Guinea has had a history of authoritarian rule since gaining its independence from France in 1958. Lansana CONTE came to power in 1984 when the military seized the government after the death of the first president, Sekou TOURE. Guinea did not hold democratic elections until 1993 when Gen. CONTE (head of the military government) was elected president of the civilian government. He was reelected in 1998 and again in 2003, though all the polls were marred by irregularities. History repeated itself in December 2008 when following President CONTE's death, Capt. Moussa Dadis CAMARA led a military coup, seizing power and suspending the constitution. His unwillingness to yield to domestic and international pressure to step down led to heightened political tensions that culminated in September 2009 when presidential guards opened fire on an opposition rally killing more than 150 people, and in early December 2009 when CAMARA was wounded in an assassination attempt and evacuated to Morocco and subsequently to Burkina Faso. A transitional government led by General Sekouba KONATE held democratic elections in 2010 and Alpha CONDE was elected president in the country's first free and fair elections since independence.

Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone

11 00 N, 10 00 W

Africa

slightly smaller than Oregon

320 km

generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds

generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior

bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish, salt

950 sq km (2008)

226 cu km (1987)

hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season

deforestation; inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification; soil contamination and erosion; overfishing, overpopulation in forest region; poor mining practices have led to environmental damage

the Niger and its important tributary the Milo have their sources in the Guinean highlands

Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10%

French (official)

Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7%

10,601,009 (July 2011 est.)

2.645% (2011 est.)

36.9 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)

10.45 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

CONAKRY (capital) 1.597 million (2009)

680 deaths/100,000 live births (2008)

5.1 children born/woman (2011 est.)

6.1% of GDP (2009)

0.1 physicians/1,000 population (2005)

0.31 beds/1,000 population (2005)

urban: 89% of population

rural: 61% of population

total: 71% of population

urban: 11% of population

rural: 39% of population

total: 29% of population (2008)

urban: 34% of population

rural: 11% of population

total: 19% of population

urban: 66% of population

rural: 89% of population

total: 81% of population (2008)

1.3% (2009 est.)

79,000 (2009 est.)

4,700 (2009 est.)

20.8% (2008)

2.4% of GDP (2008)

republic

33 prefectures and 1 special zone (zone special)*; Beyla, Boffa, Boke, Conakry*, Coyah, Dabola, Dalaba, Dinguiraye, Dubreka, Faranah, Forecariah, Fria, Gaoual, Gueckedou, Kankan, Kerouane, Kindia, Kissidougou, Koubia, Koundara, Kouroussa, Labe, Lelouma, Lola, Macenta, Mali, Mamou, Mandiana, Nzerekore, Pita, Siguiri, Telimele, Tougue, Yomou

2 October 1958 (from France)

Independence Day, 2 October (1958)

7 May 2010 (Loi Fundamentale)

civil law system based on the French model

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

the legislature was dissolved by junta leader Moussa Dadis CAMARA in December 2008 and in February 2010, the Transition Government appointed a 155 member National Transition Council (CNT) that has since acted in the legislature's place

Constitutional Court; Court of First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme

Rally for the Guinean People or RPG [Alpha CONDE]; Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea or UFDG [Cellou Dalein DIALLO]; Union of Republican Forces or UFR [Sidya TOURE]

National Confederation of Guinean Workers-Labor Union of Guinean Workers or CNTG-USTG Alliance (includes National Confederation of Guinean Workers or CNTG and Labor Union of Guinean Workers or USTG); Syndicate of Guinean Teachers and Researchers or SLECG

ACP, AfDB, AU (suspended), ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green; red represents the people's sacrifice for liberation and work; yellow stands for the sun, for the riches of the earth, and for justice; green symbolizes the country's vegetation and unity

