Gabon Facts, Map, Population, GDP

Capital

Libreville

Population

2,513,738 (2025 est.)

Area

267,667 sq km

Location

Central Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea

🧭 Background

Gabon, a sparsely populated country known for its dense rainforests and vast petroleum reserves, is one of the most prosperous and stable countries in central Africa. Approximately 40 ethnic groups are represented, the largest of which is the Fang, a group that covers the northern third of Gabon and expands north into Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon. From about the early 1300s, various kingdoms emerged in present-day Gabon and the surrounding area, including the Kingdoms of Loango and Orungu. Because most early Bantu languages spoken in these kingdoms did not have a written form, much of Gabon's early history was lost over time. Portuguese traders who arrived in the mid-1400s gave the area its name of Gabon. At that time, indigenous trade networks began to engage with European traders, exchanging goods such as ivory and wood. For a century beginning in the 1760s, trade came to focus mostly on enslaved people. While many groups in Gabon participated in the slave trade, the Fang were a notable exception. As the slave trade declined in the late 1800s, France colonized the country and directed a widespread extraction of Gabonese resources. Anti-colonial rhetoric by Gabon’s educated elites increased significantly in the early 1900s, but no widespread rebellion materialized. French decolonization after World War II led to the country’s independence in 1960. Within a year of independence, the government changed from a parliamentary to a presidential system, and Leon M’BA won the first presidential election in 1961. El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba was M’BA’s vice president and assumed the presidency after M’BA’s death in 1967. BONGO went on to dominate the country's political scene for four decades (1967-2009). In 1968, he declared Gabon a single-party state and created the still-dominant Parti Democratique Gabonais (PDG). In the early 1990s, he reintroduced a multiparty system under a new constitution in response to growing political opposition. He was reelected by wide margins in 1995, 1998, 2002, and 2005 against a divided opposition and amidst allegations of fraud. After BONGO's death in 2009, a new election brought his son, Ali BONGO Ondimba, to power, and he was reelected in 2016. He won a third term in the August 2023 election but was overthrown in a military coup a few days later. Gen. Brice OLIGUI Nguema led a military group called the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions that arrested BONGO, canceled the election results, and dissolved state institutions. In September 2023, OLIGUI was sworn in as transitional president of Gabon.

🗺️ Geography

Location

Central Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea

Geographic coordinates

1 00 S, 11 45 E

Map references

Africa

Area — total

267,667 sq km

Area — land

257,667 sq km

Area — water

10,000 sq km

Area - comparative

Slightly smaller than Colorado

Land boundaries — total

3,261 km

Land boundaries — border countries

Cameroon 349 km; Republic of the Congo 2,567 km; Equatorial Guinea 345 km

Coastline

885 km

Maritime claims — territorial sea

12 nm

Maritime claims — contiguous zone

24 nm

Maritime claims — exclusive economic zone

200 nm

Climate

Tropical; always hot, humid

Terrain

Narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east and south

Elevation — highest point

Mont Bengoue 1,050 m

Elevation — lowest point

Atlantic Ocean 0 m

Elevation — mean elevation

377 m

Natural resources

Petroleum, natural gas, diamond, niobium, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron ore, hydropower

Land use — agricultural land

8.4% (2023 est.)

Land use — agricultural land: arable land

Arable land: 1.3% (2023 est.)

Land use — agricultural land: permanent crops

Permanent crops: 0.7% (2023 est.)

Land use — agricultural land: permanent pasture

Permanent pasture: 6.4% (2023 est.)

Land use — forest

91.5% (2023 est.)

Land use — other

0.2% (2023 est.)

Irrigated land

40 sq km (2012)

Major watersheds (area sq km) — Atlantic Ocean drainage

Congo (3,730,881 sq km)

Major aquifers

Congo Basin

Population distribution

The relatively small population is spread in pockets throughout the country; the largest urban center is the capital of Libreville, located along the Atlantic coast in the northwest, as shown in this population distribution map

Natural hazards

None

Geography - note

The country has maintained its pristine rain forest and rich biodiversity

👥 People and Society⬆️ Top

Population — total

2,513,738 (2025 est.)

Population — male

1,299,085

Population — female

1,214,653

Nationality — noun

Gabonese (singular and plural)

Nationality — adjective

Gabonese

Ethnic groups

Fang 23.5%, Shira-Punu'Vii 20.6%, Nzabi-Duma 11.2%, Mbede-Teke 5.6%, Myene 4.4%, Kota-Kele 4.3%, Okande-Tsogho 1.6%, other 12.6%, foreigner 16.2% (2021 est.)

