For the most current version of this Note, see Background Notes A-Z.
Republic of Guinea
Area: 245,860 sq. km. (95,000 sq. mi.), about the size of Oregon.
Cities: Capital--Conakry. Other cities--Kankan, Kamsar, Boké, Kindia, N'Zérékoré, Macenta, Mamou, Faranah, Siguiri, Dalaba, Labe, Guéckédou, Pita.
Terrain: Generally flat along the coast and mountainous in the interior. The country's four geographic regions include a narrow coastal belt; pastoral highlands (the source of West Africa's major rivers); the northern savanna; and the southeastern rain forest.
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Guinean(s).
Population (July 2009 estimate, CIA World Factbook): 10,057,975, including refugees and foreign residents. Refugee population (2009 UNHCR est.): 21,488 Liberians, Sierra Leoneans, and Ivoiriens. Population of Conakry: 2 million. Population of largest prefectures--Guéckédou (487,017), Boké (366,915), Kindia (361,117), N'Zérékoré (328,347), Macenta (365,559).
Annual growth rate (2009 estimate, CIA World Factbook): 2.572%.
Ethnic groups: Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, other ethnic groups 10%.
Religions: Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, traditional beliefs 7%.
Languages: French (official), national languages.
Education: Years compulsory--8. Enrollment--primary school, 64.32% (male 78.71%, female 69.03%); secondary, 15%; and post secondary, 3%. Literacy (total population over age 15 that can read and write, 2003 est.)--29.5% (male 42.6%, female 18.1%).
Health (2009 est.): Life expectancy--total population 57.09 years. Infant mortality rate (2009)--65.22/1,000.
Work force (2006, 3.7 million): Agriculture--76%; industry and commerce--18%; services--6%.
Constitution: 1990; amended 2001; constitution was suspended on December 23, 2008.
Independence: October 2, 1958. Anniversary of the Second Republic, April 3, 1984.
Branches: Executive--elected president (chief of state); current head of state is a military officer who seized power; prime minister (head of government); cabinet of civilian ministers. Legislative--elected National Assembly (114 seats); dissolved on December 23, 2008. Judicial--Supreme Court.
Administrative subdivisions: Region, prefecture, subprefecture, rural district.
Political parties: Pro-government--Party for Unity and Progress (PUP). Opposition--Rally for the Guinean People (RPG), Union for Progress and Renewal (UPR), Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea (UFDG), Union for Progress of Guinea (UPG), Union of Republican Forces (UFR).
Suffrage: Universal over age 18.
Central government budget (2008, estimate): $942 million.
GDP (CIA est.): $4.54 billion.
Annual real economic growth rate (2008 est., CIA World Factbook): 2.9%.
Per capita GNI (2009 est., World Bank): $410.
Avg. inflation rate (2008 est., CIA World Factbook): 30%.
Natural resources: Bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, salt, hydropower, uranium, fisheries.
Industry (36.1% of GDP, 2007 CIA est.): Types--mining, light manufacturing, agricultural processing.
Agriculture (23.7% of GDP, 2007 CIA est.): Products--rice, cassava (tapioca), coffee, bananas, sweet potatoes, palm products, pineapples, cattle, sheep, goats, timber.
Trade: Exports (2007): bauxite, alumina, diamonds, gold, coffee, pineapples, bananas, palm products. Major markets--European Union, U.S., China, Eastern Europe, South Korea, Cote d’Ivoire. Trade balance (2009 CIA est.): -$210 million.
Official exchange rate (July 2009): Approx. 5,000 Guinean francs=U.S. $1.
Fiscal year: January 1-December 31.
Guinea is located on the Atlantic Coast of West Africa and is bordered by Guinea-Bissau, Senegal, Mali, Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. The country is divided into four geographic regions: a narrow coastal belt (Lower Guinea); the pastoral Fouta Djallon highlands (Middle Guinea); the northern savannah (Upper Guinea); and a southeastern rainforest region (Forest Guinea). The Niger, Gambia, and Senegal Rivers are among the 22 West African rivers that have their origins in Guinea.
