- overview: Guinea possesses major mineral, hydropower, and
agricultural resources, yet remains an underdeveloped nation. The country
possesses over 30% of the world's bauxite reserves and is the second
largest bauxite producer. The mining sector accounted for about 75% of
exports in 1999. Long-run improvements in government fiscal arrangements,
literacy, and the legal framework are needed if the country is to move out
of poverty. The government made encouraging progress in budget management
in 1997-99, and reform progress was praised in the World Bank/IMF October
2000 assessment. However, escalating fighting along the Sierra Leonean
and Liberian borders has caused major economic disruptions. In addition to
direct defense costs, the violence has led to a sharp decline in investor
confidence. Foreign mining companies have reduced expatriate staff, while
panic buying has created food shortages and inflation in local markets.
Multilateral aid - including Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC)
debt relief - and single digit inflation should permit 5% growth in 2002.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $15 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 3.3% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,970 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 24% industry: 38% services:
38% (2000 est.)

Population below poverty line: 40% (1994 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 32% (1994)

Distribution of family income - Gini index: 40.3 (1994)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6% (2000 est.)

Labor force: 3 million (1999)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 80%, industry and services 20%
(2000 est.)

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget: revenues: $395.7 million expenditures: $472.4 million, including
capital expenditures of $NA million (2000 est.)

Industries: bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light
manufacturing and agricultural processing industries

Industrial production growth rate: 3.2% (1994)

Electricity - production: 770 million kWh (2000)

Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 46.1% hydro: 53.9%
other: 0% (2000) nuclear: 0%

Electricity - consumption: 716.1 million kWh (2000)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2000)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava
(tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber