Guinea-Bissau President Kumba Yala said last Thursday he would dissolve parliament, call early elections and seek a popular mandate to strengthen his powers, news organisations reported. Yala accused the legislature of "subversion" and charged his minority Social Renovation Party (PRS) government with corruption, the Portuguese news agency LUSA reported.

Guinea-Bissau's opposition parties demanded last Friday the resignation of President Kumba Yala, saying he had interfered with the independent judiciary and encouraged tribalism to destabilize the country, news agencies reported.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has asked his Special Envoy for The Gambia and Guinea-Bissau, James Victor Gbeho, to return to West Africa to promote peace between the two countries, the UN reported on Monday.

The overall situation in Guinea-Bissau has remained calm over the past three months, but political tensions still run high, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in his latest report on the West African nation to the UN Security Council.

Economic growth in least developed countries has increased from levels seen 10 years ago, but 13 countries led by Guinea-Bissau and the Solomon Islands had "regressing economies".