Equatorial Guinea Location:
3°21'N, 8°40'E
Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, is a country in West Middle Africa. One of the smallest countries in continental Africa, Equatorial Guinea is comprised of a mainland territory known as Río Muni (including several offshore islands); the island of Bioko (formerly Fernando Pó), where the capital, Malabo (formerly Santa Isabel) is located; and the island of Annobón in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered by Cameroon on the north, Gabon on the south and east, and the Gulf of Guinea on the west, where the island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe is located. Formerly the Spanish colony of Spanish Guinea, its post-independence name is suggestive of its location near both the equator and the Gulf of Guinea. It is the only country in mainland Africa where Spanish is an official language, excluding the Spanish territories of Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla, and the self proclaimed but unrecognised Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (Western Sahara).
Equatorial Guinea People:
Population
- July 2005 estimate 504,000 (166th)
- Density 18 /km2 (187th)
47 /sq mi
Equatorial Guinea Government:
Government Republic
- President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo
- Prime Minister Ricardo Mangue Obama Nfubea
Equatorial Guinea Economy:
Pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings. It had the highest per capita income of Africa in 1959.
The discovery of large oil reserves in 1996 and its subsequent exploitation have contributed to a dramatic increase in government revenue. As of 2004,[8] Equatorial Guinea is the third-largest oil producer in Sub-Saharan Africa. Its oil production has risen to 360,000 barrels/day, up from 220,000 only two years earlier.
Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. The deterioration of the rural economy under successive brutal regimes has diminished any potential for agriculture-led growth.
Despite a per capita GDP (PPP) of more than US$30,000[9] (CIA Factbook $50,200[10]) which is as of 2006 the second highest in the world (after Luxembourg), Equatorial Guinea ranks 121st out of 177 countries on the United Nations Human Development Index.
In July 2004, the U.S. Senate published an investigation into Riggs Bank, a Washington-based bank into which most of Equatorial Guinea's oil revenues were paid until recently, and which also banked for Chile's Augusto Pinochet. The Senate report, as to Equatorial Guinea, showed that at least $35 million were siphoned off by Obiang, his family and senior officials of his regime. The president has denied any wrongdoing. While Riggs Bank in February 2005 paid $9 million as restitution for its banking for Chile's Augusto Pinochet, no restitution was made with regard to Equatorial Guinea, as reported in detail in an Anti-Money Laundering Report from Inner City Press.[11]
On August 9, 2006, Harper's Magazine published an article by Ken Silverstein highlighting Obiang's recent connections with the U.S. State Department and Independence Federal Savings Bank.[12]
While Equatorial Guinea is currently one of the largest producers of oil in Africa, few improvements have been made to the living conditions of the people and most people live in poverty.
Equatorial Guinea More Information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equatorial_Guinea | 
