Sub-Saharan Africa · Upper middle income
Gabon: the economy in numbers
Per person: $8,263, or $22,218 at purchasing power parity. Population: 2.59 million (2025).
$21.4B+2.5%real GDP growth, 2025
GDP in 2025, current US dollars: #131 of 204 economies. IMF forecast for 2026: +3.0%.
GDP per capita
$8,263
2025 · #106 of 204
GDP per capita, PPP
$22,218
2025 · #99 of 197
Inflation
1.8%
2025 · IMF forecast 2026: 0.8%
Government debt
84.2%
2025 · % of GDP, general government
Population
2.59M
2025 · #142 of 217
Unemployment
20.2%
2025 · ILO estimate
Life expectancy
68.5 years
2024
GDP
Adjusted for US inflation, in 2025 dollars: $1.54 billion in 1960, $21.4 billion in 2025.
GDP per capita
In 2025 dollars: $3,008 per person in 1960, $8,263 in 2025.
GDP per capitaGDP per capita, PPP (international $)
Real GDP growth
Average over 2016–2025: 1.8% a year. Years of falling GDP since 1961: 13 of 65.
Source: International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook (October 2026)
Inflation
Consumer prices rose by 71.3% from 2000 to 2025. Highest annual inflation: 36.1% in 1994.
Source: International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook (October 2026)
Government debt, % of GDP
Highest since 1990: 90.1% of GDP in 1993. IMF forecast for 2031: 123.8%.
Population
1960: 512,316 · 2025: 2.59 million.
Unemployment rate
1991: 17.2% · 2025: 20.2%.
Life expectancy at birth
1960: 46.4 years · 2024: 68.5 years.
Exports of goods and services
1960: 34.2% · 2025: 55.5%.
Data by year
Show the year-by-year table
| Year | GDP | GDP per capita | Per capita, PPP | Real growth | Inflation | Gov. debt, % GDP | Population | Unemployment | Life expectancy | Exports, % GDP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2031 | 2.9%f | 2.2%f | 123.8%f | |||||||
| 2030 | 2.9%f | 2.1%f | 116.8%f | |||||||
| 2029 | 2.9%f | 2.1%f | 109.5%f | |||||||
| 2028 | 2.8%f | 2.1%f | 101.9%f | |||||||
| 2027 | 2.9%f | 1.9%f | 92.4%f | |||||||
| 2026 | 3.0%f | 0.8%f | 83.7%f | |||||||
| 2025 | $21.4B | $8,263 | $22,218 | 2.5% | 1.8% | 84.2% | 2.59M | 20.2% | 55.5% | |
| 2024 | $20.9B | $8,230 | $21,541 | 3.4% | 1.2% | 70.9% | 2.54M | 20.1% | 68.5 | 64.6% |
| 2023 | $19.4B | $7,803 | $20,773 | 2.4% | 3.6% | 70.6% | 2.48M | 20.2% | 68.3 | 63.7% |
| 2022 | $20.4B | $8,409 | $19,989 | 3.0% | 4.2% | 65.6% | 2.43M | 20.3% | 67.7 | 67.6% |
| 2021 | $19.4B | $8,181 | $18,524 | 1.5% | 1.1% | 72.9% | 2.38M | 21.2% | 67.1 | 60.9% |
| 2020 | $15.3B | $6,606 | $14,477 | −1.8% | 1.4% | 83.0% | 2.32M | 21.3% | 67.1 | 47.6% |
| 2019 | $16.9B | $7,441 | $15,950 | 3.9% | 2.5% | 59.8% | 2.27M | 20.4% | 67.3 | 51.4% |
| 2018 | $16.9B | $7,624 | $15,432 | 0.8% | 4.7% | 62.3% | 2.21M | 20.5% | 67.0 | 54.3% |
| 2017 | $14.9B | $6,922 | $14,797 | 0.5% | 2.7% | 62.9% | 2.16M | 20.3% | 66.8 | 50.2% |
| 2016 | $14B | $6,677 | $13,998 | 2.1% | 2.1% | 64.5% | 2.1M | 20.1% | 66.6 | 44.0% |
| 2015 | $14.4B | $7,047 | $14,306 | 3.9% | −0.3% | 44.7% | 2.04M | 19.9% | 66.3 | 46.0% |
| 2014 | $18.2B | $9,201 | $14,854 | 4.3% | 4.7% | 34.1% | 1.98M | 19.9% | 66.1 | 44.5% |
| 2013 | $17.6B | $9,198 | $14,498 | 5.6% | 0.5% | 31.1% | 1.91M | 19.7% | 65.8 | 57.4% |
| 2012 | $17.2B | $9,297 | $14,620 | 5.3% | 2.7% | 21.4% | 1.85M | 19.7% | 65.4 | 61.0% |
| 2011 | $18.2B | $10,219 | $14,784 | 7.1% | 1.3% | 21.4% | 1.78M | 19.9% | 65.1 | 61.7% |
