Compare Gabon (2008) - British Indian Ocean Territory (2004)

Compare Gabon (2008) z British Indian Ocean Territory (2004)

	Gabon (2008)	British Indian Ocean Territory (2004)

Administrative divisions	9 provinces; Estuaire, Haut-Ogooue, Moyen-Ogooue, Ngounie, Nyanga, Ogooue-Ivindo, Ogooue-Lolo, Ogooue-Maritime, Woleu-Ntem	-
Age structure	0-14 years: 42.1% (male 307,444/female 305,468) 15-64 years: 53.9% (male 391,194/female 393,103) 65 years and over: 4% (male 23,978/female 33,680) (2007 est.)	-
Agriculture - products	cocoa, coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber; cattle; okoume (a tropical softwood); fish	-
Airports	53 (2007)	1 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 10 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 43 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 23 (2007)	-
Area	total: 267,667 sq km land: 257,667 sq km water: 10,000 sq km	total: 60 sq km land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Colorado	about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	Only two autocratic presidents have ruled Gabon since independence from France in 1960. The current president of Gabon, El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba - one of the longest-serving heads of state in the world - has dominated the country's political scene for four decades. President BONGO introduced a nominal multiparty system and a new constitution in the early 1990s. However, allegations of electoral fraud during local elections in 2002-03 and the presidential elections in 2005 have exposed the weaknesses of formal political structures in Gabon. Gabon's political opposition remains weak, divided, and financially dependent on the current regime. Despite political conditions, a small population, abundant natural resources, and considerable foreign support have helped make Gabon one of the more prosperous and stable African countries.	Established as a territory of the UK in 1965, a number of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) islands were transferred to the Seychelles when it attained independence in 1976. Subsequently, BIOT has consisted only of the six main island groups comprising the Chagos Archipelago. The largest and most southerly of the islands, Diego Garcia, contains a joint UK-US naval support facility. All of the remaining islands are uninhabited. Former agricultural workers, earlier residents in the islands, were relocated primarily to Mauritius but also to the Seychelles, between 1967 and 1973. In 2000, a British High Court ruling invalidated the local immigration order that had excluded them from the archipelago, but upheld the special military status of Diego Garcia.
Birth rate	35.96 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-
Budget	revenues: $3.353 billion expenditures: $2.283 billion (2007 est.)	-
Capital	name: Libreville geographic coordinates: 0 23 N, 9 27 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	-
Climate	tropical; always hot, humid	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds
Coastline	885 km	698 km
Constitution	adopted 14 March 1991	-
Country name	conventional long form: Gabonese Republic conventional short form: Gabon local long form: Republique gabonaise local short form: Gabon	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT
Death rate	12.45 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-
Debt - external	$3.579 billion (31 December 2007 est.)	-
Dependency status	-	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Eunice S. REDDICK embassy: Boulevard du Bord de Mer, Libreville mailing address: Centre Ville, B. P. 4000, Libreville telephone: [241] 76 20 03 through 76 20 04, after hours - 74 34 92 FAX: [241] 74 55 07	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Carlos BOUNGOU chancery: Suite 200, 2034 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 797-1000 FAX: [1] (202) 332-0668 consulate(s): New York	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Disputes - international	UN urges Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane Island and lesser islands and to establish a maritime boundary in hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay	Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but in 2001 were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation since eviction in 1965; the UK resists the Chagossians' demand for an immediate return to the islands; repatriation is complicated by the exclusive US military lease of Diego Garcia that restricted access to the largest island in the chain
Economic aid - recipient	$53.87 million (2005)	-
Economy - overview	Gabon enjoys a per capita income four times that of most of sub-Saharan African nations. but because of high income inequality, a large proportion of the population remains poor. Gabon depended on timber and manganese until oil was discovered offshore in the early 1970s. The oil sector now accounts for 50% of GDP. Gabon continues to face fluctuating prices for its oil, timber, and manganese exports. Despite the abundance of natural wealth, poor fiscal management hobbles the economy. The devaluation of the CFA franc - its currency - by 50% in January 1994 sparked a one-time inflationary surge, to 35%; the rate dropped to 6% in 1996. The IMF provided a one-year standby arrangement in 1994-95, a three-year Enhanced Financing Facility (EFF) at near commercial rates beginning in late 1995, and stand-by credit of $119 million in October 2000. Those agreements mandated progress in privatization and fiscal discipline. France provided additional financial support in January 1997 after Gabon met IMF targets for mid-1996. In 1997, an IMF mission to Gabon criticized the government for overspending on off-budget items, overborrowing from the central bank, and slipping on its schedule for privatization and administrative reform. The rebound of oil prices since 1999 have helped growth, but drops in production have hampered Gabon from fully realizing potential gains, and will continue to temper the gains for most of this decade. In December 2000, Gabon signed a new agreement with the Paris Club to reschedule its official debt. A follow-up bilateral repayment agreement with the US was signed in December 2001. Gabon signed a 14-month Stand-By Arrangement with the IMF in May 2004, and received Paris Club debt rescheduling later that year. Short-term progress depends on an upbeat world economy and fiscal and other adjustments in line with IMF policies.	All economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of Diego Garcia, where joint UK-US defense facilities are located. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the UK, Mauritius, the Philippines, and the US. There are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. When the Ilois return, they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing.
Electricity - consumption	1.241 billion kWh (2005)	NA kWh
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	-
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	-
Electricity - production	1.52 billion kWh (2005)	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Iboundji 1,575 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m
Environment - current issues	deforestation; poaching	NA
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	-
Ethnic groups	Bantu tribes, including four major tribal groupings (Fang, Bapounou, Nzebi, Obamba); other Africans and Europeans, 154,000, including 10,700 French and 11,000 persons of dual nationality	-
Exchange rates	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 481.83 (2007), 522.89 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003)	-
Executive branch	chief of state: President El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba (since 2 December 1967) head of government: Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe NDONG (since 20 January 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (no term limits); election last held 27 November 2005 (next to be held in 2012); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba reelected; percent of vote - El Hadj Omar BONGO Ondimba 79.2%, Pierre MAMBOUNDOU 13.6%, Zacharie MYBOTO 6.6%	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Commissioner Tony CROMBIE (since January 2004); Administrator Charles A. HAMILTON (since 2002); note - both reside in the UK cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch
Exports	228,000 bbl/day (2004)	-
Exports - commodities	crude oil 77%, timber, manganese, uranium (2001)	-
Exports - partners	US 27.6%, China 15.9%, France 7.8%, Trinidad and Tobago 5.4%, Thailand 4.3% (2006)	-
Fiscal year	calendar year	-
Flag description	three equal horizontal bands of green (top), yellow, and blue	white with six blue wavy horizontal stripes; the flag of the UK is in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the striped section bears a palm tree and yellow crown centered on the outer half of the flag
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 5.8% industry: 58.8% services: 35.5% (2007 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	4.5% (2007 est.)	-
Geographic coordinates	1 00 S, 11 45 E	6 00 S, 71 30 E
Geography - note	a small population and oil and mineral reserves have helped Gabon become one of Africa's wealthier countries; in general, these circumstances have allowed the country to maintain and conserve its pristine rain forest and rich biodiversity	archipelago of 2,300 islands; Diego Garcia, largest and southernmost island, occupies strategic location in central Indian Ocean; island is site of joint US-UK military facility
Highways	-	total: NA km paved: short section of paved road between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	-
Imports	2,436 bbl/day (2004)	-
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, construction materials	-
Imports - partners	France 35.4%, US 7.6%, Netherlands 5.5%, Cameroon 4.5%, Belgium 4.3% (2006)	-
Independence	17 August 1960 (from France)	-
Industrial production growth rate	5% (2007 est.)	-
Industries	petroleum extraction and refining; manganese, gold; chemicals, ship repair, food and beverages, textiles, lumbering and plywood, cement	-
Infant mortality rate	total: 53.65 deaths/1,000 live births male: 62.53 deaths/1,000 live births female: 44.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	-
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	5% (2007 est.)	-
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, 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 (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	-
Irrigated land	70 sq km (2003)	0 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Cour Supreme consisting of three chambers - Judicial, Administrative, and Accounts; Constitutional Court; Courts of Appeal; Court of State Security; County Courts	-
Labor force	582,000 (2007 est.)	-
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 60% industry: 15% services: 25%	-
Land boundaries	total: 2,551 km border countries: Cameroon 298 km, Republic of the Congo 1,903 km, Equatorial Guinea 350 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 1.21% permanent crops: 0.64% other: 98.15% (2005)	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001)
Languages	French (official), Fang, Myene, Nzebi, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi	-
Legal system	based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply
Legislative branch	bicameral legislature consists of the Senate (91 seats; members elected by members of municipal councils and departmental assemblies to serve six-year terms) and the National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (120 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 26 January and 9 February 2003 (next to be held by January 2009); National Assembly - last held 17 and 24 December 2006 (next to be held in December 2011) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDG 53, RNB 20, PGP 4, ADERE 3, RDP 1, CLR 1, independents 9; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDG 82, RPG 8, UPG 8, UGDD 4, ADERE 3, CLR 2, PGP-Ndaot 2, PSD 2, independents 4, others 5	-
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 53.99 years male: 52.85 years female: 55.17 years (2007 est.)	-
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 63.2% male: 73.7% female: 53.3% (1995 est.)	-
Location	Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea	archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia
Map references	Africa	Political Map of the World
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	registered in other countries: 2 (Cambodia 1, Panama 1) (2007)	-
Military - note	-	defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	3.4% (2005 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 17 August (1960)	-
Nationality	noun: Gabonese (singular and plural) adjective: Gabonese	-
Natural hazards	NA	NA
Natural resources	petroleum, natural gas, diamond, niobium, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron ore, hydropower	coconuts, fish, sugarcane
Net migration rate	-3.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	-
Pipelines	gas 384 km; oil 1,427 km (2007)	-
Political parties and leaders	Circle of Liberal Reformers or CLR [General Jean Boniface ASSELE]; Congress for Democracy and Justice or CDJ [Jules Aristide Bourdes OGOULIGUENDE]; Democratic and Republican Alliance or ADERE [Divungui-di-Ndinge DIDJOB]; Gabonese Democratic Party or PDG (former sole party) [Simplice Nguedet MANZELA]; Gabonese Party for Progress or PGP [Benoit Mouity NZAMBA]; Gabonese Union for Democracy and Development or UGDD [Zacherie MYBOTO]; National Rally of Woodcutters or RNB; National Rally of Woodcutters-Rally for Gabon or RNB-RPG (Bucherons) [Fr. Paul M'BA-ABESSOLE]; Party of Development and Social Solidarity or PDS [Seraphin Ndoat REMBOGO]; People's Unity Party or PUP [Louis Gaston MAYILA]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Pierre Claver MAGANGA-MOUSSAVOU]; Union for Democracy and Social Integration or UDIS; Union of Gabonese Patriots or UPG [Pierre MAMBOUNDOU]	-
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	-
Population	1,454,867 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)	no indigenous inhabitants note: approximately 1,200 former agricultural workers resident in the Chagos Archipelago, often referred to as Chagossians or Ilois, were relocated to Mauritius and the Seychelles in the 1960s and 1970s, in November 2000 they were granted the right of return by a British High Court ruling, though no timetable has been set; in 2001, there were approximately 1,500 UK and US military personnel and 2,000 civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	-
Population growth rate	2.036% (2007 est.)	-
Ports and harbors	-	Diego Garcia
Radio broadcast stations	AM 6, FM 7 (plus 11 repeaters), shortwave 4 (2001)	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Railways	total: 814 km standard gauge: 814 km 1.435-m gauge (2006)	-
Religions	Christian 55%-75%, animist, Muslim less than 1%	-
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.006 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.995 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.712 male(s)/female total population: 0.987 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	-
Suffrage	21 years of age; universal	-
Telephone system	general assessment: adequate service by African standards and improving with the help of a growing mobile cell network system with three providers; mobile-cellular subscribership exceeded 50 per 100 persons in 2006 domestic: adequate system of cable, microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, radiotelephone communication stations, and a domestic satellite system with 12 earth stations international: country code - 241; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: separate facilities for military and public needs are available domestic: all commercial telephone services are available, including connection to the Internet international: international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use	36,500 (2006)	NA
Telephones - mobile cellular	764,700 (2006)	-
Television broadcast stations	4 (plus 4 repeaters) (2001)	1 (1997)
Terrain	narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east and south	flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation)
Total fertility rate	4.71 children born/woman (2007 est.)	-
Unemployment rate	21% (2006 est.)	-
Waterways	1,600 km (310 km on Ogooue River) (2007)	-

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