Gabon

Full name of country: Gabonese Republic

Region: Africa

Official language: French

Population: 2,455,105 (2024 est.)

Nationality: Gabonese (singular and plural) (noun), Gabonese (adjective)

Land area: 257,667 sq km (99,486 sq miles)

Water area: 10,000 sq km (3,861 sq miles)

Capital: Libreville

National anthem: "La Concorde" (The Concorde), by Georges Aleka Damas

National holiday: Independence Day, August 17 (1960)

Population growth: 2.37% (2024 est.)

Time zone: UTC +1

Flag: The flag of Gabon depicts three equal horizontal color bars: one green (top), one gold (middle), and one blue (bottom). The gold bar represents the equator, while the blue and green represent the sea and forest, respectively.

Motto: "Union, Travail, Justice" (Union, Work, Justice)

Independence: August 17, 1960 (from France)

Government type: republic; multiparty presidential regime

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Legal system: mixed legal system of French civil law and customary law

Gabon is located along the equator in West Africa. The country's history is diverse, and involves empires, colonial merchants, slave trading, and oil wealth. Gabon's success during the global rise in oil prices of the 1970s made the country unique among its West African neighbors. The standard of living and the expectations of Gabon's multiethnic population are remnants of this period of great wealth. However, serious economic challenges continue to hinder Gabon's development. Gabon has worked with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank, and foreign governments to address its issues with widespread poverty and epidemic diseases. The country has also taken steps to improve its infrastructure.

Note: unless otherwise indicated, statistical data in this article is sourced from the CIA World Factbook, as cited in the bibliography

People and Culture

Population: The vast majority of Gabon's population hails from different Bantu tribes. Of these, the most prominent are the Fang, Shira-Punu/Vili, Mbede-Teke, Bapounou, Nzabi-Duma, Kota-Kele, and the Obamba tribes. According to 2012 estimates, 80.1 percent of the population is Gabonese-born regardless of ethnic/tribal status. There are sizable Cameroonian, Malian, Beninese, Togolese, Senegalese, and Congolese populations, as well as various others who have acquired Gabonese nationality.

Although French is the official national language, more than half of all Gabonese speak Fang. There are also significant pockets of Bapounou (Bapunu) speakers in the south and Bandgabi speakers in and around the town of Franceville. Myene and Nzebi are other notable languages.

It was estimated in (2019-21) that 29.8 percent of the population was Catholic, 46.4 percent (Revival Church 37%, other Protestant 9.4%) was Protestant, and 4 percent was some other Christian faith. About 10.8 percent of Gabonese are Muslim, and most of the remaining 9 percent population practices some form of traditional animism or no religion and other.

A little more than 85.5 percent of Gabonese adults are literate. According to 2021 estimates, 84.7 percent of women and 86.2 percent of men over the age of fifteen are able to read and write.

Important challenges facing the Gabonese population include the AIDS crisis and the prevalence of malaria, sleeping sickness, and tuberculosis. The infant mortality is 26.9 deaths for every 1,000 children born (2024 estimate). Life expectancy is 72.1 years for women and only 68.6 years for men (2024 estimates). Gabon's HDI value for 2022 is 0.693— which put the country in the Medium human development category—positioning it at 123 out of 193 countries and territories.

Indigenous People: Gabon's coastal plains and lush interior were probably first settled by pygmy peoples, ancestors of whom (often known as Bayaka or Bambenga, though various ethnic groups exist) survive in small pockets in Gabon's most inaccessible areas. During the eleventh century and after, however, neighboring Bantu tribes migrated into the region, displacing most of the pygmies.

At present, the descendants of the original tribes fall into ten large ethnic groups within Gabon, with the most dominant group being the Fang. Coming mostly from the north and east of present day Gabon, the Fang have stamped traditional Gabonese life with their own language and culture. Other major ethnic groups include the Mbédé (including the Téké and Mbété) and the Eshira, who come from the southeast and southwest respectively. The Myéné settled most of Gabon's coastal plain areas.

Education: Primary education is free in Gabon, but secondary schools are not. A number of private institutions provide secondary and postgraduate education for Gabonese, at varying fees and quality.

Thanks to the discovery of oil in Gabon in the 1970s, many Gabonese have become accustomed to a higher standard of living. The government has subsidized busing for students and travel to France for advanced degrees. Incomes among many of Gabon's upper and middle classes have been sufficient to pay for the rising costs of education.

However, international watch organizations claim that educational standards are dropping noticeably throughout the country, while educational costs continue to rise. Student riots broke out in the capital in 2004 after the announcement of further government cutbacks to schools and busing programs. Many blamed the disappointing educational system on government favoritism and corruption.

