According to this two-page brief, about 89 percent of Gabon's residents live in urban areas. In 2017, 32.9 percent of the population lived below the international upper-middle-income poverty line of US$8.30 a day (2021 purchasing power parity), a threshold close to the national poverty line of CFAF 2,304. The poverty rate measured at the national line was 33.4 percent that year, and the Gini index stood at 38.0.
The brief highlights large gaps in access to services: roughly 33 percentage points separate rural from urban households for drinking water access. Urban adults have on average 8.9 years of schooling, against 6.2 in rural areas. At the US$8.30 line and on the 2017 survey data, the poverty rate comes to 29.6 percent in urban areas and 48.3 percent in rural areas.
On the labour market, the 2019 labour force survey puts youth unemployment at 35.2 percent, and more than one job in two is informal. The World Bank projects a limited decline in poverty, from 34.5 percent in 2025 to 34.1 percent in 2027 at the US$8.30 line, and considers that stronger growth in the non-oil economy will be needed. A new household living conditions survey (EGEP) is being prepared for 2026.
Key figures from the brief
Population below US$8.30 a day
32.9 %
2017
Poverty rate at the national line
33.4 %
2017
Gini index
38.0
2017
Youth unemployment
35.2 %
2019
