GUINEA-BISSAU
Also known as: República da Guiné-Bissau
Quick Facts
| Location | Western Africa , bordering the North Atlantic Ocean , between Guinea and Senegal |
| Size | total: 36,120 sq km land: 28,000 sq km water: 8,120 sq km |
| Capitals | Bissau |
| Languages | Portuguese (official), Crioulo, African languages |
| Ethnic groups | African 99% (Balanta 30%, Fula 20%, Manjaca 14%, Mandinga 13%, Papel 7%), European and mulatto less than 1% |
| Population | 1,416,027 (July 2005 est.) |
| Religion | indigenous beliefs 50%, Muslim 45%, Christian 5% |
| Chief of State | President Henrique ROSA (interim; since 28 September 2003) |
| Government type | republic, multiparty since mid-1991 |
| GDP | $1.008 billion (2004 est.) |
| Industries | agricultural products processing, beer, soft drinks |
| Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF) |
| Internet country code | .gw |
| Time zone | UTC/GMT 0 (no time offset) |
On this page, you will find:
- Country- Map, Flag & Coat of Arms
- Introduction
- Journey Element 1: Nature & Wildlife (Natural Environment; Plants & Wildlife)
- Journey Element 2: Life & Society (History, Society & Culture, Government & Politics)
- Journey Element 3: Trade, Travel & Economy (Transportation, Communication, Economy, Tourism)
- Journey Element 4: Highlights, Current Events & Helpful Links (Highlights & amazing statistics, Current events, Other Helpful Links)
Country- Map, Flag & Coat of Arms
| Map | Map in context (From Wikipedia) |
| Flag | 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 |
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 VIEIRA'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.
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Journey Element 1: Nature & Wildlife
Natural Environment
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Plants & Wildlife
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Journey Element 2: Life & Society
History Overview
Guinea-Bissau was once the kingdom of Gabù, part of the Mali Empire; parts of the kingdom subsisted until the 18th century. Though the rivers and coast of this area were among the first places colonized by the Portuguese, who began the slave trade in the 17th century, the interior was not explored until the 19th century. A rebellion beginning in 1956 by the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) consolidated its hold on the country by 1973. Independence was unilaterally declared on September 24, 1973 and was recognized by a 93-7 UN General Assembly vote in November [1] , unprecedented as it denounced illegal Portuguese aggression and occupation and was prior to complete control and Portuguese recognition. Recognition became universal following the Portuguese revolution of 1974. The country was controlled by a revolutionary council until 1984. The first multi-party elections were held in 1994, but an army uprising in 1998 led to the president's ousting and the Guinea-Bissau Civil War. Elections were held in 2000 and Kumba Yala was elected. In September 2003 a coup took place in which the military arrested Yala, because "he was unable to solve the problems". After being delayed several times, legislative elections were held in April 2004. A mutiny of military factions in October 2004 resulted in the death of the head of the armed forces, and caused widespread unrest. In June 2005, Presidential elections was held for the first time since the coup that deposed Yala. Yala returned as the candidate for the PRS, claiming to be the legitimate President of the country, but the election was won by former President João Bernardo Vieira, deposed in the 1998 coup. Vieira was a candidate for one sect of the PAIGC. Vieira beat Malam Bacai Sanha in a runoff-election, but Sanha refused to initially concede, claiming that the election have been fraudalent in two constituencies, including the capital Bissau. Despite reports that there had been an influx of arms in the weeks leading up to the election and reports of some 'disturbances during campaigning' - including the attacks of the presidential palace and the Interior Ministry by as of yet unidentified gunmen - European monitors labelled the election as "calm and organized". From Wikipedia. |
Significant dates & events
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| 1400s | The rivers of Guinea and the islands of Cape Verde were among the first areas in Africa explored by the Portuguese in the 15th century. |
| 1446 | Portugal claims Portuguese Guinea. |
| 1450-1600s | Few trading posts established |
| 1630 | A "captaincy-general" of Portuguese Guinea was established to administer the territory. With the cooperation of some local tribes, the Portuguese entered the slave trade and exported large numbers of Africans to the Western Hemisphere via the Cape Verde Islands. Cacheu became one of the major slave centers, and a small fort still stands in the town. |
