Equatorial Guinea

República de Guinea Ecuatorial (Spanish) République de Guinée équatoriale (French) República da Guiné Equatorial (Portuguese)
Republic of Equatorial Guinea
flag coat of arms
Motto : Unidad, Paz, Justicia (Spanish for unity, peace, justice )
Official language	Spanish , French and Portuguese 1
Capital	Malabo
Form of government	republic
Government system	Presidential system
Head of state	President Teodoro Obiang
Head of government	Prime Minister Francisco Pascual Obama Asue
surface	28,051 km²
population	1,309,000 (2018)
Population density	44 inhabitants per km²
gross domestic product Nominal Total ( PPP ) GDP / inh. (nominal) GDP / inh. (KKP)	2018 $ 13.73 billion ( 132nd ) $ 29.85 billion ( 136. ) 10,453 USD ( 70. ) 22,718 USD ( 66. )
Human Development Index	0.588 ( 144th ) (2019)
currency	CFA franc BEAC (XAF)
independence	October 12, 1968 (from Spain )
National anthem	Caminemos Pisando la Senda de Nuestra Inmensa Felicidad
National holiday	October 12th
Time zone	UTC + 1 (WAT)
License Plate	GQ
ISO 3166	GQ , GNQ, 226
Internet TLD	.gq
Telephone code	+240
1 Fang , Bube and Ambo as recognized national languages.

Malabo Bata San Antonio de Palé Luba Evinayong Ebebiyín Mongomo Pico Basile CAMEROON GABUN SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE ATLANTIC Gulf of Guinea Bio Annobón

The Republic of Equatorial Guinea , commonly referred to as Equatorial Guinea ( Spanish Guinea Ecuatorial , French Guinée Equatoriale , Portuguese Guiné Equatorial ) is a state in Sub-Saharan Africa . The mainland part of the state borders Cameroon to the north, Gabon to the south and east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the west . The southernmost part of the national territory, the island of Annobón , is 156 kilometers south of the equator , the rest north of it. Although the name of the country suggests it, the equator does not run through its national territory.

The main population group of the former Spanish colony are the Fang , a marginalized minority are the Bubi . The country is particularly rich in oil deposits along the coastal areas , the income from which only benefits a small - politically influential - elite. The high per capita income is approaching the European average. Nevertheless, the poverty rate is high. The violations of human rights have declined markedly, but the country does not provide legal certainty .

geography

Equatorial Guinea is one of the smallest states in Africa and covers a total area of ​​28,051 km², of which around 26,000 km² is on the mainland part of Mbini ( Rio Muni ). It is about the same size as the state of Brandenburg . The mainland part called Mbini rises from the flat coast up to 1200 meters inland. The straight sections of the boundaries of the mainland part are in the south at exactly 1 ° and in the north at 2 ° 10 'north latitude and in the east at 11 ° 20' east longitude .

The approximately 2000 km² large island of Bioko in the north off the coast of Cameroon , the coastal islands Corisco , Elobey Grande and Elobey Chico opposite the estuary of the Rio Muni and the 17 km² island located southwest of São Tomé about 352 km off the coast of Gabon Annobón belong to Equatorial Guinea.

The land borders are 835 km long and the coast around 300 km.

climate

The islands and the mainland have a tropical rainforest climate with a short dry season . While the dry season on Bioko is December and January, on the mainland it extends from July to August.

Flora and fauna

In Equatorial Guinea, tropical rainforest dominates . Mangrove swamps line the coast. On Bioko, part of the tropical rainforest has been replaced by plantations. On Annobón there are mainly oil and coconut trees.

The vast rainforest areas offer an ideal habitat for numerous animal species, for example chimpanzees , gorillas , drills , mandrills and lemurs . Even leopards , forest elephants , forest buffalo , bushbucks and Bongos are common.

population

Equatorial Guinea is one of the few African countries in which one people makes up the clear majority of the country: around 85.7 percent of the population belong to the Bantu-speaking Fang . In the mountainous interior of the island of Bioko , the Bubi live in villages that are often difficult to access. They also belong to the Bantu peoples and make up 6.5 percent of the population. But catches now also dominate here. Due to strong reprisals during the dictatorship of Francisco Macías Nguemas, the majority of the Bubi, who until then made up 20 percent of the population, had to leave the country - many went to Spain. Other minorities are 3.6 percent Mdowe and 1.1 percent the Bujeba . The Annobonese live on the island of Annobón , making up 1.6 percent of the total population. With a few thousand each, Europeans - mostly Spaniards  - and the Fernandinos , descendants of English-speaking Creoles, also live in the country.

