Gabon

Gabonese RepublicRepublique gabonaise

republicIndependence 17 August 1960 (from France)

Gabon as the 2007 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 128 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalLibreville, UTC+1
Position1 00 S, 11 45 E
Area267,667 sq km
LocationWestern Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea
2007

Every edition of Gabon

Populationas each edition published it
1.45 million July 2007 est. · 1.07m in 1990
Population growth% a year
2.036% 2007 est. · 1.45% in 1993
Median ageyears
18.6 years 2007 est. · 18.5 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
53.99 years 2007 est. · 54.19 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
4.71 children per woman 2007 est. · 4 in 1990
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
53.65 deaths per 1,000 live births 2007 est. · 106 in 1990
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
$7,100 2006 est. · $4,200 in 1993
GDP real growth% a year
1.2% 2006 est. · 13% in 1993

Introduction

1 field

Background

Only two autocratic presidents have ruled Gabon since independence from France in 1960. The current president of Gabon, El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba - one of the longest-serving heads of state in the world - has dominated the country's political scene for almost four decades. President BONGO introduced a nominal multiparty system and a new constitution in the early 1990s. However, allegations of electoral fraud during local elections in 2002-03 and the presidential elections in 2005 have exposed the weaknesses of formal political structures in Gabon.

Gabon's political opposition remains weak, divided, and financially dependent on the current regime. Despite political conditions, a small population, abundant natural resources, and considerable foreign support have helped make Gabon one of the more prosperous and stable African countries.

Geography

Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea

18 fields

Land useshare of 267,667 sq km

arable land 1.21%permanent crops 0.64%other 98.15% (2005)irrigated 70 sq km (2003)
Area
267,667sq km
land: 257,667 sq kmwater: 10,000 sq kmslightly smaller than Colorado
Coastline
885km
territorial sea: 12 nmcontiguous zone: 24 nmexclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Highest point
1,575m
Mont Iboundjilowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Land boundaries
2,551km
border countries: Cameroon 298 km, Republic of the Congo 1,903 km, Equatorial Guinea 350 km

Location

Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea

Geographic coordinates

1 00 S, 11 45 E

Climate

tropical; always hot, humid

Terrain

  • narrow coastal plain;
  • hilly interior;
  • savanna in east and south

Natural resources

petroleum, natural gas, diamond, niobium, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron ore, hydropower

Environment - current issues

deforestation; poaching

Environment - international agreements

party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements

Geography - note

  • a small population and oil and mineral reserves have helped Gabon become one of Africa's wealthier countries;
  • in general, these circumstances have allowed the country to maintain and conserve its pristine rain forest and rich biodiversity

People

20 fields

Age structuremale left, female right · (2007 est.)

23,978
65 and over4%
33,680
391,194
15-6453.9%
393,103
307,444
0-1442.1%
305,468
MaleFemale
Population
1,454,867
growth rate: 2.036% (2007 est.)
Note
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)

Per 1,000 population(2007 est.)

Birth
35.96Death
12.45Net migration
-3.15

Male · female

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years (2007 est.)53.99
52.85 · 55.17Infant mortality deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)53.65
62.53 · 44.5
TotalMale · femaleLiteracy (1995 est.)63.2%
73.7% · 53.3%Median age years (2007 est.)18.6
18.4 · 18.8
MaleFemaleLiteracy definition: age 15 and over can read and write

Sex ratio

at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.006 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
0.995 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
0.712 male(s)/female
total population:
0.987 male(s)/female (2007 est.)

Total fertility rate

4.71 children born/woman (2007 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

3,000 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk:
very high
food or waterborne diseases:
bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne disease:
malaria (2007)

Nationality

noun:
Gabonese (singular and plural)
adjective:
Gabonese

Ethnic groups

  • Bantu tribes, including four major tribal groupings (Fang, Bapounou, Nzebi, Obamba);
  • other Africans and Europeans, 154,000, including 10,700 French and 11,000 persons of dual nationality

Religions

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

Languages

French (official), Fang, Myene, Nzebi, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi

Government

Republic; President El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba (since 2 December 1967); Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe NDONG (since 20 January 2006)

18 fields

Presidential electionpercent of vote

79.2%
El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba 79.2%Pierre MAMBOUNDOU 13.6%Zacharie MYBOTO 6.6%election last held 27 November 2005 (next to be held in 2012)

Senate, 120 seats, elected 26 January and 9 February 2003one dot, one seat

PDG 82RPG 8UPG 8UGDD 4ADERE 3CLR 2PGP-Ndaot 2PSD 2independents 4others 5

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

Capital

name:
Libreville
geographic coordinates:
0 23 N, 9 27 E
time difference:
UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions

