Biombo
Biombo exhibits edge effects: coastal region near Bissau diversifies through fishing and capital proximity, less vulnerable than interior cashew monoculture.
Biombo Region occupies the coastal transition zone between Bissau and the mainland—geographically positioned to capture spillover from the capital while maintaining its own agricultural base. The region's proximity to Bissau provides access to markets, services, and infrastructure that the interior regions lack. This is edge effects in a small-country economy.
The coastal location enables economic diversification unavailable elsewhere. Fishing sustains communities along the shore while cashew cultivation dominates inland areas. When 80% of the national workforce depends on agriculture, those with fishing alternatives face less volatility than pure cashew farmers. The region's estuarine environment and access to the Bijagós Archipelago waters provide protein sources that interior regions must import.
Biombo's relative advantage persists through path dependence: colonial-era infrastructure connected coastal regions to Bissau while bypassing the interior. Roads, markets, and administrative presence concentrated here. When Guinea-Bissau's 4.8% GDP growth in 2024 reflected services sector expansion, Biombo accessed those gains more easily than landlocked Bafata or Gabú. The region isn't wealthy—nowhere in Guinea-Bissau is—but proximity to the capital provides options the poverty triangle lacks.