Equatorial Guinea
GANG INFORMATION
PROFILE
OFFICIAL NAME:
Republic of Equatorial Guinea
Geography
Location: Western Africa, bordering the Bay of Biafra. Bordering
nations--Cameroon, Gabon.
Area: 28,050 sq. km; slightly smaller than Maryland.
Cities: Capital--Malabo. Other cities--Bata (also capital of Littoral
province on the mainland).
Terrain: Varies. Bioko Island is volcanic, with three major peaks
of 9,876 feet, 7,416 feet and 6,885 feet. Behind the coastal plain,
the mainland provinces are hilly at a level of approximately 2,000
feet, with some 4,000-foot peaks. Annobon Island is volcanic.
Climate: Tropical; always hot, humid. Bata on the mainland is
somewhat drier and cooler.
People
Nationality: Noun--Equatorial Guinean(s), Equatoguinean(s) Adjective--Equatorial
Guinean, Equatoguinean.
Population (July 2005 est.): 540,109.
Annual growth rate (2003 est.): 24.1%; 2.8% (1975-2002).
Ethnic groups: The Fang ethnic group of the mainland constitutes
the great majority of the population and dominates political life
and business. The Bubi group comprises about 50,000 people living
mainly in Bioko Island. The Annobonese on the island of Annobon
are estimated at about 3,000 in number. The other three ethnic
groups are found on the coast of Rio Muni and include the Ndowe
and Kombe (about 3,000 each) and the Bujebas (about 2,000). The
pygmy populations have long been integrated into the dominant
Bantu-speaking cultures. Europeans are less than 1,000, mostly
Spanish.
Languages: Official--Spanish, French; other--pidgin English, Fang,
Bubi, Ibo.
Religion: Nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic;
pagan practices.
Education: Primary school compulsory for ages 6-14. Attendance
(2002 est.)--85%. Adult literacy (2003 est.)--85.7%.
Health (2003 est.): Life expectancy--49 years. Infant mortality
rate--89/1,000.
Government
Type: Nominally multi-party Republic with strong domination by
the executive branch.
Independence: October 12, 1968 (from Spain).
Constitution: Approved by national referendum November 17, 1991;
amended January 1995.
Branches: Executive--President (Chief of State) and a Council
of Ministers appointed by the president. Legislative--100-member
Chamber of People's Representatives (members directly elected
by universal suffrage to serve five-year terms). Judicial--Supreme
Tribunal.
Administrative subdivisions: Seven provinces--Annobon, Bioko Norte,
Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Littoral, Wele-Nzas.
Political parties: The ruling party is the Partido Democratico
de Guinea Ecuatorial (PDGE), formed July 30, 1987. Numerous other
parties were allowed to form in the early 1990s.
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal adult.
Economy
GDP (2005 est.): $25.69 billion.
GDP growth rate (2004 est.) 25.7%.
Inflation rate (2004 est. average): 5.8%.
Unemployment rate: (1998 est.) 30%.
Natural resources: Petroleum, timber, small, unexploited deposits
of gold, manganese, and uranium.
Agriculture (1999 est.): 16% of GDP. Products--coffee, cocoa,
rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts, manioc,
livestock, and timber.
Industry (1999 est.): 75.3% of GDP. Types--petroleum, fishing,
saw milling, natural gas.
Services (2001): 4.1% of GDP.
Trade (2003 est.): Exports--$2.6 billion: hydrocarbons (97%),
timber (2%), others (1%). Imports--$1.2 billion. Major trading
partners--United States, Spain, China, Canada, France, Great Britain,
Cameroon and Norway.
Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine (CFA) Franc.
GEOGRAPHY
The Republic of Equatorial Guinea is located in west central Africa.
Bioko Island lies about 40 kilometers (25 mi.) from Cameroon.
Annobon Island lies about 595 kilometers (370 mi.) southwest of
Bioko Island. The larger continental region of Rio Muni lies between
Cameroon and Gabon on the mainland; it includes the islands of
Corisco, Elobey Grande, Elobey Chico, and adjacent islets.
Bioko Island, called Fernando Po until the 1970s,
is the largest island in the Gulf of Guinea--2,017 square kilometers
(780 sq. mi.). It is shaped like a boot, with two large volcanic
formations separated by a valley that bisects the island at its
narrowest point. The 195-kilometer (120-mi.) coastline is steep
and rugged in the south but lower and more accessible in the north,
with excellent harbors at Malabo and Luba, and several scenic
beaches between those towns.
On the continent, Rio Muni covers 26,003 square
kilometers (10,040 sq. mi.). The coastal plain gives way to a
succession of valleys separated by low hills and spurs of the
Crystal Mountains. The Rio Benito (Mbini), which divides Rio Muni
in half, is unnavigable except for a 20-kilometer stretch at its
estuary. Temperatures and humidity in Rio Muni are generally lower
than on Bioko Island.
Annobon Island, named for its discovery on New Year's
Day 1472, is a small volcanic island covering 18 square kilometers
(7 sq. mi.). The coastline is abrupt except in the north; the
principal volcanic cone contains a small lake. Most of the estimated
1,900 inhabitants are fisherman specializing in traditional, small-scale
tuna fishing and whaling. The climate is tropical--heavy rainfall,
high humidity, and frequent seasonal changes with violent windstorms.
PEOPLE
The majority of the Equatoguinean people are of Bantu origin.
The largest tribe, the Fang, is indigenous to the mainland, but
substantial migration to Bioko Island has resulted in Fang dominance
over the earlier Bantu inhabitants. The Fang constitute 80% of
the population and are themselves divided into 67 clans. Those
in the northern part of Rio Muni speak Fang-Ntumu, while those
in the south speak Fang-Okah; the two dialects are mutually unintelligible.
