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Central African Republic: Countries
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Costs in Central African Republic are exorbitant for foreigners who plan to maintain a lifestyle similar to those in their origin country. Costs in some restaurants, hotels and supermarkets match or exceed those in the United States and other Western nations. Much of the commerce and goods must be flown or shipped into the nation, explaining the high costs for many goods. "Local" goods that are imported into CAR from regional nations such as Democratic Republic of Congo and Cameroon are slightly less expensive (rice, beans, water, etc.). Finally, many of the supermarkets in Bangui and other cities are owned by Lebanese people and families, so there is abundant Middle Eastern food imported into the country, although these products are ... very expensive.
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The Central African Republic is classified as one of the world's least developed countries, with a 2002 annual per capita income of $260. Sparsely populated and landlocked, the nation is overwhelmingly agrarian, with the vast bulk of the population engaged in subsistence farming and 55% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) arising from agriculture. Principal crops include cotton, food crops (cassava, yams, bananas, maize), coffee, and tobacco. In 2002, timber accounted for about 30% of export earnings. The country ... has rich but largely unexploited natural resources in the form of diamonds, gold, uranium, and other minerals. There may be oil deposits along the country's northern border with Chad.
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The Central African Republic (CAR) is a developing African country with the potential to be a popular tourist destination. However, tourism infrastructure today is almost non-existent in the country. The Dzanga-Sangha National Park, a primeval rain forest in the southwestern region of the country, is an interesting site for ecotourism. A big emphasis has been put on the development of ecotourism, a sector which is already the principal attraction for the few, mainly European, tourists who visit the Central African Republic. In addition, Saint Florist National Park to the north of the country is a huge expanse where lions, leopards, rhinos and a host of other animals can be spotted. The towns and cities have bustling markets, palm and banana wine for sale by the side of the roads, and green hills and giraffes close by.
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Prior to a military coup in 2003, the Central African Republic was governed under a 1994 constitution that provided for a multiparty democracy. Under this constitution, executive authority was vested in a president and the Council of Ministers, which was headed by the president. The president was popularly elected to a six-year term and could serve a maximum of two consecutive terms. Legislative authority was held by a 109-member National Assembly; members of the assembly were popularly elected to five-year terms. The Central African Democratic Rally is the country’s leading political party. The leaders of the 2003 coup suspended the constitution, dissolved the National Assembly, and formed a transitional government.
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The Central African Republic is located in the heart of the continent bordering Congo, Cameroon, Chad, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. With an area of 624,977square kilometers and a population of 3,492,000 people, the country is sparsely populated but well endowed with natural resources. Urbanisation is relatively high (39%) with Bangui, the capital city, sheltering nearly a million inhabitants. A former French colony of Oubangui-Chari, the Central African Republic gained its independence on August 1960. Since then, the country suffered from an oppressive regime in the 1970s, followed by political instabilities in 1996s as a resultof mutinies by dissident elements of the armed forces. This is despite the multiparty elections in 1993.
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The Central African Republic is bordered to the north by Chad, to the east by Sudan, to the south by the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo and to the west by Cameroon. It is a large, landlocked territory of mostly uninhabited forest, bush and game reserves. The Chari River cuts through the centre from east to west; towards the Cameroon border the landscape rises to 2000m (6560ft) west of Bocaranga in the northwest corner, while the southwest has dense tropical rainforest. Most of the country is rolling or flat plateau covered with dry deciduous forest, except where it has been reduced to grass savannah or destroyed by bush fire. The northeast becomes desert scrubland and mountainous in parts.
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