The Nordic Africa Institute

Photos from Guinea-Bissau

Norwegian photographer Mr Knut Andreassen and former Speaker of the Swedish Parliament Ms Birgitta Dahl together with a Swedish delegation, visited the liberated areas in Guinea-Bissau in November 1970.

The visit gave them an opportunity to talk to Amílcar Cabral in his own environment and gain a deeper understanding of the struggle for independence from Portugal. Andreassen and Dahl later compiled a book* in Swedish on their trip. Andreassen also produced a photo exhibition to inform the Nordic people about PAIGC and the colonised areas. Not only the exhibition, but also most of the photos from this period, were later donated to the Nordic Africa Institute by Andreassen’s widow. The exhibition was donated to the Amílcar Cabral Foundation by the Nordic Africa Institute and presented by Ms Birgitta Dahl in connection with the 80th anniversary celebrations of Amílcar Cabral's birth in September 2004.

The photos show how life was in the liberated areas. How people went about and did their daily chores, but also the military side, the soldiers and their weapons. As Guinea-Bissau has plenty of rivers, the boat was an important mode of transportation, in particular as the Portuguese blew up most of the bridges. Over 99% of the population was illiterate when the struggle started in 1963 so education was important and PAIGC ran camp-schools for children and adults. About 75 such schools existed - one of the first was the Escola Piloto in Conakry. The new ABC book was funded by Norwegian students and printed in Sweden. The photos also show cultural events and health care facilities.

Some of the photos are published in the book* by Knut Andreassen and Birgitta Dahl, where it is possible to read more about the situation in Guinea-Bissau at the time.

*Guinea-Bissau: rapport om ett land och en befrielserörelse / Knut Andreassen, Birgitta Dahl, Stockholm: Prisma, 1971.

The photographs by Knut Andreassen were donated to the Nordic Africa Institute in 2004.

During 2025, Knut Andreassens relatives kindly allowed to publish the photographs under the
CC BY license.

The published photos are in JPG-format. All of them are also available in TIF-format.
For ordering, please contact the library library@nai.uu.se.

Details on each photograph can be found here:

If you use photos

Please acknowledge the Nordic Africa Institute and the photographer (when indicated) + organisation if you use photos from this website. Detailed information of the photographs can be found under each organisation. Please use below format when citing:

