| Central African Republic |
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| Background: The former French colony of Ubangi-Shari became the Central African Republic upon independence in 1960. After three tumultuous decades of misrule - mostly by military governments - civilian rule was established in 1993 and lasted for one decade. President Ange-Felix PATASSE's civilian government was plagued by unrest, and in March 2003 he was deposed in a military coup led by General Francois BOZIZE, who established a transitional government. Though the government has the tacit support of civil society groups and the main parties, a wide field of candidates contested the municipal, legislative, and presidential elections held in March and May of 2005 in which General BOZIZE was affirmed as president. The government still does not fully control the countryside, where pockets of lawlessness persist. |
| Geography and Environmental |
Capital: name: Bangui
geographic coordinates: 4 22 N, 18 35 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Area Total: 622,984 sq km |
| Area Land: 622,984 sq km |
| Area Water: 0 sq km |
| Area Comparative: slightly smaller than Texas |
| Coastline: 0 km (landlocked) |
| Climate: tropical; hot, dry winters; mild to hot, wet summers |
| Terrain: vast, flat to rolling, monotonous plateau; scattered hills in northeast and southwest |
| Elevation Extremes Lowest Point: Oubangui River 335 m |
| Elevation Extremes Highest Point: Mont Ngaoui 1,420 m |
| Natural Resources: diamonds, uranium, timber, gold, oil, hydropower |
| Land Use Arable Land: 3.1% |
| Land Use Permanent Crops: 0.15% |
| Land Use Other: 96.75% (2005) |
| Irrigated Land: 20 sq km (2003) |
| Natural Hazards: hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds affect northern areas; floods are common |
| Environment Current Issues: tap water is not potable; poaching has diminished the country's reputation as one of the last great wildlife refuges; desertification; deforestation |
| Geography Note: landlocked; almost the precise center of Africa |
| Population |
Population: 4,369,038
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
| Age Structure 0 to 14 Years: 41.6% (male 914,566/female 903,849) |
| Age Structure 15 to 64 Years: 54.2% (male 1,174,520/female 1,195,364) |
| Age Structure 65 Years And Over: 4.1% (male 71,355/female 109,384) (2007 est.) |
| Median Age Total: 18.5 years |
| Median Age Male: 18.2 years |
| Median Age Female: 18.9 years (2007 est.) |
| Population Growth Rate: 1.505% (2007 est.) |
| Birth Rate: 33.52 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Death Rate: 18.46 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Sex Ratio At Birth: 1.03 male(s)/female |
| Sex Ratio Under 15 Years: 1.012 male(s)/female |
| Sex Ratio 15 to 64 Years: 0.983 male(s)/female |
| Sex Ratio 65 Years And Over: 0.652 male(s)/female |
| Sex Ratio Total Population: 0.978 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Infant Mortality Rate Total: 83.97 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Infant Mortality Rate Male: 90.68 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Infant Mortality Rate Female: 77.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Life Expectancy At BirthTotalPopulation: 43.74 years |
| Life Expectancy At Birth Male: 43.69 years |
| Life Expectancy At Birth Female: 43.79 years (2007 est.) |
| Total Fertility Rate: 4.32 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| HIV AIDS Adult Prevalence Rate: 13.5% (2003 est.) |
| HIV AIDS People Living With HIV AIDS: 260,000 (2003 est.) |
| HIV AIDS Deaths: 23,000 (2003 est.) |
Religions: indigenous beliefs 35%, Protestant 25%, Roman Catholic 25%, Muslim 15%
note: animistic beliefs and practices strongly influence the Christian majority |
| Languages: French (official), Sangho (lingua franca and national language), tribal languages |
| Literacy Definition: age 15 and over can read and write |
| Literacy Total Population: 51% |
| Literacy Male: 63.3% |
| Literacy Female: 39.9% (2003 est.) |
| Administrative Divisions: 14 prefectures (prefectures, singular - prefecture), 2 economic prefectures* (prefectures economiques, singular - prefecture economique), and 1 commune**; Bamingui-Bangoran, Bangui**, Basse-Kotto, Haute-Kotto, Haut-Mbomou, Kemo, Lobaye, Mambere-Kadei, Mbomou, Nana-Grebizi*, Nana-Mambere, Ombella-Mpoko, Ouaka, Ouham, Ouham-Pende, Sangha-Mbaere*, Vakaga |
