The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture and cotton. Cotton accounts for 40% of Benin's GDP and roughly 80% of official export receipts. There is also production of textiles, palm products, and cocoa beans. Maize (corn), beans, rice, peanuts, cashews, pineapples, cassava, yams, and other various tubers are grown for local subsistence. Benin began producing a modest quantity of offshore oil in October 1982. Production ceased in recent years but exploration of new sites is ongoing.
The Central African Republic (CAR), formerly known as Ubangi-Shari, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the south, the Republic of the Congo to the southwest, and Cameroon to the west. The Central African Republic covers a land area of about 620,000 square kilometres (240,000 sq mi). As of 2021, it had an estimated population of around 5.5 million. As of 2023, the Central African Republic is the scene of a civil war, which is ongoing since 2012.
The history of the Central African Republic is roughly composed of four distinct periods. The earliest period of settlement began around 10,000 years ago when nomadic people first began to settle, farm and fish in the region. The next period began around 10,000 years prior.
The economy of the Central African Republic is $2.321 billion by gross domestic product as of 2019, with an estimated annual per capita income of just $805 as measured by purchasing power parity in 2019.
Telecommunications in the Central African Republic includes radio, television, fixed and mobile telephones, and the Internet as well as the postal system.
The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has declined drastically around the 1980s, despite being home to vast potential in natural resources and mineral wealth; their gross domestic product is $69.474 billion as of 2023.
The economy of Mauritania is still largely based on agriculture and livestock, even though most of the nomads and many subsistence farmers were forced into the cities by recurring droughts in the 1970s and 1980s.
Somalia is classified by the United Nations as a least developed country, with the majority of its population being dependent on agriculture and livestock for their livelihood. The economy of Somalia is $4.918 billion by gross domestic product as of 2020. For 1994, the CIA estimated it at purchasing power parity to be approximately $3.3 billion. In 2001, it was estimated to be $4.1 billion. By 2009, the CIA estimated that it had grown to $5.731 billion, with a projected real growth rate of 2.6%. In 2014, the International Monetary Fund estimated economic activity to have expanded by 3.7% primarily. This expansion was driven by growth in the primary sector and the secondary sector. According to a 2007 British Chambers of Commerce report, the private sector has experienced growth, particularly in the service sector. Unlike the pre-civil war period, when most services and the industrial sector were government-run, there has been substantial, albeit unmeasured, private investment in commercial activities. The investment has been largely financed by the Somali diaspora, and includes trade and marketing, money transfer services, transportation, communications, fishery equipment, airlines, telecommunications, education, health, construction and hotels.
The Visegrád Group is a cultural and political alliance of four Central European countries: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia. The alliance aims to advance co-operation in military, economic, cultural and energy affairs, and to further their integration with the EU. All four states are also members of the European Union (EU), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and the Bucharest Nine (B9).
Bangui is the capital and largest city of the Central African Republic. It was established as a French outpost in 1889 and named after its location on the northern bank of the Ubangi River ; the Ubangi itself was named from the Bobangi word for the "rapids" located beside the settlement, which marked the end of navigable water north from Brazzaville. The majority of the population of the Central African Republic lives in the western parts of the country, in Bangui and the surrounding area.
Mbaïki is the capital of Lobaye, one of the 14 prefectures of the Central African Republic. It is situated in the southwest of the country, 107 km from the capital Bangui. Lobaye people and Pygmy people live in the area. There is also a waterfall near the town.
The University of Bangui is a public university located in Bangui, Central African Republic.
Energie Centrafricaine also known as Enerca is the principal energy utility company of the Central African Republic. The company was founded in 1963 and is the primary company in the country operating in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. The company is owned by the government under the mandate of the Ministry of Development of Energy and Water Resources.
Faustin-Archange Touadéra is a Central African politician and academic who has been President of the Central African Republic since March 2016. He previously was Prime Minister of the Central African Republic from January 2008 to January 2013. In the December 2015 – February 2016 presidential election, he was elected to the presidency in a second round of voting against former Prime Minister Anicet Georges Dologuélé. He was re-elected for a second term on 27 December 2020.
Central African Republic–United States relations are the international relations between Central African Republic and the United States of America. The relations have generally been positive, although concerns over the pace of political and economic liberalization and human rights have affected the degree of support provided by the United States to the Central African Republic.
Health in the Central African Republic has been degraded by years of internal conflict and economic turmoil since independence from France in 1960. One sixth of the country's population is in need of acute medical care. Endemic diseases put a high demand on the health infrastructure, which requires outside assistance to sustain itself.
An internal conflict in the Central African Republic (CAR) started essentially on 13 April 2013, when the government of President Michel Djotodia officially took over. The fighting was between the government of the Central African Republic's former Séléka coalition of rebel groups, who are mainly from the Muslim minority, and the mainly Christian anti-balaka coalition. The conflict was part of the ongoing Central African Republic Civil War (2012–present). International organisations, such as the United Nations, had warned of a possible genocide. UNSC resolution 2122 authorised the African-led International Support Mission to the Central African Republic (MISCA) to be deployed to the country, and France to lead operations with additional troops sent to bolster its force in the country. Following a summit of Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC), including the attendance of all the country's MPs, Djotodia resigned from the presidency on 10 January 2014. The National Transitional Council chose Bangui mayor Catherine Samba-Panza as interim president on 20 January 2014. A period of lawlessness prevailed during the early days of her presidency with people moving into religiously cleansed neighbourhoods as the UN warned of a genocide. Anti-Balaka attacks continued against Muslim civilians.
Catherine Samba-Panza is a Central African politician who served as Transitional President of the Central African Republic from 2014 to 2016. She is the first woman to serve as head of state in the Central African Republic. Prior to her tenure as acting president, she was the Mayor of Bangui from 2013 to 2014.
Emilie Béatrice Epaye is Central African politician and educator. She has been a Government Minister and served in the National Assembly. Epaye advocates for better governance, economic development, and civil society freedoms, defends respect for human rights, and promotes national reconciliation. In 2015, she won the U.S. State Department's International Women of Courage Award.
Central African Republic–France relations are foreign relations between the Central African Republic (CAR) and France. Both nations are members of the Francophonie and the United Nations.