  • Photo credits: Photographer Name, Organisation, via the Nordic Africa Institute 
School in Conakry Escola Piloto 1.41 MB
Open reception 1.56 MB
Children in dormitory 1.63 MB
Reading 1.20 MB
Reading 1.28 MB
Dormitory 1.42 MB
Indoor dance performance 1.57 MB
Sacks of rice are being loaded 1.76 MB
Open reception 1.63 MB
Bandaged man studying 1.58 MB
Nurse comes from staff housing 2.04 MB
Weighing sacks of rice 1.35 MB
Paramedics bandaging a man's arm 1.15 MB
Nurse in hospital ward 1.32 MB
Reading school students 1.26 MB
Soldiers watching a lesson in the camp school 1.44 MB
At the blackboard 1.46 MB
Military school 1.50 MB
School in Conakry Escola piloto 1.12 MB
School boys 1.45 MB
School youths in the camp 1.43 MB
Unfinished school 1.57 MB
Military school 1.53 MB
Farmers at work in the rice field 3.16 MB
Female patient with textbook 1.20 MB
Missing alt-text 2.16 MB
Soldier at field on the outskirts of the camp 2.77 MB
Two patients in hospital room 1.38 MB
Bigroup in the army. The mobile army began to be built up in 1964. Today about 10 000 men 2.61 MB
Bigroup in the army 1.73 MB
Soldiers marching to camp 1.91 MB
Nurse 1.50 MB
Soliders in the camp 1.40 MB
Dormitory 1.64 MB
Pupils in the school desks 1.27 MB
Children dancing 1.48 MB
Children dancing 1.51 MB
Children dancing 1.40 MB
Children dancing 1.60 MB
Children dancing 1.58 MB
Birgitta Dahl and a young woman with a small child 1.38 MB
Healthcare staff in pharmacy 1.25 MB
Staff dose medicines? 1.29 MB
Three school children eating 1.56 MB
Man with two firearms in corridor (hospital?) 1.40 MB
Children dancing 1.43 MB
Children dancing 1.46 MB
Children dancing 1.49 MB
Drying rack 1.70 MB
Hair care 1.64 MB
Hair care 1.63 MB
Escola Piloto 1.43 MB
Writing excercise 1.22 MB
School in Conakry Escola piloto 1.08 MB
School in Conakry Escola piloto 1.32 MB
Hair care 1.57 MB
Tree 1.63 MB
Nurse cleaning instruments 1.58 MB
Staff on their way out of surgery 1.76 MB
Construction workers 1.73 MB
Surgery ongoing 1.79 MB
Birgitta Dahl visiting school class 1.62 MB
River transport 651.42 kB
Writing excercise 1.46 MB
Writing excercise 1.21 MB
Bridge 1.94 MB
Classroom 2.05 MB
Portrait of Amílcar Cabral 332.54 kB
Bridge 1.65 MB
Boy with manioc 1.76 MB
Boy with manioc 1.82 MB
Man with wristwatch 1.51 MB
Man with machete in field 1.80 MB
Couscous on rice 1.67 MB
Planting 1.43 MB
Farmers at work in the rice field 1.75 MB
Soldier on the outskirts of the camp 1.77 MB
Soldiers on the outskirts of the camp 1.80 MB
Soldiers observing food preparations 1.62 MB
Portrait man with goatee 1.19 MB
River transport 1.41 MB
Food delivery 1.71 MB
Food delivery 1.73 MB
Joint meal in the camp 1.19 MB
Couscous on rice 1.78 MB
Man with wristwatch 1.50 MB
Food preparations 1.04 MB
Food preparations 1.28 MB
Food preparations 1.44 MB
Child in baby carrier 1.38 MB
Woman bathing child 1.63 MB
Woman bathing child 704.34 kB
Woman bathing child 1.77 MB
Woman bathing child 1.60 MB
Simple kitchen at the hospital 1.99 MB
Portrait man with goatee 1.28 MB
Teaching 1.90 MB
Surplus of rice in the liberated areas 1.89 MB
Surplus of rice in the liberated areas 1.84 MB
School children with text books 1.41 MB
Girls at school desk 1.54 MB
Soldiers watching a lesson in the camp school 1.12 MB
Three school children eating 1.75 MB
Open reception 1.47 MB
Portrait young man with striped collar 1.54 MB
Amílcar Cabral 968.68 kB
Girls at school desk 1.60 MB
Reading school students 1.24 MB
Dormitory 1.50 MB
Damaged car in front of sheet metal building 1.62 MB
Portrait young man with uniform cap 888.32 kB
Soldiers marching 1.62 MB
Two men and three small children in front of a whitewashed house 1.87 MB
School children 1.47 MB
Soldiers inside the camp 1.88 MB
Villagers(?) - entrance to the village 1.84 MB
Villagers(?) - hills 1.69 MB
Zebras and wildebeests 1.66 MB
Zebras and wildebeests 1.80 MB
Woman carrying water 1.41 MB
Weapon maintenance 1.70 MB
On the way 1.52 MB
Meal PAIGC 1.35 MB
Villagers(?) in front of house 1.65 MB
Villagers(?) in front of house 1.67 MB
Militia soldier and guide 1.57 MB
Soldier 1.82 MB
Soldier 1.77 MB
In front Amílcar Cabral and Birgitta Dahl 1.34 MB
Planting 1.59 MB
School in Conakry Escola piloto 1.18 MB
Girls dancing (with school uniforms) 840.34 kB
Mother with child 1.35 MB
Hair care 1.60 MB
Nurse at the staff housing 1.74 MB
Bandaged man leaves hospital 1.65 MB
Camp building 1.75 MB
Water break 1.47 MB
Children dancing 1.80 MB
School boys with their books 1.83 MB
At the blackboard 1.48 MB
Camp school. Hidden in the forest from airplanes and helicopters 2.02 MB
Three camp buildings 2.12 MB
Classroom 1.97 MB
School children 1.31 MB
Women mortaring on a tree trunk 1.46 MB
Woman doing dishes 1.96 MB
Soldier with braided hat and comrades 1.55 MB
Soldier with braided hat, musician 1.24 MB
Two small children carrying pots on their heads 1.46 MB
Man with two cows eating 1.96 MB
Villagers(?) - adults and children outdoors 1.72 MB
Villagers(?) - the calves are fed 1.57 MB
View of cliff wall 1.41 MB
Zebras and wildebeests 2.08 MB
School boys with their books 1.45 MB
School boys with their books 1.22 MB
"Comrade" portrait of man with short hair and full beard 1.28 MB
Dancers outdoors 1.60 MB
Meal PAIGC 1.38 MB
Man being examined in hospital 1.36 MB
At the blackboard 1.29 MB
School girl reading 1.31 MB
School youth in the camp 1.49 MB
Reading school students 1.16 MB
School girls 1.30 MB
Meal PAIGC 1.45 MB
Meal PAIGC 1.59 MB
Farmers at work in the rice field 1.58 MB
Patient leaves the operating table - nurse cleans the instruments 1.86 MB
Nurse after surgery 1.73 MB
Woman carrying a child in a field 1.71 MB
Beach 1.45 MB
Dancers outdoors 1.57 MB
Three visitors at campfire (one is Birgitta Dahl) 1.05 MB
School in Conakry Escola Piloto 1.28 MB
Classroom 1.41 MB
School students (escola piloto?) 1.40 MB
School building from the outside Escola piloto? 1.44 MB
Amílcar Cabral, Birgitta Dahl 896.01 kB
Simple kitchen at the hospital 1.82 MB
The army is constantly on the march 2.02 MB
Villagers (?) Adults and children outdoors 1.54 MB
Mother with child 1.28 MB
Indoor dance performance (with Birgitta Dahl) 1.01 MB
Military school 1.46 MB
Reading 1.30 MB
Reading school boys 1.47 MB
Dancers outdoors 1.70 MB
Teaching 1.31 MB
Bigroup in the army. The mobile army began to be built up in 1964. Today about 10 000 men 1.46 MB
Weapon maintenance 1.80 MB
Soldiers walking through rice fields 1.46 MB
Bridge 1.71 MB
Planting 1.63 MB
Planting 1.73 MB
Soldiers in rice field 1.17 MB
Man with two picks 1.82 MB
Construction workers 1.50 MB
Planting 1.68 MB
Military school 1.27 MB
Bridge 1.86 MB
Nurse comes from staff housing 1.75 MB
Meal PAIGC 1.57 MB
Meal PAIGC 1.34 MB
Food delivery 1.62 MB
Soldiers observing food preparations 1.46 MB