| 2010 | $14.4B | $8,357 | $14,015 | 7.1% | 1.5% | 21.3% | 1.72M | 20.4% | 64.7 | 57.7% |
| 2009 | $12.1B | $7,291 | $13,384 | 0.1% | 1.9% | 26.0% | 1.66M | 19.8% | 64.4 | 52.2% |
| 2008 | $15.6B | $9,689 | $13,734 | −3.3% | 5.3% | 20.1% | 1.61M | 19.2% | 64.0 | 62.2% |
| 2007 | $12.5B | $8,004 | $14,391 | 6.0% | 5.0% | 39.2% | 1.56M | 18.3% | 63.6 | 58.5% |
| 2006 | $10.3B | $6,847 | $13,637 | −2.8% | −1.4% | 34.9% | 1.51M | 17.8% | 63.3 | 60.6% |
| 2005 | $9.58B | $6,548 | $14,028 | 2.7% | 3.7% | 41.7% | 1.46M | 16.9% | 63.0 | 60.0% |
| 2004 | $7.77B | $5,466 | $13,638 | 0.7% | 0.4% | 60.3% | 1.42M | 17.1% | 62.7 | 55.0% |
| 2003 | $6.51B | $4,711 | $13,564 | 2.2% | 2.2% | 70.2% | 1.38M | 17.1% | 62.5 | 51.9% |
| 2002 | $5.34B | $3,966 | $13,369 | −0.2% | 0.0% | 81.1% | 1.35M | 17.4% | 62.2 | 52.6% |
| 2001 | $5.02B | $3,836 | $13,556 | 2.1% | 2.1% | 81.0% | 1.31M | 17.8% | 62.0 | 54.3% |
| 2000 | $5.08B | $3,983 | $13,326 | −1.9% | 0.5% | 72.5% | 1.28M | 17.8% | 61.8 | 69.0% |
| 1999 | $4.66B | $3,751 | $13,629 | −8.9% | −1.9% | 73.1% | 1.24M | 17.6% | 61.7 | 59.6% |
| 1998 | $4.48B | $3,700 | $15,138 | 3.5% | 1.4% | 87.6% | 1.21M | 17.2% | 61.5 | 47.4% |
| 1997 | $5.33B | $4,509 | $14,837 | 5.7% | 4.0% | 57.0% | 1.18M | 17.2% | 61.4 | 61.3% |
| 1996 | $5.69B | $4,943 | $14,147 | 3.6% | 0.7% | 64.5% | 1.15M | 17.3% | 61.3 | 62.7% |
| 1995 | $4.96B | $4,415 | $13,750 | 5.0% | 9.6% | 73.4% | 1.12M | 17.4% | 61.3 | 59.4% |
| 1994 | $4.19B | $3,828 | $13,164 | 3.7% | 36.1% | 71.3% | 1.09M | 17.8% | 61.2 | 61.7% |
| 1993 | $4.38B | $4,106 | $12,757 | 3.9% | 0.5% | 90.1% | 1.07M | 17.8% | 61.1 | 48.8% |
| 1992 | $5.59B | $5,386 | $12,312 | −3.1% | −9.5% | 87.9% | 1.04M | 17.7% | 61.0 | 46.1% |
| 1991 | $5.4B | $5,345 | $12,760 | 6.1% | −11.7% | 89.3% | 1.01M | 17.2% | 60.9 | 47.3% |
| 1990 | $5.95B | $6,051 | $11,952 | 5.2% | 7.7% | 90.0% | 984K | 60.7 | 46.0% | |
| 1989 | $4.19B | $4,374 | 8.5% | 6.7% | 957K | 60.6 | 45.8% | |||
| 1988 | $3.83B | $4,119 | 12.8% | −8.8% | 931K | 60.4 | 36.7% | |||
| 1987 | $3.28B | $3,624 | −17.1% | −0.9% | 905K | 60.2 | 42.7% | |||
| 1986 | $3.4B | $3,865 | −0.8% | 6.3% | 881K | 60.0 | 35.2% | |||
| 1985 | $3.34B | $3,898 | −2.3% | 7.4% | 857K | 59.7 | 62.6% | |||
| 1984 | $3.56B | $4,273 | 7.5% | 5.9% | 834K | 59.3 | 59.1% | |||
| 1983 | $3.39B | $4,182 | 5.6% | 10.7% | 811K | 59.0 | 61.3% | |||
| 1982 | $3.62B | $4,584 | −3.1% | 16.7% | 789K | 58.6 | 61.6% | |||
| 1981 | $3.86B | $5,026 | 5.1% | 8.7% | 768K | 58.3 | 63.4% | |||
| 1980 | $4.28B | $5,718 | 2.6% | 12.3% | 748K | 57.9 | 64.7% | |||
| 1979 | $3.03B | $4,155 | 0.5% | 8.0% | 729K | 57.4 | 58.5% | |||
| 1978 | $2.39B | $3,360 | −24.0% | 10.8% | 711K | 57.0 | 61.8% | |||
| 1977 | $2.81B | $4,048 | −12.6% | 13.9% | 694K | 56.5 | 51.6% | |||
| 1976 | $3.01B | $4,441 | 35.6% | 20.2% | 678K | 56.0 | 45.6% | |||
| 1975 | $2.16B | $3,258 | 19.2% | 28.5% | 662K | 55.5 | 49.5% | |||
| 1974 | $1.54B | $2,384 | 39.5% | 12.1% | 648K | 54.9 | 57.5% | |||
| 1973 | $723M | $1,140 | 10.2% | 6.2% | 634K | 54.4 | 58.8% | |||
| 1972 | $431M | $693 | 11.3% | 3.5% | 621K | 53.8 | 73.1% | |||
| 1971 | $382M | $627 | 10.3% | 3.9% | 608K | 53.3 | 66.3% | |||
| 1970 | $324M | $543 | 8.7% | 3.8% | 596K | 52.7 | 49.7% | |||
| 1969 | $318M | $545 | 8.1% | 3.0% | 583K | 52.1 | 54.7% | |||
