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| Central African Republic |
 Click to enlarge |
Home Reference Maps Appendixes
| 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. In March 2003 a military coup deposed the civilian government of President Ange-Felix PATASSE and has since established a new government. |
| Location: |
Central Africa, north of Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
7 00 N, 21 00 E |
| Map
references: |
Africa |
| Area: |
total: 622,984 sq km water: 0 sq km land: 622,984 sq km |
| Area
- comparative: |
slightly smaller than Texas |
| Land
boundaries: |
total: 5,203 km border countries: Cameroon 797 km, Chad 1,197 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 467 km, Sudan 1,165 km |
| Coastline: |
0 km (landlocked) |
| Maritime
claims: |
none (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 highest point: Mont Ngaoui 1,420 m |
| Natural
resources: |
diamonds, uranium, timber, gold, oil, hydropower |
| Land
use: |
arable land: 3.1% permanent crops: 0.14% other: 96.76% (1998 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
NA sq km |
| Natural
hazards: |
hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds affect northern areas; floods are common |
| Environment
- current issues: |
tap water is not potable; poaching has diminished its reputation as one of the last great wildlife refuges; desertification; deforestation |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 94 signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
| Geography
- note: |
landlocked; almost the precise center of Africa |
| Population: |
3,683,538 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 2003 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years: 43.1% (male 799,241; female 788,370) 15-64 years: 53.5% (male 969,581; female 1,000,740) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 53,322; female 72,284) (2003 est.) |
| Median
age: |
total: 17.9 years male: 17.6 years female: 18.3 years (2002) |
| Population
growth rate: |
1.62% (2003 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
35.93 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
19.73 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
total: 93.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 86.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 100.35 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total population: 41.71 years male: 40.18 years female: 43.29 years (2003 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
4.68 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
12.9% (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
250,000 (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- deaths: |
22,000 (2001 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun: Central African(s) adjective: Central African |
| Ethnic
groups: |
Baya 33%, Banda 27%, Mandjia 13%, Sara 10%, Mboum 7%, M'Baka 4%, Yakoma 4%, other 2% |
| 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 total population: 51% male: 63.3% female: 39.9% (2003 est.) |
| 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 half of GDP. Timber has accounted for about 16% of export earnings and the diamond industry for 54%. 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, with GDP growth likely to be no more than 1.3% in 2003. Distribution of income is extraordinarily unequal. Grants from France and the international community can only partially meet humanitarian needs. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power parity - $4.7 billion (2002 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
1% (2002 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2002 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture: 55% industry: 20% services: 25% (2001 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: 0.7% highest 10%: 47.7% (1993) |
| Distribution
of family income - Gini index: |
61.3 (1993) |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
3.6% (2001 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
NA |
| Unemployment
rate: |
8% (23% for Bangui) (2001 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
| Industries: |
diamond mining, logging, brewing, textiles, footwear, assembly of bicycles and motorcycles |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
3% (2002) |
| Electricity
- production: |
106 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel: 19.8% hydro: 80.2% other: 0% (2001) nuclear: 0% |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
98.63 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (2001) |
| Oil
- production: |
0 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
| Oil
- consumption: |
2,400 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
| Oil
- exports: |
NA (2001) |
| Oil
- imports: |
NA (2001) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
cotton, coffee, tobacco, manioc (tapioca), yams, millet, corn, bananas; timber |
| Exports: |
$134 million f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
diamonds, timber, cotton, coffee, tobacco |
| Exports
- partners: |
Belgium 53%, Kazakhstan 9%, Spain 9% (2001) |
| Imports: |
$102 million f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
food, textiles, petroleum products, machinery, electrical equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals |
| Imports
- partners: |
France 26%, Cameroon 13%, Spain 5%, Benelux, Cote d'Ivoire, Germany, Japan (2001) |
| Debt
- external: |
$881.4 million (2000 est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
ODA $73 million; note - traditional budget subsidies from France (2000 est.) |
| Currency: |
Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States |
| Currency
code: |
XAF |
| Exchange
rates: |
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999), 589.952 (1998) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| |