In 2017, 17.5% of the population were born abroad. Equatorial Guinea has the highest proportion of foreigners of all African countries.

population

According to the 2015 census, the country has 1,222,442 inhabitants. The population growth should amount to 2.6% currently. About 20% of the Equatorial Guineans live on Bioko and 1% on Annobón. Since there is a lack of accurate and reliable population data, these statements, as well as those on gross domestic product and per capita income, are uncertain; therefore the international institutions sometimes come to very different results.

religion

As a result of the Spanish colonial rule, over 87% of Equatorial Guineans are supporters of the Roman Catholic Church in Equatorial Guinea , and there are 5% Protestants . In contrast, followers of traditional religions are minorities.

languages

Languages ​​in Equatorial Guinea

Although more than 80 percent of the population speak the Bantu languages Fang or Bube as their mother tongue , the official languages ​​of Equatorial Guinea according to the constitutional law and the amendment in Article 4 of the Basic Law are Spanish ( Equatorial Guinean Spanish ) and French ; after 2010, Portuguese was added.

According to Constitutional Law 1/1998 of January 21, 1998, the languages ​​of the country's ethnic groups are an integral part of the national culture. These are Fang , Jack , Benga , Ndowe , Balengue , Bujeba , Bissio , Kombe language that is almost extinct Baseke , Annobonesisch (or Ambo), the Fernando Poo-Kreolenglisch , Igbo and Pidgin . A total of 14 different languages ​​and idioms are spoken in Equatorial Guinea.

Besides the Democratic Arab Republic of the Sahara, Equatorial Guinea is the only Spanish-speaking country in Africa. Today, Spanish is largely used as the language of education, as ecclesiastical missions and Spanish institutions run most of the country's schools. However, the importance of other European languages ​​is increasing. For example, Equatorial Guinea had observer status in the Community of Portuguese- Speaking Countries (CPLP) since 2007 . On July 23, 2010, at the 8th summit of this community in Luanda , the application for full membership was made. However, the Community set two conditions for acceptance of the application: firstly, the introduction of Portuguese as the official language, and secondly, political reforms in the direction of efficient democracy and respect for human rights. In July 2012, the application was rejected again, less because of insufficient progress in the introduction of Portuguese, but mainly because of the ongoing violation of human rights in Equatorial Guinea. On July 23, 2014, at the 10th Summit of the Heads of State or Government of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries in Dili , East Timor , the admission of Equatorial Guinea was decided on the condition that the death penalty be abolished. Since 1997, Equatorial Guinea has also been a member of the Community of Francophone States .

education

On the occasion of World Literacy Day 2010, the government announced that, according to new figures from UNESCO, the literacy rate was 93%, the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa . The CIA World Factbook estimated it to be 95.3% of the population in 2015.

A public school system hardly exists. Church missions and Spanish institutions run most of the country's schools. Malabo has had a university for several years. There is a Spanish and a French cultural center there, and a Spanish cultural center in Bata.

health

The approximately 200 local doctors have so far been trained mainly in Cuba . The Universidad Nacional de Guinea Ecuatorial maintains a Facultad de Ciencias Médicas at the Hospital General in Bata , which is headed by a Cuban dean. So-called traditional medicine is regulated by the state. According to UN figures, life expectancy in the period from 2010 to 2015 was 56.8 years (men: 55.5 years, women: 58.1 years).

history

Monument to the first immigrants (1773) near Luba, Bioko

→ Main article : History of Equatorial Guinea

Around 1500 Portugal took possession of what is now Equatorial Guinea under the name Fernando Póo . In 1778 Portugal ceded the colony to Spain , making it Spain's only colony in sub-Saharan Africa . In the 19th century, Spain established a plantation economy on the island of Bioko , but did not begin to colonize the Rio Muni region until 1926 . Since the beginning of the 20th century, Mbini and the islands of Bioko and Annobón formed the Spanish colony Territorios Españoles del Golfo de Guinea ("Spanish areas on the Gulf of Guinea").

During the First World War , the German protection force from Cameroon was interned in the neutral (Spanish) colony. In 1929 a committee of the League of Nations visited the island of Bioko to investigate the Fernando Po scandal on the spot .