Languages

French (official), Fang, Myene, Nzebi, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi

Religions

Protestant 46.4% (Revival Church 37%, other Protestant 9.4%), Roman Catholic 29.8%, other Christian 4%, Muslim 10.8%, traditional/animist 1.1%, other 0.9%, none 7% (2019-21 est.)

Age structure — 0-14 years

34.6% (male 429,133/female 421,120)

Age structure — 15-64 years

61.1% (male 787,480/female 711,913)

Age structure — 65 years and over

4.3% (2024 est.) (male 53,410/female 52,049)

Dependency ratios — total dependency ratio

63 (2025 est.)

Dependency ratios — youth dependency ratio

55.8 (2025 est.)

Dependency ratios — elderly dependency ratio

7.2 (2025 est.)

Dependency ratios — potential support ratio

13.9 (2025 est.)

Median age — total

22.3 years (2025 est.)

Median age — male

22.5 years

Median age — female

21.5 years

Population growth rate

2.35% (2025 est.)

Birth rate

25.51 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

Death rate

5.44 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

Net migration rate

3.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

Population distribution

The relatively small population is spread in pockets throughout the country; the largest urban center is the capital of Libreville, located along the Atlantic coast in the northwest, as shown in this population distribution map

Urbanization — urban population

91% of total population (2023)

Urbanization — rate of urbanization

2.27% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas - population

870,000 LIBREVILLE (capital) (2023)

Sex ratio — at birth

1.03 male(s)/female

Sex ratio — 0-14 years

1.02 male(s)/female

Sex ratio — 15-64 years

1.11 male(s)/female

Sex ratio — 65 years and over

1.03 male(s)/female

Sex ratio — total population

1.07 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth

19.6 years (2012 est.)

Maternal mortality ratio

233 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

Infant mortality rate — total

26 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)

Infant mortality rate — male

29.7 deaths/1,000 live births

Infant mortality rate — female

24 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth — total population

70.4 years (2024 est.)

Life expectancy at birth — male

68.6 years

Life expectancy at birth — female

72.1 years

Total fertility rate

3.16 children born/woman (2025 est.)

Gross reproduction rate

1.56 (2025 est.)

Drinking water source — improved: urban

Urban: 90.2% of population (2022 est.)

Drinking water source — improved: rural

Rural: 54.9% of population (2022 est.)

Drinking water source — improved: total

Total: 86.9% of population (2022 est.)

Drinking water source — unimproved: urban

Urban: 9.8% of population (2022 est.)

Drinking water source — unimproved: rural

Rural: 45.1% of population (2022 est.)

Drinking water source — unimproved: total

Total: 13.1% of population (2022 est.)

Health expenditure — Health expenditure (as % of GDP)

2.7% of GDP (2021)

Health expenditure — Health expenditure (as % of national budget)

9.6% of national budget (2022 est.)

Physician density

0.52 physicians/1,000 population (2022)

Sanitation facility access — improved: urban

Urban: 81.3% of population (2022 est.)

Sanitation facility access — improved: rural

Rural: 55.1% of population (2022 est.)

Sanitation facility access — improved: total

Total: 78.9% of population (2022 est.)

Sanitation facility access — unimproved: urban

Urban: 18.7% of population (2022 est.)

Sanitation facility access — unimproved: rural

Rural: 44.9% of population (2022 est.)

Sanitation facility access — unimproved: total

Total: 21.1% of population (2022 est.)

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

15% (2016)

Alcohol consumption per capita — total

6.47 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Alcohol consumption per capita — beer

5.31 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Alcohol consumption per capita — wine

0.62 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Alcohol consumption per capita — spirits

0.5 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Alcohol consumption per capita — other alcohols

0.04 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

5.4% (2020 est.)

Currently married women (ages 15-49)

48.5% (2020 est.)

Child marriage — women married by age 15

2.9% (2021)

Child marriage — women married by age 18

13.3% (2021)

Child marriage — men married by age 18

4.8% (2021)

Education expenditure — Education expenditure (% GDP)

2.3% of GDP (2023 est.)

Education expenditure — Education expenditure (% national budget)

13.6% national budget (2023 est.)

Literacy — total population

88.9% (2021 est.)

Literacy — male

90.8% (2021 est.)

Literacy — female

87.1% (2021 est.)