The coastal region of Guinea and most of the inland have a tropical climate, with a rainy season lasting from April to November, relatively high and uniform temperatures, and high humidity. Conakry's year-round average high is 29oC (85oF), and the low is 23oC (74oF); its average annual rainfall is 430 centimeters (169 inches). Sahelian Upper Guinea has a shorter rainy season and greater daily temperature variations.
Guinea has four main ethnic groups:
- Peuhl (Foula or Foulani), who inhabit the mountainous Fouta Djallon;
- Malinke (or Mandingo), in the savannah and forest regions;
- Soussous in the coastal areas; and
- Several small groups (Gerzé, Toma, etc.) in the forest region.
Other West Africans make up the largest non-Guinean population. Non-Africans total about 10,000 (mostly Lebanese, French, and other Europeans). Seven national languages are used extensively; major written languages are French, Peuhl, and Arabic. HISTORY
The area occupied by Guinea today was included in several large West African political groupings, including the Ghana, Mali, and Songhai empires, at various times from the 10th to the 15th century, when the region came into contact with European commerce. Guinea's colonial period began with French military penetration into the area in the mid-19th century. French domination was assured by the defeat in 1898 of the armies of Almamy Samory Touré, warlord and leader of Malinke descent, which gave France control of what today is Guinea and adjacent areas.
France negotiated Guinea's present boundaries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries with the British for Sierra Leone, the Portuguese for their Guinea colony (now Guinea-Bissau), and Liberia. Under the French, the country formed the Territory of Guinea within French West Africa, administered by a governor general resident in Dakar. Lieutenant governors administered the individual colonies, including Guinea.
Led by Ahmed Sékou Touré, head of the Democratic Party of Guinea (PDG), which won 56 of 60 seats in 1957 territorial elections, the people of Guinea in a September 1958 plebiscite overwhelmingly rejected membership in the proposed French Community. The French withdrew quickly, and on October 2, 1958, Guinea proclaimed itself a sovereign and independent republic, with Sékou Touré as President.
Under Touré, Guinea became a one-party dictatorship, with a closed, socialized economy and no tolerance for human rights, free expression, or political opposition, which was ruthlessly suppressed. Originally credited for his advocacy of cross-ethnic nationalism, Touré gradually came to rely on his own Malinke ethnic group to fill positions in the party and government. Alleging plots and conspiracies against him at home and abroad, Touré's regime targeted real and imagined opponents, imprisoning many thousands in Soviet-style prison gulags, where many perished. The regime's repression drove more than a million Guineans into exile, and Touré's paranoia ruined relations with foreign nations, including neighboring African states, increasing Guinea's isolation and further devastating its economy.
Sékou Touré and the PDG remained in power until his death on April 3, 1984. A military junta--the Military Committee of National Recovery (CMRN)--headed by then-Lt. Col. Lansana Conté, seized power just one week after the death of Sékou Touré. The CMRN immediately abolished the constitution, the sole political party (PDG) and its mass youth and women's organizations, and announced the establishment of the Second Republic. In lieu of a constitution, the government was initially based on ordinances, decrees, and decisions issued by the president and various ministers.
Political parties were proscribed. The new government also released all prisoners and declared the protection of human rights as one of its primary objectives. It reorganized the judicial system and decentralized the administration. The CMRN also announced its intention to liberalize the economy, promote private enterprise, and encourage foreign investment in order to develop the country's rich natural resources.
The CMRN formed a transitional parliament, the "Transitional Council for National Recovery" (CTRN), which created a new constitution (La Loi Fundamental) and Supreme Court in 1990. The country's first multi-party presidential election took place in 1993. These elections were marred by irregularities and lack of transparency on the part of the government. Legislative and municipal elections were held in 1995. Conté's ruling Party for Unity and Progress (PUP) won 76 of 114 seats in the National Assembly, amid opposition claims of irregularities and government tampering. The new National Assembly held its first session in October 1995.
Several thousand malcontent troops mutinied in Conakry in February 1996, destroying the presidential offices and killing several dozen civilians. Mid-level officers attempted, unsuccessfully, to turn the rebellion into a coup d'état. The Government of Guinea made hundreds of arrests in connection to the mutiny, and put 98 soldiers and civilians on trial in 1998. A number of them were executed.
