Flag of Guinea-Bissau

Guinea-Bissau’s national flag has a red vertical panel at the hoist with a black five-pointed star. To its right, yellow sits above green in two horizontal fields. The customary reference ratio is 2:1 width to height. The national design contains no party initials, coat of arms, or motto inscription.

The red panel runs through the full height beside the pole or attachment edge. Yellow fills the upper part of the remaining field, with green directly below it. In the usual reference, red occupies one-third of the total width, and the two horizontal fields share the remaining two-thirds equally in height.

The delivered reference uses red #CE1126, yellow #FCD116, green #009E49, and black #000000. Their RGB values are 206, 17, 38; 252, 209, 22; 0, 158, 73; and 0, 0, 0. These values describe the artwork; no binding national numerical color standard was authenticated in the sources reviewed.

The Presidency’s national-symbols page explains red as the blood shed during the struggle for independence, yellow as the sun, green as hope, and the black star as African unity. Together, these meanings connect the liberation struggle with hope for the future and solidarity beyond the country’s borders.

The black star represents African unity in the Presidency’s explanation. It belongs to the wider Pan-African tradition and is often described as the Black Star of Africa. It has five points and stands within the red hoist panel. The reviewed official account does not assign a separate meaning to each point.

In the 1200-by-600 reference, the star’s circumcircle is centered at (200, 300), the center of the red panel. Its radius is 100 units, making the diameter one-third of the flag’s height. These are measurements of the supplied reference, not dimensions prescribed by the constitutional descriptions reviewed for this article.

The customary reference proportion is 2:1 width to height, meaning the rectangle is twice as wide as it is tall. A height-first source may write the same relationship as 1:2. The constitutional descriptions specify the fields and star without giving that numerical ratio, so the reference and legal wording should remain distinct.

The SVG uses a 3000-by-1500 rectangle. Its red panel is 1000 units wide, while the yellow and green fields are each 2000 by 750. The star’s circumcircle is centered at (500, 750) with radius 250. The large PNG doubles those dimensions to 6000 by 3000 without changing the arrangement.

Yes, the three structural panels have equal areas in the supplied reference. On a 1200-by-600 grid, red measures 400 by 600, while yellow and green each measure 800 by 300. Each occupies one-third of the rectangle. The star overlays the red panel, reducing the area of visible red color without changing its boundaries.

Sizes such as 100 by 50, 150 by 75, and 200 by 100 centimeters preserve the customary 2:1 width:height ratio. These are calculated examples, not a government retail-size schedule. Scale the star and fields together, and allow separately for sleeves, hems, reinforcement, and any shrinkage expected in the chosen fabric.

The design grew from the flag tradition of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde, or PAIGC. The party reference includes its initials beneath the black star; the national flag omits them. The shared liberation movement also explains the resemblance to Cabo Verde’s national flag used from 1975 to 1992.

The flag was adopted with Guinea-Bissau’s proclamation of independence on September 24, 1973. The Presidency associates adoption with that proclamation, and the first Constitution already describes the red panel, black star, and yellow-over-green fields. Later international recognition in 1974 is a separate historical milestone and does not move the flag’s origin to that year.

Article 22 of Parliament’s published 1984/1996 constitutional text describes a vertical red panel and horizontal yellow and green fields, with a black five-pointed star on red. The 1973 Constitution describes the same basic arrangement. Constitutional changes were reported in 2026; a fully consolidated current text was not authenticated for this article.

The verified sources establish the flag’s PAIGC origins and the importance of Amílcar Cabral to the liberation movement, but they do not establish an individual flag artist with equal certainty. This article therefore separates historical leadership from graphic authorship. Credits attached to modern SVG files identify digital reproductions, not necessarily the national design’s original creator.

Preserve the full panel arrangement, the centered upright star, and uniform proportions. Use the supplied digital palette as a documented artwork reference, then have the printer manage ink, substrate, and color profile. The downloadable SVG is suitable for accurate scaling; it does not certify a finished textile or establish an official manufacturing authorization.

A March 2011 preliminary civic-education framework from Guinea-Bissau’s INDE teaches students to stand facing the flag respectfully and avoid tearing, dirtying, crumpling, or dropping it on the ground. This is documented educational guidance, not a complete legal flag code. Formal institutions may issue more specific instructions for their own ceremonies.

