Koundara

Koundara, town, northwestern Guinea, on the road from Labé to Senegal and at the intersection of roads from Youkounkoun and Guinea-Bissau. It has replaced Youkounkoun, 15 miles (24 km) northeast, as the chief trading centre for cattle, chickens, rice, peanuts (groundnuts), millet, and corn (maize). A government hospital serves the town. The surrounding area is mostly savanna, mainly inhabited by Konyagi, Bassari, Badiaranke, and Fulani peoples. Koundara lies at the southern edge of Badiar National Park, which since the mid-1990s has been administered jointly with Niokolo-Kouba National Park in southeastern Senegal. Pop. (1996) 13,003.