Gabon

Informations

Gabon (; French pronunciation: ​[ɡabɔ̃]), formally the Gabonese Republic (French: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Situated on the equator, Gabon is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo on the east and south, and the Gulf of Guinea to the west. It's an area of almost 270,000 square kilometres (100,000 sq mi) and its population is estimated at 2.1 million people. Its capital and largest city is Libreville. The official language is French. Since its independence from France in 1960, the autonomous state of Gabon has had three presidents. From the early 1990s, Gabon introduced a multi-party system and a new democratic constitution which allowed for a more transparent electoral process and reformed many political institutions. Abundant oil and foreign private investment have helped make Gabon one of the most prosperous countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, together with the 7th greatest HDI and the fourth highest GDP per capita (PPP) (later Mauritius, Equatorial Guinea and Seychelles) in the region. GDP grew by more than 6 percent per year from 2010 to 2012. But because of inequality in income distribution, a significant proportion of the population remains poor.