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Reference
Gabon Facts and Figures from Encarta
Basic Facts
Official name Gabonese Republic
Capital Libreville
Area 267,667 sq km
103,347 sq mi
Gabon
People
Population 1,321,560 (2003 estimate)
Population growth
Population growth rate 2.54 percent (2003 estimate)
Projected population in 2025 2,197,146 (2025 estimate)
Projected population in 2050 3,877,414 (2050 estimate)
Population density 4.9 persons per sq km (2003 estimate)
13 persons per sq mi (2003 estimate)
Urban/rural distribution
Share urban 82 percent (2001 estimate)
Share rural 18 percent (2001 estimate)
Largest cities, with population
Libreville 365,650 (1993 estimate)
Port-Gentil 125,000 (1993 estimate)
Masuku 75,000 (1988)
Ethnic groups
Fang 36 percent
Mpongwe 15 percent
M'Bete 14 percent
Punu 12 percent
Other 23 percent
Languages
French (official), Fang, other indigenous languages
Religious affiliations
Christian 90 percent
Roman Catholic 61 percent
Protestant 19 percent
Other Christian 10 percent
Muslim 5 percent
Indigenous beliefs 3 percent
Other 2 percent
Health and Education
Life expectancy
Total 57.1 years (2003 estimate)
Female 58.8 years (2003 estimate)
Male 55.5 years (2003 estimate)
Infant mortality rate 55 deaths per 1,000 live births (2003 estimate)
Population per physician 2,176 people (1996)
Population per hospital bed 313 people (1990)
Literacy rate
Total 70.8 percent (2000)
Female 62.2 percent (2000)
Male 79.8 percent (2000)
Education expenditure as a share of gross national product (GNP) 3.8 percent (1999-2000)
Number of years of compulsory schooling 11 years (2000)
Number of students per teacher, primary school 44 students per teacher (1998-1999)
Government
Form of government Multiparty republic
Voting qualifications Universal at age 21
Constitution Adopted 14 March 1991
Armed forces
Total number of military personnel 4,700 (2001)
Military expenditures as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) 2.4 percent (2001)
Economy
Gross domestic product (GDP, in U.S.$) $4.3 billion (2001)
GDP per capita (U.S.$) $3,440 (2001)
GDP by economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 7.6 percent (2001)
Industry 50.6 percent (2001)
Services 41.7 percent (2001)
Employment
Number of workers 572,653 (2001)
Workforce share of economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 52 percent (1990)
Industry 16 percent (1990)
Services 33 percent (1990)
Unemployment rate Not available
National budget (U.S.$)
Total revenue $1,300 million (1993 estimate)
Total expenditure $1,600 million (1993 estimate)
Monetary unit
1 Communaut* Financière Africaine (CFA) franc, consisting of 100 centimes
Major trade partners for exports
United States, France, China, Netherlands Antilles, and South Korea
Major trade partners for imports
France, United States, Belgium, Netherlands, and Japan
Energy, Communications, and Transportation
Electricity production
Electricity from thermal sources 34.46 percent (2001 estimate)
Electricity from hydroelectric sources 65.54 percent (2001 estimate)
Electricity from nuclear sources 0 percent (2001 estimate)
Electricity from geothermal, solar, and wind sources 0 percent (2001 estimate)
Number of radios per 1,000 people 489 (1999 estimate)
Number of telephones per 1,000 people 30 (2001)
Number of televisions per 1,000 people 321 (2000 estimate)
Number of Internet hosts per 10,000 people 0.55 (2001)
Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people 30 (1996)
Number of motor vehicles per 1,000 people 36 (1997)
Paved road as a share of total roads 10 percent (2000)
Sources
Basic Facts and People sections
Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org).
Health and Education section
Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org).
Government section
Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data is from Military Balance.
Economy section
Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the latest Europa World Yearbook and various International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications.
Energy, Communication, and Transportation section
Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org).
Note
Figures may not total 100 percent due to rounding.