Gabon profile

Demography and Health

Gabon’s population stood at about 2.54 million in 2024, reflecting a small but steadily growing country with a relatively young demographic profile. The crude birth rate of 27.7 births per 1,000 people (2023) suggests persistent natural population growth, while the crude death rate of 6.27 per 1,000 indicates a mortality level that, while still higher than many developed economies, contributes to a gradual increase in life expectancy. Life expectancy at birth is 68.3 years (2023), pointing to ongoing health challenges and improvements that lag behind higher-income nations. Under-5 mortality remains a concern, at 33.2 per 1,000 live births (2023), underscoring the need for continued investments in maternal and child health, nutrition, and basic healthcare access. Gabon’s net migration was modestly positive in 2024 (+1,105), suggesting more people entering than leaving, but the overall population growth remains more driven by births than by migration. Health expenditure, while growing, remains relatively low by global standards, with current health expenditure at 2.86% of GDP (2022) and domestic general government health expenditure per capita, PPP, at about 296 International US dollars (2022), signaling limited public funding for health relative to many peers. The country also reports a notable share of the population experiencing undernourishment (20.1% in 2022), highlighting ongoing vulnerabilities in nutrition security that can affect health outcomes, productivity, and resilience. In psychosocial and behavioral health indicators, suicide mortality stood at 7.3 per 100,000 (2021), a data point often reflecting broader mental health and social stressors that require integrated public health responses. Overall, Gabon’s demography shows a young population but with development needs in health, nutrition, and maternal-child care to translate demographic momentum into sustained human development.

Economy

Gabon’s economy is characterized by a relatively high GDP per capita (current US$) of about 8,219 in 2024, with GDP per capita at PPP around 21,510 international dollars, signaling a level of income that is higher than many neighbors but still marked by significant inequality and reliance on extractive sectors. The country is open to trade, as evidenced by exports of goods and services constituting about 65.3% of GDP in 2024, while imports account for roughly 29.2% of GDP, reflecting a trade-intensive economy with limited domestic processing. The inflation rate was modest in 2024 at around 1.17%, which supports price stability for households and businesses, although exchange-rate dynamics and external shocks could alter this balance. Gabon also hosts notable components of its export mix, including high-technology exports valued at about 40 million US dollars in 2023, illustrating that the economy produces and sells some knowledge- or innovation-driven goods alongside its more traditional energy and natural-resource exports. The total energy of export performance is complemented by a net inflow of foreign direct investment equal to about 5.74% of GDP in 2023, indicating a favorable but not dominant role of foreign capital in the economy. On the public-finance side, government health spending remains a relatively modest share of the economy, while private and external funding shapes the accessibility and reach of health services. Gabon’s growth path, therefore, is anchored in resource rents and carefully diversified sectors, while governance and structural reforms will influence how these wealth opportunities translate into broad-based development for its citizens.

Trade and Investment

Trade and investment performance in Gabon shows a highly open external orientation. Exports of goods and services as a share of GDP stand at 65.3% in 2024, indicating a heavy dependence on external markets and commodity-driven income. Imports represent 29.2% of GDP, suggesting a relatively contained domestic market and import reliance on essential goods and services. The country also records measurable high-technology exports, valued at about 40 million USD in 2023, signaling a capacity to push beyond purely extractive commodities into more advanced outputs, albeit on a modest absolute scale. Foreign direct investment net inflows reach 5.74% of GDP in 2023, reflecting continued investor interest but indicating room for deeper integration and longer-term capital inflows to spur diversification, job creation, and technology transfer. The logistics and trade environment is imperfectly rated by global indicators; for example, the Logistics Performance Index quality of trade and transport-related infrastructure stands at 2.2 out of 5 in 2022, pointing to significant bottlenecks in transport, customs, and related services that can raise trade costs and reduce competitiveness. Overall, Gabon’s trade and investment profile reveals both opportunities from natural-resource wealth and challenges from governance quality and infrastructure adequacy that can affect the efficiency of cross-border activity and investor confidence.

Governance and Institutions

Governance indicators paint a picture of weak institutions and fragile rule-of-law foundations. Political Stability and Absence of Violence/Terrorism scores are negative (−0.336 in 2023), with a global rank around 128, suggesting vulnerability to political shocks and domestic disturbance risks. Regulatory Quality is notably low at −0.705, and Rule of Law at −0.873, reflecting challenges in governance, contract enforcement, judiciary independence, and property rights. Control of Corruption is even more negative at −1.02, underscoring perceived corruption constraints that can hinder investment and public service delivery. Government Effectiveness is also weak at −0.78. Taken together, these governance metrics imply that while Gabon has opportunities thanks to natural-resource wealth and regional prominence, systemic governance and institutional pressures could impede efficient policy implementation, investment climate, and equitable service provision without sustained reforms and governance upgrades.

Infrastructure and Technology

In infrastructure and technology, Gabon exhibits a mix of relatively high digital connectivity and gaps in tradable infrastructure. Individuals using the Internet reach about 71.9% of the population in 2023, signaling broad digital reach and potential for digital services, e-government, and e-commerce. The country’s healthcare and professional workforce indicators show a physicians-per-1,000 people ratio of 0.477 in 2022, indicating a constrained health workforce capacity in comparison with higher-income peers. The Logistics Performance Index, specifically the quality of trade and transport-related infrastructure, scores 2.2 out of 5 in 2022, revealing substantial room for improvement in ports, roads, customs procedures, and intermodal connectivity that affect trade efficiency and cost. On the technology front, Gabon registers high-technology exports worth about 40.0 million USD (2023), which demonstrates some capacity for knowledge- and tech-enabled production, but the absolute level remains modest for a structurally diversified economy. Additionally, renewable energy plays a dominant role in final energy consumption, with 91.3% of total final energy consumption derived from renewables in 2021, indicating a strong reliance on hydropower and other renewables that supports a lower carbon footprint for energy services, though reliability and cost considerations in dry seasons or climate variability remain important for grid stability and electrification efforts overall.

Environment and Sustainability

Environment and sustainability metrics reveal a country with strong renewable energy use but ongoing vulnerability to climate-related and developmental pressures. Renewable energy constitutes a striking 91.3% of total final energy consumption in 2021, highlighting Gabon’s leadership among fossil-fuel-poor economies in adopting renewables—primarily hydropower estimates—into its energy mix. However, pressure on water resources is indicated by a level of freshwater withdrawal as a share of available freshwater resources at 0.502 in 2021, reflecting substantial water use that could become a constraint with population growth or agricultural expansion if efficiency and management do not improve. Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (net removals from land use) per capita stand at 8.61 t CO2e in 2023, which is relatively high given the small population and the scale of non-energy emissions; it underscores ongoing emissions linked to energy production, transport, and industrial activities. The country also shows an undernourishment prevalence of 20.1% (2022), highlighting that despite wealth from natural resources and a renewable-heavy energy system, there remain significant challenges in ensuring food security and sustainable development for all citizens. Overall, Gabon’s environmental narrative combines a strong renewable energy base with water-resource planning needs and ongoing emissions that call for continued climate-resilience measures, sustainable land and water management, and inclusive social development to ensure environmental gains translate into broad welfare improvements.