Chinese President Hu Jintao will pay a state visit to Gabon over Feb. 1-3 at the invitation of his Gabonese counterpart, Omar Bongo, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic ties.

Following is a general introduction of the Republic of Gabon:  

Gabon is an independent republic which lies in the bight of Africa and forms part of the West Central Region of Africa. It has a population of 1.3 million (2002 and an area of 267,667 square kilometers. Libreville is the capital city and other major towns are Franceville and Lambarene and Port-Gentil. The official language is French and the local currency is the CFA-franc.

The international time zone for Gabon is GMT +1. Gabon has an international airport at Libreville as well as five domestic airports and more than 100 smaller public and private airfields.

The country has one railway, the Trans-Gabon line. The poor road network is being improved and Gabon benefits from its ports and harbors which are central to the country's oil industry.

Gabon is rich in natural resources, but poor fiscal management has hindered the economy in the past. The government is taking steps to improve this situation and has implemented various structural reforms, including the adoption of the new labor and forestry codes. Improvements in governance and the civil service have also been made.

The oil industry is key to Gabon's economy and crude oil is its most important natural resource. In particular, the upstream oil industry is its major source of foreign exchange, accounting for the majority of all exports. The downstream oil industry is also well-developed with an oil refinery at Port Gentil and a number of international oil companies active in the distribution and marketing of petroleum products. Manganese mining is another key industry.

The country also has a wealth of agricultural, fishery, timber and manganese resources. But most of the population relies on subsistence farming.

(Xinhua News Agency February 1, 2004)