The Bubi, who constitute 15% of the population, are indigenous
to Bioko Island. In addition, there are coastal tribes, sometimes
referred to as "Playeros," consisting of Ndowes, Bujebas,
Balengues, and Bengas on the mainland and small islands, and "Fernandinos,"
a Creole community, on Bioko. Together, these groups comprise
5% of the population. There are also foreigners from neighboring
Cameroon, Nigeria, and Gabon.
Spanish and French are both official languages,
though use of Spanish predominates. The Roman Catholic Church
has greatly influenced both religion and education.
Equatoguineans tend to have both a Spanish first
name and an African first and last name. When written, the Spanish
and African first names are followed by the father's first name
(which becomes the principal surname) and the mother's first name.
Thus people may have up to four names, with a different surname
for each generation.
HISTORY
The first inhabitants of the region that is now Equatorial Guinea
are believed to have been Pygmies, of whom only isolated pockets
remain in northern Rio Muni. Bantu migrations between the 17th
and 19th centuries brought the coastal tribes and later the Fang.
Elements of the latter may have generated the Bubi, who immigrated
to Bioko from Cameroon and Rio Muni in several waves and succeeded
former Neolithic populations. The Annobon population, native to
Angola, was introduced by the Portuguese via Sao Tome.
The Portuguese explorer, Fernando Po (Fernao do
Poo), seeking a route to India, is credited with having discovered
the island of Bioko in 1471. He called it Formosa ("pretty
flower"), but it quickly took on the name of its European
discoverer. The Portuguese retained control until 1778, when the
island, adjacent islets, and commercial rights to the mainland
between the Niger and Ogoue Rivers were ceded to Spain in exchange
for territory in South America (Treaty of Pardo). From 1827 to
1843, Britain established a base on the island to combat the slave
trade. The Treaty of Paris settled conflicting claims to the mainland
in 1900, and periodically, the mainland territories were united
administratively under Spanish rule.
Spain lacked the wealth and the interest to develop
an extensive economic infrastructure in what was commonly known
as Spanish Guinea during the first half of this century. However,
through a paternalistic system, particularly on Bioko Island,
Spain developed large cacao plantations for which thousands of
Nigerian workers were imported as laborers. At independence in
1968, largely as a result of this system, Equatorial Guinea had
one of the highest per capita incomes in Africa. The Spanish also
helped Equatorial Guinea achieve one of the continent's highest
literacy rates and developed a good network of health care facilities.
In 1959, the Spanish territory of the Gulf of Guinea
was established with status similar to the provinces of metropolitan
Spain. As the Spanish Equatorial Region, a governor general ruled
it exercising military and civilian powers. The first local elections
were held in 1959, and the first Equatoguinean representatives
were seated in the Spanish parliament. Under the Basic Law of
December 1963, limited autonomy was authorized under a joint legislative
body for the territory's two provinces. The name of the country
was changed to Equatorial Guinea. Although Spain's commissioner
general had extensive powers, the Equatorial Guinean General Assembly
had considerable initiative in formulating laws and regulations.
In March 1968, under pressure from Equatoguinean
nationalists and the United Nations, Spain announced that it would
grant independence to Equatorial Guinea. A constitutional convention
produced an electoral law and draft constitution. In the presence
of a UN observer team, a referendum was held on August 11, 1968,
and 63% of the electorate voted in favor of the constitution,
which provided for a government with a General Assembly and a
Supreme Court with judges appointed by the president.
In September 1968, Francisco Macias Nguema was elected
first president of Equatorial Guinea, and independence was granted
in October. In July 1970, Macias created a single-party state
and by May 1971, key portions of the constitution were abrogated.
In 1972 Macias took complete control of the government and assumed
the title of President-for-Life. The Macias regime was characterized
by abandonment of all government functions except internal security,
which was accomplished by terror; this led to the death or exile
of up to one-third of the country's population. Due to pilferage,
ignorance, and neglect, the country's infrastructure--electrical,
water, road, transportation, and health--fell into ruin. Religion
was repressed, and education ceased. The private and public sectors
of the economy were devastated. Nigerian contract laborers on
Bioko, estimated to have been 60,000, left en masse in early 1976.
The economy collapsed, and skilled citizens and foreigners left.
In August 1979, Macias' nephew from Mongomo and
former director of the infamous Black Beach prison, Teodoro Obiang
Nguema Mbasogo, led a successful coup d'etat; Macias was arrested,
tried, and executed. Obiang assumed the Presidency in October
1979. Obiang initially ruled Equatorial Guinea with the assistance
of a Supreme Military Council. A new constitution, drafted in
1982 with the help of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights,
came into effect after a popular vote on August 15, 1982; the
Council was abolished, and Obiang remained in the presidency for
a 7-year term. He was reelected in 1989. In February 1996, he
again won reelection with 98% of the vote; several opponents withdrew
from the race, however, and international observers criticized
the election. Subsequently, Obiang named a new cabinet, which
included some opposition figures in minor portfolios.
Despite the formal ending of one-party rule in 1991,
President Obiang and a circle of advisors (drawn largely from
his own family and ethnic group) maintain real authority. The
President names and dismisses cabinet members and judges, ratifies
treaties, leads the armed forces, and has considerable authority
in other areas. He appoints the governors of Equatorial Guinea's
seven provinces. The opposition had few electoral successes in
the 1990s. By early 2000, President Obiang’s PDGE party
fully dominated government at all levels. In December 2002, President
Obiang won a new seven-year mandate with 97% of the vote. Reportedly,
95% of eligible voters voted in this election, although many observers
noted numerous irregularities.
