Guinea: Background and Relations with the United States

Alexis Arieff
Analyst in African Affairs

The past three years have seen a series of dramatic changes in Guinea’s political landscape, a new experience for a country that had only two presidents in the first 50 years after independence in 1958. In late 2008, a military junta took power following the death of longtime president Lansana Conté. Junta leader Capt. Moussa Dadis Camara was shot and wounded by his own bodyguard in December 2009, and his departure paved the way for a military-led transitional government. In June 2010, Guineans voted in their country’s first presidential election organized by an independent electoral commission and without an incumbent candidate. Longtime exiled opposition leader Alpha Condé, who had previously never served in government, was declared the winner after a much-delayed run-off poll in November. Condé’s inauguration brought an end to two years of military rule and could potentially enable key reforms and the implementation of the rule of law, which are considered prerequisites for private sector growth and increased respect for human rights. Yet political, security, and socioeconomic challenges remain stark. State institutions are badly eroded, and Condé has been accused by opposition parties of attempting to delay and manipulate planned legislative elections.

A former French colony on West Africa’s Atlantic coast, with a population of about 10 million, Guinea is rich in natural resources but its citizens are afflicted by widespread poverty. Guinea has significant mineral deposits, notably comprising a quarter or more of global bauxite (aluminum ore) reserves, and U.S. companies are involved in the extractive industries sector. Chinese investment, though longstanding, appears to be on the rise and has sparked international and internal controversy.

International policy makers view Guinea as central to preserving security gains in neighboring Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Côte d’Ivoire. While Guinea has experienced regular episodes of internal political turmoil since independence in 1958, it was considered a locus of relative stability during much of the past 25 years, during which time each of its six neighbors suffered armed internal conflicts. Still, democratic progress was limited, and popular discontent with the government rose along with instability within the outsized and fractious armed forces. Since the military coup of 2008, Guinea has been seen as a potential vector of insecurity, particularly as its role as a hub in the transnational narcotics trade has grown.

U.S. policy challenges in Guinea center on democratization and good governance; counternarcotics issues; security sector reform; economic interests; regional peace and stability; and socioeconomic and institutional development. Following the 2008 military coup, the United States identified Guinea’s political transition as a key policy goal in West Africa and made significant financial and diplomatic contributions toward the success of Guinea’s election process. Selective U.S. bilateral aid restrictions, which were imposed in connection with the coup, have been lifted in the wake of the successful transfer of power to a civilian-led administration. U.S. policymakers have indicated support for the resumption of bilateral security assistance and for security sector reform, but the levels and types of U.S. assistance may be weighed against other regional and policy priorities. Congress may play a role in guiding U.S. engagement with Guinea through the authorization, appropriation, and oversight of U.S. programs and policies. Guineafocused legislation introduced during the 111th Congress included H.Res. 1013 (Ros-Lehtinen) and S.Res. 345 (Boxer).


Date of Report: July 26, 2011
Number of Pages: 24
Order Number: R40703
Price: $29.95

Follow us on TWITTER at http://www.twitter.com/alertsPHP or #CRSreports

Document available via e-mail as a pdf file or in paper form.
To order, e-mail Penny Hill Press or call us at 301-253-0881. Provide a Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover card number, expiration date, and name on the card. Indicate whether you want e-mail or postal delivery. Phone orders are preferred and receive priority processing.