Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO has ruled the country since 1979 when he seized power in a coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 and 2004 legislative elections - were widely seen as flawed. The president exerts almost total control over the political system and has discouraged political opposition. Equatorial Guinea has experienced rapid economic growth due to the discovery of large offshore oil reserves, and in the last decade has become Sub-Saharan Africa's third largest oil exporter. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, there have been few improvements in the population's living standards.
Location
Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon
Geographic coordinates
2 00 N, 10 00 E
Map references
Africa
Area
total
28,051 sq km
land
28,051 sq km
water
0 sq km
Area - comparative
slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries
total
539 km
border countries
Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km
Coastline
296 km
Maritime claims
territorial sea
12 nm
exclusive economic zone
200 nm
Climate
tropical; always hot, humid
Terrain
coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic
nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices
Languages
Spanish 67.6% (official), other 32.4% (includes French (official), Fang, Bubi) (1994 census)
Literacy
definition
age 15 and over can read and write
total population
85.7%
male
93.3%
female
78.4% (2003 est.)
Country name
conventional long form
Republic of Equatorial Guinea
conventional short form
Equatorial Guinea
local long form
Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial/Republique de Guinee equatoriale
local short form
Guinea Ecuatorial/Guinee equatoriale
former
Spanish Guinea
Government type
republic
Capital
name
Malabo
geographic coordinates
3 45 N, 8 47 E
time difference
UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions
7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas
Independence
12 October 1968 (from Spain)
National holiday
Independence Day, 12 October (1968)
Constitution
approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995
Legal system
partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch
chief of state
President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup)
head of government
Prime Minister Ricardo Mangue Obama NFUBEA (since 14 August 2006); First Deputy Prime Minister Mercelino Oyono NTUTUMU (since 15 June 2004)
cabinet
Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections
president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits); election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held in December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president
unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (100 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 25 April 2004 (next to be held in 2009)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDGE 98, CPDS 2
note: Parliament has little power since the constitution vests all executive authority in the president
Judicial branch
Supreme Tribunal
Political parties and leaders
Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP
adjacent to the golf course at the base of Mont Febe; note - relocated embassy is opened for limited functions; inquiries should continue to be directed to the US Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon
mailing address
B.P. 817, Yaounde, Cameroon; US Embassy Yaounde, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2520
telephone
[237] 220 15 00
FAX
[237] 220 16 20
Flag description
three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice)
Economy - overview
The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993, because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Government officials and their family members own most businesses. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Growth remained strong in 2006, led by oil. Equatorial Guinea now has the fourth highest per capita income in the world, after Luxembourg, Bermuda, and Jersey.
GDP (purchasing power parity)
$25.69 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)
$7.644 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate
18.6% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)
$50,200 (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector
agriculture
2.8%
industry
92.6%
services
4.5% (2006 est.)
Labor force
NA
Unemployment rate
30% (1998 est.)
Population below poverty line
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%
NA%
highest 10%
NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
5.2% (2006 est.)
Investment (gross fixed)
34.1% of GDP (2006 est.)
Budget
revenues
$2.752 billion
expenditures
$1.424 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)
China 31.1%, US 22.4%, Spain 12.7%, Taiwan 7.4%, Portugal 6.1%, Brazil 4.8% (2006)
Imports
$2.543 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities
petroleum sector equipment, other equipment
Imports - partners
US 40.1%, Spain 10%, Cote d'Ivoire 8.4%, France 6.5%, UK 6.1%, Italy 5.3% (2006)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold
$3.235 billion (2006 est.)
Debt - external
$289 million (2006 est.)
Economic aid - recipient
$NA
Currency (code)
Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States
Currency code
XAF
Exchange rates
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 522.4 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002)
Fiscal year
calendar year
Telephones - main lines in use
10,000 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular
96,900 (2005)
Telephone system
general assessment
poor system with adequate government services
domestic
NA
international
country code - 240; international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations
AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2001)
Radios
180,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations
1 (2001)
Televisions
4,000 (1997)
Internet country code
.gq
Internet hosts
19 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
1 (2002)
Internet users
5,000 (2005)
Airports
4 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways
total
3
2,438 to 3,047 m
1
1,524 to 2,437 m
1
under 914 m
1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways
total
1
under 914 m
1 (2006)
Pipelines
condensate 46 km; condensate/gas 5 km; gas 47 km; oil 31 km (2006)
Roadways
total: 2,880 km (1999)
Merchant marine
total
1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 1,745 GRT/3,434 DWT
by type
cargo 1 (2006)
Ports and terminals
Malabo
Military branches
National Guard (Army, with Coast Guard (Navy) and Air Wing) (2007)
Military service age and obligation
18 years of age (est.) (2004)
Manpower available for military service
males age 18-49
104,563
females age 18-49
109,923 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service
males age 18-49
56,462
females age 18-49
59,260 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP
0.1% (2006 est.)
Disputes - international
in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River and imprecisely defined maritime coordinates in the ICJ decision delay final delimitation; UN urges Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane and lesser islands and to create a maritime boundary in the hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay
Trafficking in persons
current situation
Equatorial Guinea is a transit and destination country for women and children trafficked for forced labor, involuntary domestic servitude, and commercial sexual exploitation from surrounding countries - primarily Benin, Nigeria, Mali, and Cameroon; victims work in the agricultural and commercial sectors of Malabo and Bata, where demand is high due to a booming oil sector; children work as farmhands, street vendors, or household servants; girls and women are also trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation
tier rating
Tier 2 Watch List - Equatorial Guinea is placed on the Tier 2 Watch List for its failure to provide adequate evidence of concrete measures to address trafficking during 2005