GOVERNMENT
The 1982 constitution gives the President extensive powers, including
naming and dismissing members of the cabinet, making laws by decree,
dissolving the Chamber of Representatives, negotiating and ratifying
treaties and calling legislative elections. The President retains
his role as commander in chief of the armed forces maintains close
supervision of military activity. In June 2004, the President
reorganized the cabinet and created two new positions: Minister
of National Security and Director of National Forces. The Prime
Minister is appointed by the President and operates under powers
designated by the President. The Prime Minister coordinates government
activities in areas other than foreign affairs, national defense
and security.
The Chamber of Representatives is comprised of 100
members elected by direct suffrage for 5-year terms. In practice,
the Chamber is not independent and rarely acts without presidential
approval or direction. A new National Assembly was directly elected
in April 2004. There are 100 members in this body, of which 14
are from the loyal opposition and 2 from opposition parties (the
CPDS: Convergencia Para la Democracia Social).
The President appoints the governors of the seven
provinces. Each province is divided administratively into districts
and municipalities. The internal administrative system falls under
the Ministry of Territorial Administration; several other ministries
are represented at the provincial and district levels.
The judicial system follows similar administrative
levels. At the top are the President and his judicial advisors
(the Supreme Court). In descending rank are the appeals courts,
chief judges for the divisions, and local magistrates. Tribal
laws and customs are honored in the formal court system when not
in conflict with national law. The current court system, which
often uses customary law, is a combination of traditional, civil,
and military justice, and it operates in an ad hoc manner for
lack of established procedures and experienced judicial personnel.
The other official branch of the government is the
State Council. The State Council's main function is to serve as
caretaker in case of death or physical incapacity of the President.
It comprises the following ex officio members: the President of
the Republic, the Prime Minister, the Minister of Defense, the
President of the National Assembly and the Chairman of the Social
and Economic Council.
Although the abuses and atrocities that characterized
the Macias years have been eliminated, effective rule of law does
not exist and the government is ultimately run by the Presidency.
Religious freedom is tolerated.
Principal Government Officials
President--Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, Brig. Gen. (ret.)
Prime Minister--Miguel Abia Biteo
Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation--Pastor
Micha Ondo Bile
Ambassador to the United States--Purification Angue Ondo
Equatorial Guinea maintains an embassy at 2020 16th
Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 (Tel. (202) 518-5700, Fax. (202)
518-5252). Its mission to the United Nations is at 801 Second
Avenue, Suite 1403, New York, N.W. 10017 (Tel. 212-599-1523).
POLITICAL CONDITIONS
In the period following Spain's grant of local autonomy to Equatorial
Guinea in 1963, there was a great deal of political party activity.
Bubi and Fernandino parties on the island preferred separation
from Rio Muni or a loose federation. Ethnically based parties
in Rio Muni favored independence for a united country comprising
Bioko and Rio Muni, an approach that ultimately won out. (The
Movimiento para la Auto-determinacion de la Isla de Bioko (MAIB)
which advocates independence for the island under Bubi control,
is one of the offshoots of the era immediately preceding independence).
After the accession of Macias to power, political activity largely
ceased in Equatorial Guinea. Opposition figures who lived among
the exile communities in Spain and elsewhere agitated for reforms;
some of them had been employed in the Macias and Obiang governments.
After political activities in Equatorial Guinea were legalized
in the early 1990s, some opposition leaders returned, but repressive
actions have continued sporadically.
The country’s first freely contested municipal
elections were held in September 1995. Most observers agree that
the elections themselves were relatively free and transparent
and that the opposition parties garnered between two-thirds and
three-quarters of the total vote. The government, however, delayed
announcement of the results and then claimed a highly dubious
52% victory overall and the capture of 19 of 27 municipal councils.
In early January 1996 Obiang called for presidential elections.
International observers agreed that the campaign was marred by
fraud, and most of the opposition candidates withdrew in the final
week. Obiang claimed re-election with 98% of the vote. In an attempt
to mollify his critics, Obiang gave minor portfolios in his cabinet
to people identified as opposition figures. In the legislative
election in March 1999, the party increased its majority in the
80-seat parliament from 68 to 75. The main opposition parties
refused the seats they had allegedly won. In May 2000, the ruling
PDGE overwhelmed its rivals in local elections. Opposition parties
rejected the next election, the December 2002 Presidential election,
as invalid. During this election, President Obiang was re-elected
with 97% of the vote. Following his re-election Obiang formed
a government based on national unity encompassing all opposition
parties, except for the CPDS, which declined to join after Obiang
refused to release one of their jailed leaders.
In April 2004, parliamentary and municipal elections
took place. President Obiang's Democratic Party of Equatorial
Guinea (PDGE) and allied parties won 98 of 100 seats in parliament
and all but seven of 244 municipal posts. International observers
criticized both the election and its results.
While President Obiang's rule, in which schools
reopened, primary education expanded, and public utilities and
roads restored, compares favorably with Macias' tyranny and terror,
it has been criticized for not implementing genuine democratic
reforms. Corruption and a dysfunctional judicial system disrupt
the development of Equatorial Guinea's economy and society. In
2004, the President appointed a new Prime Minister, Miguel Abia
Biteo, and replaced several ministers; however, the government
budget still does not include all revenues and expenditures. The
United Nations Development Program has proposed a broad governance
reform program, but the Equatoguinean Government is not moving
rapidly to implement it.