In mid-1996, in response to the coup attempt and a faltering economy, President Conté appointed a new government as part of a flurry of reform activity. He selected Sidya Touré, former chief of staff for the Prime Minster of the Côte d'Ivoire, as Prime Minister, and appointed other technically minded ministers. Touré was charged with coordinating all government action, taking charge of leadership and management, as well as economic planning and finance functions. In early 1997, Conté shifted many of the financial responsibilities to a newly named Minister of Budget and Finance.
In December 1998, Conté was reelected to another 5-year term in a flawed election that was, nevertheless, an improvement over 1993. Following his reelection and the improvement of economic conditions through 1999, Conté reversed direction, making wholesale and regressive changes to his cabinet. He replaced many technocrats and members of the Guinean diaspora that had previously held important positions with "homegrown" ministers, particularly from his own Soussou ethnic group. These changes led to increased cronyism, corruption, and a retrenchment on economic and political reforms.
Beginning in September 2000, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebel army, backed by Liberian President Charles Taylor, commenced large-scale attacks into Guinea from Sierra Leone and Liberia. The RUF, known for their brutal tactics in the near decade-long civil war in Sierra Leone, operated with financial and material support from the Liberian Government and its allies. These attacks destroyed the town of Guéckédou as well as a number of villages, causing large-scale damage and the displacement of tens of thousands of Guineans from their homes. The attacks also forced the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to relocate many of the 200,000 Sierra Leonean and Liberian refugees residing in Guinea. As a result of the attacks, legislative elections scheduled for 2000 were postponed.
After the initial attacks in September 2000, President Conté, in a radio address, accused Liberian and Sierra Leonean refugees living in the country of fomenting war against the government. Soldiers, police, and civilian militia groups rounded up thousands of refugees, some of whom they beat and raped. Approximately 3,000 refugees were detained, although most were released within the year.
In November 2001, a nationwide referendum, which some observers believe was flawed, amended the constitution to permit the president to run for an unlimited number of terms, and to extend the presidential term from 5 to 7 years. The country's second legislative election, originally scheduled for 2000, was held in June 2002. President Conté's Party of Unity and Progress (PUP) and associated parties won 91 of the 114 seats. Most major opposition parties boycotted the legislative elections, objecting to inequities in the existing electoral system.
Despite his failing health, in December 2003, President Conté easily won a third presidential term against a single, relatively unknown candidate after the opposition parties boycotted the elections. Conté insisted in a late 2006 interview that regardless of his health he would remain in office until his term ended in 2010.
In December 2005, Guinea held nationwide elections for local and rural councils. In preparation for the election the government maintained an open dialogue with the opposition parties, 16 of which participated in the elections. Opposition leaders were allowed to campaign freely, and were allowed equal access to government-run media. The ruling PUP won 31 of 38 municipalities and 241 of 303 local councils. Though viewed as flawed, the 2005 elections were much improved over previous elections due to the use of transparent ballot boxes and other reforms.
In 2006 and 2007, Guinea's labor union alliance launched a series of historic, increasingly violent labor strikes. Whereas the unions' demands during the March and June 2006 strikes were primarily economic, the January 2007 strike was more political. Security forces were responsible for the deaths of several protestors in June 2006. The 2007 strike also turned violent after President Conté ignored the unions’ demand that he resign from office. Nationwide, protesters began barricading roads, throwing rocks, burning tires, and skirmishing with police. Violence peaked on January 22 when several thousand ordinary Guineans poured into the streets, primarily in the capital, calling for change. Guinean security forces and the military's "red beret" presidential guard reacted by opening fire on the peaceful crowds.
On January 27, 2007, unions, employers associations, and the government entered a tripartite agreement to suspend the strike. President Conté agreed to name a new "consensus" prime minister, with delegated executive powers. For the first time, the new prime minister of Guinea would carry the title of "head of government" and exercise certain powers previously held by the president of the republic. However, President Conté's February 9 appointment of a longtime associate, Eugène Camara, as Guinea's new prime minister sparked another wave of violence and protests. In an attempt to quell the violence, on February 12 President Conté declared a "state of siege," which conferred broad powers on the military, and implemented a strict curfew. According to media reports, the following days saw military and police forces scour Conakry and towns in the hinterlands where they committed serious human rights abuses.
When Guinea's National Assembly rejected Conté's effort to extend the "state of siege," it became clear that the popular protests had widespread support, even among leaders of Conté's own ruling party. Soon after, an Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) delegation led by former Nigerian President Babangida announced that President Conté had agreed to name a new "consensus" prime minister in consultations with the unions and civil society. Lansana Kouyaté arrived in Conakry on February 27, 2007, just hours after being announced as the new Prime Minister and head of the government. Security forces are believed responsible for having killed at least 137 people and injuring more than 1,700 others during the strike-related violence in January and February 2007.
During his premiership, Kouyaté faced constant speculation that the president and his associates opposed his reform efforts. His failure to alleviate social and economic conditions contributed to the steady decline of his popularity. In May 2008, President Conté replaced Kouyaté with Ahmed Tidiane Souaré, a former minister of mines from a previous cabinet. The Souaré administration quickly began to reinstate presidential loyalists. President Conté's death on December 22, 2008 sparked an immediate coup d’état by elements of the military. GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Until the December 23, 2008 coup d’état, Guinea was a constitutional republic in which effective power was concentrated in a strong presidency. Legislative elections, previously scheduled for June 2007, have been repeatedly delayed. The government currently is run by a military junta and is operating without a legislative body. Government administration is carried out at several levels; in descending order, they are: eight regions, 33 prefectures, over 100 subprefectures, and many districts (known as communes in Conakry and other large cities, and villages or "quartiers" in the interior). District-level leaders are elected; the president appoints officials to all other levels of the highly centralized administration. The president of the military junta currently governs Guinea with the assistance of an appointed council of civilian ministers, most of which is led by a civilian prime minister. Some key ministries, however, report directly to the junta.
The military junta is represented by a National Council for Democracy and Development (acronym in French is CNDD) of 32 members (26 military and six civilian), but its current membership is unclear. Captain Moussa Dadis Camara is the president of the CNDD and the self-proclaimed head of state. The CNDD suspended the constitution, as well as political and union activity. In the weeks following the coup, the CNDD authorized the arrest and detention of an estimated dozens of citizens, although most were released within a few days. This practice continues. The CNDD announced that it would serve out the rest of Conté’s term and hold elections in December 2010, in spite of preparations for National Assembly elections for early 2009 that had been underway for several months. The constitution remains suspended, but political and union activity is currently allowed. Guinea has more than 60 registered political parties, of which six were represented in the National Assembly before it was suspended in December 2008.
Although key bilateral and multilateral partners condemned the coup, the Guinean population initially welcomed Captain Camara and the CNDD. The CNDD still appears to have significant popular support, but civil and political leaders have begun to express concern. They demanded that the CNDD-led transition last no more than 12 months, and that the CNDD organize legislative and presidential elections by the end of 2009. An umbrella organization of civil society groups and political parties, Les Forces Vives (the Active Forces), presented a timetable to the CNDD for legislative elections on October 11, 2009, to be followed by the first round of presidential elections on December 13 and presidential runoff elections on December 27. On March 28, 2009, the CNDD announced that it agreed to this timetable. However, Captain Camara and his supporters hinted that Camara might run (a violation of the African Union charter) and/or that the elections could be postponed.
