Guinea
Name
| Official name | Republic of Guinea — République de Guinée |
|---|---|
| Not to be confused with | Guinea-Bissau; Equatorial Guinea; Papua New Guinea — this is Guinea-Conakry, the first and largest |
| Former names | French Guinea — Guinée française — within French West Africa (1891–1958); the People's Revolutionary Republic of Guinea (1978–1984) |
| Demonym | Guinean |
| Meaning of the name | From a Berber word for the land of the Black peoples, taken by the Portuguese as Guiné for the whole West African coast |
| Motto | "Travail, Justice, Solidarité" — work, justice, solidarity |
Quick facts
| Capital | Conakry — founded 1885, the capital since 1904; about 2 million |
|---|---|
| Largest cities | Conakry; Nzérékoré, about 300,000; Kankan; Kindia; Labé; Boké; Mamou; Kissidougou; Guéckédou |
| Official language | French; Pular, Malinké and Susu the national languages, with Kissi, Kpelle and Toma; some 40 languages |
| Currency | Guinean franc — ISO code GNF, FG; about 8,600 to the U.S. dollar |
| Time zone | Greenwich Mean Time, UTC±0, all year |
| Calling code | +224 |
| Internet domain | .gn |
| ISO 3166 codes | GN · GIN · 324 |
| Vehicle registration code | RG |
| Driving side | Right |
| Electricity | 220 V, 50 Hz; plug types C, F and K |
| Independence | 2 October 1958, from France — after the "No" of 28 September 1958; Ahmed Sékou Touré the first president |
| National days | 2 October, Independence Day; 28 September, the day of the referendum of 1958 and of the massacre of 2009; 3 April, the Second Republic of 1984; 1 May; the Muslim feasts |
| Constitution | The constitution approved by the referendum of 21 September 2025 with about 89% and promulgated that year — the fourth republic's; a seven-year presidency renewable once, a Senate created, the transition's members allowed to stand; replacing the constitution of 2020 suspended by the coup |
| Population | 10,523,261 at the census of 2014; about 15 million (UN, 2025 est.); 17.5 million by the World Bank's figure for 2026 |
| Area | 245,857 km² (94,926 sq mi) — land 245,717 km², water 140 km² |
Flag & national symbols
| National flag | A vertical tricolor of red, yellow and green — the blood of the martyrs and the labor of the people, the sun and the riches of the earth, the vegetation and prosperity — the pan-African colors in the French tricolor's pattern, the reverse of Mali's; adopted 10 November 1958.Flag of Guinea |
|---|---|
| Coat of arms | A dove with an olive branch over a shield of the flag's colors, under a golden sun, over the motto — the arms of 1993, the crossed rifle and sword of Touré's arms removed |
| National anthem | "Liberté" — music arranged by Fodéba Keïta from a traditional melody; adopted 1958 |
| National motto | "Travail, Justice, Solidarité" |
| National colors | Red, yellow and green |
| National animal | The elephant — the syli, the name of the currency of 1972–86 and of the national teams; widely cited |
| National instrument | The djembe — the drum of the Malinké, played across the world; the kora; the balafon |
| National dish | Riz gras; the leaf sauces of the forest; fouti; widely cited |
| Symbol status | The flag, arms and anthem are fixed by law; the animal, instrument and dishes are widely cited |
Geography
| Location | West Africa on the Atlantic — a crescent from the coast between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone inland around Sierra Leone and Liberia to Mali and Côte d'Ivoire |
|---|---|
| Land borders | 4,046 km (2,514 mi) with six countries — Mali 1,062, Côte d'Ivoire 816, Sierra Leone 794, Liberia 590, Guinea-Bissau 421, Senegal 363 |
| Coastline | 320 km (199 mi) |
| Highest point | Mount Nimba, 1,752 m (5,748 ft), on the Ivorian and Liberian border |
| Lowest point | The Atlantic Ocean, 0 m |
| Mean elevation | 472 m (1,549 ft) |
| The water tower | The Fouta Djallon — the sources of the Niger, at Tembakounda near the Sierra Leone border; the Senegal, as the Bafing; and the Gambia; the rivers of Sierra Leone and Liberia too: the water of West Africa rises here |
| Other rivers | The Konkouré to the coast, dammed at Kaléta and Souapiti; the Milo through Kankan to the Niger; the Tinkisso; the Mano and the Saint Paul to Liberia |
| Terrain | Four natural regions — Maritime Guinea, the coastal plain of mangroves and the bauxite; Middle Guinea, the Fouta Djallon plateau of the Fulani; Upper Guinea, the savanna of the Malinké on the Niger; Forest Guinea, the rainforest hills of the southeast with Nimba |
| Climate | Tropical — Conakry among the wettest capitals on earth with 3,700 mm of rain from May to November; the Fouta Djallon cool; the Sahel dry season in the north |
| Natural hazards | Floods in Conakry; the harmattan; Ebola — the outbreak of 2013–16 began at Méliandou in the forest, about 2,500 dead in Guinea and 11,000 in three countries; the Marburg case of 2021; landslides in the mines |
| Natural resources | Bauxite — the largest reserves in the world, about 7 billion metric tons, a quarter of the earth's; iron ore at Simandou, the largest untapped deposit until 2025, and at Nimba; gold at Siguiri; diamonds; hydropower; the forest |