The colony gained internal autonomy in 1963 under the name Equatorial Guinea (Spanish Guinea Ecuatorial ). The country became independent on October 12, 1968. Francisco Macías Nguema was elected president three weeks before independence .

In the spring of 1969 riots broke out, which led to the repeal of the constitution and made it possible for Macías Nguema to establish a terrorist regime. His regime is considered one of the "bloodiest dictatorships in Africa". A third of the population fled abroad. Tens of thousands of opponents of the regime are said to have been murdered. At Christmas 1975 Macías had 150 alleged conspirators executed; a band played those Were the Days by Mary Hopkin .

On August 4, 1973, a new constitution came into force that made the two previously autonomous provinces of Fernando Póo (today Bioko) and Rio Muni a unitary state.

On August 3, 1979, Macías Nguema was overthrown and executed by his nephew Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo , the commander of the National Guard. Subsequently, a Supreme Military Council led by Obiang took power. Michel Grosé in particular has been known as the leader of the opposition since the early 1980s. Foreign relations improved under Obiang, but he continued to rule and rule as a dictator.

politics

overview

In nominal terms, Equatorial Guinea is a parliamentary democracy; in fact, however, the president dominates the country at all decision-making levels. Analysts refer to the political system of Equatorial Guinea as a dictatorship or an authoritarian kleptocracy . In the corruption index of Transparency International it took place in 2018 172 out of 180 countries. With 69 clans , representatives of the Fang dominate the country's politics.

The constitution, introduced in 1991, grants the president, who is elected for seven years, extensive executive powers ; so he appoints the prime minister and the chief judges and is commander in chief of the armed forces . The legislature lies with the Cámara de Representantes del Pueblo ('Chamber of Representatives') with 100 seats and - since 2011 - the Senate with 75 seats. Both are elected for five years at the same time.

In the 2016 Democracy Index of the British magazine The Economist, Equatorial Guinea ranks 161st out of 167 countries, making it one of the authoritarian states. In the country report Freedom in the World 2017 by the US non-governmental organization Freedom House , the country's political system is rated as “not free”. According to the report, the country's political system is among the most repressive in the world.

Administrative division

Equatorial Guinea is divided into two regions with seven provinces , four on the mainland and three on the islands.

Regions

Region (provinces of the region)	ISO 3166-2: GQ	Capital	Area (in km²)	Population (2012)	Population (2012) (per km²)
Región Insular ( Annobón, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur)	I.	Malabo	02,034	253,700	124.7
Región Continental (mainland region) (Centro Sur, Kié-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas)	C.	Bata	26,017	968.100	037.2

Provinces

Provinces of Equatorial Guinea

No.	province	ISO 3166-2: GQ	Capital	Area (in km²)	Population (2012)	Population (2012) (per km²)
1	Annobón	ON	San Antonio de Palé	0017th	003,400	200.0
2	Bioko Norte	BN	Malabo	0776	230,000	296.4
3	Bioko Sur	BS	Luba	1,241	020,300	016.4
4th	Centro Sur	CS	Evinayong	9,931	136,600	013.8
5	Kié-Ntem	KN	Ebebiyín	3,943	152.100	038.6
6th	Littoral	LI	Bata	6,665	459,000	068.9
7th	Wele-Nzas	WN	Mongomo	5,478	220,400	040.2

See also : List of cities in Equatorial Guinea

Parties

1987 Obiang founded the state party Partido Democrático de Guinea Ecuatorial (PDGE), which dominates the party system to this day. As a unity party, it was the only political party in the country until 1991.

There are now around 20 opposition parties; however, some of them are only offshoots of the PDGE. The main opposition parties are the CPDS and Unión Popular (UP). The latter has been significantly weakened since it split in 1999. There are other smaller parties, some in exile in Spain. Some of the opposition parties have formed alliances. In the local elections in 2000, some of the opposition parties boycotted the election. The PDGE won the elections with 96% and thus controlled all 30 municipal councils.

elections

The parliamentary elections in 1988 were won by the PDGE with 99.2% of the vote. In 1996 Obiang was confirmed in a presumably rigged election with a 99% result. All subsequent elections were also won by the President and his party, such as the parliamentary election on March 7, 1999, which was only recognized by one of the UP MPs; the rest accused the government of massive election manipulation. The EU administration came to a similar assessment. A renewed re-election of Obiang took place on December 15, 2002 with 99.5%. Here, too, a manipulated election can be assumed; some polling stations reported 103% of the vote for Obiang. In 2017 the PDGE won 99 out of 100 seats in the lower house and all 75 seats in the upper house as well as all mayoral elections. The opposition complained of fraud and intimidation.

