People & Society
Gabon
Literacy
male
90.8% (2021 est.)
female
87.1% (2021 est.)
total population
88.9% (2021 est.)
Languages
Official language is French, with other languages including Fang, Myene, Nzebi, Bapounou/Eschira, and Bandjabi.
Religions
Protestantism accounts for 46.4% of the population (with the Revival Church at 37% and other Protestant denominations at 9.4%), Roman Catholicism comprises 29.8%, other Christian faiths make up 4%, Islam represents 10.8%, traditional/animist beliefs are at 1.1%, other religions account for 0.9%, and 7% identify as having no religion (estimates from 2019-21).
Sex ratio
at birth
1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years
1.11 male(s)/female
total population
1.07 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
1.03 male(s)/female
Birth rate
25.51 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
5.44 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
22.5 years
total
22.3 years (2025 est.)
female
21.5 years
Population
male
1,299,085
total
2,513,738 (2025 est.)
female
1,214,653
Nationality
noun
Gabonese (singular and plural)
adjective
Gabonese
Urbanization
urban population
91% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
2.27% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
34.6% (male 429,133/female 421,120)
15-64 years
61.1% (male 787,480/female 711,913)
65 years and over
4.3% (2024 est.) (male 53,410/female 52,049)
Ethnic groups
Fang constitutes 23.5%, Shira-Punu'Vii is at 20.6%, Nzabi-Duma makes up 11.2%, Mbede-Teke is 5.6%, Myene is 4.4%, Kota-Kele stands at 4.3%, Okande-Tsogho is at 1.6%, other groups comprise 12.6%, and foreigners account for 16.2% (estimates for 2021).
Child marriage
men married by age 18
4.8% (2021)
women married by age 15
2.9% (2021)
women married by age 18
13.3% (2021)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
63 (2025 est.)
youth dependency ratio
55.8 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio
13.9 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
7.2 (2025 est.)
Physician density
0.52 physicians/1,000 population (2022)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
2.7% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
9.6% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
3.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Total fertility rate
3.16 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: rural
rural: 54.9% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 86.9% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 90.2% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 45.1% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 13.1% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 9.8% of population (2022 est.)
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
2.3% of GDP (2023 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget)
13.6% national budget (2023 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
29.7 deaths/1,000 live births
total
26 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
24 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
2.35% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1.56 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
The population, which is relatively small, is distributed in clusters across the nation; the capital city, Libreville, located on the Atlantic coast in the northwest, serves as the primary urban center, as illustrated in the accompanying population distribution map.
Life expectancy at birth
male
68.6 years
female
72.1 years
total population
70.4 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
233 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: rural
rural: 55.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 78.9% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 81.3% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 44.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 21.1% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 18.7% of population (2022 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer
5.31 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine
0.62 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total
6.47 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits
0.5 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols
0.04 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Major urban areas - population
870,000 LIBREVILLE (capital) (2023)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
15% (2016)
Mother's mean age at first birth
19.6 years (2012 est.)
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
48.5% (2020 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
5.4% (2020 est.)