GUYANA
Geography People Government Economy Transportation Communications Defense Forces
GUYANA
@Guyana:Geography
Location: Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean,
between Suriname and Venezuela
Map references: South America
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
GUYANA - MAJOR CITIES
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Latitude, Internat'l Time
Population Longitude Phone Code Zone
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
GEORGETOWN 200,000 6.46N, 58.10W 592-2 GMT-3
Linden 30,000 5.59N, 58.19W 592-4 GMT-3
New Amsterdam 20,000 6.18N, 57.30W 592-3 GMT-3
Corriverton 11,000 5.53N, 57.10W 592- GMT-3
Mahaicony 5,000 6.34N, 57.50W 592-21 GMT-3
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Area:
total area: 214,970 sq km
land area: 196,850 sq km
comparative area: slightly smaller than Idaho
Land boundaries: total 2,462 km, Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km,
Venezuela 743 km
Coastline: 459 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental
margin
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: all of the area west of the Essequibo River
claimed by Venezuela; Suriname claims area between New (Upper
Courantyne) and Courantyne/Kutari Rivers (all headwaters of the
Courantyne)
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
Natural resources: bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp,
fish
Land use:
arable land: 3%
permanent crops: 0%
meadows and pastures: 6%
forest and woodland: 83%
other: 8%
Irrigated land: 1,300 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: water pollution from sewage and agricultural and
industrial chemicals; deforestation
natural hazards: flash floods are a constant threat during rainy
seasons
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical
Timber 83
@Guyana:People
Population: 723,774 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 33% (female 118,515; male 123,048)
15-64 years: 62% (female 224,484; male 225,543)
65 years and over: 5% (female 17,540; male 14,644) (July 1995 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.81% (1995 est.)
Birth rate: 19.41 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate: 7.34 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net migration rate: -20.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 47.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 65.1 years
male: 61.86 years
female: 68.5 years (1995 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.23 children born/woman (1995 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Guyanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Guyanese
Ethnic divisions: East Indian 51%, black and mixed 43%, Amerindian 4%,
European and Chinese 2%
Religions: Christian 57%, Hindu 33%, Muslim 9%, other 1%
Languages: English, Amerindian dialects
Literacy: age 15 and over has ever attended school (1990 est.)
total population: 96%
male: 98%
female: 95%
Labor force: 268,000
by occupation: industry and commerce 44.5%, agriculture 33.8%,
services 21.7%
note: public-sector employment amounts to 60%-80% of the total labor
force (1985)
@Guyana:Government
Names:
conventional long form: Co-operative Republic of Guyana
conventional short form: Guyana
former: British Guiana
Digraph: GY
Type: republic
Capital: Georgetown
Administrative divisions: 10 regions; Barima-Waini, Cuyuni-Mazaruni,
Demerara-Mahaica, East Berbice-Corentyne, Essequibo Islands-West
Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Pomeroon-Supenaam, Potaro-Siparuni, Upper
Demerara-Berbice, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo
Independence: 26 May 1966 (from UK)
National holiday: Republic Day, 23 February (1970)
Constitution: 6 October 1980
Legal system: based on English common law with certain admixtures of
Roman-Dutch law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: Executive President Cheddi JAGAN (since 5 October
1992); election last held 5 October 1992; results - Cheddi JAGAN was
elected president since he was leader of the party with the most votes
in the National Assembly elections
head of government: Prime Minister Sam HINDS (since 5 October 1992)
cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers; appointed by the president, responsible
to the legislature
Legislative branch: unicameral
National Assembly: elections last held on 5 October 1992 (next to be
held in 1997); results - PPP 53.4%, PNC 42.3%, WPA 2%, TUF 1.2%; seats
- (65 total, 53 elected) PPP 36, PNC 26, WPA 2, TUF 1
Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Judicature
Political parties and leaders: People's Progressive Party (PPP),
Cheddi JAGAN; People's National Congress (PNC), Hugh Desmond HOYTE;
Good and Green Georgetown (GGG), Hamilton GREEN; Working People's
Alliance (WPA), Eusi KWAYANA, Rupert ROOPNARINE; Democratic Labor
Movement (DLM), Paul TENNASSEE; People's Democratic Movement (PDM),
Llewellyn JOHN; National Democratic Front (NDF), Joseph BACCHUS; The
United Force (TUF), Manzoor NADIR; United Republican Party (URP),
Leslie RAMSAMMY; National Republican Party (NRP), Robert GANGADEEN;
Guyana Labor Party (GLP), Nanda GOPAUL
Other political or pressure groups: Trades Union Congress (TUC);
Guyana Council of Indian Organizations (GCIO); Civil Liberties Action
Committee (CLAC)
note: the latter two organizations are small and active but not well
organized
Member of: ACP, C, CARICOM, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, GATT, IADB,
IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO,
INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS,
ONUSAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Ali Odeen ISHMAEL
chancery: 2490 Tracy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 265-6900, 6901
consulate(s) general: New York
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador George F. JONES
embassy: 99-100 Young and Duke Streets, Kingston, Georgetown
mailing address: P. O. Box 10507, Georgetown
telephone: [592] (2) 54900 through 54909, 57960 through 57969
FAX: [592] (2) 58497
Flag: green with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side)
superimposed on a long yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow black
border between the red and yellow, and a narrow white border between
the yellow and the green
Economy
Overview: Guyana, one of the poorest countries in the Western
Hemisphere, has pushed ahead strongly in 1992-94, with an 8% average
annual economic growth rate, led by gold mining, and rice, sugar, and
forestry products for export. Favorable factors include recovery in
the key agricultural and mining sectors, a more favorable atmosphere
for business initiative, a more realistic exchange rate, a sharp drop
in the inflation rate, and the continued support of international
organizations. Serious underlying economic problems will continue.