On August 17, 2009, junta leader Captain Dadis Camara accepted the recommendation of an ad hoc committee on elections comprised of civilian and government members. The recommended dates are January 31, 2010, for first-round presidential elections, February 14, 2010, for second-round presidential elections, and March 26, 2010, for legislative elections. Captain Camara also said that as a citizen of Guinea, he has a legal right to run for president in these elections. On August 23, the Active Forces issued a statement that condemned the participation of Captain Camara or any other CNDD member in the elections as undermining the elections’ credibility and legitimacy.Principal Government Officials
President of the CNDD--Captain Moussa Dadis Camara
Prime Minister (Head of Government)--Kabine Komara
Minister of Economy and Finance--Captain Mamadou Sande
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Alexandre Cece Loua
Minster of Security--General Mamadouba Camara
Minister of National Education and Scientific Research--Alpha Kabine Camara
Minister of Defense--General Sekouba Konate
Minister of Justice--Colonel Siba Nolamou
Ambassador to the United States--Mory Karamoko Kaba
Ambassador to the United Nations--Alpha Ibrahima Sow
Guinea maintains an embassy in the United States at 2112 Leroy Place, NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-483-9420) and a mission to the United Nations at 140 E. 39th St., New York, NY 10016 (tel. 212-687-8115/16/17). ECONOMY
Richly endowed with minerals, Guinea possesses over 25 billion metric tons (MT) of bauxite--and perhaps up to one half of the world's reserves. In addition, Guinea's mineral wealth includes more than 4 billion tons of high-grade iron ore, significant diamond and gold deposits, and undetermined quantities of uranium. Guinea has considerable potential for growth in the agricultural and fishing sectors. Soil, water, and climatic conditions provide opportunities for large-scale irrigated farming and agro industry. Possibilities for investment and commercial activities exist in all these areas, but Guinea's poorly developed infrastructure and rampant corruption continue to present obstacles to large-scale investment projects. The CNDD announced in January 2009 that it would review and possibly revise all existing mining contracts.
Joint venture bauxite mining and alumina operations in northwest Guinea historically provided about 80% of Guinea's foreign exchange. The Compagnie des Bauxites de Guinea (CBG) is the main player in the bauxite industry. CBG is a joint venture, in which 49% of the shares are owned by the Guinean Government and 51% by an international consortium led by Alcoa and Rio Tinto-Alcan. CBG exports about 14 million MT of high-grade bauxite every year. The Compagnie des Bauxites de Kindia (CBK), a joint venture between the Government of Guinea and Russki Alumina (Rusal), produces some 2.5 million MT annually, nearly all of which is exported to Russia and Eastern Europe. Dian Dian, a Guinean/Ukrainian joint bauxite venture, has a projected production rate of 1 million MT per year, but is not expected to begin operations for several years. The Alumina Compagnie de Guinée (ACG), a subsidiary of Rusal which took over the former Friguia Consortium, produced about 2.4 million MT of bauxite in 2004, which is used as raw material for its alumina refinery. The refinery supplies about 750,000 MT of alumina for export to world markets. Both the Alcoa-Rio Tinto-Alcan consortium and the Guinea Alumina Corporation (GAC), whose stakeholders include BHP-Billiton, the Global Alumina Corporation, the Dubai Alumina Corporation, and the Mubadala Development Company, have signed conventions with the Government of Guinea to build large alumina refineries with a combined capacity of about 4 million MT per year.
Diamonds and gold also are mined and exported on a large scale. AREDOR, a joint diamond-mining venture between the Guinean Government (50%) and an Australian, British, and Swiss consortium, began production in 1984 and mined diamonds that are 90% gem quality. Production stopped from 1993 until 1996, when First City Mining of Canada purchased the international portion of the consortium. By far, most diamonds are mined artisanally. The largest gold mining operation in Guinea is a joint venture between the government and Ashanti Gold Fields of Ghana. Societé Miniere de Dinguiraye (SMD) also has a large gold mining facility in Lero near the Malian border. Other concession agreements have been signed for iron ore, but these projects are still awaiting preliminary exploration and financing results.
The Guinean Government adopted policies in the 1990s to return commercial activity to the private sector, promote investment, reduce the role of the state in the economy, and improve the administrative and judicial framework, after decades of socialism under President Sekou Touré. Despite the initial success of these programs to promote economic growth, changes in policy over the following decade up to the time of President Conté’s death made little headway in addressing the structural problems afflicting Guinea’s private sector, although there was some growth. Though growth has since slowed, the informal sector continues to be a major contributor to the economy.
