Gabon

Gabon, known officially as the Gabonese Republic, is located in western Africa, with a coast on the Gulf of Guinea. The country was part of colonial French Equatorial Africa from 1910 to 1960. Per capita income in Gabon is four times that of other sub-Saharan nations, largely because of the rich offshore oil deposits that form most of its exports. Despite being home to 40 distinct ethnic groups, Gabon is mostly free from internal strife. In 2007, Omar Bongo became the longest-serving African president and celebrated his 40th year in power.

The population is 1,455,000, growing at 2.04 percent annually. The birth rate is 35.96 per 1,000 and the death rate is 12.45 per 1,000. More people are migration out of Gabon than into it, with a migration rate of minus 3.15 migrants per 1,000. Median age is 18.6 years. Life expectancy is currently 52.85 years for males and 55.17 years for females. Gross national income is U.S. $5010, high for the region. However, it is not equally distributed, and many Gabonese live in poverty. About 60 percent of the population relies on agriculture.

Gabon has had several small but highly publicized outbreaks of the Ebola virus in recent years. Still, the main killers of the Gabonese are more routine communicable diseases, such as malaria, which is endemic, and typhoid. Only 88 percent of the population has access to clean drinking water and 37 percent use sanitary waste facilities. Gastrointestinal and parasitic infections are common.

HIV/AIDS affects 7.9 percent of the adult population, with 60,000 Gabonese infected with the virus and 4,700 having already died. Gabon is among the 13 nations participating in the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) Accelerating Access Initiative to buy drugs for reduced rates from suppliers, although currently only 23 percent of those infected are on antiretorviral drug therapy. Less than 1 percent of at-risk pregnant women are receiving drugs to reduce mother-to-child transmissions.

Girls in Gabon marry young, sometimes as early as 10 or 12 years of age. The fertility rate is 4.71 children per woman. Contraception is avaliable to 33 percent of women. Abortion is legal in only a few situations, so many women rely on illegal abortions, often suffering major complications as a result. Ninety-four percent of pregnant women receive some prenatal care. Eight-six percent have the help of trained assistance during childbirth. The maternal mortality rate is 420 deaths per 100,000 live births.

Infant and child mortality rates have held steady since 1990. Sixty of every 1,000 infants die before the age of 1; 91 of every 1,000 children die between their first and fifth birthdays. Immunization rates are low, and children [Page 694]are most vulnerable to malaria and other communicable diseases. Malnutrition is not a serious issue in Gabon, although 12 percent of children are underweight and 21 percent show signs of stunted growth.

Gabon spends more on healthcare per capita than most of its neighbors, at U.S. $181. There are 27 hospitals and 660 clinics spread across the country, although access to care is uneven. There is a medical school at Université Omar Bongo. Three institutions, the Université Omar Bongo, the Albert Schweitzer Hospital, and the International Center for Medical Research, conduct research into malaria, AIDS, and other regional health concerns.

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