lected president, in what is considered the country's
first free and fair election since independence. Upon his death five
years later, he was succeeded by his wife Janet, who resigned in
1999 due to poor health. Her successor, Bharrat JAGDEO, was
reelected in 2001.

Geography Guyana

Location:
Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
Suriname and Venezuela

Geographic coordinates:
5 00 N, 59 00 W

Map references:
South America

Area:
total: 214,970 sq km
water: 18,120 sq km
land: 196,850 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Idaho

Land boundaries:
total: 2,462 km
border countries: Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km

Coastline:
459 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental
margin

Climate:
tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy
seasons (May to mid-August, mid-November to mid-January)

Terrain:
mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 m

Natural resources:
bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish

Land use:
arable land: 2.44%
permanent crops: 0.15%
other: 97.41% (2001)

Irrigated land:
1,500 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons

Environment - current issues:
water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial
chemicals; deforestation

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber
83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
the third-smallest country in South America after Suriname and
Uruguay; substantial portions of its western and eastern territories
are claimed by Venezuela and Suriname respectively

People Guyana

Population:
705,803
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower
population and growth rates, and changes in