Central African Republic

Geography

Economics

Demographics

Military

Politics

Surface

Surface (in square kilometers)

Surface (in square miles)

Surface (water)

Water Surface (in square kilometers)

Water Surface (in square miles)

Share of water (%)

Temperature

Average temperature (in Celcius)

Average temperature (in Farenheit)

Average high temperature (in Celcius)

Average high temperature (in Farenheit)

Average low temperature (in Celcius)

Average low temperature (in Farenheit)

Rainfall

Average rainfall (mm)

Average rainfall (inch)

Distance to other capitals (kilometers)

Distance to other capitals (miles)

Proximity

Economic organizations

Gross Domestic Product (US$)

Gross Domestic Product per capita

Amount of memberships (economic organizations)

Absolute earnings for every 1$

Relative earnings

GDP in PPP per capita (in US$)

GDP in PPP per capita

Gross Domestic product (in million US$)

GDP per capita (in US$)

Surface GDP

GDP per square kilometer (in US$)

GDP per square mile(in US$)

Relative GDP in PPP

Population

Population density

Emigration

Immigration

Literacy

Health

Population density (in km2)

Population density (in mi2)

Religion

Christianity (share of the total population)

Islam (share of the total population)

Buddhism (share of the total population)

Hinduism (share of the total population)

Judaism (share of the total population)

Other religions (share of the total population)

Non-religious (share of the total population)

Military spending (in % of GDP)

Military spending

Financially, it is the 156 best funded military in the world with an annual budget of US$32 million which represents around 1.4 percent of its GDP.

The Armed Forces of the Central African Republic of formerly known as the Forces armees central africaines. Established after their independence, its military has overthrown many governments and has been criticized internationally for violating the Geneva Convention.

Military membership

It is a member of four international military organizations making it the 105th most militarily interconnected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations:

Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
International Atomic Energy Agency
Non-Aligned Movement

Military membership

International wars

The Central African Republic has not participated in any international wars.

Number of international wars fought

Military spending (in US$ million)

Membership (international political organizations)

It is a member of seven international political organizations making it the 184th most politically interconnected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations:

Member state of the United Nations
International Labour Organization
Asian–African Legal Consultative Organization
African Union
Commonwealth of Nations
International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property
Member states of the Organization internationale de la Francophonie
Organization of Islamic Cooperation
Interpol

Political Membership

Democracy/dictatorship rating

Nearly 30 years ago, a small shift from an autocratic leadership towards a democracy had taken place when the parliaments of the Central African Republic had seen its first multiparty system. Aside from this, there are many democratic shortcomings making it the 160th most democratic state in the world.

Democracy/Dictatorship

The politics of the Central African Republic is mainly controlled by the president who is head of state and is often seen as an autocratic ruler.

Association of World Election Bodies
World Organization for Animal Health

Military spending

Politics

Political Membership

Democracy/Dictatorship

Health

Literacy

Immigration

Emigration

Population density

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If you want to know more about other states, click on the flag on the right to discover Chad.

Population

Demographics

With its self-explanatory name, the Central African Republic is rich in natural resources, but also one of the least developed states in the world. During the periods of the European slave trade, the territory of the Central African Republic was occupied by the French Empire starting at the end of the 19th century. 50 years later, just after the second world war, the French granted self-governance to the democratic republic of Congo which attained independence around 1960. After gaining independence until present day, the region has seen numerous military coups as well as former leaders that are being persecuted in the international criminal Court of the Hague. .

Being a landlocked state, the geography of the Central African Republic is mostly flat with a hilly terrain. The northern part is lightly forested while the southern part is mostly covered by the rain forest. It borders a total of six other states with Chad to its north, Sudan to its northeast, South Sudan to its east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo to its south and Cameroon to its west.

With a total surface area of 626,000 square kilometre or 241,000 square miles it is the 44th largest state in the world making it slightly larger than Ukraine and slightly smaller than Somalia.

Relative to its size, the Central African Republic has small amounts of permanent bodies of water, mainly lakes. Most of its water on the surface comes from its numerous rivers that flow along the border.

Below, a graph is shown which displays the absolute amount of water of each state in square kilometers and square miles.

Due to its location to the equator, as well as its lack of mountainous terrain, rain is the only water source that replenishes the ground.

Military spending

Politics

Political Membership

Democracy/Dictatorship

The temperature of the Central African Republic is warm all year round and is characterized by being a tropical or a savanna climate. Temperature fluctuations are relatively low throughout the Central African Republic with the northern part being slightly warmer than the southern part. On average, the temperature is around 24.9 degrees Celsius or 76.8 degrees Fahrenheit making it the 62nd warmest state in the world.

