Middle Africa > Central African Republic > People, Geography and History

This information is current as of Monday, January 5, 2009 - 11:00:08 CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC March 25, 2008 This Travel Warning provides an update on the security situation in the Central African Republic (CAR). American citizens traveling to or residing in the CAR should exercise extreme caution. This supersedes the Travel Warning for the CAR issued August 9, 2007. American citizens who travel to or reside in the Central African Republic (CAR) should exercise extreme caution, especially outside the capital city of Bangui.&... Read this Article

Global Cost of Living Rank

Location: Bangui
Rank: 849 of 1082 monitored. Click for Detail

CIA Background Information

The former French colony of Ubangi-Shari became the Central African Republic upon independence in 1960. After three tumultuous decades of misrule - mostly by military governments - civilian rule was established in 1993 and lasted for one decade. President Ange-Felix PATASSE's civilian government was plagued by unrest, and in March 2003 he was deposed in a military coup led by General Francois BOZIZE, who established a transitional government. Though the government has the tacit support of civil society groups and the main parties, a wide field of candidates contested the municipal, legislative, and presidential elections held in March and May of 2005 in which General BOZIZE was affirmed as president. The government still does not fully control the countryside, where pockets of lawlessness persist. Unrest in neighboring nations, Chad, Sudan, and the DRC, continues to affect stability in the Central African Republic as well.

U.S. State Department Description

Country Description: The Central African Republic is one of the world’s least developed nations and has experienced several periods of political instability since independence from France in 1960. Despite an on-going peace process and the presence of a democratically-elected government in the capital, Bangui, rebels still control large portions of the northern provinces in the country, and highway bandits prey on civilians and travelers in much of western CAR. In the country’s Dzanga-Sangha National Park in the southwest, facilities for tourists are being developed but remain limited. Read the Department of State Background Notes on the CAR ... Read this Article

About the People

People Nationality: Noun and adjective--Central African(s). Population (July 2007 est.): 4,369,038. Annual growth rate (2007 est.): 1.505%. Ethnic groups: More than 80; Baya 33%, Banda 27%, Sara 10%, Mandja 13%, Mboum 7%, M'baka 4%, Yakoma 4%, other 2%. Religions: Protestant 25%, Roman Catholic 25%, Muslim 15%, indigenous beliefs 35%. Languages: Sangho (official), Sangho (national). Education: Years compulsory--6. Enrollment--primary school 75%. Literacy--50%. Health: Infant mortality rate--115 deaths/1,000. Life ... Read this Article

Statistics at a Glance

Location: Central African Republic is Central Africa, north of Democratic Republic of the Congo See Map

Capital: name: Bangui
geographic coordinates: 4 22 N, 18 35 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Currency (Code): Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States ...More

Area: total: 622,984 sq km , land: 622,984 sq km , water: 0 sq km ( 1 sq km is approximately 0.4 sq miles or 250 acres)

Area Comparison: slightly smaller than Texas

Elevation Extremes: lowest point: Oubangui River 335 m , highest point: Mont Ngaoui 1,420 m (1 meter = 3.28 feet)

Population: 4,444,330
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2008 est.)

Unemployment: 8% (23% for Bangui) (2001 est.)

Ethnic Groups: Baya 33%, Banda 27%, Mandjia 13%, Sara 10%, Mboum 7%, M'Baka 4%, Yakoma 4%, other 2%

Religion: indigenous beliefs 35%, Protestant 25%, Roman Catholic 25%, Muslim 15%
note: animistic beliefs and practices strongly influence the Christian majority

Languages: French (official), Sangho (lingua franca and national language), tribal languages

More Statistics

History

History The C.A.R. appears to have been settled from at least the 7th century on by overlapping empires, including the Kanem-Bornou, Ouaddai, Baguirmi, and Dafour groups based in Lake Chad and the Upper Nile. Later, various sultanates claimed present-day C.A.R., using the entire Oubangui region as ... Read this Article

Geographic Info for Central African Republic :

Geography Area: 622,984 sq. km. (242,000 sq. mi.); slightly smaller than Texas. Cities: Capital--Bangui (pop. 690,000). Other cities--Berberati (56,867), Bouar (39,676), Bambari (32,603), Bangassou (24,450), Bossangoa (31,723), Mbaiki (16,901), and Carnot (31,324). Terrain: Rolling plain 600 meters-700 meters (1,980 ft.-2,310 ft.) above sea level; scattered hills in northeast and southwest. Climate: Tropical, ranging from humid equatorial in the south to Sahelo-Sudanese ... Read this Article

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