Publication: Guinea-Bissau: Turning Challenges into Opportunities for Poverty Reduction and Inclusive Growth
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2016-06
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2016-07-14
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Guinea-Bissau is fighting a battle against poverty, low growth, and political fragility. Each of these areas presents both a formidable challenge as well as an opportunity for serious, long-lasting and much-needed change. Poverty is entrenched, inequality is high and other human development outcomes are weak with many of the key indicators worsening over time. Fragility is intrinsically linked to low growth and lack of inclusiveness. Nonetheless, the country has potential for unlocking income-generating opportunities for growth. The diagnostics framework of this Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) is based on three interrelated themes: (i) inclusiveness of growth; (ii) overall economic growth and macro context; and (iii) sustainability risks, including the overarching issue of fragility.
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“World Bank Group. 2016. Guinea-Bissau: Turning Challenges into Opportunities for Poverty Reduction and Inclusive Growth. Systematic Country Diagnostic;. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/24695 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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Publication Guinea-Bissau Country Economic Memorandum : Terra Ranca! A Fresh Start, Summary(Washington, DC, 2015-01-12)After decades of turmoil and instability, a period of calm and progress evolved in Guinea-Bissau in 2009. A military coup in April 2012 interrupted it. A fresh start is needed to alter the dynamics that kept Guinea-Bissau poor. In 2013, Gross National Income per capita was US$590. Average economic growth barely kept pace with population growth. In 2010, poverty at the national poverty line of US$2 a day was 70 percent; extreme poverty at US$1 a day was 33 percent. These numbers have increased from their 2002 levels and they are estimated to have increased further since 2010. It is time to make a fresh start and turn the page on anemic growth and poverty. Guinea-Bissau s elections of May and June 2014 are described by many observers as the freest and fairest in the country s history. Voter registration and turnout were at record-levels. The conditions for progress and stability are favorable. Guinea-Bissau is a rural economy, almost entirely dependent on a single cash crop: cashew. It is the main source of income for most of the country s poor. Cashew nuts are Guinea-Bissau s main export, accounting for 85 to 90 percent of the country s total exports. The balance of payments is dominated by cashew, on the export side, and food and fuel, among imports. The economy is open, with exports and imports by land and sea amounting to more than 70 percent of GDP. Shocks to cashew, rice and oil prices have a considerable effect on the current account balance. Official Development Assistance (ODA) makes a critical contribution to supporting the state budget. In 2011, Guinea-Bissau ranked 20th among the world s most aid dependent countries. Recently, policy mistakes aggravated an already dire situation. However, the 2014 cashew campaign was been better than the 2013 campaign, and the prospects for a pick-up in growth have improved.Publication Guinea-Bissau(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-02)The Country Opinion Survey in Guinea-Bissau assists the World Bank Group (WBG) in gaining a better understanding of how stakeholders in Guinea-Bissau perceive the WBG. 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There are three recommendations which stand out as having a particularly important and pervasive effect on trade and its potential role in raising incomes and reducing poverty. Indeed, they can be regarded as preconditions for significant progress. Eliminating the bureaucratic obstacles to doing business is a prerequisite for any growth in private investment in the country. Guinea-Bissau ranks near the bottom of the World Bank's annual Survey of Doing Business, reflecting the extremely difficult bureaucratic and legal maze that must be dealt with by any entrepreneur seeking to operate a business in the country. This situation not only militates against private investment in any but resource extraction industries, but also makes even the simplest import/export operation an exercise in bureaucratic navigation. 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It further presents the institutional environment and technical conditions regarding the implementation of the land law and general land regulation draft. The second part presents and analyzes the government action plan. Specific recommendations are made concerning the basic structure and main elements of a national land administration and land management program, which could comprise three components: (i) the development of a nationwide cadastral system as the core infrastructure and land administration instrument, (ii) the harmonization and integration of traditional and official right systems and institutions, and (iii) subsidiary support to land management capacities, which are crucial for the implementation of the two previous components. Several cross-cutting issues like gender, conflict management, environmental aspects and sustainable resource management are interlaced with the technical elements of land tenure development and considered throughout the report.
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