🌿 Environment⬆️ Top

Environmental issues

Deforestation from logging; solid-waste disposal; water pollution from oil industry; wildlife poaching

International environmental agreements — party to

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands, Whaling

International environmental agreements — signed, but not ratified

None of the selected agreements

Climate

Tropical; always hot, humid

Land use — agricultural land

8.4% (2023 est.)

Land use — agricultural land: arable land

Arable land: 1.3% (2023 est.)

Land use — agricultural land: permanent crops

Permanent crops: 0.7% (2023 est.)

Land use — agricultural land: permanent pasture

Permanent pasture: 6.4% (2023 est.)

Land use — forest

91.5% (2023 est.)

Land use — other

0.2% (2023 est.)

Urbanization — urban population

91% of total population (2023)

Urbanization — rate of urbanization

2.27% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions — total emissions

3.144 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions — from coal and metallurgical coke

230,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions — from petroleum and other liquids

2.005 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions — from consumed natural gas

908,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)

Particulate matter emissions

29.6 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

Methane emissions — energy

272.4 kt (2022-2024 est.)

Methane emissions — agriculture

4.9 kt (2019-2021 est.)

Methane emissions — waste

18.6 kt (2019-2021 est.)

Methane emissions — other

5.4 kt (2019-2021 est.)

Waste and recycling — municipal solid waste generated annually

238,100 tons (2024 est.)

Waste and recycling — percent of municipal solid waste recycled

22.4% (2022 est.)

Total water withdrawal — municipal

84.7 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

Total water withdrawal — industrial

14.1 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

Total water withdrawal — agricultural

40.3 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

Total renewable water resources

166 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)

🏛️ Government⬆️ Top

Country name — conventional long form

Gabonese Republic

Country name — conventional short form

Gabon

Country name — local long form

République Gabonaise

Country name — local short form

Gabon

Country name — etymology

Name originates from the Portuguese word gabão, meaning "cloak," possibly used by early explorers to describe the shape of the Komo River estuary

Government type

Presidential republic

Capital — name

Libreville

Capital — geographic coordinates

0 23 N, 9 27 E

Capital — time difference

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Capital — etymology

The city was founded in 1849 by freed slaves, and the name means "free town" in French

Administrative divisions

9 provinces; Estuaire, Haut-Ogooue, Moyen-Ogooue, Ngounie, Nyanga, Ogooue-Ivindo, Ogooue-Lolo, Ogooue-Maritime, Woleu-Ntem

Legal system

Mixed system of French civil law and customary law

Constitution — history

Previous 1961, 1991; latest approved in November 2024 referendum

Constitution — amendment process

Proposed by the president of the republic, by the Council of Ministers, or by one third of either house of Parliament; passage requires Constitutional Court evaluation, at least two-thirds majority vote of two thirds of the Parliament membership convened in joint session, and approval in a referendum; constitutional articles on Gabon’s democratic form of government cannot be amended

International law organization participation

Has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship — citizenship by birth

No

Citizenship — citizenship by descent only

At least one parent must be a citizen of Gabon

Citizenship — dual citizenship recognized

No

Citizenship — residency requirement for naturalization

10 years

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch — chief of state

President Brice OLIGUI Nguema (since 3 May 2025)

Executive branch — head of government

President Brice OLIGUI Nguema (since 3 May 2025)

Executive branch — cabinet

Cabinet appointed by president

Executive branch — election/appointment process

The president directly elected by plurality vote to a 7-year term (no term limits)

Executive branch — most recent election date

12 April 2025

Executive branch — election results

2025: Brice OLIGUI Nguema elected president; percent of vote - Brice OLIGUI Nguema (Ind.) 90.35%, Alain Claude Bilie By Nze (EPG) 3.02%, other 6.63% 2016: Ali BONGO Ondimba reelected president; percent of vote - Ali BONGO Ondimba (PDG) 49.8%, Jean PING (UFC) 48.2%, other 2.0%

Legislative branch — legislature name

Parliament

Legislative branch — legislative structure

Bicameral

Legislative branch - lower chamber — chamber name

National Assembly (Assemblée nationale)

Legislative branch - lower chamber — number of seats

145 (all directly elected)

Legislative branch - lower chamber — electoral system

Plurality/majority

Legislative branch - lower chamber — scope of elections

Full renewal

Legislative branch - lower chamber — term in office

5 years

Legislative branch - lower chamber — most recent election date

10/6/2023

Legislative branch - lower chamber — percentage of women in chamber

21.6%

Legislative branch - lower chamber — expected date of next election

November 2030

Legislative branch - upper chamber — chamber name

Senate (Senate)