Health Care: Gabon's health care system started off promisingly with Dr. Albert Schweitzer's Nobel Prize-winning efforts to provide medical care to Gabon's native population. The health clinic that he began in a chicken coop in 1912 eventually grew into a sophisticated medical center. The nation has an established network of hospitals and clinics. Health expenditures comprise 2.8 percent of GDP (2019 estimate).

Gabon is in the midst of a health crisis stemming from the spread of HIV/AIDS. According to 2020 estimates, 3 percent of Gabon's adult population is infected with HIV/AIDS, the fourteenth highest adult prevalence rate in the world. Diseases such as malaria, bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, typhoid fever, dengue fever, and schistosomiasis are also rampant in the country.

Gabon's Health Ministry funds the International Center for Medical Research in Franceville (CIRMF), which studies the spread and treatment of malaria and sexually transmitted diseases. The Ministry has also set aggressive targets for reducing malaria infection rates. International health organizations continue to be concerned about the country's progress in fighting these diseases, however. Organizations within the country, and even officials within the government, claim that corruption is still channeling necessary funds away from health care goals. The nation launched a social health insurance system in 2008 and by 2013 had extended it to almost all citizens.

The rapid increase in AIDS cases and virulence of tuberculosis in the country are likely to make Gabon's population even more vulnerable to viruses and secondary infections. Large disparities in wealth make health care still inaccessible to some of the population, and malnutrition seems to be on the rise, suggesting even greater vulnerability to disease.

Food: In the city centers of Libreville, Lambaréné, Lastoursville, and Port-Gentil, restaurants serve a variety of Western foods. Indigenous food usually includes rice or manioc (cassava) paste served with the meat of indigenous animals like boa constrictors, antelope, porcupine, monkey, or wild boar. Sauces are typically thick and spicy.

Arts & Entertainment: In sub-Saharan Africa, Gabon is famous for high living, a thriving nightlife, and casinos. Urban centers stay open late and French champagne flows freely for those with enough money to afford it.

Little remains of traditional Bantu forms of entertainments in the urban areas where most of Gabon's population is concentrated, but the country is still famous for the Fang carved wood masks that now decorate Gabon's museums.

The oral tradition influences both music and literature in Gabon. Among the most popular modern musicians in Gabon is Pierre Akendengue, a blind singer and guitarist. A good deal of Gabonese literature is written in French; famous authors from Gabon include playwright Vincent-de-Paul Nyonda and novelist Angele Ntyugwetondo Rawiri.

Holidays: The Gabonese celebrate their hard won independence for three days every August. In addition, practicing Christians celebrate the major Christian holidays, like Easter and Christmas. The country's Muslim citizens celebrate Ramadan (a holy month of fasting between sunrise and sunset), Eid el-Fitr (the feast that ends Ramadan), and Tabaski, memorializing Abraham's sacrifice to the Old Testament God.

Environment and Geography

Topography: Bounded on three sides by Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and the Republic of the Congo, Gabon's lush, hilly interior gives way to a narrow coastal plain (30 to 200 kilometers or 18 to 125 miles wide) where the land meets the South Atlantic Ocean. Most of the country is part of the massive Ogooué (Ogowe) River basin.

The Ogooué River, at over 160 kilometers (100 miles) long, cuts across the center of Gabon from the mountainous inland to the ocean. The mountain peaks in Gabon's interior rise to a height of up to 1,574 meters (5,165 feet) on the top of Mount Iboundiki. A rocky escarpment, almost 100 kilometers (60 miles) wide, separates the mountains from the coastal plain. Where riverbeds cut through the escarpment, deep channels have formed in the land.

In the northern slip of Gabon's coastline, estuaries, bays, and deltas spread out into the Atlantic. However, where the Ogooué meets the Atlantic to the south, mangrove swamps and lagoons make navigation difficult. In the southern and eastern portions of the country, grass savannahs provide habitats for rare and endangered species.

Natural Resources: French colonizers first mined Gabon for its precious metals and minerals. The country still has supplies of diamond, niobium, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, and iron ore, as well as hydropower. The country's most valuable resources by far, however, have been the oil and natural gas reserves.

Plants & Animals: Gabon's oil money and relatively low population have helped preserve the country's tropical rainforests. With only one percent of the original forestland sacrificed to agriculture, Gabon's rainforests still cover about three-quarters of the country's area. The rainforests, wetlands, and savannahs are home to incredible variety of plant and animal species.

Gabon has a collection of rare hardwood trees: ebony, purple heart, mahogany, and oukoumé among them. Gabon has an equally impressive list of rare animals, including monkeys, baboons, lemurs, toucans, vipers, pythons, gorillas, hippopotamus, antelope, buffalo, crocodiles, and elephants to name only a few.

Climate: Gabon's location in West Africa along the equator gives the country its tropical climate. High temperatures range between 27° Celsius (81° Fahrenheit) and 31° Celsius (88° Fahrenheit) throughout the year.

