Guinea-Bissau Government

What is the capital of Guinea-Bissau?

Country Name	Guinea-Bissau
Full Country Name	Republic of Guinea-Bissau
Local - Long	Republica da Guine-Bissau
Local - Short	Guine-Bissau
Former Name	Portuguese Guinea
Etymology- history of name	The country is named after the Guinea region of West Africa that lies along the Gulf of Guinea and stretches north to the Sahel; "Bissau," the name of the capital city, distinguishes the country from neighboring Guinea
Government Type	Semi-presidential republic
Capital Name	Bissau
Capital - geographic coordinate	11 51 N, 15 35 W
Capital Time Difference	UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Independence	24 September 1973 (declared); 10 September 1974 (from Portugal)
National Holiday	Independence Day, 24 September (1973)
Constitution	History: Promulgated 16 May 1984; note - constitution suspended following military coup April 2012, restored 2014; note - in May 2020, President EMBALO established a commission to draft a revised constitution Amendments: Proposed by the National People’s Assembly if supported by at least one-third of its members, by the Council of State (a presidential consultant body), or by the government; passage requires approval by at least a two-thirds majority vote of the Assembly; constitutional articles on the republican and secular form of government and national sovereignty cannot be amended; amended 1991, 1993, 1996

Guinea-Bissau Capital City Map

Source: Google Maps

Guinea-Bissau Government and Politics

Who is the president of Guinea-Bissau?

Executive Branch:	Chief of State: President Umaro Sissoco EMBALO (since 27 February 2020); note - President EMBALO was declared winner of the 29 December 2019 runoff presidential election by the electoral commission; in late February 2020, EMBALO inaugurated himself with only military leadership present, even though the Supreme Court of Justice had yet to rule on an electoral litigation appeal lodged by his political rival Domingos Simoes PEREIRA Head of Government: Prime Minister Rui Duarte DE BARROS (since 27 December 2023); note - on 4 December 2023 the president dissolved the parliament Cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the prime minister, appointed by the president Elections/Appointments: President directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for up to 2 consecutive 5-year terms; the election last held on 24 November 2019 with a runoff on 29 December 2019 (next to be held in 2024); prime minister appointed by the president after consultation with party leaders in the National People's Assembly; note - the president cannot apply for a third consecutive term Election results: 2019: Umaro Sissoco EMBALO elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Domingos Simoes PEREIRA (PAIGC) 40.1%, Umaro Sissoco EMBALO (Madem G15) 27.7%, Nuno Gomez NABIAM (APU-PDGB) 13.2%, Jose Mario VAZ (independent) 12.4%, other 6.6%; percent of vote in second round - Umaro Sissoco EMBALO 53.6%, Domingos Simoes PEREIRA 46.5% (2019)
Citizenship Criteria:	Citizenship by birth: Yes Citizenship by descent only: Yes Dual citizenship recognized: No Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years
Legal System:	Mixed legal system of civil law, which incorporated Portuguese law at independence and influenced by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), African Francophone Public Law, and customary law
Suffrage:	18 years of age; universal
Legislative Branch:	Description: Unicameral National People's Assembly or Assembleia Nacional Popular (102 seats; 100 members directly elected in 27 multi-seat constituencies by closed party-list proportional representation vote and 2 elected in single-seat constituencies for citizens living abroad (Africa 1, Europe 1); all members serve 4-year terms) Elections: Last election held 4 June 2023 (next election on 30 June 2027) note: on 4 December 2023 the president dissolved the parliament with new elections held at a future date Election results: Percent of vote by party - PAIGC 39.4%, Madem G-15 21.1%, PRS 14.9%, other 12.5%; seats by party - PAIGC 54, Madem G-15 29, PRS- 12, other 7; composition - men 92, women 10, percent of women 9.8%
Judicial Branch:	Highest court(s): Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal de Justica (consists of 9 judges and organized into Civil, Criminal, and Social and Administrative Disputes Chambers); note - the Supreme Court has both appellate and constitutional jurisdiction Judge selection and term of office: judges nominated by the Higher Council of the Magistrate, a major government organ responsible for judge appointments, dismissals, and judiciary discipline; judges appointed by the president for life Subordinate courts: Appeals Court; regional (first instance) courts; military court
Regions or States:	9 regions (regioes, singular - regiao); Bafata, Biombo, Bissau, Bolama/Bijagos, Cacheu, Gabu, Oio, Quinara, Tombali
Political Parties and Leaders:	African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cabo Verde or PAIGC [Domingos SIMOES PEREIRA] Democratic Convergence Party or PCD [Vicente FERNANDES] Movement for Democratic Alternation Group of 15 or MADEM-G15 [Braima CAMARA] National People’s Assembly – Democratic Party of Guinea Bissau or APU-PDGB [Nuno Gomes NABIAM] New Democracy Party or PND [Mamadu Iaia DJALO] Party for Social Renewal or PRS [Alberto NAMBEIA] Republican Party for Independence and Development or PRID [Aristides GOMES] Union for Change or UM [Agnelo REGALA]
International Law Organization Participation:	Accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; non-party state to the ICCt
International Organization Participation:	ACP, AfDB, AOSIS, AU, CPLP, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic Representation in the US:	Chief of Mission: none; note - Guinea-Bissau does not have official representation in Washington, DC
Diplomatic Representation from US:	Chief of Mission: Ambassador Michael RAYNOR (since 20 April 2022) Mailing address: 2080 Bissau Place, Washington DC 20521-2080 Email address and website: dakarACS@state.gov https://gw.usmission.gov/

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