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

Independence

17 August 1960 (from France)

National holiday

Independence Day, 17 August (1960)

Constitution

adopted 14 March 1991

Suffrage

21 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state:
President El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba (since 2 December 1967)
head of government:
Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe NDONG (since 20 January 2006)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president
elections:
  • president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits);
  • election last held 27 November 2005 (next to be held in 2012);
  • prime minister appointed by the president
election results:
President El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba reelected; percent of vote - El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba 79.2%, Pierre MAMBOUNDOU 13.6%, Zacharie MYBOTO 6.6%

Legislative branch

bicameral legislature consists of the Senate (91 seats; members elected by members of municipal councils and departmental assemblies to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (120 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections:
  • Senate - last held 26 January and 9 February 2003 (next to be held by January 2009);
  • National Assembly - last held 17 and 24 December 2006 (next to be held in December 2011)
election results:
  • Senate - percent of vote by party - NA;
  • seats by party - PDG 53, RNB 20, PGP 4, ADERE 3, RDP 1, CLR 1, independents 9;
  • National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA;
  • seats by party - PDG 82, RPG 8, UPG 8, UGDD 4, ADERE 3, CLR 2, PGP-Ndaot 2, PSD 2, independents 4, others 5

Judicial branch

  • Supreme Court or Cour Supreme consisting of three chambers - Judicial, Administrative, and Accounts;
  • Constitutional Court;
  • Courts of Appeal;
  • Court of State Security;
  • County Courts

Political parties and leaders

  • Circle of Liberal Reformers or CLR [General Jean Boniface ASSELE];
  • Congress for Democracy and Justice or CDJ [Jules Aristide Bourdes OGOULIGUENDE];
  • Democratic and Republican Alliance or ADERE [Divungui-di-Ndinge DIDJOB];
  • Gabonese Democratic Party or PDG (former sole party) [Simplice Nguedet MANZELA];
  • Gabonese Party for Progress or PGP [Pierre-Louis AGONDJO-OKAWE];
  • Gabonese Union for Democracy and Development or UGDD [Zacherie MYBOTO];
  • National Rally of Woodcutters or RNB;
  • National Rally of Woodcutters-Rally for Gabon or RNB-RPG (Bucherons) [Fr. Paul M'BA-ABESSOLE];
  • People's Unity Party or PUP [Louis Gaston MAYILA];
  • Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Pierre EMBONI];
  • Social Democratic Party or PSD [Pierre Claver MAGANGA-MOUSSAVOU];
  • Union for Democracy and Social Integration or UDIS;
  • Union of Gabonese Patriots or UPG [Pierre MAMBOUNDOU]

International organization participation

ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission:
Ambassador Jules Marius OGOUEBANDJA
chancery:
Suite 200, 2034 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone:
[1] (202) 797-1000
FAX:
[1] (202) 332-0668
consulate(s):
New York

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission:
Ambassador Barrie R. WALKLEY
embassy:
Boulevard du Bord de Mer, Libreville
mailing address:
Centre Ville, B. P. 4000, Libreville
telephone:
[241] 76 20 03 through 76 20 04, after hours - 74 34 92
FAX:
[241] 74 55 07

Flag description

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

Economy

Gabon enjoys a per capita income four times that of most of sub-Saharan African nations.

46 fields
GDP, purchasing power parity
$10.19billion
(2006 est.)official exchange rate: $6.945 billion (2006 est.)
GDP per capita, PPP
$7,100
(2006 est.)
Real growth rate
1.2%
(2006 est.)industrial production growth: 1.6% (2002 est.)

GDP - composition by sector(2006 est.)

agriculture 6%industry 58.4%services 35.6% (2006 est.)

Trading partnersexports left, imports right

7.8%
France
35.3%
27.6%
US
7.7%
15.9%
China
Netherlands
5.6%
5.4%
Trinidad and Tobago
Cameroon
4.5%
Belgium
4.4%
4.3%
Thailand
Exports $6.053 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)Imports $1.501 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)(2006)

Budget

Revenues
$3.027 billionExpenditures
$2.146 billion (2006 est.)

Electricity

Electricity production
1.52 billion (2005)Electricity consumption
1.241 billion (2005)

Economy - overview

Gabon enjoys a per capita income four times that of most of sub-Saharan African nations. This has supported a sharp decline in extreme poverty; yet, because of high income inequality, a large proportion of the population remains poor. Gabon depended on timber and manganese until oil was discovered offshore in the early 1970s.

