Country name:
`conventional long form: Republic of Guinea-Bissau
conventional short form: Guinea-Bissau
local long form: Republica da Guine-Bissau
local short form: Guine-Bissau
former: Portuguese Guinea
note: the country is named after the Guinea region of West Africa that lies along the Gulf of Guinea and stretches north to the Sahel; "Bissau" distinguishes the country from neighboring Guinea
Government type:
republic
Capital:
name: Bissau
geographic coordinates: 11 51 N, 15 35 W
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama/Bijagos, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali
Independence:
24 September 1973 (declared); 10 September 1974 (from Portugal)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 24 September (1973)
Constitution:
promulgated 16 May 1984; amended 1991, 1993, 1996; note - constitution suspended following military coup in April 2012 and restored in 2014 (2015)
Legal system:
mixed legal system of civil law which incorporated Portuguese law at independence and influenced by early French civil code and customary law
International law organization participation:
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; non-party state to the ICCt
Citizenship:
citizenship by birth: yes
citizenship by descent: yes
dual citizenship recognized: no
residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
[see also: Suffrage country ranks ]
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Jose Mario VAZ (since 17 June 2014)
head of government: Prime Minister Carlos CORREIA (since 17 September 2015); the initial appointment of Baciro DJA in August was nullified by the Supreme Court and he resigned
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in two rounds if needed for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 13 April 2014 with a runoff on 18 May 2014 (next to be held in 2019); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the National People's Assembly
election results: first round - Jose Mario VAZ (PAIGC) 41%, Nuno Gomez NABIAM (independent) 25.1%, other 33.9%; Jose Mario VAZ elected president in second round - Jose Mario VAZ 61.9%, Nuno Gomez NABIAM 38.1%
Legislative branch:
description: unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (102 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held on 13 April 2014 (next to be held in 2018)
election results: percent of vote by party - PAIGC 48.0%, PRS 30.8%, other parties 21.2%; seats by party - PAIGC 57, PRS 41, other 4
Judicial branch:
highest court(s): Supreme Court or Suprema Tribunal Justica (consists of 9 judges and organized into Civil, Criminal, and Social and Administrative Disputes Chambers); note - the Supreme Court has both appellate and constitutional jurisdiction
judge selection and term of office: judges nominated by the Higher Council of the Magistrate, a major government organ responsible for judge appointments, dismissals, and judiciary discipline; judges appointed by the president with life tenure
subordinate courts: Appeal Court; regional (first instance) courts; military court
Political parties and leaders:
African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde or PAIGC [Domingos Simoes PEREIRA]
Democratic Convergence Party or PCD [Vicente FERNANDES]
New Democracy Party or PND [Mamadu Iaia DJALO]
Party for Social Renewal or PRS [Filomeno Mendes PEREIRA]
Republican Party for Independence and Development or PRID [Aristides GOMES]
Union for Change or UM [Agnelo REGALA]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Chamber of Commerce of Agriculture, Industry, and Services [Braima CAMARA]
International organization participation:
ACP, AfDB, AOSIS, AU (suspended), CPLP, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: none; note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington, DC
Diplomatic representation from the US:
the US Embassy suspended operations on 14 June 1998 in the midst of violent conflict between forces loyal to then President VIEIRA and military-led junta; the US Ambassador to Senegal, currently Ambassador James P. ZUMWALT, is accredited to Guinea-Bissau
Flag description:
two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and green with a vertical red band on the hoist side; there is a black five-pointed star centered in the red band; yellow symbolizes the sun; green denotes hope; red represents blood shed during the struggle for independence; the black star stands for African unity
note: uses the popular Pan-African colors of Ethiopia; the flag design was heavily influenced by the Ghanaian flag
National symbol(s):
black star; national colors: red, yellow, green, black
National anthem:
name: "Esta e a Nossa Patria Bem Amada" (This Is Our Beloved Country)
lyrics/music: Amilcar Lopes CABRAL/XIAO He
note: adopted 1974; a delegation from then Portuguese Guinea visited China in 1963 and heard music by XIAO He; Amilcar Lopes CABRA, the leader of Guinea-Bissau's independence movement, asked the composer to create a piece that would inspire his people to struggle for independence
NOTE: The information regarding Guinea-Bissau on this page is re-published from the 2016 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Guinea-Bissau Government 2016 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Guinea-Bissau Government 2016 should be addressed to the CIA.
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This page was last modified 27-Apr-16