Equatorial Guinea suffered a severe human rights
setback in May 2002 when a special tribunal convicted 68 prisoners
and their relatives and sentenced them 6 to 20 years in prison
for an alleged attempted coup d’etat. Among the prisoners
were leaders of the three main opposition parties that had remained
independent from President Obiang's ruling party. There were numerous
irregularities associated with the trial, including evidence of
torture and a lack of substantive proof. In August 2003, 31 of
these convicted prisoners were granted a presidential amnesty.
In March 2004, Zimbabwean police in Harare impounded
a plane from South Africa with 64 alleged mercenaries on board.
The group said they were providing security for a mine in Democratic
Republic of Congo, but a couple of days later an Equatorial Guinean
minister said they had detained 15 more men who he claimed were
the advance party for the group captured in Zimbabwe. Nick du
Toit, the leader of the group of South Africans, Armenians and
one German, in Equatorial Guinea, said at his trial in Equatorial
Guinea that he was playing a limited role in a coup bid organized
by Simon Mann, the alleged leader of the group held in Zimbabwe,
to remove Obiang from power and install an exiled opposition politician,
Severo Moto.
In September 2004, Mann was sentenced to seven years
in jail in Zimbabwe after being convicted of illegally trying
to buy weapons. Others arrested with him were acquitted of any
links to a suspected coup attempt after magistrates said prosecutors
had failed to prove their case but were convicted on immigration
charges to one year in jail. Both Mann's trial in Zimbabwe and
the Equatorial Guinea trial began amid complaints of abuse and
unfair treatment from relatives of those being held. One suspect,
a German, died in prison in Equatorial Guinea of malaria (Amnesty
International believes that he died as a result of the effects
of torture, and has called for an investigation). In Equatorial
Guinea in November 2004, a total of 22 people were convicted,
including nine tried in absentia. Three Equatoguineans and three
South Africans were acquitted. In June 2005, President Obiang
decided to grant amnesty to the six Armenian pilots.
Although Equatorial Guinea lacks a well-established
democratic tradition comparable to the developed democracies of
the West, it should be noted that, out of the anarchic, chaotic,
and repressive conditions of the Macias years the country has
made small, haphazard steps toward the development of participatory
political system.
ECONOMY
Oil and gas exports have increased substantially and will drive
the economy for years to come. Real GDP growth reached 18% in
2000, 66% in 2001, 20% in 2002, 10% in 2003 and 25.7% in 2004
(est.). Per capita income rose from about $590 in 1998 to $2,000
in 2000 and $5,300 today. The energy export sector is responsible
for this rapid growth. Oil production increased from 81,000 barrels
per day (bbl/d) in 1998 to more than 300,000 bbl/d by 2004, and
is currently capped at 350,000 bbl/d. Exploration efforts continue
in search of further potential offshore concessions.
Equatorial Guinea has other unexploited human and
natural resources, including a tropical climate, fertile soils,
rich expanses of water, deepwater ports, and an untapped, if unskilled,
source of labor. Following independence in 1968, the country suffered
under a repressive dictatorship for 11 years, which devastated
the economy. The agricultural sector, historically known for cocoa
of the highest quality, never fully recovered. In 1969, Equatorial
Guinea produced 36,161 tons of highly bid cocoa, but production
dropped to 4,800 tons in 2000 and 3,430 tons in 2002. It increased
slightly from 2003 levels to 2,906 tons by 2004. Coffee production
was 126,000 metric tons in 2002, up from 67000 tons 5 years earlier.
Timber is the main source of foreign exchange after oil, though
it now only accounts for 2% of total export earnings. Timber production
increased steadily during the 1990s; wood exports reached a record
789,000 cubic meters in 1999 as demand in Asia (mainly China)
gathered pace after the 1998 economic crisis. Since 1998, production
of timber has fallen closer to a sustainable level. 530,500 cubic
meters were sold in 2002. Most of the production (mainly Okoume)
goes to exports, and only 3% is processed locally. Bioko Island
has already suffered permanent damage due to earlier exploitation.
Consumer price inflation has declined from the 38.8% experienced
in 1994 following the CFA franc devaluation, to 7.8% in 1998,
and 4.0% in 2000, according to BEAC data. Consumer prices inflation
has remained steady at around 6% since 2002.
Equatorial Guinea's economic policies, as defined
by law, comprise an open investment regime. Qualitative restrictions
on imports, non-tariff protection, and many import licensing requirements
were lifted in 1992 when the government adopted a public investment
program endorsed by the World Bank. The Government of Equatorial
Guinea has sold some state enterprises. It is attempting to create
a more favorable investment climate, and its investment code contains
numerous incentives for job creation, training, promotion of nontraditional
exports, support of development projects and indigenous capital
participation, freedom for repatriation of profits, exemption
from certain taxes and capital, and other benefits. Trade regulations
have been further liberalized since Central African Economic and
Monetary Union (CEMAC) reform codes in 1994. This included elimination
of quota restrictions and reductions in the range and amounts
of tariffs. The CEMAC countries agreed to the introduction of
a value added tax (VAT) in 1999.
While business laws promote a liberalized economy,
the business climate remains difficult. Application of the laws
remains selective. Corruption among officials is widespread, and
many business deals are concluded under nontransparent circumstances.
A newly introduced wage law now regulates separate wage levels
for the petroleum, private and government sector.
There is little industry in the country, and the
local market for industrial products is small. The government
seeks to expand the role of free enterprise and to promote foreign
investment but has had little success in creating an atmosphere
conducive to investor interest.
The Equatoguinean budget has grown enormously in
the past 5 years as royalties and taxes on foreign company oil
and gas production have provided new resources to a once poor
government. The 2005 government revenue was about $1.97 billion.