The government revised the private investment code in 1998 to stimulate economic activity in the spirit of free enterprise. The code does not discriminate between foreigners and nationals and provides for repatriation of profits. While the code restricts development of Guinea's hydraulic resources to projects in which Guineans have majority shareholdings and management control, it does contain a clause permitting negotiations of more favorable conditions for investors in specific agreements. Foreign investments outside Conakry are entitled to more favorable benefits. A national investment commission has been formed to review all investment proposals. The United States and Guinea have signed an investment guarantee agreement that offers political risk insurance to American investors through the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC). In addition, Guinea has inaugurated an arbitration court system, which allows for the quick resolution of commercial disputes.
Until June 2001, private operators managed the production, distribution, and fee-collection operations of water and electricity under performance-based contracts with the Government of Guinea. However, both utilities are plagued by inefficiency and corruption. Foreign private investors in these operations departed the country in frustration.
In 2002, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) suspended Guinea's Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) because the government failed to meet key performance criteria. In reviews of the PRGF, the World Bank noted that Guinea had met its spending goals in targeted social priority sectors. However, spending in other areas, primarily defense, contributed to a significant fiscal deficit. The loss of IMF funds forced the government to finance its debts through Central Bank advances. The pursuit of unsound economic policies has resulted in imbalances that are proving hard to correct.
Under then-Prime Minister Diallo, the government began a rigorous reform agenda in December 2004 designed to return Guinea to a PRGF with the IMF. Although exchange rates temporarily improved, these reforms did not slow down inflation, which hit 27% in 2004, 30% in 2005 and, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit, 34.7% in 2006 and 23.4% in 2007. Exchange rate stability is an ongoing concern. The Guinea franc (GNF) was trading at 2,550 to the dollar in January 2005, reached a low of 5,554 to the dollar in October 2006, and averaged approximately 4,500 to the dollar in 2007 and 2008. The official exchange rate was approximately 5,000 GNF to the dollar in July 2009, but the unofficial exchange rate was about 7,000 GNF to the dollar. In 2007, the IMF launched a new Poverty Reduction Growth Facility for Guinea to support a three-year IMF program with the objective of reducing poverty and securing debt relief for the country under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. As of late 2008, Guinea was on track to achieve debt reduction under the HIPC initiative. If Guinea reaches this HIPC completion point, lenders are expected to provide substantial debt relief. However, after the December 23, 2008 coup d’état, the status of the HIPC program remains unclear.
Despite the opening in 2005 of a new road connecting Guinea and Mali, most major roadways connecting the country's trade centers remain in poor repair, slowing the delivery of goods to local markets. Electricity and water shortages are frequent and sustained, and many businesses are forced to use expensive power generators and fuel to stay open.
Even though there are many problems plaguing Guinea's economy, not all foreign investors are reluctant to come to Guinea. Guinea Alumina Corporation's proposed alumina refinery has a price tag above $2 billion. Alcoa and Alcan are proposing a slightly smaller refinery worth about $1.5 billion. Taken together, they represent the largest private investment in sub-Saharan Africa since the Chad-Cameroun oil pipeline. Mining giant Rio Tinto has also begun a multi-billion dollar operation in the Simandou iron fields, located in Guinea's forest region, and is in talks with the government to construct a transnational railway from southeastern Guinea to Conakry. Additionally, BHP-Billiton has begun laying the groundwork for iron mining operations near Mt. Nimba in the Forest Region. The December 23, 2008 coup, however, has cast doubt on whether these projects will move forward. The global economic downturn that began in the autumn of 2008 and Guinean policies perceived as erratic and hostile to investors have significantly deterred foreign investment.DEFENSE
Guinea's armed forces are divided into four branches--army, navy, air force, and gendarmerie--whose chiefs report to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The 18,800-member army is the largest of the four services. The navy has about 2,300 personnel and operates several small patrol craft and barges. Air force personnel total about 2,100; its equipment includes several Russian-supplied fighter planes and transport planes. Around 8,900 gendarmes are responsible for internal security. FOREIGN RELATIONS
Guinea's relations with other countries, including neighboring countries, have improved steadily since 1985. However, the long-term effect of the December 23, 2008 coup d’état on Guinea’s foreign relations is unclear. The African Union (AU), along with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a West African regional group, both condemned the coup and suspended Guinea’s membership in their respective organizations. The coup has also been condemned by the Nigerian, South African, Japanese, Canadian, French, and U.S. Governments, among others.