| Land use | Agricultural land about 58%; forest about 26% |
| National parks | The Upper Niger National Park; Badiar with Senegal; the Ziama forest reserve; the Nimba strict nature reserve; the Moyen-Bafing park of 2017 for the chimpanzees, the largest |
| UNESCO World Heritage | 1 — the Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve (1981, with Côte d'Ivoire), on the danger list since 1992 for the mining; the Sosso-Bala balafon and the cultural space of the Sosso-Bala on the intangible list |
| Administrative divisions | 8 regions — Conakry, Boké, Faranah, Kankan, Kindia, Labé, Mamou and Nzérékoré — of 33 prefectures |
People
| Population | 10,523,261 (census of 2014); about 15 million (2025 est.) |
|---|---|
| Population density | About 60 per km² (155 per sq mi) |
| Population growth | About 2.8% a year |
| Median age | About 19 years |
| Life expectancy | About 62 years |
| Fertility rate | About 4.5 births per woman |
| Urban population | About 38% |
| Adult literacy | About 45% — among the lowest in the world |
| Ethnic groups | Fulani — Peul — about 33%, in the Fouta Djallon; Malinké about 29%, in Upper Guinea; Susu about 21%, on the coast; Kissi, Kpelle, Toma and the forest peoples about 10%; Landuma, Baga and others |
| Languages | Pular the most spoken; Malinké, the language of the Mali Empire; Susu, the language of Conakry; French by about a quarter; Kissi, Kpelle, Toma; Arabic in the Quranic schools |
| Religion | Sunni Muslim about 89%, the Fouta Djallon the old imamate; Christian about 7%, in the forest and among the Kissi; traditional beliefs, the sacred forests |
| Human Development Index | 0.500 (2023 data, 2025 report) — low; about 181st of 193 |
| Poverty | About half the population below the poverty line, with record food insecurity by the World Food Programme's count, in a country of the world's richest bauxite |
| Sport | Football — the Syli National, quarterfinalists at the Africa Cup of Nations of 2015 and 2024 with Naby Keïta and Serhou Guirassy; the Horoya club; the stadium of 2026 for the AFCON bid |
| Diaspora | Some 1.5 million abroad — in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Sierra Leone, France, Belgium and the United States; the exiles of the Touré years and their children |
Government
| Form of government | Presidential republic under the constitution of 2025 — the president head of state and government, elected for seven years, once renewable; a bicameral parliament of a National Assembly and a Senate |
|---|---|
| President | Mamady Doumbouya (Generation for Mobilization and Development, GMD), since 17 January 2026 as elected president — and head of state as chairman of the National Committee of Reconciliation and Development since the coup of 5 September 2021; a colonel of the special forces, a former French Foreign Legion corporal, born 4 March 1981 at Kankan; general since 2023 |
| The 2025 election | Held 28 December 2025 — the first since the coup: Doumbouya 86.72% and 4,594,262 votes, Abdoulaye Yéro Baldé of FRONDEG 6.59%, seven others the rest; the final results proclaimed by the Supreme Court on 4 January 2026; the main opposition leaders Cellou Dalein Diallo and Sidya Touré barred, in exile; the opposition's Living Forces alliance calling the vote a betrayal of the promise of 2021 not to stand, the UN criticizing its conduct, the African Union congratulating the winner; the inauguration of 17 January 2026 before the leaders of Rwanda, Senegal, the Gambia and Mali |
| Prime Minister | Amadou Oury Bah — Bah Oury — since 27 February 2024, reappointed January 2026; an opposition figure of the 1990s and 2000s, the president of the UDRG |
| The coup of 2021 | On 5 September 2021 the special forces seized Alpha Condé, president since 2010, who had changed the constitution in 2020 for a third term amid deadly protests; the junta dissolved the government and the constitution and promised a return to civilian rule in two years, then three; ECOWAS suspended the country and lifted its sanctions in 2024; Condé freed to Turkey |
| The transition | The referendum of 21 September 2025 approving the constitution with about 89% on a turnout above 86% by the authorities' count, the opposition boycotting; the ban on junta members standing, in the transition charter of 2021, dropped from the text; the presidential election of December 2025 and the legislative and local elections to follow in 2026 |
| Parliament | The National Transitional Council of 81 appointed members since 2022, pending the elected National Assembly of the new constitution |
| The massacre of 2009 | On 28 September 2009 the presidential guard of the junta leader Moussa Dadis Camara fired on an opposition rally in the Conakry stadium — at least 157 killed and more than a hundred women raped, by the UN commission's count; the trial opened 28 September 2022 and ended 31 July 2024 with Dadis Camara sentenced to twenty years for crimes against humanity and seven others convicted; pardoned by Doumbouya on health grounds in March 2025 |
