Coastline: 515 km
Maritime claims: continental shelf: 200 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: none
Climate: tropical along coast, semiarid in far north; three
seasons - warm and dry (November to March), hot and dry (March to
May), hot and wet (June to October)
Terrain: mostly flat to undulating plains; mountains in northwest
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 m
Natural resources: petroleum, diamonds, manganese, iron ore,
cobalt, bauxite, copper
Land use:
arable land: 9%
permanent crops: 4%
meadows and pastures: 9%
forest and woodland: 26%
other: 52%
Irrigated land: 620 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: deforestation (most of the country's forests - once
the largest in West Africa - have been cleared by the timber
industry); water pollution from sewage and industrial and
agricultural effluents
natural hazards: coast has heavy surf and no natural harbors; during
the rainy season torrential flooding is possible
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Tropical Timber 83; signed, but not ratified - Desertification
People ———