Central African Republic
Central African Republic
Ubangi (Oubangui) River at the outskirts of Bangui, Central African Republic. Source: Pete Chirico, USGS
| Topics: |  Geography |
The Central African Republic is a landlocked nation of five million people at almost the precise center of Africa. It is north of Democratic Republic of the Congo, south of Chad, east of Cameroon, and west of South Sudan.
The Central African Republic's major environmental issues include:
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- tap water is not potable;
- poaching has diminished the country's reputation as one of the last great wildlife refuges;
- desertification; and,
- deforestation.
It is susceptible to hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds affect northern areas; and floods are common.
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.
Bozize was reelected in the 2011 elections, which were widely viewed as having gross inaccuracies and discrepancies.
The government still does not fully control the countryside, where pockets of lawlessness persist.
Militant group Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) continues to affect stability in the Central African Republic as well.
Unrest in neighboring nations, Chad, Sudan, and the DRC, continues to affect stability in the Central African Republic as well.
Geography
Location: Central Africa, north of Democratic Republic of the Congo
Geographic Coordinates: 7 00 N, 21 00 E
Area: 622,984 km2 (622,984 km2 land and 0 km2 water)
arable land: 3.1%
permanent crops: 0.15%
other: 96.75% (2005)
Land Boundaries: 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, South Sudan 990 km, Sudan 175 km.
Natural Hazards: hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds affect northern areas; floods are common
Terrain:Vast, flat to rolling, monotonous plateau; scattered hills in northeast and southwest. Its lowest point is the Oubangui River (335 metres) and its highest point is Mont Ngaoui (1,420 metres)
Climate: Tropical; hot, dry winters; mild to hot, wet summers
Topography of the Central African Republic. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
Ecology and Biodiversity
Ecoregions of the Central African Republic. Source: World Wildlife Fund
- Northwestern Congolian lowland forests
- Northeastern Congolian lowland forests
- Northern Congolian forest-savanna mosaic
- East Sudanian savanna
- Sahelian Acacia savanna
See also: Manovo-Gounda-St Floris National Park, Central African Republic
Government
Government Type: Republic
Capital: Bangui - 702,000 (2009)
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Administrative divisions: 14 prefectures (prefectures, singular - prefecture), 2 economic prefectures* (prefectures economiques, singular - prefecture economique), and 1 commune**;
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Source: Wikimedia Commons |
Independence Date: 13 August 1960 (from France)
Legal System: civil law system based on the French model. The Central African Republic has not submitted an International Court of Justice (ICJ) jurisdiction declaration; but accepts International Criminal Court (ICCt) jurisdiction.
Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal
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| Falls of Boali on the Mbali River. Fall of 50m height on 250m width - Central African Republic - July / August 1993 Source: Philippe Jimenze/Freemages |
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Hundreds of fires (red dots) in Central Africa on February 6, 2004. Many of these fires were likely started by farmers clearing their land. Biomass burning is a common agricultural practice worldwide. Indeed, in the lower half of the image, many fires are burning in or near brown areas of cleared land, not directly in the green forested area. This image also provides a view of Africa’s three biomes: the vast Sahara Desert in the north, the Savanna grasslands in the center, and the lush, densely vegetated tropical rainforest in the heart of Africa. The three regions are distinguished by their colors in this image. With relatively little vegetation, the desert is tan (top right). The African Savanna, made up of grass and scattered trees, is light green and tan. In the bottom of the image, the rainforest appears dark green. |
International Environmental Agreements
The Central African Republic is party to international agreements on: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 94, and Wetlands. It has signed, but not ratified the international Law of the Sea.
People and Society
Population: 4,950,027 (July 2011 est.)
Ethnic groups: Baya 33%, Banda 27%, Mandjia 13%, Sara 10%, Mboum 7%, M'Baka 4%, Yakoma 4%, other 2%
Age Structure:
0-14 years: 41% (male 1,021,144/female 1,007,819)
15-64 years: 55.3% (male 1,353,600/female 1,382,291)
65 years and over: 3.7% (male 73,977/female 111,196) (2011 est.)
Population Growth Rate: 2.146% (2011 est.)
Birthrate: 36.46 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)
Death Rate: 15.01 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.))
Net Migration Rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)
Life Expectancy at Birth: 50.07 years (2011 est.)
Total Fertility Rate: 4.63 children born/woman (2011 est.)