Oil revenues account for more than 81% of government revenue.
Value Added Tax and trade taxes are other large revenue sources
for the government.
The Equatoguinean Government has undertaken a number
of reforms since 1991 to reduce its predominant role in the economy
and promote private sector development. Its role is a diminishing
one, although many government interactions with the private sector
are at times capricious. The government is anxious for greater
U.S. investment. Beginning in early 1997, the government initiated
efforts to attract significant private sector involvement through
cooperative efforts with the Corporate Council on Africa visit
and numerous ministerial efforts. In 1998, the government privatized
distribution of petroleum products. There are now Total and Mobil
stations in the country. The maritime border with Nigeria was
settled in 2000, allowing Equatorial Guinea to continue exploitation
of its oil fields. In October 2002, the government launched a
national oil company, GEPetrol, under the Ministry of Mines and
Hydrocarbons.
The government has expressed interest in privatizing
the outmoded electricity utility. Several ports and a new terminal
were built to accommodate the needs of the oil industry. A French
company operates cellular telephone service in cooperation with
a state enterprise. Most of the new infrastructure has not reached
the average Equatoguinean living on the mainland. Agriculture,
fishing, livestock, and tourism are among sectors the government
would like targeted.
Equatorial Guinea's balance-of-payments situation
has improved substantially since the mid-1990s because of new
oil and gas production and favorable world energy prices. Exports
totaled $6.72 billion in 2005. Crude oil exports now annually
accounts for more than 97% of export earnings. Timber exports,
by contrast, now represent only about 2% of export revenues. Imports
into Equatorial Guinea also are growing very quickly. Imports
totaled $1.86 billion in 2005.
Equatorial Guinea in the 1980s and 1990s received
foreign assistance from numerous bilateral and multilateral donors,
including European countries, the United States, and the World
Bank. Many of these aid programs have ceased altogether or have
diminished. Spain, France, and the European Union continue to
provide some project assistance, as do China and Cuba. The government
also has discussed working with World Bank assistance to develop
government administrative capacity.
Equatorial Guinea operated under an International
Monetary Fund-negotiated Enhanced Structural Adjustment Facility
(ESAF) until 1996. Since then, there have been no formal agreements
or arrangements. However, since 1996, the IMF has held regular
held Article IV consultations (periodic country evaluations).
After the 2003 consultations, IMF directors stressed the need
for further improvements in governance and transparency, the attainment
of a sustainable fiscal position, the implementation of structural
reforms to bolster the non-oil sector, the development of a transparent
framework for saving and managing part of the country’s
oil wealth and a comprehensive effort to reduce poverty.
Trade and Investment
With investments estimated at $11 billion, the United States is
the largest cumulative bilateral foreign investor in Equatorial
Guinea. In 2003, 74% of U.S. exports to Equatorial Guinea consisted
of energy sector-related transportation and machinery equipment.
The United States' main import from Equatorial Guinea is petroleum
(99% of imports in 2003). In 1999, the European Union (EU) imported
$281.7 million in goods from Equatorial Guinea, 89% of which was
petroleum and 7% timber. The European Union exported $104 million
to Equatorial Guinea. Approximately 20% of these exports were
oil and gas-related, and the remaining 80% ranged from agricultural
products to clothing to used cars.
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is generally old and in poor condition. Surface
transport options are increasing as the government has invested
heavily in road pavement projects. In 2002, the African Development
Bank and the European Union co-financed two projects to improve
the paved roads from Malabo to Luba and Riaba; and to build an
interstate road network to link Equatorial Guinea to Cameroon
and Gabon. The Chinese are undertaking a project to link Mongomo
to Bata, both cities on the mainland. In November 2003, the government
announced an ambitious ten-project program to upgrade the country’s
road network and improve the airport facilities at Bata, the country’s
second city (on the mainland). A new road links Malabo with the
airport and there have been improvements in the city. The program
is estimated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, but there
are doubts over the capacity of the government to manage such
a huge scheme.
Estimates of Equatorial Guinea's electricity generating
capacity vary, with 15.4 megawatts (MW) of certain installed capacity,
and 5-30 MW of estimated additional capacity. About 5.0 MW are
located on the mainland, including 4 MW of oil-fired thermal capacity
and 1 MW of hydroelectric capacity. Bioko Island receives electricity
from two thermal plants and one hydroelectric plant. The expansion
of natural gas production at the Alba field in recent years has
provided a convenient fuel source for new power generation in
the country. The 10.4-MW, natural gas-fired Punta Europa plant
began operation in 1999, supplying gas-fired electricity to Bioko
Island. Another 4-6 MW of generation capacity is currently under
construction at the AMPCO complex on the island. Equatorial Guinea
is estimated to have 2,600 MW of hydropower potential.
Equatorial Guinea's electricity sector is owned
and operated by the state-run monopoly, SEGESA. The power supply
is unreliable, due to aging equipment and poor management, as
demonstrated by regular blackouts in Malabo. As a result, small
diesel generators are widely used as a back-up source of power
supply. In Malabo, the American company, Marathon Oil, built a
30 mega-watt electric power plant financed by the government,
which came on line in mid-2000.
Potable water is available in the major towns but
is not always reliable because of poor maintenance and mismanagement;
consequently, supply interruptions are often frequent and prolonged
in some neighborhoods. Some villages and rural areas are equipped
with generators and water pumps, usually owned by private individuals.