| 1968 | $294M | $515 | 2.5% | 2.3% | 572K | 51.5 | 48.4% | |||
| 1967 | $272M | $482 | 4.1% | 2.0% | 563K | 50.9 | 48.1% | |||
| 1966 | $246M | $443 | 4.5% | 3.6% | 554K | 50.3 | 39.7% | |||
| 1965 | $226M | $415 | 8.3% | 2.4% | 546K | 49.7 | 43.2% | |||
| 1964 | $216M | $400 | 4.6% | 3.3% | 539K | 49.0 | 41.9% | |||
| 1963 | $154M | $291 | 6.1% | 7.2% | 531K | 48.4 | 47.1% | |||
| 1962 | $183M | $348 | 7.4% | 525K | 47.8 | 31.7% | ||||
| 1961 | $168M | $323 | 14.8% | 518K | 47.1 | 31.2% | ||||
| 1960 | $141M | $276 | 512K | 46.4 | 34.2% |
e: IMF estimate; f: IMF forecast.
Nearby economies in Sub-Saharan Africa
Nearest by distance between capitals, with GDP per capita.
São Tomé and Príncipe
Equatorial Guinea
Cameroon
Republic of the Congo
DR Congo
Nigeria
Benin
Angola
Angola · Benin · Botswana · Burkina Faso · Burundi · Cabo Verde · Cameroon · Central African Republic · Chad · Comoros · Côte d’Ivoire · DR Congo · Equatorial Guinea · Eritrea · Eswatini · Ethiopia · Gabon · Gambia · Ghana · Guinea · Guinea-Bissau · Kenya · Lesotho · Liberia · Madagascar · Malawi · Mali · Mauritania · Mauritius · Mozambique · Namibia · Niger · Nigeria · Republic of the Congo · Rwanda · Senegal · Seychelles · Sierra Leone · Somalia · South Africa · South Sudan · Sudan · São Tomé and Príncipe · Tanzania · Togo · Uganda · Zambia · Zimbabwe
Rankings
GDP by country · GDP per capita · Real GDP growth · Inflation by country · Government debt to GDP · Stock market to GDP · Population by country · Unemployment by country
Data and methods
- GDP: gross domestic product in current US dollars, converted from the local currency at market exchange rates (World Bank); not adjusted for inflation.
- Purchasing power parity (PPP): GDP per person in international dollars, which buy the same basket of goods and services in every country. It compares living standards across countries in the same year; it is not adjusted for inflation over time.
- In 2025 dollars: the charts can remove US inflation (US consumer price index, annual average) so that dollar amounts from different years compare in today's money. Exchange rate swings still show.
- Growth and inflation: World Bank data (calendar years). Years the World Bank does not cover yet, and the estimates and forecasts, come from the IMF World Economic Outlook (October 2026): its forecasts start in 2026, and the years after a country's last actual year are IMF estimates.
- Government debt: gross debt of the general government (central, state and local government and social security funds) as a percentage of GDP, IMF. The World Bank's central government debt is narrower and covers fewer countries.
- Stock market capitalization: the end-of-year value of domestic companies listed on the country's exchanges (World Federation of Exchanges via the World Bank; before 2016, Standard & Poor's), as a percentage of GDP: the “Buffett indicator”. Investment funds are excluded, and so are companies listed only abroad; companies from elsewhere that list on an exchange count for its country (Hong Kong lists many mainland Chinese companies).
- Unemployment: ILO modeled estimates (share of the labor force); comparable across countries, but they may differ from national figures.
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)
Source: International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook (October 2026)