Languages: French (official), Sangho (lingua franca and national language), tribal languages
Literacy: 48.6% (male: 64.8% - female: 33.5% [2000 est.])
Urbanization: 39% of total population (2010) growing at an annual rate of change of 2.5% (2010-15 est.)
Water
Total Renewable Water Resources: 144.4 cu km (2003)
Freshwater Withdrawal: Total: 0.03 cu km/yr (80% domestic, 16% industrial, 4% agricultural).
Per capita Freshwater Withdrawal: 7 cu m/yr (2000)
Access to improved sources of drinking water: 67% of population
Access to improved sanitation facilities: 34% of population
Agriculture
Agricultural Products: timber, cotton, coffee, tobacco, manioc (tapioca), yams, millet, corn, bananas; timber
Irrigated Land: 20 sq km (2003)
Resources
Natural Resources: diamonds, uranium, timber, gold, oil, hydropower.
Energy
| Production | Consumption | Exports | Imports | Reserves | |
| Electricity |
109 million kWh (2005) |
101.4 million kWh (2005) |
0 kWh (2005) |
0 kWh (2005) |
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| Oil |
0 bbl/day (2005) |
2,300 bbl/day (2005 est.) |
0 bbl/day (2004) |
2,201 bbl/day (2004) |
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.) |
| Natural Gas |
0 cu m (2005 est.) |
0 cu m (2005 est.) |
0 cu m (2005 est.) |
0 cu m (2005 est.) |
0 cu m (2006 est.) |
| Source: CIA Factbook | |||||
Economy
Subsistence agriculture, together with forestry, remains the backbone of the economy of the Central African Republic (CAR), with about 60% of the population living in outlying areas.
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| Astronaut Photo of Bangui, Central African Republic taken from the International Space Station (ISS) during Expedition 12 on November 11, 2005. Source: NASA |
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| Refugee camp in Sam Ouandja, north-eastern Central African Republic housing almost 3,000 refugees from Darfur, Sudan (December 2007). Pierre Holtz, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. |
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.
Since 2009 the IMF has worked closely with the government to institute reforms that have resulted in some improvement in budget transparency, but other problems remain.
The government's additional spending in the run-up to the election in 2011 worsened CAR's fiscal situation.
Distribution of income is extraordinarily unequal.
Grants from France and the international community can only partially meet humanitarian needs. CAR currently lacks an IMF program.
GDP (Purchasing Power Parity): $3.672 billion (2011 est.)
GDP (Official Exchange Rate): $2.3 billion (2011 est.)
GDP-per capital (PPP): $800 (2011 est.)
GDP-composition by sector:
agriculture: 53.4%
industry: 14.6%
services: 32.1% (2011 est.)
Industries: gold and diamond mining, logging, brewing, textiles, footwear, assembly of bicycles and motorcycles
Exports: diamonds, timber, cotton, coffee, tobacco
Imports: food, textiles, petroleum products, machinery, electrical equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals
Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF)
Ports and Terminals: Bangui, Nola, Salo, Nzinga
Citation
Central Intelligence Agency, World Wildlife Fund, National Aeronautics and Space Administra (Lead Author);CIA World Factbook (Content Source);Lakhdar Boukerrou, Peter Saundry (Topic Editor) "Central African Republic". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth May 30, 2009; Last revised Date February 5, 2012; Retrieved February 9, 2012 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Central_African_Republic&>
The Authors
The Central Intelligence Agency was created in 1947 with the signing of the National Security Act by President Harry S. Truman. The act also created a Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) to serve as head of the United States intelligence community; act as the principal adviser to the President for intelligence matters related to the national security; and serve as head of the Central Intelligence Agency. The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 amended the National Securit ... (Full Bio)
Known worldwide by its panda logo, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) leads international efforts to protect endangered species and their habitats. Now in its fifth decade, WWF works in more than 100 countries around the globe to conserve the diversity of life on Earth. With nearly 1.2 million members in the U.S. and another 4 million worldwide, WWF is the world's largest privately financed conservation organization. WWF directs its conservation efforts toward three global goals: 1) saving endangered ... (Full Bio)
President Dwight D. Eisenhower established the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in 1958, partially in response to the Soviet Union's launch of the first artificial satellite. NASA grew out of the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics, which had been researching flight technology for more than 40 years. Today, NASA conducts its work in four principle organizations, called mission directorates: Aeronautics: pioneering and proving new flight technologies that improve our ab ... (Full Bio)
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