Gabon - Agriculture
Owing to the density of the tropical rain forest, only infrastructure , the contribution to GDP of the
agriculture, forestry, and fishing sector is very modest by African standards at
approximately 10 percent in the 1990s. The country lacks self-sufficiency in
staple crops and over half of food requirements must be imported. Cocoa, coffee,
palm oil, and rubber are cultivated for export. The principal subsistence crops
are plantains, cassava, and maize. Coffee and cocoa were once relatively
significant cash crops with a small amount available for export, but outputs for
both have been falling since the 1980s.
a small proportion of
land area is suitable for agricultural activity and only 2 percent is estimated
to be under cultivation. With over 50 percent of the population living in towns
and with a poor road
Animal husbandry was for many decades hindered by the prevalence of the tsetse fly (a bloodsucking fly that causes disease in cattle), until the first tsetse-resistant cattle were imported in 1980. Livestock numbers have since risen, with 1998 estimates standing at 39,000 head of cattle, 208,000 pigs, 259,000 sheep, and 24,000 goats. The Societe Gabonaise de Developpement d'Ellevage (an offshoot of AgroGabon) manages 3 cattle ranches covering 14,000 hectares (34,595 acres). Poultry farming is mainly on a smallholder basis. The fishing catch, at 45,000 metric tons, falls well below total demand. Industrial fleets account for about 25 percent of the catch, and about half of the total catch comes from marine waters.
Animal husbandry was for many decades hindered by the prevalence of the tsetse fly (a bloodsucking fly that causes disease in cattle), until the first tsetse-resistant cattle were imported in 1980. Livestock numbers have since risen, with 1998 estimates standing at 39,000 head of cattle, 208,000 pigs, 259,000 sheep, and 24,000 goats. The Societe Gabonaise de Developpement d'Ellevage (an offshoot of AgroGabon) manages 3 cattle ranches covering 14,000 hectares (34,595 acres). Poultry farming is mainly on a smallholder basis. The fishing catch, at 45,000 metric tons, falls well below total demand. Industrial fleets account for about 25 percent of the catch, and about half of the total catch comes from marine waters.
