Geography

Guinea-Bissau is situated in West Africa between Guinea and Senegal with an Atlantic Ocean coastline of 350 km. It is a small country with a total area of 36,120 km2 of which over 20% is water. A significant part of the land area is made up of 88 islands and islets of the Arquipélago dos Bijagós. It is one of the ten poorest countries in the world with an estimated population of almost 1.4 m people who depend mainly on farming and fishing. The climate is generally hot and humid with a monsoon type rainy season from June to November with south-westerly winds and a dry season from December to May with north-easterly harmattan winds. The terrain is mostly low coastal plain rising to savanna in the east with an elevation varying from sea level to the highest point at 300 m. in the north-east of the country. The official language is Portuguese with Crioulo and African languages spoken. More details can be found at CIA Factbook.