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Events in the year 2001 in Gabon .
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Events in the year 2001 in Gabon .
Gabon, officially the Gabonese Republic, is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo on the east and south, and the Gulf of Guinea to the west. It has an area of nearly 270,000 square kilometres (100,000 sq mi) and its population is estimated at 2.3 million people. There are coastal plains, mountains, and a savanna in the east.
Little is known of the history of Gabon prior to European contact. Bantu migrants settled the area beginning in the 14th century. Portuguese explorers and traders arrived in the area in the late 15th century. The coast subsequently became a center of the transatlantic slave trade with European slave traders arriving to the region in the 16th century. In 1839 and 1841, France established a protectorate over the coast. In 1849, captives released from a captured slave ship founded Libreville. In 1862–1887, France expanded its control including the interior of the state, and took full sovereignty. In 1910 Gabon became part of French Equatorial Africa and in 1960, Gabon became independent.
Politics of Gabon takes place in a framework of a republic whereby the President of Gabon is head of state and in effect, also the head of government, since he appoints the prime minister and his cabinet. The government is divided into three branches: the Executive headed by the prime minister, the legislative that is formed by the two chambers of parliament. The judicial branch, like other two branches, is technically independent and equal to other three branches, although in practice, since its judges are appointed by the president, it is beholden to the same president. Since independence the party system is dominated by the conservative Gabonese Democratic Party.
Libreville is the capital and largest city of Gabon. Occupying 65 square kilometres (25 sq mi) in the northwestern province of Estuaire, Libreville is a port on the Komo River, near the Gulf of Guinea. As of the 2013 census, its population was 703,904.
The president of Gabon is the head of state of Gabon. A total of three people have served as president since the post was formed in 1960.
El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba was a Gabonese politician who was the second President of Gabon for 42 years, from 1967 until his death in 2009. Omar Bongo was promoted to key positions as a young official under Gabon's first President Léon M'ba in the 1960s, before being elected Vice-President in his own right in 1966. In 1967, he succeeded M'ba to become the second Gabon President, upon the latter's death.
The Gabonese Democratic Party is the ruling and dominant political party of Gabon. Between 1968 and 1990 it was the sole legal party.
Jean Ping is a Gabonese diplomat and politician who served as Chair of the African Union Commission from 2008 to 2012. Born to a Chinese father and Gabonese mother, he is the first individual of Chinese descent to lead the executive branch of the African Union.
The National Woodcutters Rally–Rally for Gabon is a political party in Gabon.
Elections in Gabon take place within the framework of a presidential multi-party democracy with the Gabonese Democratic Party, in power since independence, as the dominant party. The President and National Assembly are directly elected, whilst the Senate is indirectly elected.
Ali Bongo Ondimba, sometimes known as Ali Bongo, is a Gabonese politician who is the third and current president of Gabon since October 2009.
Casimir Marie Ange Oyé-Mba was a Gabonese politician. After serving as Governor of the Bank of Central African States (BEAC) from 1978 to 1990, Oyé-Mba was Prime Minister of Gabon from 3 May 1990 to 2 November 1994. Subsequently, he remained in the government as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs from 1994 to 1999, Minister of State for Planning from 1999 to 2007, and Minister of State for Mines and Oil from 2007 to 2009.
The Senate (Sénat) is the upper house of the Parliament of Gabon. It has 67 members, elected in single-seat constituencies by local and départemental councillors or appointed by the president for a six-year term. Beginning with the 2009 election, some constituencies elect two senators.
Gabon – United States relations are bilateral relations between Gabon and the United States.
Presidential elections were held in Gabon on 6 December 1998. Incumbent President Omar Bongo, in power since 1967, sought a seven-year term against five other candidates. It was Gabon's second multi-party presidential election and, despite low turnout and polling problems, Bongo won the election with 66.88% of the vote.
Rose Francine Rogombé was a Gabonese politician who was Acting President of Gabon from June 2009 to October 2009, following the death of long-time President Omar Bongo. She constitutionally succeeded Bongo due to her role as President of the Senate, a post to which she was elected in February 2009. She was a lawyer by profession and a member of the Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG). Rogombé was the first female head of state of Gabon. After her interim presidency, she returned to her post as President of the Senate.
Early presidential elections were held in Gabon on 30 August 2009. They took place due to the death of incumbent President Omar Bongo on 8 June, after more than 41 years as the sole president of Gabon. While the constitution stated that interim President Rose Francine Rogombé should organise elections within 30 to 45 days, the Constitutional Court accepted the government's request for a delay due to the circumstances.
Elections to the French National Assembly were held in Gabon and Moyen Congo as part of the wider French elections election on 10 November 1946.
Presidential elections were held in Gabon on 27 August 2016. Incumbent President Ali Bongo Ondimba ran for re-election and was challenged by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean Ping. On 31 August, the electoral commission proclaimed Bongo's re-election with a margin of less than two percent. Large protests broke out in the capital Libreville after the results were announced. Irregularities such as Haut-Ogoou showing that 99.9% of the electorate had voted and Bongo had received 95.5% of the votes led to observers questioning the conduct of the election.
 Years in Gabon (1960–present) | |
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