| 1765 | Bissau established as a military and slave-trading center. |
| 1800s | The slave trade declines. Bissau grows to become the major commercial center. |
| 1850s | Portuguese conquest and consolidation of the interior did not begin until the latter half of the 19th century. Portugal lost part of Guinea to French West Africa, including the center of earlier Portuguese commercial interest, the Casamance River region. A dispute with Great Britain over the island of Bolama was settled in Portugal's favor with the involvement of U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant. |
| 1930s | Before World War I, Portuguese forces, with some assistance from the Muslim population, subdued animist tribes and eventually established the territory's borders. The interior of Portuguese Guinea was brought under control after more than 30 years of fighting; final subjugation of the Bijagos Islands did not occur until 1936. |
| 1941 | The administrative capital is moved from Bolama to Bissau |
| 1952 | By constitutional amendment, the colony of Portuguese Guinea became an overseas province of Portugal. |
| 1956 | Amilcar Cabral and Raphael Barbosa organized the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) clandestinely. |
| 1960 | The PAIGC moved its headquarters to Conakry, Guinea. |
| 1961 | The PAIGC starts an armed rebellion against the Portuguese |
| 1961-68 | Despite the presence of Portuguese troops, which grew to more than 35,000, the PAIGC steadily expanded its influence until, by 1968, it controlled most of the country. It established civilian rule in the territory under its control and held elections for a National Assembly. Portuguese forces and civilians increasingly were confined to their garrisons and larger towns. |
| 1968-1973 | The Portuguese Governor and Commander in Chief, Gen. Antonio de Spinola, returned to Portugal and led the movement that brought democracy to Portugal and independence for its colonies. |
| 1973 | Amilcar Cabral is assassinated in Conakry, and party leadership fell to Aristides Pereira, who later became the first President of the Republic of Cape Verde. The PAIGC National Assembly met at Boe in the southeastern region and declared the independence of Guinea-Bissau on September 24, 1973. |
| 1974 | Following Portugal's April 1974 revolution, it granted independence to Guinea-Bissau on September 10, 1974. Luis Cabral, Amilcar Cabral's half-brother, became President of Guinea-Bissau. |
| 1980s | In late 1980, the government was overthrown in a relatively bloodless coup led by Prime Minister and former armed forces commander Joao Bernardo Vieira. From November 1980 to May 1984, power was held by a provisional government responsible to a Revolutionary Council headed by President Joao Bernardo Vieira. |
| 1983 | Alleged coup plots against the Vieira government |
| 1984 | The council is dissolved, and the National Popular Assembly (ANP) was reconstituted. The single-party assembly approved a new constitution, elected President Vieira to a new 5-year term, and elected a Council of State, which was the executive agent of the ANP. Under this system, the president presided over the Council of State and served as head of state and government. The president also was head of the PAIGC and commander in chief of the armed forces. |
| 1985 | Alleged coup plots against the Vieira government |
| 1986 | First Vice President Paulo Correia and five others were executed for treason following a lengthy trial. |
| 1993 | Alleged coup plots against the Vieira government |
| 1994 | The country's first multi-party legislative and presidential elections were held. |
| 1998 | An army uprising against the Vieira government in June triggered a bloody civil war that created hundreds of thousands of displaced persons. |
| 1999 | The President was ousted by a military junta in May. |
| 2000 | An interim government turned over power in February when opposition leader Kumba Yala, founder of the Social Renovation Party (PRS), took office following two rounds of transparent presidential elections. Despite the elections, democracy did not take root in the succeeding 3 years. |
| 2001 | New constitution that was approved by the National Assembly in April. President Yala neither vetoed nor promulgated the new constitution. The resulting ambiguity undermined the rule of law. Impulsive presidential interventions in ministerial operations hampered effective governance. |
| 2002 | On November 14, the President dismissed the government of Prime Minister Alamara Nhasse, dissolved the National Assembly, and called for legislative elections. Two days later, he appointed Prime Minister Mario Pires to lead a caretaker government controlled by presidential decree. |
