inea-Bissau, Economy

Overview:
Guinea-Bissau ranks among the poorest countries in the world, with a per
capita GDP of roughly $200. Agriculture and fishing are the main economic
activities. Cashew nuts, peanuts, and palm kernels are the primary exports.
Exploitation of known mineral deposits is unlikely at present because of a
weak infrastructure and the high cost of development. The government's
four-year plan (1988-91) targeted agricultural development as the top
priority.
National product:
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $210 million (1991 est.)
National product real growth rate: 2.3% (1991 est.)
National product per capita:
$210 (1991 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
55% (1991 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues $33.6 million; expenditures $44.8 million, including capital
expenditures of $.57 million (1991 est.)
Exports:
$20.4 million (f.o.b., 1991 est.)
commodities:
cashews, fish, peanuts, palm kernels
partners:
Portugal, Senegal, France, The Gambia, Netherlands, Spain
Imports:
$63.5 million (f.o.b., 1991 est.)
commodities:
capital equipment, consumer goods, semiprocessed goods, foods, petroleum
partners:
Portugal, Netherlands, Senegal, USSR, Germany
External debt:
$462 million (December 1990 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate 1.0% (1989 est.); accounts for 10% of GDP (1989 est.)
Electricity:
22,000 kW capacity; 30 million kWh produced, 30 kWh per capita (1991)
Industries:
agricultural processing, beer, soft drinks
Agriculture:
accounts for over 50% of GDP, nearly 100% of exports, and 90% of employment;
rice is the staple food; other crops include corn, beans, cassava, cashew
nuts, peanuts, palm kernels, and cotton; not self-sufficient in food;
fishing and forestry potential not fully exploited
Economic aid:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $49 million; Western (non-US)
countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $615 million; OPEC
bilateral aid (1979-89), $41 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $68
million
Currency:
1 Guinea-Bissauan peso (PG) = 100 centavos
Exchange rates:
Guinea-Bissauan pesos (PG) per US$1 - 1987.2 (1989), 1363.6 (1988), 851.65
(1987), 238.98 (1986)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

*Guinea-Bissau, Communications

Highways:
3,218 km; 2,698 km bituminous, remainder earth
Inland waterways:
scattered stretches are important to coastal commerce
Po