Central African Republic (240,534 sq mi/622,983 sq km; 1995 estimated population 3,400,000; 2004 estimated population 3,742,482), central Africa; (cap.) Bangui. The landlocked nation is bordered by Chad in the N, Sudan in the E, Congo and Congo Republic in the S, and Cameroon in the W. The country is divided into two economic prefectures, Gribingui, and Sangha, and fourteen prefectures: Bamingui-Bangoran, Basse-Kotto, Haute-Kotto, Haute-M'bomou, Haute-Sangha, Kémo-Gribingui, Lobaye, M'Bomou, Nana-Mambéré, Ombella-M'Poko, Ouaka, Ouham, Ouham-Pendé, and Vakaga.
Geography
The terrain consists of a 2,000 ft/610 m–3,000 ft/914 m undulating plateau, mainly covered by savanna; dense tropical forests in the S; and a semidesert area in the E. The Bongo Massif in the NE reaches an elev. of c.4,500 ft/1,372 m. The country is drained by numerous rivers, but only the Ubangi is commercially navigable. Rainfall is heavy in the S. There are no railroads, and the network of all-weather roads is inadequate; rivers are the chief means of transportation.
Population
Considerable migration of inhabitants from urban to rural areas has led to the uneven distribution of the population, which is low relative to that of other African nations (the E portion of the republic is largely uninhabited). The population consists of approximately eighty ethnic groups, the chief ones being the Mangia-Baya, the Banda, the Mbaka, the Sara, and the Azande. French is the official language, but Sango is used as a lingua franca. Roughly one-quarter of the population practices traditional religions, about one-half is Christian, and most of the remainder are Muslim.
Economy
The overwhelming majority of the people is engaged in subsistence agriculture, although only about 3% of the land is under cultivation. Cassava, millet, rice, and groundnuts are the main food crops. The principal cash crops and exports are cotton, tobacco, and coffee; cocoa, rubber, and palm products are raised in the SW. Timber is also an important product for export. Cattle are raised in the W portion of the country. Mining, formerly limited to diamonds (another leading export), has become increasingly important with the extraction of uranium in Bakouma region, begun in 1972. Industry is limited to food and mineral processing and to the production of light consumer goods; there is also some gold mining. Inadequate transportation has been a major obstacle to the country’s economic development. The Central African Republic trades chiefly with France. Most exports are shipped via Pointe-Noire (Congo Republic), more than 1,100 mi/1,770 km away.
History to World War II
Between the 16th and the 19th centuries, much of the region was subject to devastating slave raids. The Baya people, seeking refuge from the Fulani of N Cameroon, arrived in what is now the Central African Republic in the early 19th century; the Banda, fleeing the Muslim Arab slave raiders of Sudan, came later in the century. French expeditions, pushing out from the Congo, made treaties with local tribal chiefs and occupied the area in 1887. It was organized in 1894 as the colony of Ubangi-Shari and was united administratively with Chad in 1906 (which later became a separate French territory) and incorporated into French Equatorial Afrrica in 1910. Much of the region was leased to French concessionaires, whose fostering of forced labor and other abuses sparked rebellions in 1928, 1935, and 1946.
History World War II to 1990
The population of Ubangi-Shari actively supported the Free French forces during World War II. In 1946 the colony was given its own territorial assembly and representation in the French parliament. In the French constitutional referendum of 1958 the country opted for membership in the French Community. It received autonomy and took its present name. Full independence was attained on August 13, 1960, under President David Dacko. (The nationalist leader Barthélémy Boganda, founder of the country’s only political party, the Mouvement d’évolution sociale de l’Afrique noire [MESAN], had been killed in a plane crash in 1959.) The Central African Republic had a parliamentary government until December 1965, when a military coup led by Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa (Boganda’s nephew) overthrew the Dacko regime, dissolved the national assembly, and abrogated the constitution. The military regime, with Bokassa as both president and head of MESAN, dealt harshly with dissenters. Despite the brutal nature of Bokassa’s regime, France continued to invest heavily in the country’s economic development in order to maintain the uranium trade. France financed much of Bokassa’s coronation in 1977; in that ceremony Bokassa crowned himself emperor and renamed the country the Central African Empire. His excesses aroused intense public opposition and after a government-ordered massacre the French military intervened. In a 1979 coup, Bokassa was removed from power. Dacko was reelected as president (1981) but was overthrown by General André Kolingba in a bloodless coup. Kolingba remained president, head of the military, and the leader of the nation’s only legal political party under the 1986 constitution.
History 1990 to Present
In 1991 the national assembly amended the constitution to allow multiple parties. The first free elections were held on August 22, 1993, with Ange Félix Patasse, leader of the Liberation of the Central African People (MLPC), emerging as the winner. In 1994, a number of committees were formed to draft a new constitution which included provisions to decentralize government through regional assemblies. The new constitution was adopted in January 1995. Soon after, the Patasse government began to face allegations of corruption and incompetence. Public-sector employees were denied salaries, prompting an outcry from workers. The opposition parties launched peaceful demonstrations to protest government intransigence. In mid-May 1996, French troops were deployed to protect the Patasse administration and the next month, the government and opposition agreed to form a government of unity to reduce presidential power and to promote political and economic reform. In 1997, France announced it would close its military base of Bouar and reduce the size of its forces in Bangui. A military coup led by General Francois Bozize deposed the civilian government of President Ange-Felix Patasse in March 2003. The Central African Republic is an ACP (African, Caribbean, and Pacific) member of the EU and belongs to the nine-nation Central African States Development Bank. It also holds membership in a monetary union with other equatorial African states and Cameroon, all of whom share a central bank and common currency. Among the country’s educational institutions are a university at Bangui (founded 1970) and two agricultural colleges.
Government
Since a coup in March 2003 the chief of state has been President Francois Bozize. The head of government, appointed by the president is Prime Minister Celestin Gaombalet.
