Guinea is a country in Western Africa bordering Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and the Northern Atlantic Ocean. It is sometimes referred to as Guinea-Conakry, after its capital Conakry, to distinguish it from other territories in the eponymous region, such as Guinea-Bissau and Equatorial Guinea. In 2022, the country’s population was about 13.5 million people. The country is an area of 245,857 square kilometres (94,926 sq mi).
The sovereign state of Guinea is a republic with a president who is directly elected by the people; this position is both head of state and head of government. The unicameral Guinean National Assembly is the legislative body of the country, and its members are also directly elected by the people. The judicial branch is led by the Guinea Supreme Court, the highest and final court of appeal in the country.
Guinea, under the name French Guinea, was a part of French West Africa until it achieved independence in 1958. It then was ruled successively by Sékou Touré (1958–84) and Lansana Conté (1984–2008), the latter of whom claimed power through a military coup.
During the 1990s Guinea accommodated several hundred thousand war refugees from neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone, and conflicts between those countries and Guinea have continued to flare up over the refugee population.
Following Conté’s death, a military junta took control of the country and suspended the constitution that had been adopted in 1991. Power was handed over to a freely elected civilian administration in 2010. The national capital, Conakry, lies on Tombo (Tumbo) Island and spreads up the Camayenne (Kaloum) Peninsula; it is the country’s main port.
Guinea has a history of military coups d’état. After decades of authoritarian rule, it held its first democratic election in 2010. As it continued to hold multi-party elections, the country still faces ethnic conflicts, corruption, and abuses by the military and police. In 2011, the United States government claimed that torture by security forces and abuse of women and children (including female genital mutilation) were ongoing human rights issues.
Lt Col Mamady Doumbouya, the commander of the country’s Special Forces, overthrew President Alpha Conde in a coup in September 2021. He accused the president of rampant corruption, human rights abuses, and mismanagement. Lt Col Doumbouya set up the National Committee of Reconciliation and Development with himself as chairman, ordered the release of political prisoners, and announced an 18-month transition to democracy.
Alpha Conde, a veteran opposition politician, became president in 2010 in Guinea’s first democratic election since independence. He was re-elected in 2015, but faced protests four years later when he changed the constitution to run for a third term. In September 2022, the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) imposed sanctions on individuals in the military government in response to the coup.
The Guinean economy is one of the most resilient in West Africa. Driven by agriculture and mining, GDP grew an estimated 5.7% in 2023, up from 4% in 2022. Inflation fell from 10.5% in 2022 to 7.8% in 2023. The near stability of the exchange rate against the US dollar has offset imported inflation.
The budget deficit rose from 0.8% of GDP in 2022 to 1.6% in 2023, reflecting the impact of electricity and fuel subsidies, but remains one of the lowest in the economic Community of West African States (eCOWAS). The budget deficit was financed by bond issues. Public debt fell from 40.1% of GDP in 2022 to 35.2% in 2023.
Muslims represent 90% of the population. The country is divided into four geographic regions: Maritime Guinea on the Atlantic coast, the Fouta Djallon or Middle Guinea highlands, the Upper Guinea savanna region in the northeast, and the Guinée forestière region of tropical forests. French, the official language of Guinea, is a language of communication in schools, government administration, and the media. More than 24 indigenous languages are spoken, and the largest are Susu, Pular, and Maninka, which dominate respectively in Maritime Guinea, Fouta Djallon, and Upper Guinea, while Guinée forestière is ethnolinguistically diverse.
Guinea’s economy is mostly dependent on agriculture and mineral production. It is the world’s second-largest producer of bauxite and has deposits of diamonds and gold. As of the most recent survey in 2018, 66.2% of the population is affected by multidimensional poverty, and an additional 16.4% are vulnerable to it. The country was at the core of the Western African Ebola virus epidemic.