Legislative branch - upper chamber — number of seats

70 (all indirectly elected)

Legislative branch - upper chamber — scope of elections

Full renewal

Legislative branch - upper chamber — term in office

5 years

Legislative branch - upper chamber — most recent election date

9/27/2025 to 10/11/2025

Legislative branch - upper chamber — percentage of women in chamber

20.3%

Legislative branch - upper chamber — expected date of next election

November 2025

Judicial branch — highest court(s)

Supreme Court (consists of 4 permanent specialized supreme courts - Supreme Court or Cour de Cassation, Administrative Supreme Court or Conseil d'Etat, Accounting Supreme Court or Cour des Comptes, Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle, and the non-permanent Court of State Security, initiated only for cases of high treason by the president and criminal activity by executive branch officials)

Judicial branch — judge selection and term of office

Appointment and tenure of Supreme, Administrative, Accounting, and State Security courts NA; Constitutional Court judges appointed - 3 by the national president, 3 by the president of the Senate, and 3 by the president of the National Assembly; judges serve single renewable 7-year terms

Judicial branch — subordinate courts

Courts of Appeal; county courts; military courts

Political parties

Gabonese Democratic Party or PDG Restoration of Republican Values or RV The Democrats or LD

Diplomatic representation in the US — chief of mission

Ambassador Noël Nelson MESSONE (12 December 2022)

Diplomatic representation in the US — chancery

2034 20th Street NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20009

Diplomatic representation in the US — telephone

[1] (202) 797-1000

Diplomatic representation in the US — FAX

[1] (301) 332-0668

Diplomatic representation in the US — email address and website

Info@gaboneembassyusa.org https://gabonembassyusa.org/en/

Diplomatic representation in the US — consulate(s) general

New York

Diplomatic representation from the US — chief of mission

Ambassador Vernelle Trim FITZPATRICK (since 26 January 2024); note - also accredited to Sao Tome and Principe

Diplomatic representation from the US — embassy

Sabliere, B.P. 4000, Libreville

Diplomatic representation from the US — mailing address

2270 Libreville Place, Washington, DC 20521-2270

Diplomatic representation from the US — telephone

[241] 011-45-71-00

Diplomatic representation from the US — FAX

[241] 011-45-71-05

Diplomatic representation from the US — email address and website

ACSLibreville@state.gov https://ga.usembassy.gov/

International organization participation

ACP, AfDB, AU (suspended), BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSCA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Independence

17 August 1960 (from France)

National holiday

Independence Day, 17 August (1960)

Flag

Description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and blue meaning: green stands for the country's forests and natural resources, gold for the equator and the sun, and blue for the sea

National symbol(s)

Black panther

National color(s)

Green, yellow, blue

National coat of arms

The panthers represent vigilance and courage, and they support a shield with a ship and an okoume tree, which is a symbol of the timber trade; the ribbon below the shield has the national motto in French, Union, Travail, Justice ("Union, Work, Justice"), and the ribbon above the shield has the Latin phrase Uniti Progrediemur ("We shall go forward united")

National anthem(s) — title

"La Concorde" (The Concorde)

National anthem(s) — lyrics/music

Georges Aleka DAMAS

National anthem(s) — history

Adopted 1960

National heritage — total World Heritage Sites

2 (1 natural, 1 mixed)

National heritage — selected World Heritage Site locales

Ecosystem and Relict Cultural Landscape of Lopé-Okanda (m); Ivindo National Park (n)

💹 Economy⬆️ Top

Economic overview

Natural-resource-rich, upper-middle-income, Central African economy; significant reliance on oil and mineral exports; highly urbanized population; high levels of poverty and unemployment; uncertainty on institutional and development reform progress following 2023 military coup

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) — Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2024

$48.045 billion (2024 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) — Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2023

$46.472 billion (2023 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) — Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2022

$45.363 billion (2022 est.)

Real GDP growth rate — Real GDP growth rate 2024

3.4% (2024 est.)

Real GDP growth rate — Real GDP growth rate 2023

2.4% (2023 est.)

Real GDP growth rate — Real GDP growth rate 2022

3% (2022 est.)

Real GDP per capita — Real GDP per capita 2024

$18,900 (2024 est.)

Real GDP per capita — Real GDP per capita 2023

$18,700 (2023 est.)

