Compared to its neighbors and the rest of Sub-Saharan community Gabon has been doing good things. I always say that you know a country is on the rise when you don’t see it constantly appearing on the international news cycle. Gabon has quite a few factors working in its favor: the fact that they have low population density; vast deposits of petroleum and large amounts of foreign private investment have all helped. Gabon has the 2nd highest HDI and the 3rd highest GDP per capita (PPP) in Sub-Saharan Africa. This is all despite the fact that Gabon is home to 40 different ethnic groups.

Additionally the regulations structure poses hurdles for budding entrepreneurs; it leaves them with momentous bureaucratic and procedural obstacles. Most notably the country has failed to produce any stand out entrepreneurs despite its stability. To have a successful business you need to be legitimate and the government has made this extremely difficult in Gabon – on average it takes 200 days to get licensed. Moreover the financial sector is surprisingly underdeveloped and remains largely in state-control. The administration of President Ali Bongo has done a commendable job of ensuring stability and foreign direct investment as well as education and basic infrastructure but they have taken a back seat, and now the entrepreneurs need to step up and take their country to the next level.
Photo Credits: Associated Foreign Press, BBC.com, Shutterstock