Flag of Guinea
 |
|
| Use | National flag and ensign |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Adopted | 10 November 1958 |
| Design | A vertical tricolour of red, yellow and green |
The flag of Guinea was adopted on November 10, 1958.
Design
The colors of the flag were adapted from those of the Rassemblement Démocratique Africain, the dominant movement at the time of independence. The colors were in turn derived from those of Ghana, which had first adopted them in 1957. Sekou Toure, the first President of Guinea, was a close associate of Kwame Nkrumah, the former president of Ghana.
Colors
Red symbolizes the blood of the martyrs who died from slavery and wars, yellow represents the sun and the riches of the country, and green the country's vegetation. In keeping with other flags in the region, the Pan-African movement's colours of red, yellow, and green are used.
As a former French colony it may be no coincidence that the design is a tricolour. The colours of the flag from left to right are the reverse of the flag of Mali. The earlier flag of Rwanda, whose design was inspired by the flag of the Kingdom of Rwanda, had a large black R to make it distinguishable from the near-identical flag of Guinea.
