Guinea has a land area of 24 million hectares and a population of 7.3 million people. The climate is generally hot and humid; monsoon-type rainy season with south-westerly winds; dry season with north-easterly harmattan winds.

The total forest area is estimated at only 6.9 million hectares most of which located in the southeast. Dense mangrove forests abound along the coast and the riverbanks. The Fouta Djallon region subjected to extensive burning is covered with sedges which gradually give way to savanna woodland in the Upper Guinea region. The data available on the country’s biodiversity indicate that Guinea has 3,000 species of plants, 640 birds, 190 mammals, 94 reptiles and 121 fish.

Like the savanna woodlands, the forests of Guinea have been highly impacted by fires, logging and agriculture. With an estimated annual deforestation rate of 0.5%, it is believed that about 35,000 ha of forest are lost every year in Guinea. As of 2005, less than 1% of forest cover in Guinea was primary forest. Some of the remaining sections of the fragmented forests still contain emergent valuable timber trees. The GDP per capita in Guinea was estimated at US$1,100.

The latest environmental code for Guinea was promulgated in 1989 (Ordinance No 022/PRG/89) and provides for the country’s policy on the protection and management of land and water resources as well as the control of pollution. Alongside this code, Guinea has a forestry code enacted in 1999. This code covers aspects of Guinea’s forestry policy. It also guides on the protection of the national forest estate and the management its key resources. There is also a wildlife code enacted in 1998 (Law Lo L/99/038/AN) setting out the policy on the protection of wildlife and their habitats as well as the regulation of hunting of unprotected species. Guinea is signatories to several international agreements on environmental practices and policies.

PAST PROJECTS

An evaluation of the rural energy sector in Guinea: Exploring the emerging biofuel sector and the prospect of the Jatropha plantation development (supported by ACDEF Guinea development fund)

PROJECTS IN PIPELINE

  • Towards a Sustainable Agriculture for Biodiversity Conservation at Nimba Mountain (Republic of Guinea)
  • Forest Biodiversity Loss and Climate Change: Improving Knowledge and Significance of Linkages and Promoting Behavioural Change
  • Towards the management of rural lands at Nimba Mountains in support of sustainable natural resource management and the socio-economic development of the local people: a partnership between West Africa Exploration and the African Conservation and Development Foundation