Guinea is a poor country that possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources. The country has almost half of the world's bauxite reserves and significant iron ore, gold, and diamond reserves. However, Guinea has been unable to profit from this potential, as rampant corruption, dilapidated electricity and other degraded infrastructure, and political uncertainty have drained investor confidence. In the time since a 2008 coup following the death of long-term President Lansana CONTE, international donors, including the G-8, the IMF, and the World Bank, have significantly curtailed their development programs. Throughout 2009, policies of the ruling military junta severely weakened the economy. The junta leaders spent and printed money at an accelerated rate, driving inflation and debt to perilously high levels. In early 2010, the junta collapsed and was replaced by a Transition Government, which ceded power in December 2010 to the country's first-ever democratically elected president, Alpha CONDE. International assistance and investment are expected to return to Guinea, but the levels will depend upon the ability of the new government to combat corruption and reform its banking system. IMF and World Bank programs will be especially critical as Guinea attempts to gain debt relief. Since the 2009 global economic downturn, the price and value of bauxite and alumina exports has steadily risen. Export levels will likely continue to grow as investor confidence returns. International investors have expressed keen interest in Guinea's vast iron ore reserves, which could further propel the country's growth.

$10.81 billion (2010 est.)

$10.6 billion (2009 est.)

$10.63 billion (2008 est.)

$4.633 billion (2010 est.)

1.9% (2010 est.)

-0.3% (2009 est.)

4.9% (2008 est.)

$1,000 (2010 est.)

$1,100 (2009 est.)

$1,100 (2008 est.)

4.392 million (2007 est.)

NA%

47% (2006 est.)

39.4 (2007)

40.3 (1994)

21.3% of GDP (2010 est.)

16.2% of GDP (2010 est.)

-14.3% of GDP (2010 est.)

20% (2010 est.)

9% (2009 est.)

NA%

22.25% (31 December 2005)

24% (31 December 2010 est.)

23.8% (31 December 2009 est.)

$478.7 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$482.4 million (31 December 2009 est.)

$855.8 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$792.5 million (31 December 2009 est.)

$757.4 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$701.5 million (31 December 2009 est.)

$NA

rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber

bauxite, gold, diamonds, iron; alumina refining; light manufacturing, and agricultural processing

3% (2010 est.)

920 million kWh

855.6 million kWh (2008 est.)

0 kWh (2009 est.)

0 kWh (2009 est.)

0 bbl/day (2010 est.)

9,000 bbl/day (2010 est.)

0 bbl/day (2009 est.)

8,559 bbl/day (2009 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2011 est.)

0 cu m (2009 est.)

0 cu m (2009 est.)

0 cu m (2009 est.)

0 cu m (2009 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2011 est.)

-$370.6 million (2010 est.)

-$426.7 million (2009 est.)

$1.471 billion (2010 est.)

$1.05 billion (2009 est.)

bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products

India 15.5%, Spain 8%, Chile 7.7%, Russia 6.8%, Ireland 6.1%, Ukraine 5.7%, US 5.2%, Denmark 4.2%, Germany 4.1% (2010)

$1.405 billion (2010 est.)

$1.06 billion (2009 est.)

petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs

China 11.5%, Netherlands 6.3%, France 4.2% (2010)

$179.4 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$53.1 million (31 December 2009 est.)

$2.843 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$2.926 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

Guinean francs (GNF) per US dollar -

6,100 (2010)

5,500 (2009)

5,500 (2008)

4,122.8 (2007)

5,350 (2006)

18,000 (2010)

4 million (2010)

government maintains marginal control over broadcast media; single state-run TV station; state-run radio broadcast station also operates several stations in rural areas; a steadily increasing number of privately-owned radio stations, nearly all in Conakry, and about a dozen community radio stations; foreign television programming available via satellite and cable subscription services (2011)

.gn

14 (2010)

95,000 (2009)

16 (2010)

1,300 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft in the northern part of the Niger system) (2009)

Conakry, Kamsar

National Armed Forces: Army, Navy (Armee de Mer or Marine Guineenne, includes Marines), Guinean Air Force (Force Aerienne de Guinee) (2009)

18-25 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; 18-month conscript service obligation (2009)

1.1% of GDP (2009)

conflicts among rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in neighboring states have spilled over into Guinea resulting in domestic instability; Sierra Leone considers Guinea's definition of the flood plain limits to define the left bank boundary of the Makona and Moa rivers excessive and protests Guinea's continued occupation of these lands, including the hamlet of Yenga, occupied since 1998