Gabon

Background

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With a healthy economy and a stable political situation, Gabon enjoys a state of affairs that could be characterized as peaceful and secure. Thanks to Gabon's robust, oil-dependent economy, the per-capita income is estimated to be close to $7,000, making it a middle-income country. This relative prosperity, however, has not translated into improvements in living conditions for much of the population, with nearly 40 per cent living under the poverty threshold. A further contributing factor is that Gabon's high petroleum revenues make the country ineligible for support from certain international relief initiatives, such as the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization.

In addition to its economic issues, Gabon faces challenges in the areas of education (particularly the retention of girls and women in school), HIV/AIDS and infant mortality.

Issues facing children in Gabon

• Since 1990, the mortality rate for infants under age one has held steady at 60 for every 1,000 births.
• Likewise, in the same period, the mortality rate for children under age five has hovered near 91 for every 1,000 births.
• HIV/AIDS presents a formidable challenge for Gabon, as the rate of sero-prevalence has increased tremendously – from 1.8 per cent in 1986 to close to 8.1 per cent in 2004. The most affected population group is composed of those aged between 15 and 49.
• It is estimated that, at the end of 2005, some 14,000 Gabonese children had been orphaned by HIV/AIDS.
• In education, though Gabon compares favorably with other countries in the region – with its relatively high net enrolment rate (92.4 per cent in 2005) and good gender balance – educational achievement is undermined both by overcrowding at the primary level and high drop-out rates at the secondary level.
• As students proceed through secondary school, gender inequality increases. Only 54 per cent of female students continue through the latter stages of Gabon's secondary education programmes.

Activities and results for children

• UNICEF's project serving Gabon's Pygmy population will train and equip 104 peer educators (four per village) to promote better hygiene, nutrition and health care in Pygmy villages.
• A five-day campaign reached 300,000 children under the age of five throughout the nine provinces of Gabon. Children reached by the campaign were vaccinated for measles, de-wormed, and given Vitamin A supplementation. The families of these children were also provided with insecticide-treated bed nets to protect their households from malarial infection.
• The routine vaccination rate increased from 49 per cent in December 2006 to 86 per cent in July 2007. This situation has resulted in Gabon's selection as one of three sub-Saharan countries receiving the 2007 Task Force Immunization Prize for Africa from WHO/Africa.
• From January through August 2007, UNICEF's paediatric AIDS programmes reached 2,487 children in Gabon. From that group, 195 infants born to HIV-positive mothers were identified and tested, and 180 infants effectively received anti-retroviral drugs at birth.
• To help keep Gabon's female population attending schools, the Ministry of Family has established in-school day care for the children of young mothers.