The dry season lasts from May until September and is followed by another short dry season in December. Even during these seasons of reduced rainfall, the climate remains extremely hot and muggy. The frequent downpours during the rest of the year add up to rainfall amounts in excess of 250 centimeters (100 inches) in Libreville, and 380 centimeters (150 inches) further up the coast.

Economy

In 2023, Gabon's gross domestic product (GDP, purchasing power parity) was estimated at $48.201 billion. The per capita GDP was approximately $19,800.

Industry: The industrial sector accounted for about 52.9 percent of Gabon's GDP in 2023, primarily through petroleum extraction and refining. Though its dependence on other industries was alleviated by the discovery of oil reserves in the 1970s, the country still relies on the mining and export of manganese, gold mining, chemical production, ship repair, food and beverage production, textile manufacturing, cement production, and the timber industry. An estimated 12 percent of Gabon's workforce is employed in industry (2005 estimate).

Agriculture: Gabonese farms produce cocoa, coffee, rubber, sugar, and palm oil. Gabon also depends on cattle farms, a fishing industry, and a cash crop in the form of okoumé (a tropical wood).

Tourism: Gabon's vast expanses of unspoiled tropical wilderness make it a natural draw for ecotourists, but the country's infrastructure is too underdeveloped to support the tourist industry. Wildlife reserves and forested areas are difficult to access. In addition, tourist visas for Gabon are notoriously hard to get and expensive, particularly when applied for from outside Africa.

For those who do brave the paperwork and the pitted roads, Gabon's urban areas tend to be expensive. Libreville is one of the most expensive cities in the world. These problems, combined with outbreaks of malaria, AIDS, and other infectious diseases, have kept Gabon off of the standard lists of tourist destinations in Africa.

Government

In 1472, the Portuguese became the first of the European empires to arrive in the area that is now Gabon. By the sixteenth century, French, Dutch, and British merchants had made Gabon's coastal ports a regular stop for slave trading, ivory, and tropical timbers. Britain outlawed slavery in its colonies in 1843, and in 1849, a group of freed slaves from a Brazilian slave ship were resettled in Libreville (literally, "Freetown") in what was then the Congo to establish a new settlement.

With the establishment of Libreville, missionaries from all over Europe traveled to Gabon. In 1904, however, Congo moved its capital from Libreville to Brazzaville, paving the way for the French to annex Gabon to their territories in Equatorial Africa in 1910.

Although slavery was no longer considered acceptable by the European powers, the French unofficially forced Gabon's African inhabitants to work for the French corporations that controlled the country's economy. The Gabonese responded with a series of revolts, and finally succeeded in wresting their independence from the French in 1960. Unfortunately, the French had already depleted most of the country's accessible timber and mineral reserves. The establishment of processing plants for uranium and manganese, and the discovery of oil in the 1970s brought about an explosion in the Gabonese economy and continues to keep Gabon's government stable.

Gabon is a republic with a multiparty presidential regime. Administration is divided into nine provinces: Estuaire, Haut-Ogooue, Moyen-Ogooue, Ngounie, Nyanga, Ogooue-Ivindo, Ogooue-Lolo, Ogooue-Maritime, and Woleu-Ntem. The current constitution was adopted on March 14, 1991. Omar Bongo Ondimba, who in 1967 became the country's second president after independence, ruled for years in a near-authoritarian regime, but also won an election determined to be free and fair in 1998. His death in 2009 saw the beginning of a new political era in Gabon.

Gabon's president is elected by popular vote to seven-year terms; there are no term limits for the presidency. The president appoints the prime minister who, in consultation with the president, appoints a council of ministers. The legislature is bicameral. The senate has 102 members, indirectly elected by members of municipal councils and departmental assemblies to serve six-year terms. The National Assembly has 143 members, who are elected by popular majority vote to serve five-year terms.

In 2023, President Ali Bongo is deposed by a group of soldiers just after being declared the winner in the August presidential elections, a poll that the opposition argued was fraudulent.

Fun Facts

• During the oil boom of the 1970s, Gabon spent $1 billion USD to host the summit for the Organization of African Unity.
• Archeologists have found stone spearheads in Gabon that date back to 7000 BCE.
• The first Jesuit missionaries arrived in Gabon in 1482, with the first colonial trading posts.
• Gabon is known as a hotbed for African rap music.

Bibliography

"Human Development Insights." Human Development Reports, United Nations Development Programme, 13 Mar. 2024, hdr.undp.org/data-center/country-insights. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.

"Gabon." The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 15 Jan. 2025, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/gabon/. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.

"Gabon." BBC News, 1 Sep. 2023, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13376333. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.

"Gabon: Statistics." UNICEF, data.unicef.org/country/gab/. Accessed 19 Aug. 2022.