Gabon
Gabonese RepublicRepublique Gabonaise
republicIndependence 17 August 1960 (from France)
Gabon as the 2011 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 147 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
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Introduction
1 fieldBackground
Until recently, only two autocratic presidents had ruled Gabon since its independence from France in 1960. The recent president of Gabon, El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba - one of the longest-serving heads of state in the world - had dominated the country's political scene for 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 exposed the weaknesses of formal political structures in Gabon.
President BONGO died in June 2009. New elections in August 2009 brought Ali Ben BONGO, son of the former president, to power. 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. In January 2010, Gabon assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2010-11 term.
Geography
Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea
20 fieldsLand useshare of 267,667 sq km
Location
Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea
Natural resources
petroleum, natural gas, diamond, niobium, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron ore, hydropower
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)
- total:
- 0.12 cu km/yr (50%/8%/42%)
- per capita:
- 87 cu m/yr (2000)
Environment - international agreements
- party to:
- Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, 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 and Society
31 fieldsAge structuremale left, female right · (2011 est.)
Note
Per 1,000 population
Male · female
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
Sex ratio
- at birth:
- 1.03 male(s)/female
- under 15 years:
- 1.01 male(s)/female
- 15-64 years:
- 1 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 0.72 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 0.99 male(s)/female (2011 est.)
Major infectious diseases
- degree of risk:
- very high
- food or waterborne diseases:
- bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
- vectorborne disease:
- malaria and chikungunya
- water contact disease:
- schistosomiasis
- animal contact disease:
- rabies (2009)
Government
Republic; President Ali Ben BONGO Ondimba (since 16 October 2009); Prime Minister Paul BIYOGHE MBA (since 15 July 2009)
21 fieldsPresidential electionpercent of vote
Senate, 120 seats, elected 18 January 2009one dot, one seat
Country name
- conventional long form:
- Gabonese Republic
- conventional short form:
- Gabon
- local long form:
- Republique Gabonaise
- local short form:
- Gabon
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
International law organization participation
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- President Ali Ben BONGO Ondimba (since 16 October 2009)
- head of government:
- Prime Minister Paul BIYOGHE MBA (since 15 July 2009)
- cabinet:
- Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president; (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website)
- elections:
- president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits);
- election last held on 30 August 2009 (next to be held in 2016);
- prime minister appointed by the president
- election results:
- President Ali Ben BONGO Ondimba elected; percent of vote - Ali Ben BONGO Ondimba 41.7%, Andre MBA OBAME 25.9%, Pierre MAMBOUNDOU 25.2%, Zacharie MYBOTO 3.9%, other 3.3%
note: President BONGO died on 8 June 2009 after serving as president for 32 years; in accordance with the constitution he was replaced on an interim basis by the president of the Senate, Rose Francine ROGOMBE on 10 June 2009;
new elections were held on 30 August 2009 and the son of the former president, Ali Ben BONGO Ondimba, was elected president
Legislative branch
bicameral legislature consists of the Senate (102 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 on 18 January 2009 (next to be held in January 2015);
- National Assembly - last held on 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 75, RPG 6, UGDD 3, CLR 2, PGCI 2, PSD 2, UPG 2, ADERE 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 [Simplice Nguedet MANZELA] (former sole party);
- Gabonese Party for Progress or PGP [Benoit Mouity NZAMBA];
- 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];
- Party of Development and Social Solidarity or PDS [Seraphin Ndoat REMBOGO];
- People's Unity Party or PUP [Louis Gaston MAYILA];
- 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
ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Michael MOUSSA-ADAMO
- chancery:
- Suite 200, 2034 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
note:
- temporary address:
- 1630 Connecticut Avenue NW, 7th floor, 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 Erik D. BENJAMINSON
- embassy:
- Boulevard du Bord de Mer, Libreville
- mailing address:
- Centre Ville, B. P. 4000, Libreville; pouch:2270 Libreville Place, Washington, DC 20521-2270
- telephone:
- [241] 76 20 03 through 76 20 04, after hours - 07380171
- FAX:
- [241] 74 55 07
Flag description
- three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and blue;
- green represents the country's forests and natural resources, gold represents the equator (which transects Gabon) as well as the sun, blue represents the sea
Economy
Gabon enjoys a per capita income four times that of most sub-Saharan African nations, but because of high income inequality, a large proportion of the population remains poor.
50 fieldsGDP - composition by sector(2010 est.)
Trading partnersexports left, imports right
Electricity
Economy - overview
Gabon enjoys a per capita income four times that of most sub-Saharan African nations, but 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 more than 50% of GDP although the industry is in decline as fields pass their peak production.
Gabon continues to face fluctuating prices for its oil, timber, and manganese exports and the global recession led to a GDP contraction of 1.4% in 2009. Despite the abundance of natural wealth, poor fiscal management hobbles the economy. 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 from 1999 to 2008 helped growth, but drops in production have hampered Gabon from fully realizing potential gains. Gabon signed a 14-month Stand-By Arrangement with the IMF in May 2007, and later that year issued a $1 billion sovereign bond to buy back a sizable portion of its Paris Club debt.
Central bank discount rate
3% (31 December 2010 est.) · 4.25% (31 December 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 88
Commercial bank prime lending rate
15% (31 December 2010 est.) · 15% (31 December 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 52
Stock of narrow money
$1.87 billion (31 December 2010 est.) · $1.683 billion (31 December 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 122
Stock of broad money
$2.83 billion (31 December 2010 est.) · $2.559 billion (31 December 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 137
Stock of domestic credit
$1.351 billion (31 December 2010 est.) · $857.4 million (31 December 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 145
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
Natural gas - proved reserves
28.32 billion cu m (1 January 2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 72
Current account balance
$3.513 billion (2010 est.) · $788.1 million (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 42
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold
$1.746 billion (31 December 2010 est.) · $1.993 billion (31 December 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 123
Debt - external
$2.247 billion (31 December 2010 est.) · $2.13 billion (31 December 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 138
Exchange rates
Cooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs per US dollar - 495.28 (2010) · 472.19 (2009) · 447.81 (2008) · 481.83 (2007) · 522.89 (2006)
Communications
7 fieldsTelephone system
- general assessment:
- adequate system of cable, microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, radiotelephone communication stations, and a domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations
- domestic:
- a growing mobile-cellular network with multiple providers is making telephone service more widely available; subscribership reached 90 per 100 persons in 2009
- 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) (2009)
Broadcast media
- state owns and operates 2 TV stations and 2 radio broadcast stations;
- a few private radio and TV stations are operational;
- transmissions of at least 2 international broadcasters are accessible;
- satellite service subscriptions are available (2007)
Transportation
9 fieldsAirports by runway lengthpaved only
Airports by runway lengthunpaved only
Networkskm
Merchant marine
registered in other countries: 2 (Cambodia 1, Panama 1) (2010) country comparison to the world: 142
Military
Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police
6 fieldsMilitary service age and obligation
20 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2009)
Transnational Issues
2 fieldsDisputes - 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): 7,178 (Republic of Congo) (2007)
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Gabon.” The World Factbook 2011. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/gabon/2011.