| Legal system | Civil law on the French model with customary law; the Supreme Court; the Constitutional Court dissolved by the junta in 2021 |
| Regions | 8 and 33 prefectures under governors and prefects appointed by the president |
| United Nations | Member since 12 December 1958 |
| Regional memberships | ECOWAS — suspended 2021, restored 2024; the African Union; the Mano River Union with Sierra Leone, Liberia and Côte d'Ivoire; the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation; the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie |
Economy
| GDP (nominal) | About US$26 billion (2025, IMF) |
|---|---|
| GDP per capita | About US$1,700 (2025) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | About US$5,000 (2025) |
| GDP growth | About 6–7% a year (2023–25), and forecast above 10% for 2026 as Simandou ships — among the fastest in Africa |
| Economy by sector | Services about 40%, industry about 35% — the mines — agriculture about 25%, employing half |
| Currency | Guinean franc (GNF) |
| Bauxite | The largest exporter in the world — about 150 million metric tons a year, more than a third of the world's seaborne trade, from Boké and the Sangarédi plateau to China above all; the CBG of Alcoa and Rio Tinto, the Chinese consortium SMB, Emirates Global Aluminium; about 90% of exports |
| Simandou | The largest untapped high-grade iron ore deposit on earth in the hills of the southeast — 2 billion metric tons at 65% — blocked by disputes for a quarter century; developed by Rio Tinto, Chinalco and the Winning Consortium with a 620 km railway across the country and a new port at Morebaya, some US$20 billion; the first ore shipped in November 2025, up to 120 million metric tons a year to come |
| Gold and diamonds | Gold from the Siguiri mine of AngloGold and the artisanal diggers of Upper Guinea; diamonds from the Forest region |
| Agriculture | Rice, the staple, still imported; cassava, maize, groundnuts; the coffee and cocoa of the forest; mangoes and pineapples; cattle of the Fouta Djallon |
| Energy | The Souapiti dam of 2021, 450 MW, and Kaléta, 240 MW, on the Konkouré — hydropower most of the electricity, exported to the neighbors; the blackouts of Conakry |
| Public debt | About 40% of GDP; the Chinese loans for the dams and the mines; the ECOWAS sanctions lifted 2024 |
| Income classification | Low income (World Bank); a least developed country |
Transport & infrastructure
| Main airport | Ahmed Sékou Touré International Airport at Gbessia, Conakry; the airfields of Kankan, Labé and Nzérékoré |
|---|---|
| Airline | No national carrier since Air Guinée ended in 2002; Air France, Brussels Airlines, Turkish, Royal Air Maroc and the West African carriers |
| Main ports | Conakry, the country's port on Tombo Island; Kamsar for the bauxite of Boké; the Simandou port at Morebaya, 2025 |
| Railways | The Simandou railway of 620 km, standard gauge, from the mines to Morebaya, opened 2025 — the country's first new line in a century; the bauxite lines of Kamsar and Fria; the Conakry–Kankan line of 1914, 662 km, dead since the 1990s |
| Roads | About 44,000 km (27,300 mi), about a tenth paved; the road from Conakry to Kankan and Mali; the road south to Nzérékoré |
| The stadium | The 55,000-seat stadium of Nongo outside Conakry, built for the inauguration of 2026 and the Africa Cup of Nations bid |
History in dates
| c. 1235 | The Mali Empire of Sundiata — Kankan and the Malinké |
|---|---|
| 1725 | The Fulani jihad founds the imamate of the Fouta Djallon |
| 1880s | Samory Touré's Wassoulou Empire resists the French; captured 1898 |
| 1891 | French Guinea |
| 1958 | The "No" of 28 September; independence, 2 October — Sékou Touré |
| 1970 | The Portuguese raid on Conakry, 22 November |
| 1984 | Touré dies, 26 March; Lansana Conté's coup, 3 April |
| 2008 | Conté dies, 22 December; Dadis Camara's coup, 23 December |
| 2009 | The stadium massacre, 28 September |
| 2010 | Alpha Condé elected, 7 November — the first free election |
| 2013 | Ebola begins at Méliandou, December |
| 2020 | Condé's third term after the constitution of March, 18 October |
| 2021 | The coup of 5 September — Mamady Doumbouya |
| 2022 | The massacre trial opens, 28 September |
| 2024 | Dadis Camara sentenced, 31 July; ECOWAS lifts sanctions |
| 2025 | The referendum, 21 September; Simandou's first ore, November; the election, 28 December |
| 2026 | Doumbouya sworn in, 17 January |
Records & firsts
| The largest bauxite reserves and exports | A quarter of the world's |
|---|---|
| The largest untapped iron deposit | Simandou, until November 2025 |
| The water tower of West Africa | The Niger, the Senegal and the Gambia rise here |
| The first French colony to choose independence | The "No" of 28 September 1958 |
| Among the wettest capitals | Conakry, about 3,700 mm a year |
| Where Ebola began | Méliandou, 2013 |
| A stadium massacre judged at home | The verdict of 31 July 2024 |
| A coup leader elected | 86.72%, December 2025 |
| The djembe | The drum the world learned from the Malinké |
| Mount Nimba | The viviparous toad and the chimpanzees that use tools |
Frequently asked questions
Which Guinea is this?
