Article Outline
Guinea, formerly People’s Revolutionary Republic of Guinea, independent nation in western Africa, bounded on the north by Guinea-Bissau, Senegal, and Mali; on the east and southeast by Côte d’Ivoire; on the south by Liberia and Sierra Leone; and on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. The total area of the country, including the Los Islands of Conakry, is 245,857 sq km (94,926 sq mi). Conakry is the capital and largest city.
Guinea has four major topographic regions. Lower Guinea, the coastal plain, extends about 50 km (about 30 mi) inland from the shoreline, which is about 275 km (about 170 mi) in length. Beyond the coastal plain is middle Guinea, the Fouta Djallon (Futa Jallon), a mountainous plateau region with an average elevation of about 910 m (about 3,000 ft). Upper Guinea is gently undulating savanna country broken by occasional rocky outcrops with an average elevation of 300 m (1,000 ft). In the extreme southeast are forested highlands. Found here, in the Nimba Range, is the highest point in the country (1,752 m/5,748 ft).
The principal rivers are the Bafing (the upper course of the Sénégal) and the Gambia, both of which rise in the mountains of the Fouta Djallon and flow northeast over the country’s borders. Many smaller rivers rise in the Fouta Djallon and descend to the coastal plain where they divide into many branches. The Niger and its important tributary, the Milo River, originate in the forested Guinea highlands.
The dominant factor in the considerable climatic variation is altitude. Rainfall is highest and range of temperature lowest in lower Guinea. Conakry, the capital, has an annual rainfall of 4,420 mm (174 in) and an annual average temperature of 27°C (about 81°F). In the Fouta Djallon, annual rainfall averages 1,800 mm (about 70 in) and the average annual temperature is 20°C (about 68°F). In upper Guinea annual rainfall is less than in the Fouta Djallon, and the annual average temperature is 21°C (about 70°F). In the Guinea highlands annual rainfall averages 2,800 mm (about 110 in). The highest temperatures are also found in this region. The climate in the highlands is equatorial with no clearly distinguishable seasons. The rainy season in the remainder of the country occurs from April or May to October or November. April is the hottest month and July or August the wettest.
The mineral wealth of Guinea makes the economy of this country potentially one of the strongest in Africa. About one-third of the known world reserves of high-grade bauxite ore is found in Guinea. Sizable deposits of iron ore exist; other known mineral resources include diamonds, gold, petroleum, uranium, cobalt, nickel, and platinum. Guinea also has great potential for hydroelectric power.
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