Guinea reestablished relations with France and Germany in 1975, and with neighboring Côte d'Ivoire and Senegal in 1978. Guinea has been active in efforts toward regional integration and cooperation, especially regarding the Organization of African Unity (now the African Union) and the Economic Organization of West African States (ECOWAS). Guinea takes its role in a variety of international organizations seriously and participates actively in their deliberations and decisions. Guinea has participated in both diplomatic and military efforts to resolve conflicts in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea-Bissau, and contributed contingents of troops to peacekeeping operations in all three countries as part of ECOMOG, the Military Observer Group of ECOWAS. Guinea has offered asylum to more than 700,000 Liberian, Sierra Leonean, and Bissauan refugees since 1990, despite the economic and environmental costs involved. Perhaps 90% or more of these refugees have since returned to their home countries.
The civil wars that engulfed Liberia and then Sierra Leone during the 1990s negatively affected relations between Guinea and these two fellow Mano River Union member countries. Guinea and Liberia accused each other of supporting opposition dissidents, and in late 2000 and early 2001, Guinean dissidents backed by the Liberian government and RUF rebels from Sierra Leone brutally attacked Guinea. These attacks caused over 1,000 Guinean deaths and displaced more than 100,000 Guineans. The attacks led to Guinea's support for the LURD (Liberians United For Reconciliation and Democracy) rebels in their attacks against the Liberian government of Charles Taylor. Taylor's departure for exile in August 2003 and the establishment of a new government in Liberia have led to a much improved relationship between the two countries.
Guinea belongs to the UN and most of its specialized related agencies, the African Union, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), African Development Bank (AFDB), Niger River Basin (NRB), Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the Mano River Union (MRU), Gambia River Basin Organization (OMVG), and the Nonaligned Movement (NAM).U.S.-GUINEAN RELATIONS
The U.S. Government condemned the December 23, 2008 coup d’état and suspended all aid to Guinea, except for humanitarian assistance and programs in support of the democratic process. The suspension will remain in effect until civilian rule is restored, as characterized by free, fair, transparent, and timely elections. Before the coup, the United States maintained close relations with Guinea. U.S. policy seeks to encourage Guinea's democratic reforms, its positive contribution to regional stability, and sustainable economic and social development.
The U.S. Mission in Guinea is composed of four agencies--Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID
), Peace Corps, and the Department of Defense. Before suspending aid, the U.S. Mission managed a military assistance program that provided nearly $670,000 for military education, professionalization, language training programs, and health equipment purchases.
Guinea is now one of only five sustainable development missions in West Africa, with a core program that focused--before the suspension--on democracy and good governance generally, but with an emphasis in the sectors of health, education, and natural resource management. The mission also has significant health resources devoted directly to improving service delivery.
Peace Corps Guinea has been rebuilding its program following a temporary shutdown in January 2007 due to national political unrest. The program resumed operations in July 2007 and now has almost 90 volunteers. It is expected be back to pre-evacuation numbers of about 110 to 120 volunteers by late 2009. Volunteers work in four project areas: secondary education, environment/agro-forestry, public health and HIV/AIDS prevention, and small enterprise development. Guinea has also had a strong Crisis Corps program in previous years.Principal U.S. Officials
Chargé d'Affaires, a.i.--Kent Brokenshire
Acting Deputy Chief of Mission--Shannon Cazeau
USAID Director--Laura Coughlin, Acting
Peace Corps Director--Dan Evans
Acting Public Affairs Officer--Molly Sanchez-Crowe
The U.S. Embassy
is located in Koloma, Conakry, east of Bambetta Circle. The mailing address is B.P. 603, Conakry, Guinea (tel: 42-08-61/thru 68; fax: 42-08-73).