Gabon

This article is about the country. For other uses, see Gabon (disambiguation).

Gabonese Republic République gabonaise (French)
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Union, Travail, Justice" (French) "Union, Work, Justice"
Anthem: "La Concorde" (French) "The Concord"
Capital and largest city	Libreville 0°23′N 9°27′E
Official languages	French
Regional languages	List English Spanish French Portuguese Fang Mbete Myene Nzebi Punu Teke Vili
Ethnic groups	Fang Punu Nzebi Teke Myene Kota Vili Mbama and 42 others
Religion (2021)	80.2% Christianity 10.8% Islam 7.0% no religion 1.1% traditional faiths 0.9% others
Demonyms	Gabonese Gabonaise
Government	Unitary presidential republic
• President	Brice Oligui Nguema
• Vice President	Alexandre Barro Chambrier
• Vice President of the Government	Hermann Immongault
Legislature	Parliament
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	National Assembly
Independence from  France
• Administrated under the French Congo	1882–1910
• Re-established as French Gabon under the administration of French Equatorial Africa	1910–1958
• Republic established	28 November 1958
• Independence Granted	17 August 1960
• 1964 coup d'état	17–19 February 1964
• 2023 coup d'état	30 August 2023
Area
• Total	267,668 km2 (103,347 sq mi) (76th)
• Water (%)	3.76%
Population
• 2026 estimate	2,647,400 (139th)
• Density	10/km2 (25.9/sq mi) (216th)
GDP (PPP)	2025 estimate
• Total	$57.054 billion (130th)
• Per capita	$24,739 (79th)
GDP (nominal)	2025 estimate
• Total	$21.455 billion (131st)
• Per capita	$9,303 (90th)
Gini (2017)	38 medium inequality
HDI (2023)	0.733 high (108th)
Currency	Central African CFA franc (XAF)
Time zone	UTC+1 (WAT)
Calling code	+241
ISO 3166 code	GA
Internet TLD	.ga

Gabon, officially the Gabonese Republic, is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, lying on the equator. It is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo to the east and south, while sharing a maritime border with São Tomé and Príncipe to the west in the Gulf of Guinea. It has an area of 270,000 square kilometres (100,000 sq mi) and a population of 2.6 million people. There are coastal plains, mountains (the Cristal Mountains and the Chaillu Massif in the centre), and savanna in the east. Libreville is the capital and largest city; other major cities include Port-Gentil and Franceville.

Gabon's original inhabitants were the Bambenga. In the 13th century BCE, Bantu migrants began settling in the area. The Kingdom of Orungu was established around 1700. France colonised the region in the late 19th century. Since its independence from France in 1960, Gabon has had four presidents. In the 1990s, it introduced a multi-party system and a democratic constitution that aimed for a more transparent electoral process and reformed some governmental institutions. Despite this, the Gabonese Democratic Party remained the dominant party until its removal from power during the 2023 Gabonese coup d'état.

Gabon is a developing country, ranking 108th in the Human Development Index. It is one of the wealthiest countries in Africa in terms of per capita income; however, large parts of the population are very poor. Omar Bongo came to office in 1967 and created a dynasty which stabilized its power through a client network, Françafrique.

The official language is French, and Bantu ethnic groups constitute around 95% of the population. Christianity is the predominant religion, practised by about 80% of the population. With petroleum and foreign private investment, it has the fourth highest HDI (after Mauritius, Seychelles, and South Africa) and the fifth highest GDP per capita (PPP) of the Sub-Saharan African nations. Gabon's nominal GDP per capita was $10,149 in 2023.