Gabon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gabon is a sovereign state on the west coast of Central Africa.
Located 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 has an area of nearly 270,000 square kilometres (100,000 sq mi) and its population is estimated at 1.5 million people.
Its capital and largest city is Libreville.
Since its independence from France on August 17, 1960, Gabon has had three presidents.
In the early 1990s, Gabon introduced a multi-party system and a new democratic constitution that allowed for a more transparent electoral process and reformed many governmental institutions.
Gabon was also a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2010-2011 term.
Low population density, abundant petroleum, and foreign private investment(ambiguous) have helped make Gabon one of the most prosperous countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, with the highest HDI and the third highest GDP per capita (PPP) (after Equatorial Guinea and Botswana) in the region.
Gabonese Republic / République Gabonaise (French)
Motto: "Union, Travail, Justice" (French) "Union, Work, Justice"
Anthem: La Concorde / The Concord
Capital and largest city:
Libreville (0°23′N 9°27′E)
Official languages: French
Vernacular languages:
• Fang
• Myene
• Punu
• Nzebi
Ethnic groups: (2000)
• 28.6% Fang
• 10.2% Punu
• 8.9% Nzebi
• 6.7% French
• 4.1% Mpongwe
• 154,000 others
Demonym:
• Gabonese
• Gabonaise
Government:
• Presidential republic
• President:
• Prime Minister:
Legislature:
• Parliament
Upper house:
• Senate
Lower house:
• National Assembly
Independence from France:
• August 17, 1960
Area
• Total:
267,667 km2 (76th) - 103,347 sq mi
• Water (%):
3.76%
Population:
2009 estimate - 1,475,000 (150th)
Density:
5.5/km2 (216th) - 14.3/sq mi
GDP (PPP): 2014 estimate
• Total: $32.682 billion
• Per capita: $20,612
Currency: Central African CFA franc (XAF)
Time zone: WAT (UTC+1) Summer (DST) not observed (UTC+1) Drives on the right
Calling code: +241
ISO 3166 code: GA Internet TLD: .ga
France Under-20 World Cup winner Mario Lemina, who declined a place in Gabon's 2015 Africa Cup of Nations squad, has been replaced by Bonaventure Sokambi.
The 20-year-old midfielder played with Tunisian outfit CS Sfaxien during the 2012-2013 season, and will represent Gabon in the forthcoming Africa Cup of Nations.
draw for Confederation Cup held
preliminary round draw
Africa Cup of Nations contenders:
Equatorial Guinea (hosts), Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Congo, DR Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia and Zambia
Brahimi wins BBC African Footballer of the Year award 2014 - The 24-year-old midfielder becomes the first Algerian to win the award, which is decided by football fans.
Algeria - The Desert Foxes, who reached the second round of this year's World Cup, will face Senegal, Ghana and South Africa in Group C.
Last month CAF announced an initial list of 25 names for its main 2014 African Player of the Year award.
Voting for the BBC African Footballer of the Year 2014 closed at 18:00 GMT on Monday, 24 November.
Ivory Coast and Ghana reach finals
