Map of Guinea-Bissau | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: 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 election. 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 overthrown in a bloodless military coup and businessman Henrique ROSA was sworn in as interim president. In 2005 former President VIEIRA was reelected pledging to pursue economic development and national reconciliation; he was assassinated in March 2009. Malam Bacai SANHA was elected in an emergency election held in June 2009 but he passed away in January 2012 from a long-term illness. A military coup in April 2012 prevented Guinea-Bissau's second-round presidential election - to determine SANHA's successor - from taking place. Following mediation by the Economic Community of Western African States a civilian transitional government assumed power in 2012 and remained until Jose Mario VAZ won free and fair elections in 2014.


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Location: Western Africa bordering the North Atlantic Ocean between Guinea and Senegal

Geographic coordinates: 12 00 N 15 00 W

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 36,125 km²
Land: 28,120 km²
Water: 8,005 km²
Rank: 138
Comparative: slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut

Land boundaries
Total: 762 km
Border countries: (2) Guinea 421 km; Senegal 341 km

Coastline: 350 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

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

Terrain: mostly low-lying coastal plain with a deeply indented estuarine coastline rising to savanna in east; numerous off-shore islands including the Arquipelago Dos Bijagos consisting of 18 main islands and many small islets

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: unnamed elevation in the eastern part of the country 300 m

Natural resources: fish timber phosphates bauxite clay granite limestone unexploited deposits of petroleum

Land use
Agricultural land: 44.8%
Forest: 55.2%
Other: 0%

Irrigated land: 225.6 km² (2003)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources: 31 km³ (2011)

Natural hazards: hot dry dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires

Geography
Note: this small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying inland


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Population: 1,726,170 (July 2015 est.)
Rank: 153
Growth rate: 1.91% (2015 est.)
Growth rate rank: 56
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Bissau-Guinean
Adjective: Bissau-Guinean

Ethnic groups: Fulani 28.5% Balanta 22.5% Mandinga 14.7% Papel 9.1% Manjaco 8.3% Beafada 3.5% Mancanha 3.1% Bijago 2.1% Felupe 1.7% Mansoanca 1.4% Balanta Mane 1% other 1.8% none 2.2% (2008 est.)

Languages: Crioulo 90.4% Portuguese 27.1% (official) French 5.1% English 2.9% other 2.4%
Note: shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census

Religions: Muslim 45.1% Christian 22.1% animist 14.9% none 2% unspecified 15.9% (2008 est.)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 39.53%
15-24 years: 20.18%
25-54 years: 32.3%
55-64 years: 4.66%
65 years and over: 3.34% (2015 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 78.4%
Youth dependency ratio: 72.8%
Elderly dependency ratio: 5.7%
Potential support ratio: 17.7%

Median age
Total: 19.9 years
Male: 19.4 years
Female: 20.4 years

Population growth rate: 1.91% (2015 est.)
Rank: 56

Birth rate: 33.38 births/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 31

Death rate: 14.33 deaths/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 4

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 94

Population distribution

Urbanization
Urban population: 49.3% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 4.13% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: BISSAU (capital) 492,000 (2015)

Environment
Current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing
International agreements party to: Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Endangered Species Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Ozone Layer Protection Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male/female
0-14 years: 1 male/female
15-24 years: 0.98 male/female
25-54 years: 0.99 male/female
55-64 years: 0.6 male/female
65 years and over: 0.6 male/female
Total population: 0.95 male/female

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 89.21 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 98.8 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 79.33 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 5

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 50.23 years
Male: 48.21 years
Female: 52.31 years
Rank: 223

Total fertility rate: 4.23 children born/woman (2015 est.)
Rank: 32

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 14.2% (2010)

Drinking water source:

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 0.1 physicians/1000 population (2009)

Hospital bed density: 1 beds/1000 population (2009)

Sanitation facility access:

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 3.69% (2014 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 17
People living with hivaids: 42,000 (2014 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 59
Deaths: 1900 (2014 est.)
Deaths rank: 57

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: very high
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea hepatitis A and typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: malaria dengue fever and yellow fever
Water contact disease: schistosomiasis
Animal contact disease: rabies

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 6.3% (2014)
Rank: 159

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 18.1% (2010)
Rank: 35

Education expenditures: NA

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 59.9%
Male: 71.8%
Female: 48.3%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 9 years
Male: NA
Female: NA

