1989 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1989 (Internet Archive)
Geography
Climate
tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to mid-August, mid-November to midJanuary)
Coastline
459 km
Comparative area
slightly smaller than Idaho
Continental shelf
outer edge of continental margin or 200 nm
Disputes
Essequibo area claimed by Venezuela; Suriname claims area between New (Upper Courantyne) and Courantyne/ Kutari Rivers (all headwaters of the Courantyne)
Environment
flash floods a constant threat during rainy seasons; water pollution
Exclusive fishing zone
200 nm
Land boundaries
2,462 km total; Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km
Land use
3% arable land; NEGL% permanent crops; 6% meadows and pastures; 83% forest and woodland; 8% other; includes 1% irrigated
Natural resources
bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish
Terrain
mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south
Territorial sea
1 2 nm
Total area
214,970 km2; land area: 196,850 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
24 births/ 1,000 population (1990)
Death rate
6 deaths/ 1 ,000 population (1990)
Ethnic divisions
51% East Indian, 43% black and mixed, 4% Amerindian, 2% European and Chinese
Infant mortality rate
40 deaths/ 1 ,000 live births (1990)
Labor force
268,000; 44.5% industry and commerce, 33.8% agriculture, 21.7% services; public-sector employment amounts to 60-80% of the total labor force (1985)
Language
English, Amerindian dialects
Life expectancy at birth
65 years male, 70 years female (1990)
Literacy
85%
Nationality
noun — Guyanese (sing., pi.); adjective— Guyanese
Net migration rate
—19 migrants/ 1 ,000 population (1990)
Organized labor
34% of labor force
Population
764,649 (July 1990), growth rate -0.1% (1990)
Religion
57% Christian, 33% Hindu, 9% Muslim, 1% other
Total fertility rate
2.7 children born/ woman (1990)
Government
Administrative divisions
10 regions; Barima-Waini, Cuyuni-Mazaruni, Demerara-Mahaica, East Berbice-Corentyne, Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Pomeroon-Supenaam, Potaro-Siparuni, Upper Demerara-Berbice, Upper TakutuUpper Essequibo
Capital
Georgetown
Communists
100 (est.) hardcore within PPP; top echelons of PPP and PYO (Progressive Youth Organization, militant wing of the PPP) include many Communists; small but unknown number of orthodox Marxist-Leninists within PNC, some of whom formerly belonged to the PPP
Constitution
6 October 1980
Diplomatic representation
Ambassador Dr. Cedric Hilburn GRANT; Chancery at 2490 Tracy Place NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 265-6900; there is a Guyanese Consulate General in New York; US — Ambassador Theresa A. TULL; Embassy at 31 Main Street, Georgetown; telephone [592] (02) 54900 through 54909
Elections
Executive President — last held on 9 December 1985 (next to be held late 1990); Hugh Desmond Hoyte was elected president (the leader of the party with the most votes in the National Assembly elections—PNC 78%); National Assembly — last held on 9 December 1985 (next to be held by 9 December 1990); results— PNC 78%, PPP 16%, UF 4%, WPA 2%; seats— (65 total, 53 elected) PNC 42, PPP 8, UF 2, WPA 1
Executive branch
executive president, first vice president, prime minister, first deputy prime minister, Cabinet
Hag
green with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) superimposed on a long yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow black border between the red and yellow, and a narrow white border between the yellow and the green
Independence
26 May 1966 (from UK; formerly British Guiana)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court of Judicature
Leaders
Chief of State — President Hugh Desmond HOYTE (since 6 August 1985); First Vice President Hamilton GREEN (since 6 August 1985); Head of Government — Prime Minister Hamilton GREEN (since 6 August 1985) Political parties and leaders: People's National Congress (PNC), Hugh Desmond Hoyte; People's Progressive Party (PPP), Cheddi Jagan; Working People's Alliance (WPA), Eusi Kwayana, Rupert Roopnarine, Moses Bhagwan; Democratic Labor Movement (DLM), Paul Tennassee; People's Democratic Movement (PDM), Llewellyn John; National Democratic Front (NDF), Joseph Bacchus; United Force (UF), Marcellus Feilden Singh; Vanguard for Liberation and Democracy (VLD, also known as Liberator Party), Gunraj Kumar, J. K. Makepeace Richmond
Legal system
based on English common law with certain admixtures of RomanDutch law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch
unicameral National Assembly
Long-form name
Co-operative Republic of Guyana
Member of
ACP, CARICOM, CCC, CDB, FAO, G-77, GATT, IADB, IBA, IBRD, ICAO, ICJ, IDA, IDB— InterAmerican Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IRC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), PAHO, SELA, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO
National holiday
Republic Day, 23 February (1970)
Other political or pressure groups
Trades Union Congress (TUC); Guyana Council of Indian Organizations (GCIO); Civil Liberties Action Committee (CLAC); the latter two organizations are small and active but not well organized
Suffrage
universal at age 18
Type
republic
Economy
Overview
After growing on average at less than 1% a year in 1984-87, GDP dropped by 3% in 1988, the result of bad weather, labor trouble in the canefields, and flooding and equipment problems in the bauxite industry. Consumer prices rose about 35%, and the current account deficit widened substantially as sugar and bauxite exports fell. Moreover, electric power is in short supply and constitutes a major barrier to future gains in national output. The government, in association with inter-