Human rights

The human rights situation in Equatorial Guinea is repeatedly criticized. In 2002 there was torture in a show trial of alleged coup plotters. Unions do not exist in Equatorial Guinea. Radio and television are government owned. The newspapers La Gaceta , La Opinión and La Verdad appear irregularly. International newspapers are not available. In the ranking of press freedom 2020 published by Reporters Without Borders , Equatorial Guinea ranks 165th out of 180 countries. The situation of press freedom in the country is rated by Reporters Without Borders as "very serious". The only human rights organization in the country is controlled by the government.

Regarding the execution of four coup plotters, the State Department press secretary stated on August 30, 2010:

“The United States was very dismayed to hear that the Equatorial Guinea government executed four people after a military tribunal on August 21st. While we respect Equatorial Guinea's right to defend national security, the process did not meet minimum international standards for human rights. We are also disappointed with the 20-year prison sentence given by the same military tribunal to opposition members Santiago Asumu Nguema and Marcelino Nguema Esono. Both had previously stood before a civil court and were tried a second time for the same offense in the military court. We call on the government of Equatorial Guinea to respect the rights guaranteed by its own constitution and the requirements of international human rights. "

President Obiang countered this on September 1, 2010:

“The trial in the week of August 13th was no different from similar trials in other parts of the world. The laws in force were respected and applied, the process was transparent, impartial and carried out with the necessary guarantees of defense ... GNQ did not abolish the death penalty. If their execution was suspended or grace was granted, it was not a weakness or tolerance of our legal system, but an effort to rehabilitate those who violated the principles of the rule of law in GNQ. Laws and courts were established for many reasons, primarily to ensure peace, security, political and social balance, and economic development for the benefit of the people. If in the future we have to take extraordinary measures to protect these principles, then we will. "

Foreign policy

Equatorial Guinea has been a member of the United Nations since 1968 . It has observer status in the WTO .

The foreign policy focuses on international recognition and good relations with neighboring states. The dispute with Nigeria over the sea ​​borders was settled in autumn 2000. In 2014, the country also became a full member of the Community of Portuguese- Speaking Countries (CPLP). Equatorial Guinea hopes to improve international relations, especially with the five Portuguese-speaking countries in Africa ( PALOP ). One of the country's problems is illegal immigration from neighboring Cameroon and Gabon .

The relationship with Spain is distant, perhaps also strained, because the former colonial power has taken in an estimated 40,000 (mostly oppositional) Equatorial Guineans. After President Obiang visited Spain with numerous members of the government in November 2006, he canceled the planned visit to the Expo 2008 in Zaragoza because neither King Juan Carlos I nor Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero wanted to see him.

The EU is holding back with its engagement in the country because it demands more democracy and respect for human rights from the government . She got involved in the repair of the water supply in Malabo and supported small farmers in growing cocoa. The People's Republic of China has used this reluctance on a broad front. From small trades to large construction projects (ports, hydroelectric power station in Djibloho), the Chinese are omnipresent. Relations with the People's Republic of China are excellent. In August 2010, the President made his 7th state visit to China - a week after his first to South Korea. At the end of July 2010, a Guinean delegation visited the Chinese Deputy Minister of Defense.

Germany, France and Spain are the only European countries with embassies in Equatorial Guinea, there is also an office of the Portuguese-speaking community CPLP. The German embassy in Malabo was opened on September 13, 2010. Until then, the ambassador in Yaoundé ( Cameroon ) was also accredited in Malabo. Germany had been represented with honorary consuls since 1910 , and the GDR with an embassy in the early 1970s.

The US has intensified its relations with Equatorial Guinea as a result of the oil discoveries. Only Americans are exempt from the visa requirement. During the visit of the Brazilian President Lula da Silva on 4th / 5th July 2010 in Malabo the visa requirement for diplomats was abolished and agreements on technical cooperation and training as well as on armaments and television technology were signed.

In July 2011 the 17th African Union Summit took place in Malabo.

Diplomatic missions

20 countries maintain embassies in Equatorial Guinea: France , Spain , Germany , USA (reopened in 2003), Brazil , Venezuela , Cuba , China (since 1970), North Korea , Angola , Cameroon , Congo-Brazzaville , South Africa , Egypt , Gabon , Ghana , Libya , Morocco , Nigeria and Chad . Mali has a consulate .

