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Economy - overview:
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Gabon enjoys a
per capita income four times that of most of sub-Saharan African
nations. This has supported a sharp decline in extreme poverty;
yet 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. Devaluation of 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 mandate progress in privatization and fiscal
discipline. France provided additional financial support in
January 1997 after Gabon had 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 in 1999-2000
helped growth, but drops in production hampered Gabon from fully
realizing potential gains. 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. |
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GDP:
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purchasing power
parity - $7.966 billion (2004 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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1.9% (2004 est.)
|
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power
parity - $5,900 (2004 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture:
7.4%
industry: 46.7%
services: 45.9% (2004 est.) |
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Investment (gross fixed):
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21.8% of GDP
(2004 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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NA |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%:
NA
highest 10%: NA |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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1.5% (2004 est.)
|
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Labor force:
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650,000 (2004
est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture 60%,
industry 15%, services 25% |
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Unemployment rate:
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21% (1997 est.)
|
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Budget:
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revenues:
$2.129 billion
expenditures: $1.64 billion, including capital
expenditures of $310 million (2004 est.) |
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Public debt:
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29.3% of GDP
(2004 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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cocoa, coffee,
sugar, palm oil, rubber; cattle; okoume (a tropical softwood);
fish |
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Industries:
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petroleum
extraction and refining; manganese, and gold mining; chemicals;
ship repair; food and beverage; textile; lumbering and plywood;
cement |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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1.6% (2002 est.)
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Electricity - production:
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1.161 billion kWh
(2002) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel:
34.5%
hydro: 65.5%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
|
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Electricity - consumption:
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1.08 billion kWh
(2002) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh (2002)
|
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Electricity - imports:
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0 kWh (2002)
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Oil - production:
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264,900 bbl/day
(2004 est.)
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Oil - consumption:
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13,000 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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NA |
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Oil - imports:
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NA |
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Oil - proved reserves:
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2.022 billion bbl
(2004 est.)
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Natural gas - production:
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80 million cu m
(2001 est.)
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Natural gas - consumption:
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80 million cu m
(2001 est.)
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Natural gas - exports:
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0 cu m (2001
est.) |
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Natural gas - imports:
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0 cu m (2001
est.) |
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
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66.47 billion cu
m (2004) |
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Current account balance:
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$196.8 million
(2004 est.) |
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Exports:
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$3.71 billion
f.o.b. (2004 est.)
|
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Exports - commodities:
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crude oil 77%,
timber, manganese, uranium (2001) |
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Exports - partners:
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US 51.9%, China
9.1%, France 7.7% (2004) |
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Imports:
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$1.225 billion
f.o.b. (2004 est.)
|
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery and
equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, construction materials |
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Imports - partners:
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France 46.1%, US
6.8%, UK 6% (2004)
|
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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
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$268.6 million
(2004 est.) |
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Debt - external:
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$3.804 billion
(2004 est.) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$331 million
(1995) |
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Currency:
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Communaute
Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority
is the Bank of the Central African States
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Currency code:
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XAF |
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Exchange rates:
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Communaute
Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004),
581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar year
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