r 6, oil tanker 19, refrigerated cargo 2,
roll-on/roll-off cargo 10 (1998 est.)

Airports: none

Military

Military--note: defense is the responsibility of France

Transnational Issues

Disputes--international: "Adelie Land" claim in Antarctica is not
recognized by the US

======================================================================

@Gabon
-----

Geography

Location: Western Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean at the
Equator, between Republic of the Congo and Equatorial Guinea

Geographic coordinates: 1 00 S, 11 45 E

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 267,670 sq km
land: 257,670 sq km
water: 10,000 sq km

Area--comparative: slightly smaller than Colorado

Land boundaries:
total: 2,551 km
border countries: Cameroon 298 km, Republic of the Congo 1,903 km,
Equatorial Guinea 350 km

Coastline: 885 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical; always hot, humid

Terrain: narrow coastal plain; hilly interior; savanna in east
and south

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Iboundji 1,575 m

Natural resources: petroleum, manganese, uranium, gold, timber,
iron ore

Land use:
arable land: 1%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 18%
forests and woodland: 77%
other: 3% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 40 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: NA

Environment--current issues: deforestation; poaching

Environment--international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone
Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

People

Population: 1,225,853 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 33% (male 205,076; female 205,198)
15-64 years: 61% (male 376,181; female 370,479)
65 years and over: 6% (male 34,078; female 34,841) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.48% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 27.89 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 13.07 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female