The oil sector now accounts for 50% of GDP. Gabon continues to face fluctuating prices for its oil, timber, and manganese exports. Despite the abundance of natural wealth, poor fiscal management hobbles the economy. Devaluation of its currency by 50% in January 1994 sparked a one-time inflationary surge, to 35%;

the rate dropped to 6% in 1996. The IMF provided a one-year standby arrangement in 1994-95, a three-year Enhanced Financing Facility (EFF) at near commercial rates beginning in late 1995, and stand-by credit of $119 million in October 2000. Those agreements mandated progress in privatization and fiscal discipline.

France provided additional financial support in January 1997 after Gabon met IMF targets for mid-1996. In 1997, an IMF mission to Gabon criticized the government for overspending on off-budget items, overborrowing from the central bank, and slipping on its schedule for privatization and administrative reform.

The rebound of oil prices in 1999-2000 helped growth, but drops in production hampered Gabon from fully realizing potential gains. In December 2000, Gabon signed a new agreement with the Paris Club to reschedule its official debt. A follow-up bilateral repayment agreement with the US was signed in December 2001.

Gabon signed a 14-month Stand-By Arrangement with the IMF in May 2004, and received Paris Club debt rescheduling later that year. Short-term progress depends on an upbeat world economy and fiscal and other adjustments in line with IMF policies.

Labor force

574,000 (2006 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture:
60%
industry:
15%
services:
25%

Unemployment rate

21% (2006 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

23.4% of GDP (2006 est.)

Public debt

49.1% of GDP (2006 est.)

Agriculture - products

  • cocoa, coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber;
  • cattle;
  • okoume (a tropical softwood);
  • fish

Industries

  • petroleum extraction and refining;
  • manganese, gold;
  • chemicals, ship repair, food and beverages, textiles, lumbering and plywood, cement

Oil - production

268,900 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - consumption

13,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - exports

NA bbl/day

Oil - imports

NA bbl/day

Oil - proved reserves

1.835 billion bbl (1 January 2006)

Natural gas - production

95.91 million cu m (2005 est.)

Natural gas - consumption

95.91 million cu m (2005 est.)

Natural gas - exports

0 cu m (2005 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves

32.59 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Current account balance

$1.691 billion (2006 est.)

Exports

$6.053 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Exports - commodities

crude oil 77%, timber, manganese, uranium (2001)

Imports

$1.501 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Imports - commodities

machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, construction materials

Economic aid - recipient

$53.87 million (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$1.122 billion (2006 est.)

Debt - external

$3.849 billion (2006 est.)

Currency (code)

Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States

Exchange rates

Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 522.89 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

8 fields
Mobile cellular
764,700
(2006)
Fixed lines
36,500
(2006) · country code .ga

Telephone system

general assessment:
  • adequate service by African standards and improving with the help of a growing mobile cell network system with three providers;
  • mobile-cellular subscribership exceeded 50 per 100 persons in 2006
domestic:
adequate system of cable, microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, radiotelephone communication stations, and a domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations
international:
  • country code - 241;
  • landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia;
  • satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 6, FM 7 (plus 11 repeaters), shortwave 4 (2001)

Television broadcast stations

4 (plus 4 repeaters) (2001)

Internet users

81,000 (2006)

Transportation

9 fields

Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right

1
over 3,047 m
1
2,438 to 3,047 m
7
1,524 to 2,437 m
7
1
914 to 1,523 m
13
under 914 m
23
Paved 10Unpaved 43

Networkskm

Roadways
9,170Railways
814Waterways
1,600 (2007)
Roadways: paved: 937 km · unpaved: 8,233 km (2004) · Railways: standard gauge: 814 km 1.435-m gauge (2006) · Waterways: (310 km on Ogooue River)

Airports

53 (2007)

Pipelines

gas 272 km; oil 1,354 km (2006)

Railways

total:
814 km
standard gauge:
814 km 1.435-m gauge (2006)

Roadways

total:
9,170 km
paved:
937 km
unpaved:
8,233 km (2004)

Waterways

1,600 km (310 km on Ogooue River) (2007)

Merchant marine

registered in other countries: 2 (Cambodia 1, Panama 1) (2007)

Ports and terminals

Gamba, Libreville, Lucinda, Owendo, Port-Gentil

Military

Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police

6 fields

Military branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police

Military service age and obligation

20 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service (2007)

Manpower available for military service

males age 18-49:
278,826
females age 18-49:
279,865 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

males age 18-49:
159,198
females age 18-49:
156,122 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually

males age 18-49:
15,325
females age 18-49:
15,367 (2005 est.)

Transnational Issues

2 fields

Disputes - international

UN urges Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane Island and lesser islands and to establish a maritime boundary in hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay

Refugees and internally displaced persons

refugees (country of origin): 7,298 (Republic of Congo) (2006)

Central Intelligence Agency. “Gabon.” The World Factbook 2007. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/gabon/2007.

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