Electric power has been in short supply and constitutes a major
barrier to future gains in national output. The government will have
to persist in efforts to manage its large $2.2 billion external debt,
control inflation, and to extend the privatization program.
National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $1.4 billion (1994
est.)
National product real growth rate: 8.5% (1994 est.)
National product per capita: $1,950 (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 15.5% (1994 est.)
Unemployment rate: 12% (1992 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $23.7 million
expenditures: $19.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1994 est.)
Exports: $475 million (f.o.b., 1994)
commodities: sugar, bauxite/alumina, rice, shrimp, molasses
partners: UK 33%, US 31%, Canada 9%, France 5%, Japan 3% (1992)
Imports: $456 million (c.i.f., 1994 est.)
commodities: manufactures, machinery, petroleum, food
partners: US 37%, Trinidad and Tobago 13%, UK 11%, Italy 8%, Japan 5%
(1992)
External debt: $2.2 billion (1994 est.)
Industrial production: growth rate 5.6% (1994 est.)
Electricity:
capacity: 110,000 kW
production: 230 million kWh
consumption per capita: 286 kWh (1993)
Industries: bauxite mining, sugar, rice milling, timber, fishing
(shrimp), textiles, gold mining
Agriculture: most important sector, accounting for 25% of GDP and
about half of exports; sugar and rice are key crops; development
potential exists for fishing and forestry; not self-sufficient in
food, especially wheat, vegetable oils, and animal products
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for narcotics from South America -
primarily Venezuela - to the US and Europe; producer of cannabis
Economic aid:
recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $116 million;
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-89), $325 million; Communist countries 1970-89, $242 million
Currency: 1 Guyanese dollar (G$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Guyanese dollars (G$) per US$1 - 142.7 (January 1995),
138.3 (1994), 126.7 (1993), 125.0 (1992), 111.8 (1991), 39.533 (1990)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Guyana:Transportation
Railroads:
total: 100 km NA-m gauge industrial lines for the transport of
minerals, including bauxite
Highways:
total: 7,665 km
paved: 550 km
unpaved: gravel 5,000 km; earth 2,115 km
Inland waterways: 6,000 km total of navigable waterways; Berbice,
Demerara, and Essequibo Rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for
150 km, 100 km, and 80 km, respectively
Ports: Bartica, Georgetown, Linden, New Amsterdam, Parika
Merchant marine:
total: 1 cargo ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,317 GRT/2,558 DWT
Airports:
total: 54
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 1
with paved runways under 914 m: 34
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 2
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 14
@Guyana:Communications
Telephone system: over 27,000 telephones; fair system for long
distance calling
local: NA
intercity: microwave radio relay network for trunk lines
international: tropospheric scatter link to Trinidad; 1 INTELSAT
(Atlantic Ocean) earth station
Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 3, shortwave 1
radios: NA
Television:
broadcast stations: 0
televisions: NA
@Guyana:Defense Forces
Branches: Guyana Defense Force (GDF; includes Ground Forces, Coast
Guard, and Air Corps), Guyana People's Militia (GPM), Guyana National
Service (GNS)
Manpower availability: males age 15-49 198,665; males fit for military
service 150,573 (1995 est.)
Defense expenditures: $NA, NA% of GDP
________________________________________________________________________