World Country Guide

General Information

Area
36,125 sq km (13,948 sq miles).

Population
1,449,000 (official estimate 2002).

Population Density
40.1 per sq km.

Capital
Bissau. Population: 197,610 (1991).

Geography
Guinea-Bissau (formerly Portuguese Guinea) is located in West Africa, and is bordered to the north by Senegal and to the south and east by the Republic of Guinea. It encompasses the adjacent Bijags Islands and the island of Bolama. The country rises from a coastal plain broken up by numerous inlets through a transitional plateau to mountains on the border with Guinea. Thick forest and mangrove swamp cover the area nearest to the Atlantic Ocean. Savannah covers the inland areas.

Government
Republic. Gained independence from Portugal in 1973. Head of State: Interim President Henrique Pereira since 2003. Head of Government: Prime Minister Carlos Gomes Junior since May 2004.

Language
Official language is Portuguese. The majority of the population speak Guinean Creole. Balante and Fulani languages are also spoken.

Religion
Mainly animist and Muslim. There is a small minority of Roman Catholics and other Christians.

Time
GMT.

Electricity
Limited electricity supply on 220 volts AC, 50Hz.

Communications

Telephone
IDD is available. Country code: 245. Outgoing international calls must go through the operator. It is difficult to find public telephones or to receive international calls. Telephone services are also expensive.

Press
There are no English-language papers. Journal N Pintcha is published daily and Banobero, Correio-Bissau and Fraskera weekly.

Radio
BBC World Service (website: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice) and Voice of America (website: www.voa.gov) can be received. From time to time the frequencies change and the most up-to-date can be found online.