Country · Africa
Guinea-Bissau
Republic of Guinea-Bissau
Guinea-Bissau is a country in Western Africa. About 1.9 million people live there, in an area of 36 125 square kilometres. Its capital city is Bissau.
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Where is Guinea-Bissau?
Guinea-Bissau lies in Western Africa, on the continent of Africa.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 1 336 km from the equator.
Its coastline is about 350 km long.
It shares a border with 2 countries: Guinea and the Senegal.
How big is Guinea-Bissau?
Guinea-Bissau covers 36 125 square kilometres.
That is about 14 times the size of Luxembourg.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 134th largest.
Spread everybody out evenly and you get about 51.9 people on every square kilometre.
That is close to the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in Guinea-Bissau?
About 1.9 million people live in Guinea-Bissau.
That is the 147th biggest population in the world.
People here speak Portuguese and Upper Guinea Creole.
They pay with the West African CFA franc (Fr).
On average, people born here can expect to live about 49 years.
The land of Guinea-Bissau
The land of Guinea-Bissau sits on average 70 metres above sea level, which makes it one of the flatter countries on Earth.
Its coast runs for about 350 km. Walking it end to end, at twenty kilometres a day, would take roughly 18 days.
It lies inside the tropics, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes Guinea-Bissau different?
Websites from here often end in .gw.
Guinea-Bissau and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about one lives in Guinea-Bissau.
It takes up about 0.03 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Africa the country ranks 42nd of 54 by size, and 46th by population.
Guinea-Bissau and its neighbours
Guinea, its largest neighbour, is about 6.8 times bigger.
Guinea has more people: 12.4 million against 1.9 million.
Nature and animals
The highest mountain in the country is Dongol Ronde, at 277 metres. The longest river in the country is the Corubal River. The largest lake in the country is Cufada Lagoon.
How big is Guinea-Bissau compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 259 times as big as Guinea-Bissau: 9 372 610 km² against 36 125 km².
- The United Kingdom is about 6.7 times as big as Guinea-Bissau: 242 900 km² against 36 125 km².
Questions children ask
What is the capital of Guinea-Bissau?
The capital of Guinea-Bissau is Bissau. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in Guinea-Bissau?
About 1.9 million people live in Guinea-Bissau, which makes it the 147th most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border Guinea-Bissau?
Guinea-Bissau borders Guinea and the Senegal — 2 neighbours in total.
How big is Guinea-Bissau?
Guinea-Bissau covers 36 125 square kilometres, making it the 134th largest country in the world. That is about 14 times the size of Luxembourg.
What is the highest mountain in Guinea-Bissau?
The highest mountain in Guinea-Bissau is Dongol Ronde, 277 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in Guinea-Bissau?
The longest river in Guinea-Bissau is the Corubal River, about 561 kilometres long.
What is the largest lake in Guinea-Bissau?
The largest lake in Guinea-Bissau is Cufada Lagoon. It covers about 2 km².
Which continent is Guinea-Bissau in?
Guinea-Bissau is in Africa, in the part called Western Africa.
Where these numbers come from
Borders and outlines: Natural Earth. Names, capitals, areas, languages and currencies: ISO 3166 data (world-countries). Population: World Bank, 2018. Every derived figure on this page (ranks, density, distance from the equator) is calculated from those values.
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