Honorary consuls have appointed Benin , Great Britain , the Central African Republic , Sao Tomé and Principe and Burkina Faso .

Some United Nations organizations are also represented .

military

The armed forces are estimated at 2500 men and are supplemented by paramilitary units of unknown size. After several coup attempts and raids from the sea, the US company Military Professional Resources set up a radar chain for coastal surveillance. The modern coast defense boats are serviced by Israeli specialists.

economy

From 1998 to 2002 the gross domestic product grew annually by an average of 24%. With a GDP ( PPP ) per capita between around 19,960 (estimate by the IMF for 2014) and 11,120 US dollars (estimate by knoema.com for 2015), the country was at the top of all African countries or in the upper range. However, these figures are strongly linked to the fluctuating world market price for crude oil and have therefore fallen since 2013. According to general estimates, the average monthly income is around 300 euros and there are almost no unemployed . All numbers are uncertain. The CIA estimates the unemployment rate for 2014 at 8.4%.

According to the German government , the income from the flourishing oil production is sufficient to generate a surplus in the state budget and to make Equatorial Guinea independent of financial development aid . However, most of the money goes to the presidential family and many “mandarins”. According to the World Bank, the majority of the population lives on less than two dollars a day. The Human Development Index for 2010 ranks the country in the “middle” country category, but after the “non income index” it is in the lowest category. The Gini coefficient , which measures income inequality in a country, is (very high) 0.65. With a personal fortune of $ 600 million, Obiang is one of the richest leaders in the world, according to Forbes Magazine . Other sources estimate his net worth at $ 3 billion.

See also : Social Security in Equatorial Guinea

Key figures

All GDP values ​​are given in US dollars ( purchasing power parity ).

year	1980	1985	1990	1995	2000	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017
GDP (purchasing power parity)	0.09 billion	0.15 billion	0.19 billion	0.45 billion	6.20 billion	21.56 billion	23.48 billion	27.79 billion	33.38 billion	34.09 billion	31.43 billion	34.17 billion	37.68 billion	36.71 billion	37.22 billion	34.09 billion	31.18 billion	30.35 billion
GDP per capita (purchasing power parity)	412	482	498	1,020	11,981	35,721	37,785	43,454	50,732	50,363	45.141	47,719	51.187	48,499	47,701	42,648	37,985	36,017
GDP growth (real)	4.8%	12.9%	2.5%	26.5%	112.1%	8.2%	5.7%	15.3%	17.8%	1.3%	−8.9%	6.5%	8.3%	−4.1%	−0.7%	−9.1%	−9.7%	−4.4%
Public debt (as a percentage of GDP)	146%	184%	157%	137%	37%	3%	1 %	1 %	0%	4%	8th %	7%	7%	7%	13%	36%	48%	43%

economic sectors

Cocoa production (2008)

In addition to crude oil , the export of tropical woods (1999: around 750,000 cubic meters) and cocoa are the most important branches of the economy, although their sales have been dwindling for years. Organic cocoa production remains constant at 5000 t per year, but still employs most of the workers. The timber exports from Rio Muni generated around 10 percent of export revenues between 1996 and 1999. In addition, agriculture and inland fishing are self-sufficient. Nevertheless, the country's cities are dependent on food imports. Sea fishing does not take place. Since attacks and coup attempts always came from the sea, the fishing cutters were brought ashore. The remains of wooden boats can still be seen in the port of Malabo.

In an area of 5450 square kilometers in the Bay of Rio Muni wants Vanco Corisco Deep Ltd. Extraction of oil with Vanco Overseas Energy and Russian companies.

Natural resources

The economy has grown rapidly since 1991 when large oil deposits were discovered off the coast of Biokos and off the mainland and used by international oil companies. In 2004 the oil industry accounted for around 90% of the gross domestic product.

This rocket-like development was only made possible by the conclusion of new subsidy contracts after the first generation contracts had severely disadvantaged the Equatorial Guinean side. According to the CIA World Factbook , the daily production in 2013 was around 290,800 barrels . This makes the country the third largest oil producer south of the Sahara after Nigeria and Angola . The facilities of the oil companies, as well as many private houses and entire neighborhoods of the locals, are largely shielded from the surrounding area. The Guinean state and private economy stands or falls with international companies. However, these hardly create jobs in the country, because qualified and reliable skilled workers are rarely to be found among the locals.

