Did you know that there is a mysterious country in the world, with hundreds of languages and rich oil and gas resources, but few people know about its existence? That country is Equatorial Guinea. It is an amazing country that hides many secrets!
For example, Equatorial Guinea is one of the top three countries in Africa with the highest literacy rate, and Equatorial Guinea has the largest frog in the world. If you want to learn more about the incredible facts of this unique country, read on. Here are 15 fun facts about Equatorial Guinea!
Post-colonial Africa has been plagued by tyrants and oppressors, and Equatorial Guinea's Francisco Macias Nguema deserves to be at the top of the list. Between 1968 and 1979, Equatorial Guinea was ruled by Macias, who was second only to Pol Pot in Cambodia in the post-Hitler era.
As his reign progressed, Macias' behavior became more and more erratic. He burned fishing boats and laid mines on the roads to prevent escape. He abolished religion, closed churches used as storerooms, and imprisoned or expelled priests. Equatorial Guinea's economy is at a standstill, with 90% of public services, including electricity, electricity, postal services, and transportation, at a standstill.
Macias, who had failed the entrance examination for the colonial civil service three times, was particularly uneasy around the educated. Soon after, he closed all libraries, banned the use of the word "intellectual", and killed everyone who wore glasses. By the end of his reign, there were only two doctors and less than ten technical school graduates left in the country!
Macias banned Western medicine, closed hospitals, and used his knowledge of traditional witchcraft to intimidate the populace into submission. Thousands of people, especially the Bubbies, were tortured, publicly executed, or beaten to death in the ** camp. By 1978, corruption had reached alarming levels so much that the Swedish anthropologist Robert Ave Clintberg referred to Equatorial Guinea as "Africa's concentration camp."
The total number of deaths caused by the Masias regime during its eleven years of rule was between 20,000 and 100,000, about one-third of the population of Equatorial Guinea at the time. Another 100,000 people are believed to have fled the country during this period. In August 1979, Macias was overthrown by his nephew, Teodoro Obiang Nguema, who subsequently ordered his uncle to be executed.
Thanks to the discovery of oil and gas in the mid-90s of the 20th century, Equatorial Guinea has gone from being a stagger in Africa to one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. Equatorial Guinea has a relatively small population of just under 1.5 million, but it has one of the highest GDP per capita in Africa.
Sadly, Equatorial Guinea's newfound wealth has so far had little impact on the lives of its people. Most of the country's oil revenues go into the private pockets of a handful of ruling elites. More than 70 per cent of Equatorial Guineans still live in extreme poverty.
One of the unique features of Equatorial Guinea is that it is home to the world's largest frogs. Aptly named the "Goliath Frog", it can reach a body length of up to 34 centimeters. Weighing up to 33 kg, famous for building its own pond using heavy stones.
In 1979, Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea overthrew his uncle in a bloody political campaign and seized power. Despite several attempts to overthrow him, Obiang remained in power for more than 40 years and earned the title of the longest-reigning leader in Africa and the world.
After coming to power in 1979, Obiang quickly dispelled the illusion that he would lead Equatorial Guinea to freedom and democracy. Although Obiang's rule was not as brutal as his uncle's, he still proved himself to be a more efficient tyrant, with arbitrary detention, extrajudicial executions, and torture all common.
Like his uncle, Obiang concentrated power and wealth in his family. His regime has been labelled "oil thieves," and he and his cronies continue to extract huge personal profits from the country's oil windfalls.
Although the vast majority of Equatorial Guineans are mired in abject poverty, Obiang's fortune is reported to be around $600 million, making him one of the richest heads of state in the world.
According to the Intelligence Agency World Factbook, more than 95% of adults in Equatorial Guinea can read and write.
As in much of Africa, football is undoubtedly the most popular sport in Equatorial Guinea. Unfortunately, the country's men's national football team has hardly tasted success at the international level and has never even qualified for the World Cup.
Despite competing in the Summer Olympics since 1984, Equatorial Guinea has never won a medal. The country has never participated in the Winter Olympics.
One of the lesser-known facts about Equatorial Guinea is that the Portuguese were the first Europeans to set foot in the country. In 1471, the Portuguese navigator Fern o do Pó searched for a way to India and is believed to be the first European to discover the island of Bioko.
Under Portuguese rule, the islands of Bioko, Annoben and Corisco became "factories" or outposts for slaves.
At the end of the 18th century, Bioco, Annoben, and parts of the Equatorial Guinea mainland were traded to Spain in exchange for areas within what is now Brazil. This was done so that Spain could have its own slaves** in Africa, which were then shipped to Spanish America.
In the early years of the occupation of Equatorial Guinea, the Spaniards were skeptical of investing in the island for fear of contracting diseases such as yellow fever. They just continue to use the islands as slave stations.
From 1827 to 1843, Britain actually managed the island of Fernando (Bioco) and even offered to buy Equatorial Guinea from the Spaniards. In 1844, the Spaniards made a second attempt to capture Fernandopo.
However, Spain lacked wealth and a strong desire to develop an extensive economic infrastructure in Spanish Guinea. The interest of the Spanish colonists was mainly focused on the healthy and fertile Fernando Wave (with its cocoa and coffee plantations).
After decades of neglect, the continent also began to receive some attention in the late 30s of the 20th century. During the last decades of Spanish colonial rule, Equatorial Guinea prospered. When the world forced Spain to decolonize, the country had the best medical care, the lowest mortality rate, and the second-highest per capita income of any sub-Saharan African country.
On October 12, 1968, Equatorial Guinea gained full independence from Spain.
The Fang are the largest ethnic group in Equatorial Guinea and are the indigenous people of the Equatorial Guinean continent, accounting for about four-fifths of the population. The Bubby are the second largest ethnic group in the country, making up the majority of the Oko population.
The Bubi are descendants of indigenous Bantu-speaking people in Africa who fled the Central African continent in the 13th century. The coastal tribes of Equatorial Guinea are sometimes referred to as "playeros" and are made up of combes, bujebas, balengues, and bengas.
Equatorial Guinea is also home to a number of smaller ethnic groups, such as the Fernandinos (descendants of former slaves emancipated by the British) and the Creolos (a mixture of Portuguese and Africans).
Perhaps this is not surprising, since Equatorial Guinea was administered by Spain for more than 150 years. It is mainly used as a second language and is the lingua franca among the various ethnic groups of the country.
Spanish is used in print, higher education, the justice system, and public service. In addition, the English-based Creole language (pichinglis) was widely spoken in informal settings and in business, and formed the lingua franca of Bioco.
One of the more surprising facts about Equatorial Guinea is that both French and Portuguese are the country's official languages. In 1998, French was adopted as an official language by Equatorial Guinea, but in practice the French language is used very little. In order to join the Organization of la Francophonie (OIF), French was adopted as an official language.
Portuguese became the official language of Equatorial Guinea in 2010. However, similar to French, Portuguese is not actually spoken in the country either (except for the island of Anoben, where the Portuguese Creole fad is spoken'ambô）。It was made an official language only for the purpose of joining the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP).
Since the first oil discovery in Equatorial Guinea in the mid-90s of the 20th century, the country's oil production has increased and it is now the third largest oil exporter in sub-Saharan Africa, after Nigeria and Angola.
Equatorial Guinea's oil reserves dwarf all other economic activity, with oil accounting for about 80% of the country's GDP. However, according to the International Monetary Fund** (IMF), Equatorial Guinea's oil reserves are expected to be depleted by 2035 unless new ones are discovered.
The kapok tree (or so-called "sacred tree") represents the place where the local rulers signed their first treaties with the Portuguese. It even appears on the national coat of arms.
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