| 2003 | Elections for the National Assembly were scheduled for April, but later postponed until June and then October. On September 12, the President of the National Elections Commission announced that it would be impossible to hold the elections on October 12, as scheduled. The army, led by Chief of Defense General Verrisimo Correia Seabra, intervened on September 14. President Yala announced his "voluntary" resignation and was placed under house arrest. The government was dissolved and a 25-member Committee for Restoration of Democracy and Constitutional Order was established. On September 28, businessman Henrique Rosa was sworn in as President. He had the support of most political parties and of civil society. Artur Sanha, PRS President, was sworn in as Prime Minister. |
| 2004 | On March 28 and 30, Guinea-Bissau held legislative elections which international observers deemed acceptably free and fair. On May 9, Carlos Gomes Junior became Prime Minister. |
| 2005 | On August 10, Joao Bernardo Vieria was declared the winner of a July 24 presidential runoff election over Malam Bacai Sanha in an election judged by international observers to be free and fair. |
Society & Culture
The population of Guinea-Bissau is ethnically diverse with distinct languages, customs, and social structures. Most people are farmers, with traditional religious beliefs (animism); 45% are Muslim, principally Fula and Mandinka speakers concentrated in the north and northeast. Other important groups are the Balanta and Papel, living in the southern coastal regions, and the Manjaco and Mancanha, occupying the central and northern coastal areas.
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Government & Politics
The country is still in a transitional period. According to Guinea-Bissau's constitution, last modified in 1993, and the Pact of Transition, the newly selected prime minister serves as the head of government, but President Vieria will take over after his inauguration. Tasks facing the new government include determining whether to modify the April 2001 constitution before the President promulgates it.
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Journey Element 3: Trade, Travel & Economy
Guinea-Bissau is among the world's least developed nations and depends mainly on agriculture and fishing. Guinea-Bissau exports some fish and seafood, although most fishing in Guinea-Bissau's waters is presently not done by Bissau-Guineans and very little fish and seafood is processed in Guinea-Bissau. The country's other important product is cashews. License fees for fishing provide the government with some revenue. Rice is a major crop and staple food and, if developed, Guinea-Bissau could potentially be self-sufficient in rice. Tropical fruits such as mangos could also provide more income to the country if the sector were developed. Because of high costs, the development of petroleum, phosphate, and other mineral resources is not a near-term prospect. However, unexploited offshore oil reserves may possibly provide much-needed revenue in the long run.
The military conflict that took place in Guinea-Bissau from June 1998 to early 1999 caused severe damage to the country's infrastructure and widely disrupted economic activity. Agricultural production is estimated to have fallen by 17% during the conflict, and the civil war led to a 28% overall drop in gross domestic product (GDP) in 1998. Cashew nut output, the main export crop, declined in 1998 by an estimated 30%. World cashew prices dropped by more than 50% in 2000, compounding the economic devastation caused by the conflict. Before the war, trade reform and price liberalization were the most successful part of the country's structural adjustment program under International Monetary Fund (IMF) sponsorship. Under the government's post-conflict economic and financial program, implemented with IMF and World Bank input, real GDP recovered in 1999 by almost 8%. In December 2000 Guinea-Bissau qualified for almost $800 million in debt-service relief under the first phase of the enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. However, Guinea-Bissau's Poverty Reduction and Growth Fund program with the IMF was suspended that same month--following disbursement of the first tranche--due to off-program expenditures by the Yala regime. Thus, IMF and Paris Club internal debt relief for Guinea-Bissau was also suspended in 2001. Presently, Guinea-Bissau is benefiting from World Bank and African Development Bank debt relief.
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Journey Element 4: Highlights, Current Events & Helpful Links
Highlights & amazing statistics
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Other Helpful Links
| Coming from the road! |
