Turks and Caicos Islands (2002) | Guinea-Bissau (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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: 32.6% (male 3,101; female 3,004)
15-64 years: 63.6% (male 6,266; female 5,651) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 319; female 397) (2002 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), citrus fruits; fish | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish |
Airports | 8 (2001) | 27 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 24
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 19 (2007) |
Area | total: 430 sq km
land: 430 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 36,120 sq km
land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut |
Background | The islands were part of the UK's Jamaican colony until 1962, when they assumed the status of a separate crown colony upon Jamaica's independence. The governor of The Bahamas oversaw affairs from 1965 to 1973. With Bahamian independence, the islands received a separate governor in 1973. Although independence was agreed upon for 1982, the policy was reversed and the islands are presently a British overseas territory. | 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. |
Birth rate | 24.18 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 36.81 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $47 million
expenditures: $33.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997-98 est.) |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | Grand Turk (Cockburn Town) | name: Bissau
geographic coordinates: 11 51 N, 15 35 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; marine; moderated by trade winds; sunny and relatively dry | 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 | 389 km | 350 km |
Constitution | introduced 30 August 1976; suspended in 1986; restored and revised 5 March 1988 | 16 May 1984; amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and in 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Turks and Caicos 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 | US dollar (USD) | - |
Death rate | 4.38 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 16.29 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $941.5 million (2000 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: none; note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington, DC |
Disputes - international | none | in 2006, political instability within Senegal's Casamance region resulted in thousands of Senegalese refugees, cross-border raids, and arms smuggling into Guinea-Bissau |
Economic aid - recipient | $4.1 million (1997) (1997) | $79.12 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | The Turks and Caicos economy is based on tourism, fishing, and offshore financial services. Most capital goods and food for domestic consumption are imported. The US is the leading source of tourists, accounting for more than half of the 93,000 visitors in 1998. Major sources of government revenue include fees from offshore financial activities and customs receipts. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 4.65 million kWh (2000) | 55.8 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 5 million kWh (2000) | 60 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Hills 49 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources, private cisterns collect rainwater | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing |
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 |
Ethnic groups | black | African 99% (includes 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 - 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 |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1953), represented by Governor Jim POSTON (since 16 December 2002)
head of government: Chief Minister Derek H. TAYLOR (since 31 January 1995) cabinet: Executive Council consists of three ex officio members and five appointed by the governor from among the members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is appointed chief minister by the governor |
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% |
Exports | $13.7 million (1999) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | lobster, dried and fresh conch, conch shells | cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber |
Exports - partners | US, UK | India 76.1%, Nigeria 18.1%, Italy 1.4% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the colonial shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield is yellow and contains a conch shell, lobster, and cactus | 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 - $128 million (1999 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 62%
industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,300 (1999 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 8.7% (1999 est.) | 3.7% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 21 45 N, 71 35 W | 12 00 N, 15 00 W |
Geography - note | about 40 islands (eight inhabited) | this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland |
Highways | total: 121 km
paved: 24 km unpaved: 97 km (2000) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe | 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 | $175.6 million (1999) | 2,463 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | food and beverages, tobacco, clothing, manufactures, construction materials | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | US, UK | Portugal 18.7%, Senegal 16.3%, Italy 13%, Pakistan 4.5% (2006) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 24 September 1973 (declared); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 4.7% (2003 est.) |
Industries | tourism, offshore financial services | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
Infant mortality rate | 17.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 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.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (1995) (1995) | 4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau) | 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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 14 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 250 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | 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) |
Labor force | 4,848 (1990 est.) | 480,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | about 33% in government and 20% in agriculture and fishing; significant numbers in tourism, financial, and other services (1997 est.) | agriculture: 82%
industry and services: 18% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 724 km
border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.33%
permanent crops: 0% other: 97.67% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 8.31%
permanent crops: 6.92% other: 84.77% (2005) |
Languages | English (official) | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
Legal system | based on laws of England and Wales, with a few adopted from Jamaica and The Bahamas | based on French civil law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council (19 seats, of which 13 are popularly elected; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 4 March 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - PDM 52.2%, PNP 40.9%, independent 6.9%; seats by party - PDM 9, PNP 4 |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.76 years
male: 71.59 years female: 76.03 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 47.18 years
male: 45.37 years female: 49.04 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98% male: 99% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42.4% male: 58.1% female: 27.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, two island groups in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of The Bahamas | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | - |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | - | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP): Army, Navy, Air Force; paramilitary force |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 3.1% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 30 August (1976) | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) |
Nationality | noun: none
adjective: none |
noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | frequent hurricanes | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires |
Natural resources | spiny lobster, conch | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum |
Net migration rate | 12.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
People - note | destination and transit point for illegal Haitian immigrants bound for the Turks and Caicos Islands, Bahamas, and US | - |
Political parties and leaders | People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Derek H. TAYLOR]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Washington MISICK]; United Democratic Party or UDP [Wendal SWANN] | 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 |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 18,738 (July 2002 est.) | 1,472,780 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.28% (2002 est.) | 2.052% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Grand Turk, Providenciales | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3 (one inactive), FM 6, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Radios | 8,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Baptist 40%, Methodist 16%, Anglican 18%, Church of God 12%, other 14% (1990) | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.11 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
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.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: fair cable and radiotelephone services
domestic: NA international: 2 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,000 (1994) | 10,200 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1994) | 95,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (broadcasts from The Bahamas are received; cable television is established) (1997) | NA (2005) |
Terrain | low, flat limestone; extensive marshes and mangrove swamps | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east |
Total fertility rate | 3.18 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4.79 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | none | rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2007) |