Equatorial Guinea also has natural gas reserves that have been extracted since 2001. In an international consortium, the German E.ON is heavily involved in liquefaction technology. The country has been a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) since May 2017 .

Foreign trade

In 2006 , the country exported goods worth around $ 8.45 billion, 88% of which was oil. The main buyers were the USA (21.3%), China (18.9%) and Spain (9.5%). In 2012 exports were $ 14.73 billion. This year, Japan and France ranked first and second in terms of customer countries.

The imports in 2006 amounted to 2.52 (2012: 7.56) billion dollars. The main suppliers in 2006 were the USA (7.5%), Italy (6.1%) and France (3.7%). In 2012, Spain and China were the most important supplier countries. German exports to the country in 2004 amounted to around 4.1 million euros (2003: 6.9), and German imports from Equatorial Guinea around 6.6 million euros (2003: 3.5).

American and French oil companies are getting more involved in the small country. The filling station network is operated almost exclusively by the French company Total . Economic relations with South Korea and Brazil are good and are being expanded. The volume of trade between Equatorial Guinea and Brazil increased from 3 to 243 million USD between 2003 and 2007.

In 2011, Equatorial Guinea's external debt was around 1 billion US dollars (5.2% of gross domestic product ). In comparison, it was an estimated 47% of GDP in 1999.

Equatorial Guinea has been a member of the CFA Franc Zone since 1985 . The International Monetary Fund granted three-year structural adjustment loans in 1988 and 1993 , which were suspended in 1995 due to non-compliance with the requirements.

State budget

The state budget in 2016 comprised expenditures equivalent to US $ 2.862 billion , which was offset by income equivalent to US $ 2.436 billion. This results in a budget deficit of 3.6% of GDP .

The national debt was 21.6% of GDP in 2016.

In 2006 the share of government expenditure (as a percentage of GDP) was in the following areas:

• Health : 2.1%
• Education : 0.6% (2003)
• Military : 0.1% (2009)

Infrastructure

overview

This article or the following section is not adequately provided with supporting documents ( e.g. individual evidence ). Information without sufficient evidence could be removed soon. Please help Wikipedia by researching the information and including good evidence.

There is no post office , no street names and no maps. The country's poor infrastructure is being improved quickly and impressively in some cases. New buildings change the cityscape of Malabo and Bata every week.

With the Centro Médico La Paz there is an efficient hospital in Bata . The Israeli operator completed a second in Malabo. Sarah Onyango Obama , Barack Obama's step-grandmother, received treatment there in January 2013.

Sewerage, sewage works and waste disposal are inadequate; Guinea Limpieza is under construction. Hydroelectric power plants provide electricity. State-of-the-art overhead lines supply the hinterland.

The power supply is not always stable. At the end of 2010, the government was responsible for no fewer than 900 major projects.

International monetary transactions run through the National Bank and the African Central Bank , which takes time, but works. There is an ATM in Malabo. For all purchases, CFA cash is best. You can exchange euros anywhere at a fixed rate, but not US dollars.

Lufthansa Cargo and DHL have the best reputation for (large) transports .

telecommunications

Almost everyone has cell phones ( orange ). The Internet access is free. In 2016, 20.9% of the population used the internet.

traffic

Road traffic

There is a lot of road damage and bumps in the cities and on the country roads . Police traffic controls are also frequent.

Large areas of the country are undeveloped. Quite a few are designated as national parks and hardly accessible. The road network covers about 1,300 kilometers, of which (allegedly and credibly) 80% is paved . The major roads are in good condition and are constantly being expanded (see Ciudad de la Paz ). Many new bridges have been built in the hinterland and on the islands .

Air traffic

Only the airports of Malabo , Bata and Annobón have a paved runway. The flight from Malabo to Bata takes 35 minutes. Within one to two hours of flight you can reach:

• Port Harcourt in Nigeria
• Yaoundé and Douala in Cameroon
• Libreville in Gabon
• Sao Tome and Principe
• Brazzaville in the Republic of the Congo
• Kinshasa and Boma in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Luanda and Cabinda in Angola

The two main airlines, Cronos Airlines and CEIBA Intercontinental , are on the blacklist . The flights can only be booked on site and are often overbooked.

From Europe, Lufthansa (Frankfurt am Main), Air France (Paris), Iberia (Madrid) and Air Europa fly to Malabo. With a stopover in Lagos , Lufthansa now flies to Malabo every day. Air France (and Iberia) have long wanted to extend the connection to Bata. She also wants to increase the number of weekly flights from six to seven.

