I | INTRODUCTION |
Equatorial
Guinea, independent republic in western Africa, consisting of a mainland
section called Mbini (formerly Río Muni) on the western coast and the coastal
islets of Corisco, Elobey Grande, and Elobey Chico as well as the islands of
Bioko (formerly Macías Nguema Biyogo and previously Fernando Póo), and Annobón
(Pagalu) in the Gulf of Guinea. The total area of Equatorial Guinea is 28,051 sq
km (10,831 sq mi).
II | LAND AND RESOURCES |
Mainland Equatorial Guinea is bounded on the
north by Cameroon, on the east and south by Gabon, and on the west by the Gulf
of Guinea. The terrain is gently rolling and heavily forested; about 60 percent
of the area is drained by the Mbini (formerly Benito) River. With Corisco and
the Elobeys islands it comprises the Mbini, or Continental, region, an area of
26,017 sq km (10,045 sq mi).
The main island of Equatorial Guinea is Bioko
(2,020 sq km/779 sq mi), which is located off the western coast of Africa in the
Bight of Biafra (Bonny). The island, primarily of volcanic origin, is
mountainous and thickly wooded, with a steep, rocky coast. Its highest peak is
Pico de Santa Isabel (3,008 m/9,869 ft). The island has fertile volcanic soils
and is watered by several streams, and lakes are found in the mountains.
Together with the small island of Annobón, lying about 640 km (about 400 mi) to
the southwest, it comprises the Bioko, or Insular, region. The climate is
tropical; the average annual temperature in Malabo is about 25°C (about 77°F)
and the annual rainfall is more than 2,000 mm (more than 80 in). The wettest
season is December through February.
About 63.5 percent (1995) of Equatorial
Guinea’s land area is covered with forest and woodland. Deforestation has
occurred, however, as agricultural production has increased. Water from taps
cannot be drunk.
III | POPULATION |
The population of Equatorial Guinea (2008
estimate) is 562,339, with many thousands more believed to be living abroad due
to political conditions in the country. The overall population density is 20
persons per sq km (52 per sq mi). The population is composed almost entirely of
black Africans. The Fang, indigenous to the mainland but now also living on
Bioko Island, constitute more than 80 percent of the population. The Bubis,
indigenous to Bioko Island, make up about 15 percent of the population. Several
smaller ethnic groups live along the mainland coast. Spanish is the official
language; however, Fang, a Bantu language, is the most widely spoken. About 86
percent of the people are members of the Roman Catholic Church, although
traditional beliefs are also widely practiced. The capital, largest city, and
principal port of Equatorial Guinea is Malabo, formerly Santa Isabel
(population, 2003 estimate, 95,000), on the northern coast of Bioko; Bata (1983,
24,100) is the largest town on the mainland.
IV | ECONOMY |
For years a poor, agricultural nation,
Equatorial Guinea has grown more prosperous since the discovery of large
offshore oil deposits in the early 1990s. From 1990 to 1990 the country’s gross
domestic product (GDP), which measures the total value of goods and services
produced, grew by an average of 3 percent every year. Equatorial Guinea’s oil
wells produced 75.4 million barrels of crude petroleum in 2004. However,
agriculture remains the main source of livelihood for most people.
The principal export crop of Equatorial Guinea
is cacao, which is grown almost entirely on Bioko. Coffee is grown on the
mainland, which also produces tropical hardwood timber, a leading export.
Cassava and sweet potatoes are the staple foods. Local manufacturing industries
include the processing of oil, soap, cocoa, yucca, coffee, and seafood. The
currency is the CFA franc (523 CFA francs equal U.S.$1; 2006 average). An
exchange rate of 50 CFA francs equal to 1 French franc was enforced from 1948
until 1994, when the CFA franc was devalued by 50 percent.
V | GOVERNMENT |
Under the 1982 constitution, Equatorial Guinea
was a single-party state. This governmental party was named the Democratic Party
of Equatorial Guinea in 1987. A new multiparty constitution was approved by
public referendum in 1991. It established an 80-member House of Representatives
to replace the existing 41-member legislature. Under the constitution, the
voters elect a president to a seven-year term and legislators to five-year
terms.
VI | HISTORY |
The island of Fernando Póo was sighted in 1471
by Fernão do Po, a Portuguese navigator. Portugal ceded the island to Spain in
1778. From 1827 to 1844, with the permission of the Spanish government, Britain
maintained a naval station at Fernando Póo and also administered the island. In
1844 the Spanish settled in the area that became the province of Río Muni. In
1904 Fernando Póo and Río Muni were organized into the Western African
Territories, later known as Spanish Guinea.
On October 12, 1968, the territory became the
independent Republic of Equatorial Guinea, with Francisco Macías Nguema as
president. In 1972 Macías Nguema appointed himself president for life. Extreme
dictatorial and repressive policies led to the flight of an estimated 100,000
refugees to neighboring countries; at least 50,000 of those who remained were
killed, and another 40,000 were sent into forced labor. In 1979 Macías Nguema
was overthrown in a military coup, tried for treason, and executed. Lieutenant
Colonel Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who led the coup, then became president.
Parliamentary elections, based on a single
slate of candidates, were held in 1983 and 1988. In November 1993 the ruling
Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea won the country’s first multiparty
elections, which were boycotted by at least half of the eligible voters.
Opposition forces called for the boycott after the Obiang Nguema government
refused to prepare an accurate electoral roll and guarantee the right to
campaign without harassment. In February 1996 presidential elections Obiang
Nguema, opposed by only one candidate, reportedly received more than 99 percent
of the vote. International organizations condemned the elections because of the
government’s harassment, jailing, and alleged torture of political opponents.
March 1999 legislative elections, dominated by the ruling party, were also
condemned as fraudulent. Obiang Nguema was reelected in December 2002, running
unopposed after all opposition candidates dropped out in protest of electoral
irregularities. In June 2004 Miguel Abia Biteo Borico became the country’s new
prime minister.
In 2004 the president alleged there had been
a coup attempt on him and a trial was held of those suspected of the act. The
coup’s South African leader, Nick du Toit, was jailed for 34 years in November
for his role, while the political opposition leader Severo Moto, in self-exile
in Spain, received a 63-year sentence. Also seemingly involved in the coup
attempt was Sir Mark Thatcher, son of the former British prime minister Margaret
Thatcher. He received a suspended sentence, despite denying knowledge of the
plot. The government resigned in August 2006; Prime Minister Biteo was replaced
by Ricardo Mangue Obama Nfubea.
No comments:
Post a Comment