Guinea-Bissau

Internet country code

.gw

Internet hosts

2 (2004)

Internet users

19,000 (2003)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 1 (transmitter out of service), FM 4, shortwave 0 (2002)

Telephone system

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

10,600 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular

1,300 (2003)

Television broadcast stations

NA (1997)

Agriculture - products

rice, corn, beans, cassava (tapioca), cashew nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, cotton; timber; fish

Budget

revenues: NA expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA

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

Currency code

XOF; GWP

Debt - external

$941.5 million (2000 est.)

Economic aid - recipient

$115.4 million (1995)

Economy - overview

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, 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 from a lamentably low base. Government drift and indecision, however, have resulted in low growth in 2002-03 and dim prospects for 2004.

Electricity - consumption

51.15 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports

0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - production

55 million kWh (2001)

Exchange rates

Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999) 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

Exports

$54 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Exports - commodities

cashew nuts, shrimp, peanuts, palm kernels, sawn lumber

Exports - partners

India 76.8%, Nigeria 12.1%, Italy 5.1% (2003)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $1.063 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 62% industry: 12% services: 26% (1999 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

-7% (2003 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 0.5% highest 10%: 42.4% (1991)

Imports

$104 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Imports - commodities

foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, petroleum products

Imports - partners

Senegal 18.1%, India 14.6%, Portugal 14.6%, China 9.7%, Italy 9%, Spain 4.9% (2003)

Industrial production growth rate

2.6% (1997 est.)

Industries

agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

4% (2002 est.)

Labor force

480,000 (1999)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 82% (2000 est.)

Oil - consumption

2,500 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports

NA (2001)

Oil - imports

NA (2001)

Oil - production

0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Population below poverty line

NA

Unemployment rate

NA (1998)

Area

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 Connecticut

Climate

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

350 km

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location in the northeast corner of the country 300 m

Environment - current issues

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

Geographic coordinates

12 00 N, 15 00 W

Geography - note

this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying further inland

Irrigated land

170 sq km (1998 est.)

Land boundaries

total: 724 km border countries: Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km

Land use

arable land: 10.67% permanent crops: 8.82% other: 80.51% (2001)

Location

Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal

Map references

Africa

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Natural hazards

hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires

Natural resources

fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, unexploited deposits of petroleum

Terrain

mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east

Administrative divisions

9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali; note - Bolama may have been renamed Bolama/Bijagos

Capital

Bissau

Constitution

16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26 February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996

Country name

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

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; 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

Executive branch

chief of state: President Henrique ROSA (interim; since 28 September 2003); note - a September 2003 coup overthrew the elected government of Kumba YALA; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 to 28 September 2003 head of government: Prime Minister Carlos GOMES Junior (since 9 May 2004) 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% note: a bloodless coup led to the dissolution of the elected government of Kumba YALA in September 2003; General Verissimo Correia SEABRA served as interim president from 14 September 2003 until stepping aside on 28 September 2003 with the establishment of a caretaker government

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

Government type

republic, multiparty since mid-1991

Independence

24 September 1973 (unilaterally declared by Guinea-Bissau); 10 September 1974 (recognized by Portugal)

International organization participation

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, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

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)

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); note - President YALA dissolved the National People's Assembly in November 2002, elections for a new legislature were scheduled to fall in February 2003 but were then postponed to April, then July, then September, and were last scheduled to occur in March 2004 elections: last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) 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

National holiday

Independence Day, 24 September (1973)

Political parties and leaders

African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde or PAIGC [Carlos GOMES Junior]; 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 Platform or UP [coalition formed by PCD, FDS, FLING, and RGB-MB]; United Social Democratic Party or PUSD [Francisco Jose FADUL]

Political pressure groups and leaders

NA

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Background

Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable upheaval. The founding government consisted of a single party system and command economy. In 1980, a military coup established Joao VIEIRA as president and a path to a market economy and multiparty system was implemented. A number of coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him and in 1994 he was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military coup attempt and civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIERA's ouster in 1999. In February 2000, an interim government turned over power when opposition leader Kumba YALA took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. YALA was ousted in a bloodless coup in September 2003, and Henrique ROSA was sworn in as President. Guinea-Bissau's transition back to democracy will be complicated by its crippled economy, devastated in the civil war.

Military branches

People's Revolutionary Armed Force (FARP; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force), paramilitary force

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$8.4 million (2003)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

2.8% (2003)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 326,864 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 185,801 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - military age and obligation

18 years of age for compulsory military service (2001)

Age structure

0-14 years: 41.7% (male 288,760; female 289,975) 15-64 years: 55.4% (male 367,728; female 400,996) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 17,570; female 23,334) (2004 est.)

Birth rate

38.03 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate

16.57 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Ethnic groups

African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1%

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

10% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

1,200 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

17,000 (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 108.72 deaths/1,000 live births male: 119.37 deaths/1,000 live births female: 97.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)

Languages

Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 46.98 years male: 45.09 years female: 48.92 years (2004 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 42.4% male: 58.1% female: 27.4% (2003 est.)

Median age

total: 18.9 years male: 18.3 years female: 19.5 years (2004 est.)

Nationality

noun: Guinean(s) adjective: Guinean

Net migration rate

-1.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Population

1,388,363 (July 2004 est.)

Population growth rate

1.99% (2004 est.)

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: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate

5 children born/woman (2004 est.)

Disputes - international

attempts to stem refugees and cross-border raids, arms smuggling, and political instability from a separatist movement in Senegal's Casamance region

Airports

28 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total: 3 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 25 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.)

Highways

total: 4,400 km paved: 453 km unpaved: 3,947 km (1999 est.)

Merchant marine

none

Ports and harbors

Bissau, Buba, Cacheu, Farim

Waterways

4 largest rivers are navigable for some distance; many inlets and creeks give shallow-water access to much of interior (2004)