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:Gabon Geography
Total area: 267,670 km2 Land area: 257,670 km2 Comparative area: slightly smaller than Colorado Land boundaries: 2,551 km; Cameroon 298 km, Congo 1,903 km, Equatorial Guinea 350 km Coastline: 885 km Maritime claims: Contiguous zone: 24 nm Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm Territorial sea: 12 nm Disputes: maritime boundary dispute with Equatorial Guinea because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay Climate: tropical; always hot, humid Terrain: narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east and south Natural resources: crude oil, manganese, uranium, gold, timber, iron ore Land use: arable land 1%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and pastures 18%; forest and woodland 78%; other 2% Environment: deforestation
:Gabon People
Population: 1,106,355 (July 1992), growth rate 1.5% (1992) Birth rate: 29 births/1,000 population (1992) Death rate: 14 deaths/1,000 population (1992) Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1992) Infant mortality rate: 100 deaths/1,000 live births (1992) Life expectancy at birth: 51 years male, 56 years female (1992) Total fertility rate: 4.1 children born/woman (1992) Nationality: noun - Gabonese (singular and plural); adjective - Gabonese Ethnic divisions: about 40 Bantu tribes, including four major tribal groupings (Fang, Eshira, Bapounou, Bateke); about 100,000 expatriate Africans and Europeans, including 27,000 French Religions: Christian 55-75%, Muslim less than 1%, remainder animist Languages: French (official), Fang, Myene, Bateke, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi Literacy: 61% (male 74%, female 48%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) Labor force: 120,000 salaried; agriculture 65.0%, industry and commerce 30.0%, services 2.5%, government 2.5%; 58% of population of working age (1983) Organized labor: there are 38,000 members of the national trade union, the Gabonese Trade Union Confederation (COSYGA)
:Gabon Government
Long-form name: Gabonese Republic Type: republic; multiparty presidential regime (o