Guinea-Bissau’s Judicial Police reported a flag-oath ceremony for new criminal-investigation agents during its forty-third anniversary on March 12, 2026 in Bissau. The report describes ninety-six agents taking office. It illustrates the flag’s role in public-service commitments without supplying a universal oath, salute, raising speed, or daily display timetable.

From behind, the red panel and black star appear on the viewer’s right because the attachment edge is there. Yellow remains above green. The whole image is horizontally reversed, while the upright star’s symmetrical shape looks familiar. This physical reverse view should not be mistaken for a different national flag or an inverted design.

September 24 is Guinea-Bissau’s Independence Day, commemorating the 1973 proclamation and the national flag’s adoption. The Presidency identifies it as a public holiday. The sources reviewed did not establish a separate statutory annual Flag Day. The article therefore labels September 24 as Independence Day rather than inventing a distinct flag observance.

Guinea-Bissau proclaimed independence on September 24, 1973, while international recognition developed afterward. The U.S. Office of the Historian records American recognition on September 10, 1974. These dates answer different questions. The flag’s adoption belongs to the 1973 proclamation; a later recognition date should not be treated as a new flag-adoption date.

A January 9, 2012 Lusa report carried by RTP records a government communiqué ordering seven days of mourning after President Malam Bacai Sanhá’s death. The period began at 00:00 on January 10, with national flags at half-mast on public buildings. This historical instruction does not establish an automatic duration for future mourning.

Keep the flag clean, protect its attachment points, and dry wet fabric before storing it. Replace badly worn display copies while treating historically significant textiles as conservation objects. The educational framework supports respectful handling, but the reviewed sources do not establish a mandatory folding pattern, retirement ritual, or particular method for disposing of damaged flags.

No. The national flag contains a black star on red, not the entire coat of arms. The published Constitution describes the arms separately, with two palms, a yellow shell, a ribbon carrying the motto, and a black star above. Adding that whole emblem to the flag would change the ordinary national design.

The national motto is Unidade, Luta, Progresso, meaning Unity, Struggle, Progress. It appears in the 1973 Constitution and on the ribbon described for the national arms in the later published constitutional text. It is not written on the flag. The anthem is separately identified as Esta é a Nossa Pátria Bem Amada.

The historical PAIGC reference has the party’s initials beneath its black star, while Guinea-Bissau’s national flag has no lettering. They share the red hoist panel and yellow-over-green fields because of their historical relationship. The party illustration is presented as historical context, without certifying its current legal status after political developments in 2026.

Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde shared the PAIGC liberation movement, and their early national flags reflected that connection. Cabo Verde’s 1975–1992 flag added a maize wreath and shell around the black star and used different reference proportions. Its government identifies the 1992 constitutional revision as the change to the later blue flag with ten stars.

Guinea-Bissau puts its black star in a red vertical hoist panel beside yellow-over-green fields. Ghana has three horizontal bands with a black star centered on yellow. Senegal has three vertical bands with a green star on yellow. The star’s color and position, band direction, and overall proportions distinguish the complete designs.

No. Guinea-Bissau and Guinea are separate countries with different national flags. Guinea-Bissau uses a black star on a red hoist panel beside yellow and green horizontal fields. Guinea uses a plain red-yellow-green vertical tricolor. Equatorial Guinea is another distinct country, whose flag includes a blue triangle and national arms within horizontal bands.

Guinea-Bissau’s flag emoji is 🇬🇼, formed from the regional-indicator letters G and W, U+1F1EC and U+1F1FC. The sequence differs from Guinea’s GN flag emoji. Depending on the device, it may appear as a flag, letters, or another fallback. Use the SVG or PNG for precise geometry and consistent colors.

João Carvalho’s photograph records Guinea-Bissau’s flag being raised after Portugal’s flag was lowered at Canjadude in 1974. The source supplies the year and location, not an exact day. This local transition ceremony should not be mislabeled as the September 24, 1973 proclamation of independence at Boé or as a contemporary scene.

Keep the red panel at the hoist, yellow above green, and the black star within the red panel. Do not replace the mixed layout with three vertical bands, put the star on yellow, add party initials, or insert the national arms. Preserve the complete reference geometry and distinguish historical illustrations from the national master.

The package includes the national SVG and large PNG, anatomy and star details, a digital palette, construction and equal-area sheets, size and orientation guides, historical and country comparisons, a date diagram, and a conceptual mourning illustration. A genuine 1974 photograph adds historical context. All gallery downloads are served locally from the article directory.