Guyana is situated in the north-east of South America, only 746 miles from the equator. It is bordered by the Atlantic to the north and by Suriname to the east, Brazil to the south and Venezuela to the west.
There are border disputes with both Venezuela and Suriname.
With an area of (83,000 square miles) and a population of only 800,000 (in 1997), Guyana is one of the least populated countries on the planet (96/square mile).