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Guinea
Intro Official Name: Republic of Guinea Government Type: Republic Former Name: French Guinea Capital: Conakry (pop: 1,127,000) (1990) Size: 94,926 square miles or slightly smaller than Oregon Internet Service Providers: NA Bauxite may be the key to Guinea's future, but Ahmed Sekou Touré holds the key to its recent past. The most powerful trade union leader in colonial French West Africa, Touré, an ethnic Malinke, rebuffed French President Charles de Gaulle's 1958 offer of autonomy within a French African community with the proclamation that Guinea preferred "freedom in poverty to liberty in chains." The claim found a receptive audience: after having once been part of the legendary Empire of Mali, Guinea in the 15th century became a key station for the Portuguese slave trade, before being consumed by the French 400 years later. Touré went on to rule an independent Guinea until his death in 1984, driving more than one million Guineans abroad in the effort to escape famine, bungled attempts at collectivization and a brutal police state. After the leaders of a 1993 military coup vowed to reverse Touré's legacy, the country held its first multiparty elections. The IMF moved in with offers of help in return for economic reform, but Guinea still ranks last in the United Nations' Quality of Life index. The country contains 25 percent of the world's bauxite reserves and ranks as the second largest bauxite producer worldwide. People Population: 7,466,200 Life Expectancy: 46 years HIV/AIDS Rate Of Infection: 1.54% (1999) Infant Mortality Rate: 130.98 deaths/1,000 live births Fertility Rate: 5.46 children born/woman 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 Rate: 35.9% (age 15 and over can read and write) Cell Phones: 950 (1995) Telephones: 11,000 (1995) Radios: 357,000 (1997) Televisions: 85,000 (1997) Economy Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $9.2 billion (1999 est.) GDP per capita:$1,200 (1999 est.) GDP Growth Rate: 3.7% (1999 est.) Inflation: 4.5% (1999 est.) Unemployment: NA Exports: $695 million (f.o.b., 1998 est.) Major Exports: Bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products Economic Aid Recipient: $433.6 million (1995) External Debt: $3.15 billion (1998 est.) Currency: Guinean franc Environment Physical Description: Guinea's rainforests are located in the eastern part of the country. Fires and farming, however, keep the vegetation far from dense. The country is divided into a coastal plain, he north-western Fouta Djalon hill region, where the Niger River has its source, the northern lowlands and a forested area in the southeast. Guinea is bordered by Guinea-Bissau, Senegal, Liberia, Mali, Côte d'Ivoire and Sierra Leone Climate: Monsoon season alternating with dry season Irrigated Land: 930 sq km (1993 est.) Land Use: Arable Land: 2% Permanent Crops: 0% Permanent Pastures: 22% Forests and Woodland: 59% Other: 17% (1993 est.) Natural Resources: Bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish Natural Hazards: Hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze during dry season Eco-alerts: Guinea suffers from deforestation and overpopulation in its rainforest regions (Statistics Sources: CIA World Factbook 2000, UNAIDS, Encyclopedia Britannica) |
