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Welcome To Equatorial Guinea
Country number
96
Selected MR Agencies

An Introduction to Equatorial Guinea

The Republic of Equatorial Guinea is located midway up the west coast of Africa and comprises two parts - a continental region and several small offshore islands including Bioko Island where the capital Malabo is situated. The Portuguese colonized Bioko in 1474 and ceded the country to Spain in 1778. Independence in 1968 was followed by a single-party state in 1970 and a 'reign of terror' ensued which led to the deaths of 1/3 of the country's population - the regime was defeated in 1979 in a bloody coup d'ãtat. See full country profile.

Latest Research News from Africa

Feb 6
Ipsos has appointed Ziad Issa as the new Media CEO in the MENA region, succeeding Elie Aoun who has decided to step down after 32 years at the company. Feb 6 2024
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Insight and communities firm Verve has announced eighteen promotions across its locations in London, Manchester, Sydney, Iasi (Romania) and Johannesburg, including the appointment of Kim Howard as Semiotics Research Director. Jan 16 2024


1 current African job:

Survey Research Manager, Remote Working - Worldwide, $ Competitive salary - (posted Feb 27 2024)
Know of an MR agency based in Equatorial Guinea? We don't - please get in touch


Fast Facts
Map of Equatorial Guinea
CAPITAL: Malabo
GOVERNMENT: Republic
AREA: 28,051 sq km
POPULATION: 668,225 (July 2011 est.)
MAJOR LANGUAGE: Spanish and French. Recognised Regional Languages: Fang, Bube, Annobonese
Landscape of Equatorial Guinea
Landscape of Equatorial Guinea


Eric the Eel Perhaps Equatorial Guinea's most famous Olympian - Eric Moussambani represented Equatorial Guinea in swimming at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 - having taken up swimming 8 months before and never having seen an Olympic-sized pool before the event. His time in the 100m freestyle was 1:52.72 - more than twice that of the race winner and outside even the 200m World record - but a Personal Best and an Equatoguinean record.

He gained entry as a wildcard to encourage developing countries without expen'ive training facilities to participate. He was, however, denied entry to the 2004 Summer Games due to a visa bungle - despite having got his PB down to a remarkable 57 seconds.

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Equatorial Guinea in Profile

The Republic of Equatorial Guinea is located midway up the west coast of Africa and comprises two parts - a continental region and several small offshore islands including Bioko Island where the capital Malabo is situated. The Portuguese colonized Bioko in 1474 and ceded the country to Spain in 1778. Independence in 1968 was followed by a single-party state in 1970 and a 'reign of terror' ensued which led to the deaths of 1/3 of the country's population - the regime was defeated in 1979 in a bloody coup d'ãtat.

Sizeable petroleum reserves mean the country's GDP per capita ranks 22nd in the world and 1st in Africa, but wealth is in the hands of a few - 70% of the population live under the poverty line.

Some Business and General Info

GDP: $23.82 billion (2010 est.)

Religions nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic; pagan practices

Currency: Central African Franc (XAF) - GBP 1 = XAF 746.25

Telephone Code: +240

Research Industry

None.

Overview of Trade and Industry

The discovery and exploitation of large oil and gas reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth but fluctuating oil prices have produced huge swings in GDP growth in recent years. Forestry and farming are also minor components of GDP, and subsistence farming is the dominant means of earning a livelihood. Before independence the country counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings but the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished agriculture's potential to lead growth.

A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of corruption, mismanagement and lack of government transparency about oil revenues, although figures were published for the first time in 2010. Undeveloped natural resources include gold, zinc, diamonds, columbite-tantalite and other base metals. Growth slowed in 2009-10 due to oil price falls and lower production.

In 2010 exports had a total value of $10.2bn consisting of petroleum products and timber. Imports for the same period were worth $5.74bn, made up largely of equipment for the petroleum sector, vehicles and construction materials.

The new government is dedicated to strengthening 'co-operation and friendship' with the Barack Obama administration. During a meeting on the sidelines of the recent UN General Assembly, President Obiang urged President Obama to institute a US-Africa cooperation summit.

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Equatorial Guinea
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If you are a researcher based in Equatorial Guinea, in whatever capacity, then we would love to hear from you!

Email me:
laurence@mrweb.com

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