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$Unique_ID{COW01540}
$Pretitle{374}
$Title{Guinea
The Country}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Embassy of Guinea, Washington DC}
$Affiliation{Embassy of Guinea, Washington DC}
$Subject{guinea
guinea's
investment
estimated
mining
government
guinean
opportunities
conakry
foreign}
$Date{1990}
$Log{}
Country: Guinea
Book: Background Notes on Guinea
Author: Embassy of Guinea, Washington DC
Affiliation: Embassy of Guinea, Washington DC
Date: 1990
The Country
Official name: Republic of Guinea
Capital: Conakry
Size: 95,000 square miles (about the size of Oregon)
Location: The "bulge" of the West African coast; borders Mali, Cote
d'Ivoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau and Senegal
Climate: Tropical with a rainy season from May to October and dry season
from October to May
Average temperature range: 74F - 85F
Average annual rainfall: Approximately 200 inches
Introduction to Guinea
After twenty-five years of centralized economic management, Guinea found
itself in a very critical economic situation at the beginning of the 1980s.
In 1985, as a response to this situation, the present government, under the
leadership of General Lansana Conte, embarked upon a reform program to
transform Guinea from a state-controlled economy into a market economy. This
program is receiving the full encouragement and support of the World Bank and
International Monetary Fund which have respectively provided two structural
adjustment loans and two stand-by loans. The reforms are already beginning to
have an impact upon the Guinean economy. In 1987, the growth rate of Guinea's
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in real (inflation adjusted) terms was 5.9%, and
the estimated GDP growth rates for 1989 and 1990 are respectively 6% and 5% in
real terms. This renewed economic vigor will help unleash the potential of
Guinea's considerable natural resources in agriculture, energy, fisheries and
mining. These natural resources include:
- an estimated 7.6 million hectares of arable land of which only 28
percent is currently being cultivated;
- coastal waters that are among West Africa's richest and most
unexploited in terms of their fish resources;
- possible offshore petroleum reserves;
- the considerable and virtually untapped hydroelectric resources of the
Gambia, Niger and Senegal rivers;
- an estimated 20 billion tons of bauxite reserves which amounts to
almost one-third of the world's reserves of this mineral;
- an estimated 15 billion tons of iron ore;
- an estimated 400 million carats of diamonds; and
- an estimated 5 million tons of uranium.
These resources offer Guinea's economy a tremendous potential for rapid
growth. Therefore, investors should keep Guinea in mind if they are seeking
potentially high growth opportunities for their investments.
The Economy
Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $2.48 billion (estimated 1988)
Per Capita GDP: approximately $400 in 1989
GDP Growth Rate: 5% (estimated 1988)
Total Imports: $509 million (estimated 1988)
Total Exports: $553 million (estimated 1988)
Principal Imports: Petroleum, machinery, transportation equipment, food
stuffs and consumer goods
Principal Exports: Bauxite, aluminum, diamonds, pineapples, bananas, palm
products and coffee
Foreign Debt: $1.784 billion in 1987
Labor Force: 2.5 million
The Guinean economy is primarily agricultural, with four out of five
Guineans relying upon subsistence agriculture for their living. Mining,
however, is the economy's most robust sector and provides approximately 90
percent of Guinea's export revenue. In 1988 and 1989, it also provided about
72 percent of Guinea's tax revenue and represented 25 percent of its GDP.
Bauxite and diamonds are the principle products of Guinea's mining
sector. With regard to bauxite, Guinea is the world's second largest producer
of this mineral and produces approximately 19 percent of the world's total
output. Guinea also possesses almost one third of the world's bauxite
resources (about 20 billion tons) and has a long-term production potential of
between 10 and 15 tons per annum. With regard to diamond mining, production
was 130,000 carats in 1989 and reached a high of 210,000 carats in 1987.
Other minerals found in Guinea include gold, iron ore and uranium. Of
these, only gold is actually being mined, although plans have been underway
for several years to develop a rich iron ore deposit at Mount Nimba. Gold
mining is currently being pursued on an industrial scale by one firm, Aurifere
de Guinee, and also occurs at the artisinal level.
Over the past few years, agricultural production has increased
dramatically in Guinea. Production of cash crops such as coffee, palm kernels
and pineapples has recovered, and farm products are expected to become an
increasingly important component of the country's exports.
Guinea's manufacturing sector is very small and accounted for less than
2 percent of its GDP in 1986.
Opportunities
Trade Opportunities
American exporters to Guinea will continue to face stiff competition
from French and other European suppliers who have lower shipping costs, as
well as historical and linguistic links to Africa.
American firm will find major opportunities to supply equipment and
services for the infrastructure projects being funded by multilateral donor
organizations such as the World Bank and the African Development Bank. Other
opportunities for trade are provided by
- Guinea's mining companies which require large amounts of heavy
equipment and supplies for their operations; and
- Guinea's reliance upon imports for much of its food requirements.
To pursue these trade opportunities, an ability to conduct business in
French is important. Business people should also be prepared to spend long
periods of time in Guinea, developing personal contacts in order to be
effective. In general, U.S. exporters are also urged to insist upon a
confirmed, irrevocable letter of credit before shipping any products to
Guinea.
Investment Opportunities
The promotion of foreign investment is an important element of the
Government of Guinea's efforts to stimulate economic growth. Consequently, the
government has taken several steps to increase Guinea's appeal to foreign
investors. These include the improvement of the country's infrastructure and
administrative and judicial framework, and the enactment of new investment
and mining codes which provide incentives for foreign investors.
To date, the bulk of foreign investment in Guinea has occurred in the
mining sector, specifically in the mining and processing of bauxite.
Opportunities for further investment in this sector may still exist,
especially in the industrial mining of gold and diamonds. However, the most
attractive opportunities for investment in Guinea may be in its agricultural
and fishing sectors. In the former sector, large-scale irrigated farming may
be possible because of Guinea's soil, water and climatic conditions, while
agroindustrial and food processing facilities could be established to process
the resulting agricultural products. With regard to the latter sector, Guinea
currently harvest only about one-eighth of its ocean fisheries' potential,
which are estimated to exceed 200,000 tons per year, and many of the species
found in Guinean waters, such as shrimp and lobster, are of high commercial
value. Other opportunities for investment in Guinea may exist in small-scale
industry and construction.
Potential investors should realize that, outside of the mining sites, the
lack of reliable telecommunications, energy and transportation infrastructure
and a dearth of highly skilled managers are constraints on doing business in
Guinea. They must also realize that the general weakness of the Guinean legal
and administrative systems can lead to ad hoc arrangements which are not based