Guinea
Background: Independent from France since 1958, Guinea did not hold democratic elections until 1993 when Gen. Lansana CONTE (head of the military government) was elected president in disputed balloting. Security clampdowns continue, although not as severe as in earlier decades. Reelected in 1998, the president faced growing criticism in 1999 for his jailing of a major opposition leader and widespread economic malaise. Unrest in Sierra Leone also continued to threaten Guinea's stability.
Location: Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone Geographic coordinates: 11 00 N, 10 00 W Map references: Africa Area:
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Oregon Land boundaries:
Coastline: 320 km Maritime claims:
Climate: generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds Terrain: generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior Elevation extremes:
Natural resources: bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish Land use:
Irrigated land: 930 sq km (1993 est.) Natural hazards: hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season Environment - current issues: deforestation; inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification; soil contamination and erosion; overfishing, overpopulation in forest region Environment - international agreements:
Population: 7,466,200 (July 2000 est.) Age structure:
Population growth rate: 1.95% (2000 est.) Birth rate: 40.08 births/1,000 population (2000 est.) Death rate: 17.86 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.) Net migration rate:
-2.68 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio:
Infant mortality rate: 130.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.) Life expectancy at birth:
Total fertility rate: 5.46 children born/woman (2000 est.) Nationality:
Ethnic groups: Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10% Religions: Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7% Languages: French (official), each ethnic group has its own language Literacy:
Country name:
Data code: GV Government type: republic Capital: Conakry Administrative divisions: 4 administrative regions (regions administrative, singular - region administrative) and 1 special zone (zone speciale)*; Conakry*, Guinee, Guinee-Forestiere, Haute-Guinee, Moyen-Guinee Independence: 2 October 1958 (from France) National holiday: Anniversary of the Second Republic, 3 April (1984) Constitution: 23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale) Legal system: based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree; legal codes currently being revised; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal Executive branch:
Legislative branch:
unicameral People's National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale Populaire (114 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
Judicial branch: Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party of Guinea or PDG-AST [Marcel CROS]; Democratic Party of Guinea-African Democratic Rally or PDG-RDA [El Hadj Ismael Mohamed Gassim GUSHEIN]; Party for Unity and Progress or PUP [Lansana CONTE] - the governing party; Party for Renewal and Progress or PRP [Siradiou DIALLO]; Rally for the Guinean People or RPG [Alpha CONDE]; Union for Progress of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general]; Union for the New Republic or UNR [Mamadou Boye BA] International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MINURSO, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO Diplomatic representation in the US:
Diplomatic representation from the US:
Flag description: three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Rwanda, which has a large black letter R centered in the yellow band
Economy - overview: Guinea possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources, yet remains a poor underdeveloped nation. The agricultural sector employs 80% of the work force. Guinea possesses over 25% of the world's bauxite reserves and is the second largest bauxite producer. The mining sector accounted for about 75% of exports in 1998. Long-run improvements in government fiscal arrangements, literacy, and the legal framework are needed if the country is to move out of poverty. The government made encouraging progress in budget management in 1997-99. Even with a recovery in prices for some of Guinea's main commodity exports, annual GDP is unlikely to increase by more than 5% in 2000-2001. GDP: purchasing power parity - $9.2 billion (1999 est.) GDP - real growth rate: 3.7% (1999 est.) GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,200 (1999 est.) GDP - composition by sector:
Population below poverty line: NA% Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.5% (1999 est.) Labor force: 2.4 million (1983) Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 80%, industry and commerce 11%, services 5.4%, civil service 3.6% Unemployment rate: NA% Budget:
Industries: bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light manufacturing and agricultural processing industries Industrial production growth rate: 3.2% (1994) Electricity - production: 535 million kWh (1998) Electricity - production by source:
Electricity - consumption: 498 million kWh (1998) Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998) Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998) Agriculture - products: rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber Exports: $695 million (f.o.b., 1998 est.) Exports - commodities: bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products Exports - partners: Russia, US, Benelux, Ukraine, Ireland, Spain (1997) Imports: $560 million (f.o.b., 1998 est.) Imports - commodities: petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs (1997) Imports - partners: France, Cote d'Ivoire, US, Benelux, Hong Kong (1997) Debt - external: $3.15 billion (1998 est.) Economic aid - recipient: $433.6 million (1995) Currency: 1 Guinean franc (FG) = 100 centimes Exchange rates: Guinean francs (FG) per US$1 - 1,292.5 (January 1999), 1,236.8 (1998), 1,095.3 (1997), 1,004.0 (1996), 991.4 (1995) Fiscal year: calendar year
Telephones - main lines in use: 11,000 (1995) Telephones - mobile cellular: 950 (1995) Telephone system:
poor to fair system of open-wire lines, small radiotelephone communication stations, and new microwave radio relay system
Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 8, shortwave 3 (1998) Radios: 357,000 (1997) Television broadcast stations: 6 (1997) Televisions: 85,000 (1997) Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
Railways:
Highways:
Waterways: 1,295 km navigable by shallow-draft native craft Ports and harbors: Boke, Conakry, Kamsar Merchant marine: none (1999 est.) Airports: 15 (1999 est.) Airports - with paved runways:
Airports - with unpaved runways:
Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Republican Guard, Presidential Guard, paramilitary National Gendarmerie, National Police Force (Surete National) Military manpower - availability:
Military manpower - fit for military service:
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $56 million (FY96) Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.4% (FY96)
Disputes - international: none |
|