Guinea is a West African country that spans an area of 245,857 km2 and shares borders with Guinea-Bissau, Senegal, Mali, Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. The country has a population of 13 million in 2017 of which over 60 percent are living in rural areas. The Guinean population is mainly Muslim (86 percent) and is composed of several ethnic groups including the Fula, the Mandinka, and the Susu. The country is highly endowed with natural resources such as bauxite, iron, diamonds, gold, and uranium. Guinea possesses over 30 percent of the world's bauxite reserves and it is the second-largest bauxite producer. The country also has fertile soil and high potential for hydroelectric power.

The economy is dominated by agriculture and mineral production (gold, bauxite and diamond, which represent about 95 percent of the total exports. Agriculture employs 76 percent of the Guinean labor force and contributes with an average of 20 percent to the GDP.

Guinea has made considerable progress in stabilizing over the past decade years. Macroeconomic stability was restored, and debt sustainability dramatically improved with the attainment of the enhanced Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) completion point in September 2012.

Guinea joined IsDB in August 1974.