Map of Gabon | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 | More stats

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Background: Ruled by autocratic presidents since independence from France in 1960 Gabon introduced a multiparty system and a new constitution in the early 1990s that allowed for a more transparent electoral process and for reforms of governmental institutions. A small population abundant natural resources and foreign private investment have helped make Gabon one of the more prosperous black African countries.


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Location: Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Congo and Equatorial Guinea

Geographic coordinates

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total area total: 267,670 km²
Land: 257,670 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Colorado

Land boundaries: total 2,551 km, Cameroon 298 km, Congo 1,903 km, Equatorial Guinea 350 km

Coastline: 885 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical; always hot, humid

Terrain: narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east and south

Elevation

Natural resources: petroleum, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron ore

Land use
Arable land: 1%
Permanent crops: 1%
Meadows and pastures: 18%
Forest and woodland: 78%
Other: 2%

Irrigated land: NA km²

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards

Geography


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Population: 1,155,749 (July 1995 est.)
Growth rate: 1.46% (1995 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Gabonese (singular and plural)
Adjective: Gabonese

Ethnic groups: Bantu tribes including four major tribal groupings (Fang, Eshira, Bapounou, Bateke), other Africans and Europeans 100,000, including 27,000 French

Languages: French (official), Fang, Myene, Bateke, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi

Religions: Christian 55%-75%, Muslim less than 1%, animist

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 34% (female 193,859; male 194,761)
15-64 years: 61% (female 347,839; male 359,997)
65 years and over: 5% (female 30,218; male 29,075) (July 1995 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 1.46% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 28.34 births/1000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 13.72 deaths/1000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (1995 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: deforestation; poaching
Current issues natural hazards: NA
Current issues international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea, Tropical Timber 94

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 92.4 deaths/1000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 55.14 years
Male: 52.31 years
Female: 58.06 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.93 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Total population: 61%
Male: 74%
Female: 48%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Gabonese Republic
Conventional short form: Gabon
Local long form: Republique Gabonaise
Local short form: Gabon

Government type: republic; multiparty presidential regime (opposition parties legalized 1990)

Capital: Libreville

Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Estuaire, Haut-Ogooue, Moyen-Ogooue, Ngounie, Nyanga, Ogooue-Ivindo, Ogooue-Lolo, Ogooue-Maritime, Woleu-Ntem

Dependent areas

Independence: 17 August 1960 (from France)

National holiday: Renovation Day, 12 March (1968) (Gabonese Democratic Party established)

Constitution: adopted 14 March 1991

Legal system: based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court; compulsory ICJ jurisdiction not accepted

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President El Hadj Omar BONGO (since 2 December 1967); election last held on 5 December 1993 (next to be held 1998); results - President Omar BONGO was reelected with 51% of the vote
Head of government: Prime Minister Paulin OBAME Nguema (since 9 December 1994)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers; appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president

Legislative branch: unicameral
National Assembly Assemblee Nationale: elections last held on 5 December 1993 (next to be held by 1998); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (120 total) PDG 62, Morena-Bucherons/RNB 19, PGP 18, National Recovery Movement (Morena-Original) 7, APSG 6, USG 4, CRP 1, independents 3

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CCC, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-24, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (associate), ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPEC, UDEAC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Paul BOUNDOUKOU-LATHA
In the us chancery: 2,233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,007, Suite 200
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 797-1000
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph C. WILSON IV
From the us embassy: Boulevard de la Mer, Libreville
From the us mailing address: B. P. 4,000, Libreville
From the us telephone: [241] 76 20 03 through 76 20 04, 74 34 92
From the us FAX: [241] 74 55 07

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and blue

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Notwithstanding its serious ongoing economic problems, Gabon enjoys a per capita income more than twice that of most nations of sub-Saharan Africa. Gabon depended on timber and manganese until oil was discovered offshore in the early 1970s. The oil sector now accounts for 50% of GDP. Real growth was feeble in 1992 and Gabon continues to face the problem of fluctuating prices for its oil, timber, manganese, and uranium exports. Despite an abundance of natural wealth, and a manageable rate of population growth, the economy is hobbled by poor fiscal management. In 1992, the fiscal deficit widened to 2.4% of GDP, and Gabon failed to settle arrears on its bilateral debt, leading to a cancellation of rescheduling agreements with official and private creditors. Devaluation of its Francophone currency by 50% in January 1994 did not set off an expected inflationary spiral but the government must continue to keep a tight reign on spending and wage increases.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 1.9% (1994 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $4,900 (1994 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: cash crops - cocoa, coffee, palm oil; livestock raising not developed; importer of food; small fishing operations provide a catch of about 20,000 metric tons; okoume (a tropical softwood) is the most important timber product

Industries: food and beverages, lumbering and plywood, textiles, cement, petroleum refining, mining - manganese, uranium, gold, petroleum

Industrial production growth rate: -3% (1991)

Labor force: 120,000 salaried
By occupation agriculture: 65.0%
By occupation industry and commerce: 30.0%
By occupation services: 2.5%
By occupation government: 2.5%

Unemployment rate: NA%

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $1.3 billion
Expenditures: $1.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $311 million (1993 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $2.1 billion (f.o.b., 1993 est)
Commodoties: crude oil 80%, timber 10%, manganese 6%, uranium 2%
Partners: US 38%, France 26%, Japan, Germany

Imports: $832 million (c.i.f., 1993 est.)
Commodoties: foodstuffs, chemical products, petroleum products, construction materials, manufactures, machinery
Partners: France 42%, African countries 23%, US, Japan

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $3.3 billion (1993 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF) per US$1 - 529.43 (January 1995), 555.20 (1994), 283.16 (1993), 264.69 (1992), 282.11 (1991), 272.26 (1990)
Note: beginning 12 January 1994, the CFA franc was devalued to CFAF 100 per French franc from CFAF 50 at which it had been fixed since 1948


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Electricity
Capacity: 315,000 kW
Production: 910 million kWh
Production consumption per capita: 757 kWh (1993)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones

Telephone system: 15,000 telephones; telephone density - 13/1000 persons
Local: NA
Intercity: adequate system, comprising cable, microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, radiocommunication stations, and 12 domestic satellite links
International: 3 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth stations

Broadcast media

Internet

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $154 million, 2.4% of GDP (1993)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 69
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 7
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1
With paved runways under 914 m: 28
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2438 m: 8
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 23

Heliports

Pipelines: crude oil 270 km; petroleum products 14 km

Railways

Roadways

Waterways: 1,600 km perennially navigable

Merchant marine: total:1 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 9,281 GRT/12,665 DWT

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: maritime boundary dispute with Equatorial Guinea because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs