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GeographyLocation
Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal Geographic coordinates
12 00 N, 15 00 W
Map references
Africa
Area World Ranking: 138
Total 36,125 sq km
Land 28,120 sq km Water 8,005 sq km Area - comparative
Slightly less than three times the size of Connecticut Land boundaries
Total 724 km
Border countries Guinea 386 km, Senegal 338 km Coastline
350 km
Maritime claims
Territorial sea 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone 200 nm Climate
Tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds Terrain
Mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in east Elevation extremes
Lowest point Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Highest point Unnamed elevation in the eastern part of the country 300 m Natural resources
Fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, clay, granite, limestone, unexploited deposits of petroleum Land use
Arable land 8.31%
Permanent crops 6.92% Other 84.77% (2005) Irrigated land
250 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources
31 cu km (2003)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)
Total 0.18 cu km/yr (13%/5%/82%)
Per capita 113 cu m/yr (2000) Natural hazards
Hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season; brush fires Environment - current issues
Deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; overfishing Environment - international agreements
Party to
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands Signed, but not ratified None of the selected agreements Geography - note
This small country is swampy along its western coast and low-lying inland
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Guinea - Bissau (Bissau):
 
GPS points from Guinea - Bissau (Bissau)
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Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable political and military upheaval. In 1980, a military coup established authoritarian dictator Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA as president. Despite setting a path to a market economy and multiparty system, VIEIRA's regime was characterized by the suppression of political opposition and the purging of political rivals. Several coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him. In 1994 VIEIRA was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military mutiny and resulting civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIEIRA's ouster in May 1999. In February 2000, a transitional government turned over power to opposition leader Kumba YALA after he was elected president in transparent polling. In September 2003, after only three years in office, YALA was ousted by the military in a bloodless coup, and businessman Henrique ROSA was sworn in as interim president. In 2005, former President VIEIRA was re-elected president pledging to pursue economic development and national reconciliation; he was assassinated in March 2009. Malam Bacai SANHA was elected in an emergency election held in June 2009, but he passed away abruptly in January 2012. A military coup on 12 April 2012 prevented Guinea-Bissau's second-round presidential election - to determine SANHA's successor - from taking place.