Real GDP per capita — Real GDP per capita 2022

$18,700 (2022 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate)

$20.867 billion (2024 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) — Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2024

1.2% (2024 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) — Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2023

3.6% (2023 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) — Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2022

4.2% (2022 est.)

GDP - composition, by sector of origin — agriculture

6.2% (2024 est.)

GDP - composition, by sector of origin — industry

50.9% (2024 est.)

GDP - composition, by sector of origin — services

37.5% (2024 est.)

GDP - composition, by end use — household consumption

33.7% (2024 est.)

GDP - composition, by end use — government consumption

12.2% (2024 est.)

GDP - composition, by end use — investment in fixed capital

18.1% (2024 est.)

GDP - composition, by end use — investment in inventories

0% (2024 est.)

GDP - composition, by end use — exports of goods and services

65.3% (2024 est.)

GDP - composition, by end use — imports of goods and services

-29.2% (2024 est.)

Agricultural products

Oil palm fruit, plantains, cassava, sugarcane, yams, taro, vegetables, maize, groundnuts, game meat (2023)

Industries

Petroleum extraction and refining; manganese, gold; chemicals, ship repair, food and beverages, textiles, lumbering and plywood, cement

Industrial production growth rate

2.8% (2024 est.)

Labor force

824,400 (2024 est.)

Unemployment rate — Unemployment rate 2024

20.1% (2024 est.)

Unemployment rate — Unemployment rate 2023

20.3% (2023 est.)

Unemployment rate — Unemployment rate 2022

20.4% (2022 est.)

Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24) — total

36% (2024 est.)

Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24) — male

31.1% (2024 est.)

Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24) — female

42.3% (2024 est.)

Population below poverty line

33.4% (2017 est.)

Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income — Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income 2017

38 (2017 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share — lowest 10%

2.2% (2017 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share — highest 10%

27.7% (2017 est.)

Remittances — Remittances 2023

0.1% of GDP (2023 est.)

Remittances — Remittances 2022

0.1% of GDP (2022 est.)

Remittances — Remittances 2021

0.1% of GDP (2021 est.)

Budget — revenues

$2.939 billion (2021 est.)

Budget — expenditures

$3.226 billion (2021 est.)

Public debt — Public debt 2016

64.2% of GDP (2016 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

9.5% (of GDP) (2021 est.)

Current account balance — Current account balance 2015

$140.996 million (2015 est.)

Current account balance — Current account balance 2014

$1.112 billion (2014 est.)

Current account balance — Current account balance 2013

$1.463 billion (2013 est.)

Exports — Exports 2024

$13.622 billion (2024 est.)

Exports — Exports 2023

$12.869 billion (2023 est.)

Exports — Exports 2022

$13.814 billion (2022 est.)

Exports - partners

China 26%, Indonesia 8%, Spain 7%, Israel 6%, Congo, Republic of the 5% (2023)

Exports - commodities

Crude petroleum, ships, manganese ore, refined petroleum, wood (2023)

Imports — Imports 2024

$6.094 billion (2024 est.)

Imports — Imports 2023

$5.38 billion (2023 est.)

Imports — Imports 2022

$5.005 billion (2022 est.)

Imports - partners

France 14%, China 13%, S. Korea 13%, USA 7%, India 4% (2023)

Imports - commodities

Ships, refined petroleum, iron pipes, cars, packaged medicine (2023)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold — Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 2023

$1.447 billion (2023 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold — Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 2022

$1.415 billion (2022 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold — Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 2021

$1.304 billion (2021 est.)

Debt - external — Debt - external 2023

$6.442 billion (2023 est.)

Exchange rates — Currency

Coopération Financière en Afrique Centrale francs (XAF) per US dollar -

Exchange rates — Exchange rates 2024

606.345 (2024 est.)

Exchange rates — Exchange rates 2023

606.57 (2023 est.)

Exchange rates — Exchange rates 2022

623.76 (2022 est.)

Exchange rates — Exchange rates 2021

554.531 (2021 est.)

Exchange rates — Exchange rates 2020

575.586 (2020 est.)

⚡ Energy⬆️ Top

Electricity access — electrification - total population

93.5% (2022 est.)

Electricity access — electrification - urban areas

98.5%

Electricity access — electrification - rural areas

29%

Electricity — installed generating capacity

785,000 kW (2023 est.)

Electricity — consumption

3.173 billion kWh (2023 est.)

Electricity — imports

584.039 million kWh (2023 est.)

Electricity — transmission/distribution losses

604 million kWh (2023 est.)

