The Central African
Republic is located in the heart of the continent bordering Congo, Cameroon, Chad, Sudan
and the Democratic Republic of Congo. With an area of 624,977square kilometers and a
population of 3,492,000 people, the country is sparsely populated but well endowed with
natural resources. Urbanisation is relatively high (39%) with Bangui, the capital city,
sheltering nearly a million inhabitants. A former French colony of Oubangui-Chari,
the Central African Republic gained its independence on August 1960. Since then, the
country suffered from an oppressive regime in the 1970s, followed by political
instabilities in 1996s as a result of mutinies by dissident elements of the armed
forces. This is despite the multiparty elections in 1993.
Subsistence agriculture,
together with forestry, remains the backbone of the economy of the Central African
Republic (CAR), contributing 50% to GDP. Timber accounts for about 16% of export earnings
and the diamond industry for nearly 54%. Cotton and coffee are also the main export crops.
The landlocked position of the country, with its remoteness from the nearest seaports, and
the lack of adequate road and railway infrastructure are a major obstacle to economic
development. Military rebellions and social unrest in 1996 accompanied by widespread
destruction of property has led to a major drop in GDP, reduced tax revenues for the
government, and delayed negotiations for an IMF financial aid agreement.
In 2000 the total
number of connected lines in the Central African Republic accounted for 9,500 resulting in
a telephone density of 0.26 line per hundred people.
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