Overview of Gabon

Gabon has been experiencing good economic growth for the past decade. It has a very small capital market. The revenue of Gabon is largely dependent on the oil sector. Gabon has trade relations with several neighbouring nations. The relation between France and Gabon is the strongest since Gabon is majorly dependent on the imports from France to run its industries. The major dependence of Gabon on skilled foreign labor makes it an active hiring zone with lots of opportunities.

Total population – 2,462,608 people (2024)

GDP – 21.66 USD billion (2024 Estimate)

Economic Overview

Gabon has the 5th highest PPP GDP in the African region. The nominal GDP of Gabon is US $17.212 billion (9,576.40 billion FCFA). With this GDP, the per capita income turns out to be US $8,384 (4,664,682.37 FCFA). Regarding PPP GDP, it has been noted that the per capita income accordingly is US $18,647 (10,374,801.08 FCFA). The PPP GDP of Gabon is US $38.280 billion (21,298.19 billion FCFA).

Market size

The oil sector dominates the market of Gabon. This sector contributes approximately 43% to the national GDP. Before the discovery of oil in Gabon, the market was ruled by manganese and timber industries. Gabon exports crude oil, timber, manganese, and uranium majorly to the United States, China, Hong Kong, South Africa, Indonesia, and Canada.

A brief glimpse of the industries

• Animal husbandry is one of the most active sectors in Gabon. Gabon is known to have 212,000 gigs, 90,000 goats, 195,000 sheep, 3.1 million chickens and 35,000 cattle. The animal husbandry sector of Gabon manages all these animals.
• Fishing is carried out in the coastal areas of Gabon. Traditional practices are used to catch fish all over the nation. Tuna and sardines are the majorly caught fish in the Gabonese waters.
• The energy sector of Gabon is the largest operating sector. With oil mines, Gabon actively produces crude oil and natural gas. Almost 27.8% of the electricity in Gabon is produced from fossil fuels. The industrial production rate of oil for each year is 244,000 m3/d.

Cost of living in Gabon

Gabon is a small country in Africa. The quality of life is not so great as compared to most other countries. That is why the cost of living in Gabon is very low. If you are foreign national thinking of shifting to Gabon, then you have chosen one of the cheapest countries and one of Africa's most developed countries to live in.

Cost of Renting

The cost of renting varies depending on your location in Gabon. Rural Gabon has beautiful ancient houses and small huts. The cost of renting depends largely on your location. A housing facility in the city areas costs more than the rural areas. The availability of amenities is also a contributing factor to the variability of renting in Gabon.

Cost of living depending upon your location

The renting cost is very prominently dependent on your location. The important cities in Gabon have a higher cost of living as compared to others. From a larger perspective, you will find that Gabon is very affordable to live in. Right from the food, utilities, transportation to housing, everything is quite affordable in Gabon.

• The cities such as Libreville, Port Gentil, Franceville, etc., are categorized as Tier 1 cities.
• The cities such as Owendo, Oyem, Moanda, etc., are categorized as Tier 2 cities.
• The cities such as Akanda, Mouila, Lambaréné, etc., are categorized as Tier 3 cities.

In the below table, you will find the cost of living in a few major cities of Gabon.

The top sectors that are expected to hire in 2024 in Gabon are:

Top skills in Gabon

Gabon is a developing country in Africa. It is pretty advanced when it comes to oil mining. Production and manufacturing are important skills in Gabon. Besides that, Gabon has opportunities for skilled and talented individuals with knowledge of agriculture, animal husbandry, fishing and food processing.

Major skills and areas which have witnessed a recent growth rate

• Chemistry
• Nuclear fission
• IT
• Animal husbandry
• Entrepreneurship

Top skills city-wise occupation-wise

Every region in Gabon has different environmental and economic conditions. Depending on several factors, some cities are required to hire skilled individuals. The coastal regions of Gabon have a huge demand for individuals skilled in fishing. At the same time, the areas with oil reserves require miners. Hiring opportunities arise based on the requirements of skills in specific cities.

Hiring Cost

The cost of hiring is the cost spent by organizations to hire new single personnel or a set of personnel. It is one of the most important expenditures in any organization. The cost of hiring in Gabon covers the following aspects

• Interview process
• Orientation and training
• Onboarding costs

Salary structure for various roles

The table below highlights the average salaries that employees in Gabon are offered

Employment laws in Gabon

Gabon has well-placed employment laws to protect the employees in the nation. Following aspects were taken under consideration while drafting those laws

• Protection against dismissal
• Notice entitlements
• Maternity leave
• Employee privacy

To ensure that the employment laws are adhered to and to rewrite them as needed following bodies work together

• The legislation
• Common laws
• Social security laws

How Can Skuad Help You with Hiring in Gabon?

Conducting a hiring process in Gabon can be a challenging task in the wake of various rules and regulations. Rather than investing your time and resources in this complicated process, enjoy hassle-free recruitments with experienced consultants from Skuad. Connect with Skuad Experts to know more.