Central Africa
Cameroon
| AAQS region: | Central | |
| Area in km2: | 475 442 | |
| Capital: | Yaounde | |
| Approximate population: | 16 000 000 | |
| Languages: | English, French, many local languages | |
| Currency: | Franc (CFAF) | |
| Brief history: | There are high plateaus and Mountains which are covered with grass savannah and merges into arid plains bordering Lake Chad. The southerly mountains and coastal lowlands are hot and steamy, covered with forest. Eastwards, this is replaced by drier and more open country. Aluminium, bauxite, cocoa, coffee, gas, oil and timber make up most of Cameroon’s exports. This country is the largest producer of logs in Africa |
Central Africa Republic
| AAQS region: | Central | |
| Area in km2: | 622 984 | |
| Capital: | Bangui | |
| Approximate population: | 3 500 000 | |
| Languages: | French, Sango | |
| Currency: | Franc (CFAF) | |
| Brief history: | It consist of upland, which is dry savannah grassland in the east, but wet and forested in the south-west |
Chad
| AAQS region: | Central | |
| Area in km2: | 1 284 000 | |
| Capital: | N’Djamena | |
| Approximate population: | 8 500 000 | |
| Languages: | French, Arabic, many local languages | |
| Currency: | Franc (CFAF) | |
| Brief history: | Many people live in in the south, where there is enough rain to grow millet and similar crops. The north of the country is desert suitable for nomadic grazing. Lake Chad provides important fisheries. Due to serious droughts in recent years it had to depend on international aid to survive the crises. There are oil discoveries which may transform this situation |
Congo
| AAQS region: | Central | |
| Area in km2: | 342 000 | |
| Capital: | Brazzaville | |
| Approximate population: | 2 800 000 | |
| Languages: | French, Kikongo, Lingala, other local languages | |
| Currency: | Franc (CFAF) | |
| Brief history: | It receives plentiful rain and dense forest covers much of the south. Northern plains have extensive swamps and seasonal flooding. Oil is the main source of export revenue. Also timber, sugar and coffee are significant. A large section of the population are subsistence farmers |
Democratic Republic of Congo
| AAQS region: | Central | |
| Area in km2: | 2 344 885 | |
| Capital: | Kinshasa | |
| Approximate population: | 42 000 000 | |
| Languages: | French, many Sudanese & Bantu dialects | |
| Currency: | Franc (CFAF) | |
| Brief history: | It was formerly Zaire. A huge land of rivers and forests, rising eastwards to open savannah and mountains along the Rift valley. The country has very rich mineral resources. Diamonds and copper are the major exports followed by coffee, cobalt and crude oil |
Equatorial Guinea
| AAQS region: | Central | |
| Area in km2: | 28 051 | |
| Capital: | Malabo | |
| Approximate population: | 500 000 | |
| Languages: | Spanish, Fang, many local languages | |
| Currency: | Franc (CFAF) | |
| Brief history: | This is a small country which gained its independence from Spain in 1968. Oil production has soared and a new refinery will provide income and employment |
Gabon
| AAQS region: | Central | |
| Area in km2: | 267 667 | |
| Capital: | Libreville | |
| Approximate population: | 1 000 000 | |
| Languages: | French, Fang, Bantu dialects | |
| Currency: | Franc (CFAF) | |
| Brief history: | Its capital city, founded in 1849 as a home for freed African slaves, houses a quarter of Gabon’s population. Since independence from France in 1960, uranium, manganese and oil have generated considerable wealth. |
Sao Tome & Principe
| AAQS region: | Central | |
| Area in km2: | 1001 | |
| Capital: | Sao Tome | |
| Approximate population: | 160 000 | |
| Languages: | Portuguese, many local dialects | |
| Currency: | Dobra (Db) | |
| Brief history: | The two islands of Sao Tome and Principle were ruled from 1740 by the Portuguese, who established cocoa plantations. After independence, production declined due to mismanagement, but it has now been revived |