In Africa, Royal Air Maroc , Kenya Airways and Ethiopian Airlines fly to Malabo. The new airport near Mongomeyen is intended to open up the hinterland near the border with the home region of the president and the new government city of Ciudad de la Paz .

Culture

2009, planning began for the African Observatory for Science, Technology and Innovation ( African Observatory in Science Technology and Innovation - AOSTI) in Malabo, which was founded, 2013. The country is providing USD 3.6 million for this.

Portions of this article appear since 2011 is out of date to be .
Please help to research and insert the missing information .

public holidays

The national holiday is October 12th, Independence Day ( Spanish: Día de la Independencia ). In 2010 it was celebrated on Annobón .

Other public holidays

• May 1st: Labor Day ( Spanish Día del Trabajo )
• May 25: Africa Day ( Día de Africa )
• June 5: President's Day ( Natalicio del Presidente de la República )
• August 3: Liberation Day ( Día del Golpe de Libertad )
• August 15: Constitution Day ( Día de la Constitución )
• December 10: Human Rights Day ( Día de los Derechos Humanos )

theatre

On an initiative of the Centro Internacional de Teatro Actual , Casa Africa and the Spanish cultural centers in Bata and Malabo, the Proyecto Orígines was founded in 2008 , a dance theater with 24 local members under the directorate of Santiago Sanchez. It gives an insight into the culture and way of life of the five great tribes in the country. In Europe, the ensemble first performed in Valencia in 2011 .

Sports

Soccer

Equatorial Guinea hosted the 2008 African Football Championship for women . The team won the tournament and made Genoveva Añonma the top scorer and best player. At the 2010 African Championships they made it to the final again. The final was lost against Nigeria's selection 7-2; Second place, however, meant the first qualification for the World Cup , which took place in Germany in 2011. There the team was eliminated after the preliminary round.

Together with Gabon , Equatorial Guinea hosted the men's 2012 African Cup of Nations. The Equatorial Guinea team reached the quarter-finals, but were eliminated from the eventual tournament winners Zambia . In 2015 the country will host the continental competition again. This time even as the sole host to replace Morocco, which wanted to postpone the tournament because of the Ebola epidemic .

At the 2015 African Cup of Nations, the team achieved fourth place, the best result at an African Cup to date.

Olympic participation

The swimmer Éric Moussambani ( "Eric The Eel" ) caused a sensation as a participant in the 2000 Summer Olympics in freestyle swimming.

Other Olympians in the country included Paula Barila Bolopa , Gus Envela Jr. and Reginaldo Ndong .

literature

• Max Liniger-Goumaz : La Guinée Equatoriale. Un pays méconnu. L'Harmattan, Paris 1979, ISBN 2-85802-132-5 .

Web links

Wiktionary: Equatorial Guinea  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Commons : Equatorial Guinea  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Wikivoyage: Equatorial Guinea  Travel Guide