Telecommunications have improved dramatically in
recent years. Parastatal Getesa, a joint venture with a 40% ownership
stake held by France Telecom, provides telephone service in the
major cities through an efficient, digital fixed network and good
mobile coverage. Getesa’s fixed-line service has 9,000 subscribers
and the mobile service has 28,000. Internet access is limited
and has yet to make an impact on the dissemination of information.
Equatorial Guinea has two of the deepest Atlantic
seaports of the region, including the main business and commercial
port city of Bata. The ports of both Malabo and Bata are severely
overextended and require extensive rehabilitation and reconditioning.
In partnership with a U.S. petroleum company, Amerada Hess, a
British company, Incat, has made significant progress in a project
to renovate and expand Luba, the country's third-largest port,
located on Bioko Island. The government hopes Luba will become
a major transportation hub for offshore oil and gas companies
operating in the Gulf of Guinea. Luba is located some 50 kilometers
from Malabo and was previously virtually inactive except for minor
fishing activities and occasional use to ease congestion in Malabo.
Riaba, the only other port of any scale on Bioko, is less active.
The continental ports of Mbini and Cogo have deteriorated as well
and are now used primarily for timber.
Five small airlines now offer regular daily services
between the two cities of Malabo and Bata and nearby neighboring
countries. A few aging Soviet-built aircraft operated by several
small carriers (one state-owned, the others private,) constitute
this national aircraft fleet. In March of 2006 the European Union
fully banned most airlines based in Equatorial Guinea from flying
into the EU. The influx of oil workers has increased international
air activity. Major international carriers now connect Malabo
to the European cities of Amsterdam, Paris, Madrid and Zurich.
A weekly business-class charter flight was providing service to
Houston, Texas. The runway at Malabo’s international airport
(3,200 meters) is equipped with lights and can service equipment
similar to DC-10s and C130s. The runway at Bata (2,400 meters)
does not operate at night but can accommodate aircraft as large
as B737s. Two minor airstrips (800 meters) are located at Mongomo
and on the island of Annobon.
Energy Developments
Oil is Equatorial Guinea's most valuable asset. Since the discovery
of the Zafiro field in 1995, production has increased more than
tenfold, and oil has quickly become the country's most important
export commodity, accounting for nearly 90% of the value of total
exports in 2003. Equatorial Guinea is now the third largest producer
of crude oil in sub-Saharan Africa, after Nigeria and Angola.
Equatorial Guinea's oil reserves are located mainly in the hydrocarbon-rich
Gulf of Guinea, containing estimated probable reserves as high
as 10% of the world total. As a result, large amounts of foreign
investment primarily by U.S. companies have poured into the country's
oil sector in recent years.
Oil production from Equatorial Guinea is expanding
rapidly, averaging 237,500 bbl/d in 2003, of which 206,000 was
crude. This represents a tremendous increase from the 1996 oil
output of 17,000 bbl/d. Production improvements and expansion
projects undertaken in 2003 pushed petroleum output even higher,
resulting in average production of 350,000 bbl/d for the first
half of 2004. In October 2004, the government capped production
levels at 350,000 bbl/d to extend the life of the country's petroleum
reserves. Three fields--Zafiro, Ceiba, and Alba--currently account
for the majority of the country's oil output.
Equatorial Guinea's oil profits have expanded since
1998, when the country introduced more liberal regulatory and
profit sharing arrangements for hydrocarbon exploration and production
activities, including revised and updated Production Sharing Contracts
(PSCs). As a result, government oil revenues increased from 13%
to 20% of total oil export earnings. Although significant, the
government's share is still relatively small by international
standards.
In 2001, GEPetrol became Equatorial Guinea's national
oil company. It was established as the primary state-run institution
responsible for the country's downstream oil sector activities.
However, since 2001 its primary focus has become managing the
government's interest stakes in various PSCs with foreign oil
companies. GEPetrol also partners with foreign firms to undertake
exploration projects and has a say in the country's environmental
policy implementation. Plans to increase the government's stake
in new and existing PSCs have been discussed, but not formally
pursued.
The majority of the reserves are found in the Zafiro
field, located northwest of Bioko Island and south of Nigeria's
offshore oil fields. In recent years, Exxon Mobil has focused
on increasing production from Zafiro, expanding drilling capacity
to accommodate this plan. Zafiro is Equatorial Guinea's largest
oil producer, with output rising from an initial level of 7,000
bbl/d in August 1996 to approximately 280,000 bbl/d by 2004. Ceiba,
Equatorial Guinea's second major producing oil field, is located
just offshore of Rio Muni and is estimated to contain 300 million
barrels of oil. Production at Ceiba has risen dramatically during
the past 2-3 years, following improvements and upgrades to the
facility. Alba, Equatorial Guinea's third significant field was
discovered in 1991. Original estimates of reserves at Alba were
around 68 million barrels of oil equivalent (BOE), but recent
exploration has increased new estimates significantly, to almost
1 billion BOE. Unlike the Zafiro or Ceiba fields, exploration
and production at Alba has focused on natural gas, including condensates.
Ceiba's discovery has significantly increased interest
in petroleum exploration of surrounding areas, with many new companies
acquiring licenses in exploration blocks further offshore in the
Rio Muni basin. International companies with interests in one
or more exploration blocks include Chevron (U.S.), Vanco Energy
(U.S.), Atlas Petroleum International (US), Devon Energy (US),
Roc Oil (Australia), Petronas (Malaysia), Sasol Petroleum (South
Africa), and Glencore (Switzerland). In October 2004, Noble Energy
Equatorial Guinea, an Equatoguinean subsidiary of American Noble
Energy, Inc. signed a contract to exploit a new oil field off
the island of Bioko. Equatorial Guinea's total proven oil reserves
are estimated at 1.1 billion barrels.
