income, with estimated arrivals of nearly 5 million tourists in 1999. Growth fell off in 2001-03, largely due to the slowdown in the US economy, and has recovered in 2004. | One of the 20 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 1999-2000. 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 20.54 billion kWh (2002) | 51.2 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 22.09 billion kWh (2002) | 55 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Cerro de Punta 1,338 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
Environment - current issues | erosion; occasional drought causing water shortages | 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 | white (mostly Spanish origin) 80.5%, black 8%, Amerindian 0.4%, Asian 0.2%, mixed and other 10.9% | African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); Guinea-Bissauan pesos per US dollar - 26,373 (1996)
note: as of 1 May 1997, Guinea-Bissau adopted the CFA franc as the national currency; since 1 January 1999, the CFA franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 CFA francs per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA (since 2 January 2005) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor with the consent of the legislature elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA (PPD) elected governor; percent of vote - 48.4% |
chief of state:
President Koumba YALLA (since 18 February 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Faustino IMBALI (since 20 March 2001) 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: Koumba YALLA elected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Koumba YALLA (PRS) 72%, Malan Bacai SANHA (PAIGC) 28% |
Exports | NA | $80 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | chemicals, electronics, apparel, canned tuna, rum, beverage concentrates, medical equipment | cashew nuts 70%, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber (1996) |
Exports - partners | US 90.3%, UK 1.6%, Netherlands 1.4%, Dominican Republic 1.4% (2002 est.) | India 59%, Singapore 12%, Italy 10% (1998) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | five equal horizontal bands of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bears a large, white, five-pointed star in the center; design initially influenced by the US flag, but similar to the Cuban flag, with the colors of the bands and triangle reversed | 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 - $1.1 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1%
industry: 45% services: 54% (2002 est.) |
agriculture:
54% industry: 15% services: 31% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $17,700 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.7% (2004 est.) | 7.6% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 15 N, 66 30 W | 12 00 N, 15 00 W |
Geography - note | important location along the Mona Passage - a key shipping lane to the Panama Canal; San Juan is one of the biggest and best natural harbors in the Caribbean; many small rivers and high central mountains ensure land is well watered; south coast relatively dry; fertile coastal plain belt in north | - |
Highways | total: 25,328 km
paved: 23,665 km (including 426 km of expressways) unpaved: 1,363 km (2004) |
total:
4,400 km paved: 453 km unpaved: 3,947 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%:
0.5% highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
Imports | NA | $55.2 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | chemicals, machinery and equipment, clothing, food, fish, petroleum products | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products (1996) |
Imports - partners | US 55.0%, Ireland 23.7%, Japan 5.4% (2002 est.) | Portugal 26%, France 8%, Senegal 8%, Netherlands 7% (1998) |
Independence | none (commonwealth associated with the US) | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 2.6% (1997 est.) |
Industries | pharmaceuticals, electronics, apparel, food products, tourism | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
Infant mortality rate | total: 8.24 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 9.52 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
110.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.5% (2003 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ICFTU, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WToO (associate) | ACCT (associate), ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 400 sq km (1998 est.) | 17 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appellate Court; Court of First Instance composed of two sections: a Superior Court and a Municipal Court (justices for all these courts appointed by the governor with the consent of the Senate) | 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 | 1.3 million (2000) | 480,000 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 3%, industry 20%, services 77% (2000 est.) | agriculture 78% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
724 km border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.95%
permanent crops: 5.52% other: 90.53% (2001) |
arable land:
11% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 38% forests and woodland: 38% other: 12% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Spanish, English | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
Legal system | based on Spanish civil code and within the US Federal system of justice | NA |
Legislative branch | bicameral Legislative Assembly consists of the Senate (at least 27 seats - currently 29; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives (51 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); House of Representatives - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PNP 43.4%, PPD 40.3%, PIP 9.4%; seats by party - PNP 17, PPD 9, PIP 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PNP 46.3%, PPD 43.1%, PIP 9.7%; seats by party - PNP 32, PPD 18, PIP 1 note: Puerto Rico elects, by popular vote, a resident commissioner to serve a four-year term as a nonvoting representative in the US House of Representatives; aside from not voting on the House floor, he enjoys all the rights of a member of Congress; elections last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008); results - percent of vote by party - PNP 48.6%; seats by party - PNP 1; Luis FORTUNO elected resident commissioner |
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 by NA 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: 78.29 years
male: 74.35 years female: 82.43 years (2005 est.) |
total population:
49.42 years male: 47.12 years female: 51.78 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94.1% male: 93.9% female: 94.4% (2002 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 53.9% male: 67.1% female: 40.7% (1997 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of the Dominican Republic | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 36,728 GRT/37,048 DWT
by type: roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 2 (United States 2) registered in other countries: 1 (2005) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
Military branches | no regular indigenous military forces; paramilitary National Guard, Police Force | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $8 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 2.8% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
305,071 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
173,703 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | US Independence Day, 4 July (1776); Puerto Rico Constitution Day, 25 July (1952) | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) |
Nationality | noun: Puerto Rican(s) (US citizens)
adjective: Puerto Rican |
noun:
Guinean (s) adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; hurricanes | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires |
Natural resources | some copper and nickel; potential for onshore and offshore oil | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, unexploited deposits of petroleum |
Net migration rate | -1.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -1.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | National Democratic Party [Celeste BENITEZ]; National Republican Party of Puerto Rico [Dr. Tiody FERRE]; New Progressive Party or PNP (pro-US statehood) [Pedro ROSSELLO]; Popular Democratic Party or PPD (pro-commonwealth) [Anibal ACEVEDO-VILA]; Puerto Rican Independence Party or PIP (pro-independence) [Ruben BERRIOS Martinez] | 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 [Koumba YALLA]; 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 | Armed Forces for National Liberation or FALN; Armed Forces of Popular Resistance; Boricua Popular Army (also known as the Macheteros); Volunteers of the Puerto Rican Revolution | NA |
Population | 3,916,632 (July 2005 est.) | 1,315,822 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 50% (1991 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.47% (2005 est.) | 2.23% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Las Mareas, Mayaguez, San Juan | Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 72, FM 17, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 49,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 96 km
narrow gauge: 96 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant and other 15% | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
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: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; island residents are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern system integrated with that of the US by high-capacity submarine cable and Intelsat with high-speed data capability
domestic: digital telephone system; cellular telephone service international: country code - 1-787, 939; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat; submarine cable to US |
general assessment:
small system domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications international: NA |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1,329,500 (2002) | 8,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,211,111 (2001) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (19 relay stations) (2004) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly mountains with coastal plain belt in north; mountains precipitous to sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most coastal areas | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.91 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 5.2 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 12% (2002) | NA% |
Waterways | - | several rivers are accessible to coastal shipping |