Gabon

The Republic of Gabon is situated on the western shores of Central Africa. It is bordered by the Gulf of Guinea to the west, the Republic of Congo to the east and south, Cameroon to the north and Equatorial Guinea to the northwest. Located on the equator, Gabon covers a gross area of approximately 268,000 square kilometres, while its population is about 2.1 million.

Gabon’s capital city is Libreville, which is inhabited by around 700,000 residents. The republic’s currency is the CFA franc, a currency used by five other African nations. The country’s official language is French.

In addition to being an oil producer and net oil exporter, Gabon possesses abundant primary materials, and enjoys growing agriculture and tourism sectors. Other notable exports are timber, uranium and manganese.

Gabon’s current President is HE Ali Bongo Ondimba, who was elected in 2009.

Gabon became a full member of OPEC in 1975 but terminated its membership in 1995. It re-joined the Organization on 1 July 2016.

Did you know?

• Gabon’s oil industry started gaining attention in 1931 when several oil deposits were discovered in neighbouring regions of Libreville.
• In addition to the oil industry, Gabon’s location overlooking the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean has led to the emergence of another important economic sector – the fishing industry.

Below data covers 2021

• b/d (barrels per day)
• cu. m. (cubic metres)
• b/cd (barrels per calendar day)

Source: Annual Statistical Bulletin 2022