Gabon

LOCATED IN CENTRAL Africa, the Republic of Gabon was formerly a French colony and has land borders with Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and the Republic of the Congo, Gabon has a land area of 103,347 sq, mi, (267,668 sq, km.), with a population of 1,384,000 (2005 est.), and a population density of 13,5 people per sq, mi, (5,2 people per sq, km.).

Some 80 percent of the country is covered in forests, with a small lumber industry operating to harvest mahogany, ebony, and walnut. Only 1 percent of the land is arable, with 18 percent used for meadows and pasture. In spite of significant oil production, 70,6 percent of the electric power in Gabon comes from hydropower, with the remainder from fossil fuels. This use of fossil ...