Wikimedia Atlas: Equatorial Guinea  - geographical and historical maps

• Country information from the Federal Foreign Office on Equatorial Guinea
• Database of indexed literature on the social, political and economic situation in Equatorial Guinea
• History of Equatorial Guinea
• Amnesty International: Country Report Equatorial Guinea 2018
• Equatorial Guinea country profile on BBC News
• Mascha Dabić : Literature in Equatorial Guinea - Writing to be read. Interview with Mischa G. Hendel about the documentary "Writing to be read". In: derstandard.at . November 2, 2011.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Equatorial Guinea - Country Statistical Profile. (PDF; 476 KB) In: destatis.de . August 2019, accessed June 27, 2020 . 
2. ↑ Calculates 1,222,442 by area.
3. ^ World Economic and Financial Surveys. In: World Economic Outlook Database. IMF , accessed August 19, 2018 . 
4. ^ "Human Development Reports". Retrieved January 23, 2020.
5. ↑ Andrej Pustovitovskij: Structural Force in International Relations: A Concept of Power in International Negotiations . Springer-Verlag, 2016, ISBN 978-3-658-12693-3 , chapter 5.2.5 .: Equatorial Guinea - China as a breaker of political isolation , p. 207 ( limited preview in Google Book Search [accessed January 21, 2019]).
6. ↑ Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program. In: bioko.org. February 18, 2019, accessed February 18, 2019 . 
7. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} Cia World Factbook; Equatorial Guinea. Retrieved March 19, 2012 . 
8. ↑ Migration Report 2017. (PDF) UN, accessed on September 30, 2018 (English). 
9. ↑ Origins and Destinations of the World's Migrants, 1990-2017 - Equatorial Guinea. In: pewglobal.org. February 28, 2018, accessed May 20, 2019 . 
10. ↑ Census 2015. (PDF) (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on June 15, 2016 ; Retrieved January 4, 2018 (Spanish). 
11. ↑ Meyer's Large Country Lexicon. Mannheim 2004.
12. ↑ Público (Lisbon), July 20, 2012.
13. ^ The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved July 21, 2017 . 
14. ↑ WHO (Ed., 2001): Legal Status of Traditional Medicine and Complementary / Alternative Medicine: A Worldwide Review . P. 13f.
15. ↑ World Population Prospects - Population Division - United Nations. Retrieved July 21, 2017 . 
16. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Rolf Hofmeier, Andreas Mehler (ed.): Small Africa Lexicon - Politics Economy Culture. (= Series of publications by the Federal Agency for Political Education. 464). Federal Agency for Civic Education, Bonn 2005, ISBN 3-89331-576-4 , p. 19ff.
17. ↑ Max Liniger-Goumaz: La Guinée Equatoriale. Paris: L'Harmattan, 2005.
18. ↑ ^{a b} T. O. Obiang 65 Equatorial Guinea, in power since 1979 ; in: Bild, 2009.
19. ↑ Tabular ranking. Corruption Perception Index 2018. In: transparency.de. Retrieved January 29, 2020 . 
20. ↑ Democracy-Index 2019 Overview chart with comparative values ​​to previous years , on economist.com
21. ^ Equatorial Guinea - Profiles. In: freedomhouse.org. 2017, accessed on September 26, 2019 . 
22. ^ Equatorial Guinea: Authoritarian government wins election. deutschlandfunk.de from November 20, 2017.
23. ↑ Ranking list of press freedom. Reporters Without Borders, accessed May 9, 2020 . 
24. ^ Der Fischer Weltalmanach 2008. Fischer Taschenbuch-Verlag, Frankfurt 2007, ISBN 978-3-596-72008-8 .
25. ^ Equatorial Guinea: Relations with Germany. In: Auswaertiges-amt.de. June 28, 2019, accessed October 5, 2019 . 
26. ^ Policy and History. In: gq.usembassy.gov. Retrieved February 6, 2020 . 
27. ^ The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency. Accessed August 6, 2018 . 
28. ↑ Here the Chinese term Mandarin is used in the sense of "possessors & rulers"
29. ↑ The overall index is 0.538, which corresponds to the 117th place out of 169 countries. However, the non income index is 0.454, which is significantly lower. See Human Development Index and its components ( Memento of November 24, 2011 in the Internet Archive ).
30. ^ Report for Selected Countries and Subjects. Retrieved August 24, 2018 (American English). 
31. ↑ E.ON Ruhrgas is expanding LNG activities in Equatorial Guinea. In: finanzen.net. January 26, 2009, accessed September 6, 2019 . 
32. ↑ Figures for 2012: Equatorial Guinea. (No longer available online.) In: afrika-auf-einen-blick.de. Archived from the original on July 8, 2014 ; accessed on April 25, 2019 . 
33. ^ Report for Selected Countries and Subjects. Retrieved July 21, 2017 (American English). 
34. ↑ The Fischer World Almanac 2010: Figures Data Facts. Fischer, Frankfurt am Main 2009, ISBN 978-3-596-72910-4 .
35. ^ Israel Medical Services
36. ↑ Israeli doctor treats Obama's grandmother ... in Africa. In: israelheute.com. January 11, 2013, accessed April 6, 2019 . 
37. ↑ Internet Users by Country (2016) - Internet Live Stats. Retrieved July 21, 2017 . 
38. ^ The African Observatory of Science, Technology and Innovation (AOSTI): The Road Thus Far and Future Prospects. (PDF; 1.4 MB) In: au.int. African Union, September 2015, accessed July 25, 2020 . 
39. ↑ October 12th is also a national holiday in Spain. The Día de la Hispanidad / El Pilar commemorates the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus
40. ^ Supplement to the Women's Soccer World Cup In: Braunschweiger Zeitung . June 29, 2011, p. 1.

Coordinates: 2 °  N , 10 °  E