Equatorial Guinea's natural gas reserves are located
offshore Bioko Island, primarily in the Alba and Zafiro oil and
gas fields. Natural gas and condensate production in Equatorial
Guinea has expanded rapidly in the last five years in response
to new investments by major stakeholders in the Alba natural gas
field. Alba, the country's largest natural gas field, contains
1.3 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of proven reserves, with probable
reserves estimated at 4.4 Tcf or more.
Marathon Oil and GE Petrol have joined together
in a $1.4 billion deal to construct a liquefied natural gas (LNG)
facility on Bioko Island. In May 2003, the government gave final
approval for the plan to construct an LNG plant, once Marathon
and GE Petrol had secured a 17-year purchase agreement with British
Gas (BG) of the United Kingdom. Under the contract, the LNG facility
will supply 3.4 million tons of LNG to BG, beginning in 2007.
In June 2005, Marathon and GE Petrol restructured the deal to
include two Japanese companies, Mitsui and Marubeni, as minority
shareholders. Natural gas consumption in Equatorial Guinea has
increased in recent years, along with higher production. Natural
gas consumption jumped to 45 Bcf in 2002, from approximately 1
Bcf during each of the four previous years.
DEFENSE
The Equatoguinean military consists of approximately 2500 service
members. The largest contingent is the Army with 1400 soldiers;
the police have 400 para-military policemen, the Navy has 200
members and the Air Force has approximately 120. There is a Gendarmerie
but the exact number of members is unknown. All are very poorly
trained, but the government is steadily purchasing new equipment
from Ukraine and China among others. In 2003, the government spent
$75 million on military expenditures, about 9% of the 2002 budget.
Neither the Navy nor the Air Force has trained crews to operate
or maintain their equipment. Family and ethnic ties to the president
determine promotions and influence within the military. Military
decision-making is completely centralized with the President also
serving as the Minister of Defense.
Between 1984 and 1992, service members went regularly
to the United States on the International Military Education Training
program, after which funding for this program for Equatorial Guinea
ceased. U.S. military-to-military engagement has been dormant
since 1997 (the year of the last Joint Combined Exchange Training
Exercise), although their representatives did attend a recent
military hosted conference on Gulf of Guinea Security Cooperation.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
A transitional agreement, signed in October 1968, implemented
a Spanish pre-independence decision to assist Equatorial Guinea
and provided for the temporary maintenance of Spanish forces there.
A dispute with President Macias in 1969 led to a request that
all Spanish troops immediately depart, and a large number of civilians
left at the same time. Diplomatic relations between the two countries
were never broken but were suspended by Spain in March 1977 in
the wake of renewed disputes. After Macias' fall in 1979, President
Obiang asked for Spanish assistance, and since then, Spain has
regained its place of influence in Equatorial Guinea. The two
countries signed permanent agreements for economic and technical
cooperation, private concessions, and trade relations. Spain maintained
a bilateral assistance program in Equatorial Guinea. Most Equatoguinean
opposition elements (including a purported government-in-exile)
are based in Spain to the annoyance of the Equatoguinean Government.
Relations between the two countries grew difficult after the March
2004 coup attempt due to their hosting opposition figure Severo
Moto and their belief that Spain had foreknowledge of the coup.
However, the Spanish Foreign Minister, Miguel Angel Moratinos,
visited Equatorial Guinea in March 2005.
Equatorial Guinea has had generally cordial relations
with its neighbors. It is a member of the Central African Economic
and Monetary Union (CEMAC), which includes Cameroon, Central African
Republic, Chad, Congo/Brazzaville, and Gabon. Equatorial Guinea
is also part of the central Africa CFA franc zone and the Cameroon-based
Bank of Central African States coordinates monetary policy. The
Bank of France guarantees the CFA franc, and French technical
advisers work in the finance and planning ministries. France,
Spain, Cuba, and China have participated in infrastructure and
technical development projects.
Equatorial Guinea had a minor border dispute with
Cameroon that was resolved by the International Court of Justice
in 2002. The Corisco border dispute with Gabon was solved by an
agreement signed with the help of UN mediation in January 2004,
but the small island of Mbane and potentially oil-rich waters
surrounding it remain contested. The majority Fang ethnic group
of mainland Equatorial Guinea extends both north and south into
the forests of Cameroon and Gabon. Cameroon exports some food
products to Equatorial Guinea and imports oil from Equatorial
Guinea for its refinery at nearby Limbe. The development of the
oil industry by U.S.-based companies and the lack of a well-trained
work force have provided motivation for an influx of English-speaking
workers (legal and illegal) from Cameroon, Nigeria and Ghana.
(However, relations with the Nigerian government have lately been
cordial as the two countries delineated their offshore borders
to facilitate development of nearby gas fields.) Roundups and
expulsion of foreigners following the March 2004 coup attempt
revived tensions between these neighbors.
The government's official policy is one of nonalignment
and it has been reluctant to fully integrate itself into CEMAC.
In its search for assistance to meet the goal of national reconstruction,
the Government of Equatorial Guinea has established diplomatic
relations with numerous European and Third World Countries.
U.S.-EQUATORIAL GUINEA RELATIONS
The Equatoguinean government favorably views the U.S. Government
and American companies. The United States is the largest single
foreign investor in Equatorial Guinea. U.S. companies have the
largest and most visible foreign presence in the country. In an
effort to attract increased U.S. investment, American passport-holders
are entitled to visa-free entry for short visits. The United States
is the only country with this privilege.