Youth unemployment


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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
Note: the country is named after the Guinea region of West Africa that lies along the Gulf of Guinea and stretches north to the Sahel; 'Bissau' distinguishes the country from neighboring Guinea

Government type: republic

Capital
Name: Bissau
Geographic coordinates: 11 51 N 15 35 W
Time difference: UTC 0

Administrative divisions: 9 regions (regioes singular - regiao); Bafata Biombo Bissau Bolama/Bijagos Cacheu Gabu Oio Quinara Tombali

Dependent areas

Independence: 24 September 1973 (declared); 10 September 1974 (from Portugal)

National holiday: Independence Day 24 September (1973)

Constitution: promulgated 16 May 1984; amended 1991 1993 1996; note - constitution suspended following military coup in April 2012 and restored in 2014 (2015)

Legal system: mixed legal system of civil law which incorporated Portuguese law at independence and influenced by early French civil code and customary law

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; non-party state to the ICCt

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: yes
Citizenship by descent: yes
Dual citizenship recognized: no
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Jose Mario VAZ
Head of government: Prime Minister Carlos CORREIA ; the initial appointment of Baciro DJA in August was nullified by the Supreme Court and he resigned
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
Electionsappointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in two rounds if needed for a 5-year term ; election last held on 13 April 2014 with a runoff on 18 May 2014 (next to be held in 2019); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the National People's Assembly
Election results: first round - Jose Mario VAZ 41% Nuno Gomez NABIAM (independent) 25.1% other 33.9%; Jose Mario VAZ elected president in second round - Jose Mario VAZ 61.9% Nuno Gomez NABIAM 38.1%

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular
Elections: last held on 13 April 2014
Election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 48.0% PRS 30.8% other parties 21.2%; seats by party - PAIGC 57 PRS 41 other 4

Judicial branch
Highest court: Supreme Court or Suprema Tribunal Justica ; note - the Supreme Court has both appellate and constitutional jurisdiction
Judge selection and term of office: judges nominated by the Higher Council of the Magistrate a major government organ responsible for judge appointments dismissals and judiciary discipline; judges appointed by the president with life tenure
Subordinate courts: Appeal Court; regional courts; military court

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: ACP AfDB AOSIS AU (suspended) CPLP ECOWAS FAO FZ G-77 IBRD ICAO ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ITSO ITU ITUC (NGOs) MIGA MINUSMA NAM OIC OIF OPCW UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO Union Latina UNWTO UPU WADB (regional) WAEMU WCO WFTU (NGOs) WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: none; note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington DC
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; the US Ambassador to Senegal currently Ambassador James P. ZUMWALT is accredited to Guinea-Bissau

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; yellow symbolizes the sun; green denotes hope; red represents blood shed during the struggle for independence; the black star stands for African unity
Note: uses the popular Pan-African colors of Ethiopia; the flag design was heavily influenced by the Ghanaian flag

National symbols: black star; national colors: red yellow green black

National anthem
Name: 'Esta e a Nossa Patria Bem Amada'
Lyrics and music: Amilcar Lopes CABRAL/XIAO He
Note: adopted 1974; a delegation from then Portuguese Guinea visited China in 1963 and heard music by XIAO He; Amilcar Lopes CABRA the leader of Guinea-Bissau's independence movement asked the composer to create a piece that would inspire his people to struggle for independence

National heritage


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Economy overview: Guinea-Bissau is highly dependent on subsistence agriculture cashew nut exports and foreign assistance. The legal economy is based on farming and fishing but illegal logging and trafficking in narcotics are also important economic activities. The combination of limited economic prospects weak institutions and favorable geography have made this West African country a way station for drugs bound for Europe while trade in illegal logging food and fishing is also significant. Two out of three Bissau-Guineans remain below the absolute poverty line. Guinea-Bissau has substantial potential for development of mineral resources including phosphates bauxite and mineral sands. The country’s climate and soil make it feasible to grow a wide range of cash crops fruit vegetables and tubers; however cashews generate more than 80% export receipts and are the main source of income for many rural communities. With renewed donor support following elections in April-May 2014 and a successful regional bond issuance the new government of Guinea-Bissau has made progress paying salaries settling domestic arrears and gaining more control over revenues and expenditures. The IMF noted that the new government has taken the positive step of developing a long-term economic plan while implementing sensitive economic reforms in the wake of the 2012 coup.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 189

