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Region:
Western Africa
Capital:
Bissau
Population:
1,388,363 (July
2004 est.)
Surface
area:
36,125 sq km
Currency:
CFA franc
GDP
per capita:
purchasing power
parity - $900
(2003 est.)
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.
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.
United
Nations Membership
date: 17
September 1974
New
York Mission:
Permanent Mission
of the Republic
of Guinea-Bissau
to the United
Nations
800 Second Avenue,
Suite 400F
New York, N.Y.
10017 USA
Telephone: (917)
770-5598
Fax: (212) 856-9820
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