Guinea has had only two presidents 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. Guinea has maintained its internal stability despite spillover effects from conflict in Sierra Leone and Liberia. As those countries have rebuilt, Guinea's own vulnerability to political and economic crisis has increased. In 2006, declining economic conditions and popular dissatisfaction with corruption and bad governance prompted two massive strikes that sparked urban unrest in many Guinean cities.
total: 17.7 years male: 17.5 years female: 17.9 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.62% (2007 est.)
Birth rate:
41.53 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate:
15.33 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.781 male(s)/female total population: 1.001 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 88.58 deaths/1,000 live births male: 93.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 83.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 49.65 years male: 48.5 years female: 50.84 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate:
5.75 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
3.2% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
140,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
9,000 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: malaria and yellow fever are high risks in some locations water contact disease: schistosomiasis respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis aerosolized dust or soil contact disease: Lassa fever (2007)
Nationality:
noun: Guinean(s) adjective: Guinean
Ethnic groups:
Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10%
Religions:
Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7%
Languages:
French (official); note - each ethnic group has its own language
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 35.9% male: 49.9% female: 21.9% (1995 est.)
conventional long form: Republic of Guinea conventional short form: Guinea local long form: Republique de Guinee local short form: Guinee former: French Guinea
Government type:
republic
Capital:
name: Conakry geographic coordinates: 9 31 N, 13 43 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree; legal codes currently being revised; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Lansana CONTE (head of military government since 5 April 1984, elected president 19 December 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Lansana KOUYATE (since 26 February 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits); candidate must receive a majority of the votes cast to be elected president; election last held 21 December 2003 (next to be held in December 2010); the prime minister is appointed by the president election results: Lansana CONTE reelected president; percent of vote - Lansana CONTE 95.3%, Mamadou Bhoye BARRY 4.6%
Legislative branch:
unicameral People's National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale Populaire (114 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 30 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PUP 61.6%, UPR 26.6%, other 11.8%; seats by party - PUP 85, UPR 20, other 9
Judicial branch:
Court of First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme
Political parties and leaders:
Democratic Party of Guinea-African Democratic Rally or PDG-RDA [El Hadj Ismael Mohamed Gassim GUSHEIN]; Dyama; National Union for Progress or UPN [Mamadou Bhoye BARRY]; Party for Unity and Progress or PUP (the governing party) [Lansana CONTE]; People's Party of Guinea or PPG [Charles Pascal TOLNO]; Rally for the Guinean People or RPG [Alpha CONDE]; Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea or UFDG [Mamadou BAH]; Union of Republican Forces or UFR [Sidya TOURE]; Union for Progress of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general]; Union for Progress and Renewal or UPR [Ousmane BAH]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
National Confederation of Guinean Workers - Labor Union of Guinean Workers or CNTG-USTG Alliance: National Confederation of Guinean Workers [Rabiatou Sarah DIALLO] and Labor Union of Guinean Workers [Dr. Ibrahima FOFANA]; Syndicate of Guinean Teachers and Researchers or SLECG [Dr. Louis M'Bemba SOUMAH]; National Council of Civil Society Organizations of Guinea CNOSCG [Ben Sekou SYLLA]
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant) chancery: 2112 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 986-4300 FAX: [1] (202) 478-3800
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Jackson C. MCDONALD embassy: Koloma, Conakry, east of Hamdallaye Circle mailing address: B. P. 603, Transversale No. 2, Centre Administratif de Koloma, Commune de Ratoma, Conakry telephone: [224] 30-42-08-61 through 68 FAX: [224] 30-42-08-73
Flag description:
three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia
general assessment: poor to fair system of open-wire lines, small radiotelephone communication stations, and new microwave radio relay system domestic: microwave radio relay and radiotelephone communication international: country code - 224; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
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
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 54,810 (Liberia), 5,423 (Sierra Leone), 3,900 (Cote d'Ivoire) IDPs: 19,000 (cross-border incursions from Cote d'Ivoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone) (2006)
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