Guinea-Bissau

Guinea-Bissau is a country located in Western Africa along the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Senegal, covering an area of approximately 36,125 square kilometers. As of 2024, Guinea-Bissau has a population of over 2.1 million, with Portuguese-based Creole and Portuguese as the main languages alongside Pular and Mandingo. The country features a mostly low-lying coastal plain with a deeply indented estuarine coastline rising to savanna in the east, with numerous offshore islands including the Arquipelago Dos Bijagos, and a tropical climate with a monsoonal rainy season. Bissau serves as the capital, and the government operates as a semi-presidential republic.

Guinea-Bissau is one of the poorest countries in West Africa, with a GDP of $2.12 billion and a GDP per capita of $2,700, driven primarily by agricultural products processing, beer, and soft drinks. The country is a major exporter of cashews, with key agricultural products also including rice, groundnuts, and oil palm fruit. Natural resources include fish, timber, phosphates, bauxite, and unexploited petroleum deposits. The unemployment rate is 2.7%, but 50.5% of the population lives below the poverty line. Guinea-Bissau faces significant challenges including political instability, systemic corruption, banking sector weaknesses, and vulnerability to food supply disruptions and oil price shocks.