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Article: Gabon.(Country overview)
- Article from:
- New Internationalist
- Article date:
- July 1, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 New Internationalist Magazine. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Gabon has often been described as 'the African Emirates'. This oil-rich state produces about 290,000 barrels of oil a day and boasts sub-Saharan Africa's third-largest reserves--around 2.5 billion barrels. Average per-capita income is 10 times higher than the average for the continent and some of its people have got used to a more cosseted lifestyle.
An African success story, you might think. Well, appearances can be deceptive. A clearer case that you cannot judge a country by its per-capita gross national income (the standard measure of the World Bank) could hardly be made. The money that has poured into the country over the past four decades has largely been ...