Western Sahara (2004) | Guinea-Bissau (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | none (under de facto control of Morocco) | 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: NA
15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA |
0-14 years: 41.4% (male 297,623/female 298,942)
15-64 years: 55.6% (male 384,559/female 417,811) 65 years and over: 3% (male 18,048/female 25,046) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits and vegetables (grown in the few oases); camels, sheep, goats (kept by nomads) | rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish |
Airports | 11 (2003 est.) | 28 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 25
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2006) |
Area | total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 36,120 sq km
land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | about the size of Colorado | slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut |
Background | Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed. | 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 August 2005, former President VIEIRA was re-elected president in the second round of presidential polling. Since formally assuming office in October 2005, Vieira has pledged to pursue economic development and national reconciliation. |
Birth rate | NA births/1,000 population | 37.22 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: NA
expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA |
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA |
Capital | none | name: Bissau
geographic coordinates: 11 51 N, 15 35 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew | 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 | 1,110 km | 350 km |
Constitution | - | 16 May 1984; amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, NA 1996 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Western Sahara former: Spanish Sahara |
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 | Moroccan dirham (MAD) | - |
Death rate | NA deaths/1,000 population | 16.53 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | NA | $941.5 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none | 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 | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington, DC; Guinea-Bissau's representative in Washington is Henrique Adriano DA SILVA, P.O. Box 33813, Washington, DC 20033, telephone: (301)947-3958 |
Disputes - international | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, whose sovereignty remains unresolved - UN-administered cease-fire has remained in effect since September 1991 but attempts to hold a referendum have failed and parties thus far have rejected all brokered proposals | attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $115.4 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Western Sahara depends on pastoral nomadism, fishing, and phosphate mining as the principal sources of income for the population. The territory lacks sufficient rainfall for sustainable agricultural production, and most of the food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan Government. Moroccan energy interests in 2001 signed contracts to explore for oil off the coast of Western Sahara, which has angered the Polisario. Incomes and standards of living in Western Sahara are substantially below the Moroccan level. | 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 1999-2002. 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. However, offshore oil prospecting has begun and could lead to 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 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, have resulted in continued low growth in 2002-05. |
Electricity - consumption | 83.7 million kWh (2001) | 52.08 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 90 million kWh (2001) | 56 million kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Sebjet Tah -55 m
highest point: unnamed location 463 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m |
Environment - current issues | sparse water and lack of arable land | deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing |
Environment - international agreements | party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 | Arab, Berber | African 99% (includes Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% |
Exchange rates | Moroccan dirhams per US dollar - 9.574 (2003), 11.584 (2002), 11.303 (2001), 10.626 (2000), 9.804 (1999) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001)
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 | none | chief of state: President Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA (since 1 October 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Aristides GOMES (since 2 November 2005) 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%, Malan Bacai SANHA 47.6% |
Exports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | phosphates 62% | cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber |
Exports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts | India 72%, Nigeria 17.1%, Ecuador 4% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar 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 - NA | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: 40% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 62%
industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - NA | - |
GDP - real growth rate | NA | 2.3% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 24 30 N, 13 00 W | 12 00 N, 15 00 W |
Geography - note | the waters off the coast are particularly rich fishing areas | this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland |
Highways | total: 6,200 km
paved: 1,350 km unpaved: 4,850 km (1991 est) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 42.4% (1991) |
Imports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | fuel for fishing fleet, foodstuffs | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Morocco claims and administers Western Sahara, so trade partners are included in overall Moroccan accounts (2000) | Italy 25.3%, Senegal 18.6%, Portugal 15.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.3% (2005) |
Independence | - | 24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 4.7% (2003 est.) |
Industries | phosphate mining, handicrafts | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
Infant mortality rate | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
total: 105.21 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 115.53 deaths/1,000 live births female: 94.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | NA | 4% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | none | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 250 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | - | 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 | 12,000 | 480,000 (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | animal husbandry and subsistence farming 50% | agriculture: 82%
industry and services: 18% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km |
total: 724 km
border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km |
Land use | arable land: 0.02%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.98% (2001) |
arable land: 8.31%
permanent crops: 6.92% other: 84.77% (2005) |
Languages | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
Legal system | - | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 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: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
total population: 46.87 years
male: 45.05 years female: 48.75 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 42.4% male: 58.1% female: 27.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | contingent upon resolution of sovereignty issue | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Military branches | - | People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | NA | $9.46 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA | 3.1% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 24 September (1973) |
Nationality | noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi,Sahrawian, Sahraouian |
noun: Guinean(s)
adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | hot, dry, dust/sand-laden sirocco wind can occur during winter and spring; widespread harmattan haze exists 60% of time, often severely restricting visibility | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires |
Natural resources | phosphates, iron ore | fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum |
Net migration rate | - | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; Democratic Social Front or FDS; Electoral Union or UE; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Victor MANDINGA]; Social Renovation Party or PRS [Alberto NAMBEIA]; Union for Change or UM [Jorge MANDINGA, president, Dr. Anne SAAD, secretary general]; United Platform or UP (coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB); United Popular Alliance or APU; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 267,405 (July 2004 est.) | 1,442,029 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | NA | 2.07% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Ad Dakhla, Cabo Bojador, Laayoune (El Aaiun) | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002) |
Religions | Muslim | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
Sex ratio | NA | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | none; a UN-sponsored voter identification campaign not yet completed | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: sparse and limited system
domestic: NA international: country code - 212; tied into Morocco's system by microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and satellite; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) linked to Rabat, Morocco |
general assessment: small system
domestic: combination of microwave radio relay, open-wire lines, radiotelephone, and cellular communications international: country code - 245 |
Telephones - main lines in use | about 2,000 (1999 est.) | 10,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 0 (1999) | 67,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | NA (2005) |
Terrain | mostly low, flat desert with large areas of rocky or sandy surfaces rising to small mountains in south and northeast | mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east |
Total fertility rate | NA children born/woman | 4.86 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | NA% |
Waterways | - | four largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2006) |