Gabon's squandered oil wealth under 55 years of Bongo rule

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The toppling of Ali Bongo Ondimba brought the curtain down on 55 years of rule by a family accused of extracting fabulous wealth from Gabon's major oil reserves. Ali Bongo, 64, who was seeking a third term in the election, took over when his father Omar died in 2009 after nearly 42 years in power.

Travel from one town to another is virtually impossible due to the poor state of the roads.There is only one private airline which operates several flights at prohibitive prices.

Gabon is either the second or third biggest manganese producer depending on the mineral's concentration. Independence from France in 1960 was followed by an oil boom but today,"the country is struggling to translate large natural wealth into sustainable and inclusive growth", the World Bank says.Gabon has one of Africa's highest unemployment rates, with one fifth of the active population out of work, rising to a third for under-25s, the United Nations said in 2020.

Ali Bongo Ondimba had ruled Gabon since 2009, after his father ran the central African nation for more than four decades. Photo: LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP/FileThey suspected several of his relatives knowingly benefitted from a fraudulently acquired real-estate empire worth at least 85 million euros .

 

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