Joao Bernardo VIEIRA (assumed power 14
November 1980 and elected President of Council of State on 16 May 1984);
First Vice President Col. Iafai CAMARA (since 7 November 1985); Second
Vice President Vasco CABRAL (since 21 June 1989)

_#_Political parties and leaders: only party--African Party for the
Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde (PAIGC), President
Joao Bernardo VIEIRA, leader; the party decided to retain the
binational title despite its formal break with Cape Verde

_#_Suffrage: universal at age 15

_#_Elections:

President of Council of State--last held 19 June 1989
(next to be held NA 1993);
results--Brig. Gen. Joao Bernardo VIEIRA was reelected without
opposition by the National People's Assembly;

National People's Assembly--last held 15 June 1989 (next
to be held 15 June 1994);
results--PAIGC is the only party;
seats--(150 total) PAIGC 150, appointed by Regional Councils

_#_Communists: a few Communists, some sympathizers

_#_Member of: ACCT (associate), ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77,
IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOM (observer), ITU,
LORCS, NAM, OAU, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO

_#_Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Alfredo Lopes CABRAL;
Chancery (temporary) at the Guinea-Bissauan Permanent Mission to the UN,
Suite 604, 211 East 43rd Street, New York, NY 10017; telephone (212)
661-3977;

US--Ambassador William L. JACOBSEN, Jr.; Embassy at 17 Avenida
Domingos Ramos, Bissau (mailing address is 1067 Bissau Codex, Bissau,
Guinea-Bissau); telephone [245] 20-1139, 20-1145, 20-1113

_#_Flag: 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; uses the popular pan-African colors of
Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Cape Verde which has the black star
raised above the center of the red band and is framed by two corn stalks
and a yellow clam shell

_*_Economy
_#_Overview: Guinea-Bissau ranks among the poorest countries in the
world, with a per capita GDP below $200. Agriculture and fishing are the
main economic activities, with cashew nuts, peanuts, and palm kernels 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) has targeted
agricultural development as the top priority.

_#