The Republic of Guinea, the largest of the four — often called Guinea-Conakry after its capital, to keep it from the others: Guinea-Bissau, the small Portuguese-speaking country to its northwest; Equatorial Guinea, the Spanish-speaking one on the Gulf of Guinea; and Papua New Guinea, on the other side of the world. All four take the old name for the West African coast, from a Berber word for the land of the Black peoples, which the Portuguese wrote as Guiné; this Guinea was French Guinea until 1958.
What is the official name of Guinea?
The Republic of Guinea — République de Guinée — since 2 October 1958, when it became the first French colony in Africa to choose independence, voting "No" to de Gaulle's Community in the referendum of 28 September and leaving the French Union at once, with the French taking the telephones with them. It was the People's Revolutionary Republic of Guinea under Sékou Touré from 1978 to 1984.
What is the capital of Guinea?
Conakry, on Tombo Island and the Kaloum peninsula stretching into the Atlantic, the French port of 1885 and the capital since 1904 — a city of about 2 million people, a seventh of the country, sprawling up the peninsula from the old town to the airport. Nzérékoré in the forest of the southeast is the second city; Kankan, the Malinké capital on the Milo; Kindia; Labé, the town of the Fouta Djallon; and Boké, the bauxite port, follow.
How big is Guinea, and how many people live there?
About 245,857 km² (94,926 sq mi) — a little smaller than Oregon, about the size of the United Kingdom — on the Atlantic between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone, reaching inland to Mali and Côte d'Ivoire in a crescent. The census of 2014 counted 10,523,261 people; the UN estimates about 15 million for 2025 and the World Bank about 17.5 million for 2026, the counts diverging as they do where no census has been taken in a decade. Half the people are under 18.
What are the highest and lowest points of Guinea?
Mount Nimba, 1,752 m (5,748 ft), on the border with Côte d'Ivoire and Liberia in the forest of the southeast, a World Heritage site for its rare life — and the Atlantic. The Fouta Djallon highlands of the west, at 1,000 to 1,500 m, are the water tower of West Africa: the Niger, the Senegal and the Gambia all rise there, and the Niger runs 4,180 km from its source near the Sierra Leone border to the sea in Nigeria.
What currency does Guinea use?
The Guinean franc (ISO code GNF, FG), issued by the Central Bank of the Republic of Guinea — the country left the CFA franc in 1960 and had the syli, named for the elephant, from 1972 to 1986 — at about 8,600 to the U.S. dollar, one of the lowest-valued currencies in the world by the unit. Clocks keep Greenwich Mean Time, UTC±0, all year.
Who governs Guinea?
President Mamady Doumbouya, the colonel of the special forces who seized power on 5 September 2021 by overthrowing Alpha Condé — and who, after promising not to stand, won the presidential election of 28 December 2025 with 86.72 percent of the vote, with the main opposition leaders barred from the ballot and the UN criticizing its conduct. He was sworn in on 17 January 2026 in a new 55,000-seat stadium before a dozen heads of state for a seven-year term under the constitution approved by referendum in September 2025, which lifted the junta's own ban on its members running. Amadou Oury Bah is prime minister, reappointed in January 2026. The legislative elections that complete the transition are due in 2026.
World knowledge, A to Z — the flags of every country, the sciences, places, people and more.
We Value Your Opinion Comments