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 129

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 215

Gross national saving:
Rank: 153

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 92.3%
Government consumption: 12.1%
Investment in fixed capital: 5.4%
Investment in inventories: 0%
Exports of goods and services: 15.5%
Imports of goods and services: -25.2%: (2014 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 43.9%
Industry: 13.6%
Services: 42.5%

Agriculture products: rice corn beans cassava (manioc tapioca) cashew nuts peanuts palm kernels cotton; timber; fish

Industries: agricultural products processing beer soft drinks

Industrial production growth rate: 1.9% (2014 est.)
Rank: 113

Labor force: 632,700 (2007 est.)
Rank: 154
By occupation agriculture: 82%
By occupation industry and services: 18%

Unemployment rate: NA%

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: NA%

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 2.9%
Highest 10: 28%

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $175.6 million
Expenditures: $213.4 million
Surplus or deficit: -3.4% of GDP (2014 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 135

Taxes and other revenues: 15.8% of GDP (2014 est.)
Rank: 187

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 6

Central bank discount rate:
Rank: 87

Commercial bank prime lending rate:
Rank: 36

Stock of narrow money:
Rank: 169

Stock of broad money:
Rank: 182

Stock of domestic credit:
Rank: 178

Market value of publicly traded shares: $N/A

Current account balance:
Rank: 68

Exports:
Rank: 187
Commodities: fish shrimp; cashews peanuts palm kernels raw and sawn lumber
Partners: India 52.3% Nigeria 20.7% China 16.3% Togo 5.5% (2014)

Imports:
Rank: 205
Commodities: foodstuffs machinery and transport equipment petroleum products
Partners: Portugal 20.6% Senegal 17.5% UK 16.1% Spain 4.2% India 4.2% China 4.1% (2014)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external:
Rank: 162

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Production: 50 million kWh (2012 est.)
Production rank: 207
Consumption: 46.5 million kWh (2012 est.)
Consumption rank: 207
Exports: 0 kWh (2013 est.)
Exports rank: 185
Imports: 0 kWh (2013 est.)
Imports rank: 191
Installed generating capacity: 26,000 kW (2012 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 201
Generation sources fossil fuels: 100% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 25
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 168
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 194
Generation sources other renewable sources: 0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 123

Coal

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 182
Crude oil exports: 0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 178
Crude oil imports: 0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 115
Crude oil proven reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2015 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 180

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Products production rank: 123
Products consumption: 2,700 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products consumption rank: 183
Products exports: 0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Products exports rank: 210
Products imports: 2,661 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Products imports rank: 176

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Production rank: 120
Consumption: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Consumption rank: 187
Exports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Exports rank: 166
Imports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Imports rank: 123
Proven reserves: 0 m³ (1 January 2014 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 185

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 460,100 Mt (2012 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 183

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 5,000
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: less than 1
Fixed lines rank: 208
Mobile cellular total: 1.1 million
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 65
Mobile cellular rank: 156

Telephone system
General assessment: small system including a combination of microwave radio relay open-wire lines radiotelephone and mobile cellular communications
Domestic: fixed-line teledensity less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile cellular teledensity is roughly 50 per 100 persons
International: country code - 245

Broadcast media: 1 state-owned TV station and a second station Radio e Televisao de Portugal (RTP) Africa is operated by Portuguese public broadcaster (RTP); 1 state-owned radio station several private radio stations and some community radio stations; multiple international broadcasters are available (2007)

Internet
Country code: .gw
Users total: 56,100
Users percent of population: 3.3%
Users rank: 181

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures:
Rank: 45

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 18-25 years of age for selective compulsory military service (Air Force service is voluntary); 16 years of age or younger with parental consent for voluntary service (2013)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 8 (2013)
Rank: 160
With paved runways total: 2
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1
With unpaved runways total: 6
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 2
With unpaved runways: 3 (2013)

Heliports

Pipelines

Railways

Roadways
Total: 3,455 km
Paved: 965 km
Unpaved: 2,490 km
Rank: 162

Waterways: (rivers are partially navigable; many inlets and creeks provide shallow-water access to much of interior) (2012)

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Bissau Buba Cacheu Farim


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Disputes international: in 2006 political instability within Senegal's Casamance region resulted in thousands of Senegalese refugees cross-border raids and arms smuggling into Guinea-Bissau

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees: 8,601 (Senegal) (2014)

Illicit drugs: increasingly important transit country for South American cocaine en route to Europe; enabling environment for trafficker operations due to pervasive corruption; archipelago-like geography near the capital facilitates drug smuggling