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. Unrest in
neighboring nations, Chad, Sudan, and the DRC, continues to affect
stability in the Central African Republic as well.
Geography
Central African
Republic
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
land: 622,984 sq km water: 0 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
total: 0.03 cu km/yr
(80%/16%/4%) per capita: 7 cu m/yr (2000)
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
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes,
Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but
not ratified: Law of the Sea
Geography - note:
landlocked; almost the precise
center of Africa
People
Central African
Republic
Population:
4,434,873 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, higher death rates, lower population growth
rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than
would otherwise be expected (July 2008 est.)
total: 18.7 years
male: 18.3 years female: 19 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.487% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:
33.13 births/1,000 population
(2008 est.)
Death rate:
18.26 deaths/1,000 population
(2008 est.)
Net migration rate:
NA
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03
male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64
years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.64
male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2008
est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 82.36
deaths/1,000 live births male: 88.98 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 75.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 43.97
years male: 43.94 years female: 44 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.23 children born/woman (2008
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.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very
high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal
diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne disease:
malaria respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis (2008)
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.)
Government
Central African
Republic
Country name:
conventional long form:
Central African Republic conventional short form: none
local long form: Republique Centrafricaine local short
form: none former: Ubangi-Shari, Central African Empire
abbreviation: CAR
Government type:
republic
Capital:
name: Bangui
geographic coordinates: 4 22 N, 18 35 E time
difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard
Time)
ratified by popular referendum
5 December 2004; effective 27 December 2004
Legal system:
based on French law
Suffrage:
21 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
President Francois BOZIZE (since 15 March 2003 coup) head of
government: Prime Minister Faustin-Archange TOUADERA (since 22 January
2008) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: under
the new constitution, the president elected to a five-year term (eligible
for a second term); elections last held 13 March and 8 May 2005 (next to
be held in 2010); prime minister appointed by the political party with a
parliamentary majority election results: Francois BOZIZE
elected president; percent of second round balloting - Francois BOZIZE
(KNK) 64.6%, Martin ZIGUELE (MLPC) 35.4%
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or
Assemblee Nationale (109 seats; members are elected by popular vote to
serve five-year terms) elections: last held 13 March 2005 and 8
May 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: percent of
vote by party - MLPC 43%, RDC 18%, MDD 9%, FPP 6%, PSD 5%, ADP 4%, PUN 3%,
FODEM 2%, PLD 2%, UPR 1%, FC 1%, independents 6%; seats by party - MLPC
47, RDC 20, MDD 8, FPP 7, PSD 6, ADP 5, PUN 3, FODEM 2, PLD 2, UPR 1, FC
1, independents 7
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Cour Supreme;
Constitutional Court (3 judges appointed by the president, 3 by the
president of the National Assembly, and 3 by fellow judges); Court of
Appeal; Criminal Courts; Inferior Courts
Political parties and leaders:
Alliance for Democracy and
Progress or ADP [Jacques MBOLIEDAS]; Central African Democratic Assembly
or RDC [Andre KOLINGBA]; Civic Forum or FC [Gen. Timothee MALENDOMA];
Democratic Forum for Modernity or FODEM [Charles MASSI]; Liberal
Democratic Party or PLD [Nestor KOMBO-NAGUEMON]; Movement for Democracy
and Development or MDD [David DACKO]; Movement for the Liberation of the
Central African People or MLPC [Ange-Felix PATASSE] (the party of deposed
president); National Convergence or KNK; Patriotic Front for Progress or
FPP [Abel GOUMBA]; People's Union for the Republic or UPR [Pierre Sammy
MAKFOY]; National Unity Party or PUN [Jean-Paul NGOUPANDE]; Social
Democratic Party or PSD [Enoch LAKOUE]
chief of mission:
Ambassador Emmanuel TOUABOY chancery: 1618 22nd Street NW,
Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-7800
FAX: [1] (202) 332-9893
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires James PANOS embassy:
Avenue David Dacko, Bangui mailing address: B. P. 924, Bangui
telephone: [236] 61 02 00 FAX: [236] 61 44 94
note: the embassy is currently operating with a minimal staff
Flag description:
four equal horizontal bands of
blue (top), white, green, and yellow with a vertical red band in center; a
yellow five-pointed star to the hoist side of the blue band
Economy
Central African
Republic
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.
France 15.4%, Netherlands
15.1%, US 9.2%, Cameroon 8.9% (2006)
Economic aid - recipient:
ODA, $95.29 million; note -
traditional budget subsidies from France (2005 est.)
Debt - external:
$1.153 billion (2007 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
Currency (code):
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 - 481.8 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005),
528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications
Central African
Republic
Telephones - main lines in use:
12,000 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
110,000 (2006)
Telephone system:
general assessment:
limited telephone service; fixed-line connections for well less than 1 per
100 persons coupled with mobile-cellular usage of only about 3 per 100
persons domestic: network consists principally of microwave
radio relay and low-capacity, low-powered radiotelephone communication
international: country code - 236; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 1 (2001)
Radios:
283,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
1 (2001)
Televisions:
18,000 (1997)
Internet country code:
.cf
Internet hosts:
15 (2007)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2002)
Internet users:
13,000 (2006)
Transportation
Central African
Republic
Airports:
51 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 3 2,438 to
3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 48 2,438
to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523
m: 24 under 914 m: 13 (2007)
Roadways:
total: 23,810 km (1999)
Waterways:
2,800 km (primarily on the
Oubangui and Sangha rivers) (2006)
Ports and terminals:
Bangui, Nola, Salo, Nzinga
Military
Central African
Republic
Military branches:
Central African Armed Forces
(Forces Armees Centrafricaines, FACA): Ground Forces, General Directorate
of Gendarmerie Inspection (DGIG), Military Air Service, National Police
(2008)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for compulsory
and voluntary military service; 2-year conscript service obligation (2006)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49:
1,032,828 females age 16-49: 999,330 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 534,141
females age 16-49: 495,303 (2008 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1.1% (2006 est.)
Transnational Issues
Central African
Republic
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): 7,900 (Sudan); 3,700 (Democratic Republic of the Congo); note
- UNHCR resumed repatriation of Southern Sudanese refugees in 2006
IDPs: 197,000 (ongoing unrest following coup in 2003) (2007)
Trafficking in persons:
current situation:
Central African Republic is a source and destination country for children
trafficked for domestic servitude, sexual exploitation, and forced labor
in shops and commercial labor activities; while the majority of child
victims are trafficked within the country, some are also trafficked to and
from Cameroon and Nigeria tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - the
Central African Republic failed to provide evidence of increasing efforts
to combat trafficking in persons during 2005, specifically its inadequate
law enforcement response to trafficking crimes