During the warmer season, the average temperature reaches around 31.3 degrees Celsius or 88.3 degrees Fahrenheit.

While in the colder season it reaches a temperature of 19 degrees Celsius or 66.2 degrees Fahrenheit.

Most of the rainfall occurs from May to October while its dry season occurs from June to August. On average, the Central African Republic receives around 146 centimetres or 57.6 inches of rainfall per year making it the 132nd state with the highest precipitation in the world.

The capital of the Central African Republic, Bangui, is home to around 750,000 people. The capital that is closest located to Bangui is Yaoundé, Cameroon with a distance of 770 kilometers or 479 miles. The capital that is furthest removed from Bangui is Apia Samoa with a distance of 18,474 kilometers or 11,479 miles.

Due to its underdevelopment, most of the population of the Central African Republic relies on subsistence farming with limited economic means to expand its economy. Due to a lack of funding as well as economic mismanagement, the Central African Republic has limited means to expand its economy. One of these factors are on underfunding of its infrastructure which further hinders the transport of goods and the further development of its economy. The most exported goods from the Central African Republic are gold diamonds and timber which is mainly exported to China, United Arab Emirates and France who combined make up more than 60 percent of its total exports. It is also largely reliance on Chinese and French imports which represent around 30 percent of its total imports.

It is a member of eight international economic organizations making it the 154th most economically interconnected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations:

African development Bank
International Monetary Fund
World Bank Group
World Customs Organization
World Trade Organization
International Bamboo and Rattan Organization
Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States
Group of 77

Its GDP is estimated to be around US$2.2 billion which makes it the 146 highest GDP in the world and represents around 0.003 percent of total global GDP.

However, it's GDP per surface area is the fourth lowest in the world with a GDP of US$3478 per square kilometer or US$9000 per square mile.

Its GDP per capita is also among the lowest in the world. With a rank of 181, the GDP per capita is estimated to be around US$460 per year.

The absolute earnings (GDP per capita) reflect the average yearly income. The figure below shows how much, on average, an inhabitant of another state earns for every $1 earned by a citizen of this state.

The purchasing power of the citizens of the Central African Republic is also in the lowest 10 percent with a purchasing power of 887 US dollars.

The relative Gross Domestic Product in Purchasing Power Parity compares the purchasing power of this state with that of the rest of the world. The graph on the left shows how much purchasing power of 1$ compared to the purchasing power of other states

With a population of just under 5 million people, the Central African Republic is divided up into different tribes with to Pygmy people, the Nzakara and the Zande being the largest. Due to its French colonial history, French is the official language of the Central African Republic. Other languages like Sangho, Arabic and other tribal languages are also widely spoken, but largely depending on the tribe.

The population density is among the lowest in the world. With an estimated eight people per square kilometer or 20 people per square mile it is ranked as the 184th most densely populated state in the world.

Due to its volatile history with many coups and ethnic tensions, a large percentage of its citizens have left to the neighbouring states Chad, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is estimated that around 300,000 people, or around 16.3 percent of its total population has emigrated to other states.

Immigration to the Central African Republic mainly comes from South Sudan as well as the Democratic Republic of the Congo and represents around 1.3 percent of the total population.

Even though education is provided for free by the Central African Republic, most children do not attend school or are attending school with limited resources. As a result of its struggles, the majority of the population is illiterate with a share of 36.7 percent being able to read making it the 189th most literate state.

Because of its fragile economic situation, the health care system of the Central African Republic is heavily underfunded. This has led to the spread of relatively easy preventable diseases as well as a high infant mortality rate. Most causes of death come from communicable diseases such as diarrhoea, AIDS and malaria. The life expectancy in the Central African Republic is the 185th highest in the world with an average life expectancy of 55.2 years. Women reach an average of 56.7 years and men reaching average of 53.7 years.

The Constitution of the Central African Republic provides freedom of religion towards all religions.

Due to its French history, Catholicism is the largest denomination within the Christian population. It is estimated that the vast majority of the population, around 88 percent, adheres to the Christian faith making it the 23rd most Christian state in the world.

On the right, the global share of Christians per state is displayed

The second largest religion within the Central African Republic is Islam which is represented by approximately nine percent of the total population. The majority adhere to the Sunni branch of Islam and are mostly located in the northern part along the border with Chad.

There are no Buddhists residing in the Central African Republic.

There are no Hindu organizations within the Central African Republic.

There are no Jewish organizations within the Central African Republic.

It is estimated that around one percent of the population follows their traditional indigenous faith. However, many aspects of these fates are being incorporated by people adhering to the Catholic religion.

It is estimated that around 1.7 percent of the population do not believe in a higher power.