With the increased U.S. investment presence, relations
between the U.S. and the Government of Equatorial Guinea have
been characterized by a positive, constructive relationship. In
2003, the Department of State re-opened a limited embassy in Malabo
after an 8-year absence. Under the current arrangement, the U.S.
Ambassador in Yaounde remains concurrently accredited to Cameroon
and Equatorial Guinea. Consular responsibilities will remain with
the U.S. embassy in Yaounde for the foreseeable future, though
the embassy maintains a consular agent in Bata.
Equatorial Guinea maintains an embassy in Washington,
DC. President Obiang has strived to cultivate the Equatorial Guinea-U.S.
relationship with regular visits to the U.S. for meetings with
senior government and business leaders.
The 2005 U.S. State Department Human Rights report
on Equatorial Guinea cited shortcomings in basic human rights,
political freedom, and labor rights. Equatorial Guinea attributes
deficiencies to excessive zeal on the part of local authorities
and promises better control and sensitization. U.S. government
policy involves constructive engagement with Equatorial Guinea
to encourage an improvement in the human rights situation and
positive use of petroleum funds directed toward the development
of a working civil society. Equatoguineans visit the U.S. under
programs sponsored by the U.S. Government, American oil companies
and educational institutions. The Ambassador's Self-Help Fund
annually finances a number of small grassroots projects.
In view of growing ties between U.S. companies and
Equatorial Guinea, the U.S. Government's overseas investment promotion
agency, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), has
concluded the largest agreement in Sub-Saharan Africa for a major
U.S. project in Equatorial Guinea. The U.S. Agency for International
Development has no Equatorial Guinea-related programs or initiatives
nor is the Peace Corps present. American-based non-governmental
organizations and other donor groups have very little involvement
in the country.
Principal U.S. Embassy Officials
Ambassador--Niels Marquardt (resident in Yaounde, Cameroon)
Chargé d'Affaires (Malabo)--Sarah Morrison
The United States has re-opened a limited-function
embassy in Malabo. However, inquiries should continue to be directed
to the U.S. Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon. The U.S. Embassy in
Cameroon has moved from its previous downtown Yaounde location
to a New Embassy Compound adjacent to the golf course at the base
of the Mont Fébé. The new Embassy Chancery contacts
are: Tel: (237) 220 15 00/Fax: (237) 220 16 20 while the Consular
Section can be reached directly at Tel: (237) 220 16 03/Fax: (237)
220 1752. The mailing address is: B.P. 817, Yaounde, Cameroon.
The U.S. mailing address is American Embassy Yaounde, Department
of State, Washington, DC 20521-2520. Business hours are Monday
to Thursday: 07:30 to 17:00 Friday: 07:30 to 12:30.
TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program provides
Consular Information Sheets, Travel Warnings, and Public Announcements.
Consular Information Sheets exist for all countries and include
information on entry requirements, currency regulations, health
conditions, areas of instability, crime and security, political
disturbances, and the addresses of the U.S. posts in the country.
Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends
that Americans avoid travel to a certain country. Public Announcements
are issued as a means to disseminate information quickly about
terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas
that pose significant risks to the security of American travelers.
Free copies of this information are available by calling the Bureau
of Consular Affairs at 202-647-5225 or via the fax-on-demand system:
202-647-3000. Consular Information Sheets and Travel Warnings
also are available on the Consular Affairs Internet home page:
http://travel.state.gov. Consular Affairs Tips for Travelers publication
series, which contain information on obtaining passports and planning
a safe trip abroad, are on the Internet and hard copies can be
purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government
Printing Office, telephone: 202-512-1800; fax 202-512-2250.
Emergency information concerning Americans traveling
abroad may be obtained from the Office of Overseas Citizens Services
at (202) 647-5225. For after-hours emergencies, Sundays and holidays,
call 202-647-4000.
The National Passport Information Center (NPIC)
is the U.S. Department of State's single, centralized public contact
center for U.S. passport information. Telephone: 1-877-4USA-PPT
(1-877-487-2778). Customer service representatives and operators
for TDD/TTY are available Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.,
Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.
Travelers can check the latest health information
with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta,
Georgia. A hotline at 877-FYI-TRIP (877-394-8747) and a web site
at http://www.cdc.gov/travel/index.htm give the most recent health
advisories, immunization recommendations or requirements, and
advice on food and drinking water safety for regions and countries.
A booklet entitled Health Information for International Travel
(HHS publication number CDC-95-8280) is available from the U.S.
Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402, tel. (202) 512-1800.
Information on travel conditions, visa requirements,
currency and customs regulations, legal holidays, and other items
of interest to travelers also may be obtained before your departure
from a country's embassy and/or consulates in the U.S. (for this
country, see "Principal Government Officials" listing
in this publication).
U.S. citizens who are long-term visitors or traveling
in dangerous areas are encouraged to register their travel via
the State Department’s travel registration web site at https://travelregistration.state.gov
or at the Consular section of the U.S. embassy upon arrival in
a country by filling out a short form and sending in a copy of
their passports. This may help family members contact you in case
of an emergency.
Further Electronic Information
Department of State Web Site. Available on the Internet at http://www.state.gov,
the Department of State web site provides timely, global access
to official U.S. foreign policy information, including Background
Notes and daily press briefings along with the directory of key
officers of Foreign Service posts and more.
Export.gov provides a portal to all export-related
assistance and market information offered by the federal government
and provides trade leads, free export counseling, help with the
export process, and more.
STAT-USA/Internet, a service of the U.S. Department
of Commerce, provides authoritative economic, business, and international
trade information from the Federal government. The site includes
current and historical trade-related releases, international market
research, trade opportunities, and country analysis and provides
access to the National Trade Data Bank.