Electricity generation sources — fossil fuels

51.9% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)

Electricity generation sources — hydroelectricity

47.7% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)

Electricity generation sources — biomass and waste

0.3% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)

Coal — imports

75,000 metric tons (2023 est.)

Petroleum — total petroleum production

204,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

Petroleum — refined petroleum consumption

14,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

Petroleum — crude oil estimated reserves

2 billion barrels (2021 est.)

Natural gas — production

463 million cubic meters (2023 est.)

Natural gas — consumption

463 million cubic meters (2023 est.)

Natural gas — proven reserves

25.995 billion cubic meters (2021 est.)

Energy consumption per capita — Total energy consumption per capita 2023

22.101 million Btu/person (2023 est.)

📡 Communications⬆️ Top

Telephones - fixed lines — total subscriptions

67,100 (2024 est.)

Telephones - fixed lines — subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

3 (2024 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular — total subscriptions

3.18 million (2024 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular — subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

125 (2024 est.)

Broadcast media

2 state-run TV stations and 2 state-run radio stations; a few private radio and TV stations; transmissions of at least 2 international broadcasters are accessible; satellite service subscriptions are available

Internet country code

.ga

Internet users — percent of population

72% (2023 est.)

Broadband - fixed subscriptions — total

80,000 (2022 est.)

Broadband - fixed subscriptions — subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

3 (2022 est.)

🚚 Transportation⬆️ Top

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

TR

Airports

42 (2025)

Railways — total

649 km (2014)

Railways — standard gauge

649 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge

Merchant marine — total

87 (2023)

Merchant marine — by type

Bulk carrier 1, general cargo 19, oil tanker 30, other 37

Ports — total ports

9 (2024)

Ports — large

0

Ports — medium

2

Ports — small

2

Ports — very small

5

Ports — ports with oil terminals

7

Ports — key ports

Libreville, Oguendjo Terminal, Port Gentil, Port Owendo

🛡️ Military and Security⬆️ Top

Military and security forces

Gabonese Armed Forces (Force Armées Gabonaise or FAG; aka National Defense and Security Forces of Gabon or des Forces Nationales de Défense et de Sécurité (FNDS) du Gabon): Army, Navy, Air Force, Light Aviation, Fire Brigade; Gabon National Gendarmerie (GENA); Republican Guard (GR); Military Health Service; Military Engineering (2025)

Military expenditures — Military Expenditures 2024

1.5% of GDP (2024 est.)

Military expenditures — Military Expenditures 2023

1.3% of GDP (2023 est.)

Military expenditures — Military Expenditures 2022

1.3% of GDP (2022 est.)

Military expenditures — Military Expenditures 2021

1.7% of GDP (2021 est.)

Military expenditures — Military Expenditures 2020

1.8% of GDP (2020 est.)

Military and security service personnel strengths

Approximately 7,000 active-duty Armed Forces including the Republican Guard and Gendarmerie (2025)

Military equipment inventories and acquisitions

The Gabonese military has a mix of older and limited quantities of more modern armaments; suppliers include Brazil, China, France, Germany, Russia/former Soviet Union, South Africa, and Spain (2025)

Military service age and obligation

18-24 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2025)

Military - note

The Gabonese military is a small and lightly armed force that is responsible for both external and internal security; the military may also participate in the economic and social development work of the nation; key defense priorities include securing the country's borders and maritime domain; it has contributed to regional peacekeeping and joint security operations; in August 2023, officers from the Republican Guard seized control of the government and placed the president under arrest (2025)

🛰️ Space⬆️ Top

Space agency/agencies

Gabonese Studies and Space Observations Agency (Agence Gabonaise d’Etudes et d’Observations Spatiales or AGEOS; established 2015) (2025)

Space program overview

Has a small space program focused on using data from remote sensing (RS) satellites for environmental and natural-resource management, mapping, land-use planning, maritime surveillance, and research; member of the African Space Agency; has relationships with Brazil, China, the ESA, individual ESA member states (particularly France), and the US, as well as African countries such as Kenya, Niger, Rwanda, and South Africa; shares RS satellite data with neighboring countries (2025)

Key space-program milestones

1986 - ESA established a ground station in Gabon 2018 - completed mapping Gabon’s forests 2019 - founding member of the Space Climate Observatory 2021 - began acquisition process for first satellite in joint project with Japan, known as BIRDs 2025 - became member of new African Space Agency

🌐 Transnational Issues⬆️ Top

Refugees and internally displaced persons — refugees

261 (2024 est.)