| Legal System: based on French law |
| Economy |
| Overview: Subsistence agriculture, together with forestry, remains the backbone of the economy of the Central African Republic (CAR), with more than 70% of the population living in outlying areas. The agricultural sector generates more than half of GDP. Timber has accounted for about 16% of export earnings and the diamond industry, for 40%. Important constraints to economic development include the CAR's landlocked position, a poor transportation system, a largely unskilled work force, and a legacy of misdirected macroeconomic policies. Factional fighting between the government and its opponents remains a drag on economic revitalization. Distribution of income is extraordinarily unequal. Grants from France and the international community can only partially meet humanitarian needs. |
| GDP Purchasing Power Parity: $4.913 billion (2006 est.) |
| GDP Real Growth Rate: 3% (2006 est.) |
| GDP Composition By Sector Agriculture: 55% |
| GDP Composition By Sector Industry: 20% |
| GDP Composition By Sector Services: 25% (2001 est.) |
| Labor Force: NA |
| Unemployment Rate: 8% (23% for Bangui) (2001 est.) |
Household Income Or Consumption By Percentage Share: lowest 10%: 0.7%
highest 10%: 47.7% (1993) |
| Inflation Rate Consumer Prices: 3.6% (2001 est.) |
| Industries: gold and diamond mining, logging, brewing, textiles, footwear, assembly of bicycles and motorcycles |
| Industrial Production Growth Rate: 3% (2002) |
| Energy |
| Electricity Production: 109 million kWh (2004) |
| Electricity Production By Source Fossil Fuel: 19.8% |
| Electricity Production By Source Hydro: 80.2% |
| Electricity Production By Source Nuclear: 0% |
| Electricity Production By Source Other: 0% (2001) |
| Electricity Consumption: 101.4 million kWh (2004) |
| Electricity Exports: 0 kWh (2004) |
| Electricity Imports: 0 kWh (2004) |
| Oil Production: 0 bbl/day (2004) |
| Oil Consumption: 2,420 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
| Natural Gas Production: 0 cu m (2004 est.) |
| Natural Gas Consumption: 0 cu m (2004 est.) |
| Exports: $131 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
| Exports Commodities: diamonds, timber, cotton, coffee, tobacco |
| Exports Partners: Belgium 35%, France 9.7%, Spain 8.7%, Italy 8.1%, China 7.1%, Indonesia 6.3%, Democratic Republic of the Congo 4.7%, US 4.5%, Turkey 4.5% (2005) |
| Imports: $203 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
| Imports Commodities: food, textiles, petroleum products, machinery, electrical equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals |
| Imports Partners: France 16.6%, Netherlands 10.3%, Cameroon 9.7%, US 7.3% (2005) |
| Debt External: $1.06 billion (2002 est.) |
| Economic Aid Recipient: ODA, $59.8 million; note - traditional budget subsidies from France (2002 est.) |
| Communications |
| Telephones Main Lines In Use: 10,000 (2004) |
| TelephonesMobileCellular: 60,000 (2004) |
| Telephone System General Assessment: fair system |
| Telephone System Domestic: network consists principally of microwave radio relay and low-capacity, low-powered radiotelephone communication |
| Telephone System International: country code - 236; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Radio Broadcast Stations: AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 1 (2002) |
| Radios: 283,000 (1997) |
| Television Broadcast Stations: 1 (2001) |
| Televisions: 18,000 (1997) |
| Internet Service Providers-ISPs: 1 (2002) |
| Internet Users: 9,000 (2005) |
| Transportation |
| Waterways: 2,800 km (primarily on the Oubangui and Sangha rivers) (2005) |
| Airports: 50 (2006) |
| Military Expenditures Percent Of GDP: 1.1% (2006 est.) |
| Disputes International: periodic skirmishes over water and grazing rights among related pastoral populations along the border with southern Sudan persist |
Refugees And Internally Displaced Persons: refugees (country of origin): 19,960 (Sudan), 3,325 (Democratic Republic of the Congo); note - UNHCR resumed repatriation of Southern Sudanese refugees in 2006
IDPs: 150,000 (ongoing unrest following coup in 2003) (2006) |