In April 2013, the Ocean Rig Olympia started drilling a first well at 1700 metres of water depth to test the pre-salt potential of Diaba, an oil block located in Gabon’s southern basin and owned by Total Gabon (42.5%), Marathon Oil (21.25%), Cobalt International Energy (21.25%) and the government of Gabon (15%). This is the first deepwater or ultra-...
The Central African Stock Exchange (Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières d’Afrique Centrale, BVMAC), headquartered in Libreville, is one of two regional bourses – both of which are located in CFA zones – on the African continent. The bourse was founded in 2003, and began trading in 2007, with the aim of serving the six countries of the Central...
The past 40 years of oil production have turned this small but strategically positioned Central African state into an upper middle-income economy. Although figures can vary noticeably, with a GDP per capita in 2012 estimated at $9000 by the Banque des États de l'Afrique Centrale and $12,000 by the IMF, the nation is roughly on a par with Turkey and...
Successful diversification of Gabon’s economy depends on greater bank intermediation in the real economy: expanding financial access for its people and facilitating access to retail credit. While a small consumer finance sector has developed to cater to the limited cadre of formally employed workers, banks are increasingly testing mobile money...
In light of the dramatic increase in government spending since 2009, authorities in Gabon have recently moved to create the Public Procurement Regulatory Agency (Agence de Régulation des Marchés Publics, ARMP), which will be tasked with overseeing and streamlining procurement. In a region where bidding for public contracts can be a protracted affair...
The country has significantly strengthened its hand in diplomatic initiatives throughout Central Africa over the past 50 years. Gabon assumed the 2012/13 presidency of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (Communauté Économique et Monétaire de l’Afrique Centrale, CEMAC), the regional body composed of Chad, Cameroon, Gabon,...
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