Libreville is the largest and capital city of Gabon that lies on the coast of central Africa. Libreville is a French word which means free town It is also a port on Komo river near the Gulf of Guinea. It occupies 65 square kilometres in the north western part of Estuaire. From the 2013 the census, the total number of populations was 703,904. Before the French took over the city in 1839, Mpongwe people were mainly the inhabits of the land and later became a slave resettlement site and a Christian mission state under the Americans. In 1960, before independence the city was an administrative and a trading centre from which the city has grown to be a home of approximately one-third of the population due to its rapid growth. The city features a short dry season and a long-wet season due to the tropical monsoon climate. The wet seasons span lasts for a maximum of nine month with great rains falling with the span usually occurring between may and September while from June to august it is mostly the span for dry season. The dry season is mostly due to the Benguela cold currents that occur on the north western part of the city causing great rainfall. The city also remains cold in the longest span of the year despite of the dry season occurrence. The temperatures within the city almost remains constant due to the currents effect. Although the country inhibits constant temperatures, ultimate range of high temperature is 29 degrees Celsius. The city has residential areas which are its major districts and they include; Nightlife (Quartier louis), Lalala and Batterie IV. It has a commercial area known as Nambakele and Montbouet, the first settlement of European known as Glass and Oloumi as the industrial area. The city is a bounder of Congo to the east, Cameroon to the north and Democratic Republic of Congo to the south East. Also, it has a train station and a port that lies on the south of the main area built up on the Trans-Gabon railway line in Owendo near Franceville. The city’s colour of its taxis is red since it allows transport of taxis in its nation. It has the largest airport which is known as the Leon-Mba International Airport, located to the North of the city and approximately 11 kilometres from the city. Through the company of Gabonese, the city also involves bus services as a means of transport to all districts within the city. The native language of the city is French and their culture is the Arboretum de sibang. In terms of education the city has got the curriculums which includes; IB curriculum, American curriculum and French curriculum. The IB curriculum is mostly done in International School of Gabon Ruban Vert as well as the American curriculum done in American International School of Libreville and French curriculum done in Lycée Blaise Pascal de Libreville which are the main international schools in Libreville. Also, the city has a university known as the Omar Bongo University which was founded in the year 1970. The city also includes worship place which are mostly temples and Christian churches given that it was a Christian American missionary state hence a clear indication that most of the residents within the are Christians. Some of worship places where the residents worship include; assemblies of God, catholic church (Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Libreville) and the Evangelical Church of Gabon thus a high population of Christians in the state. The city is mainly a brewing industry, ship building industry and sawmills. It also involves the exportation of raw materials from Owendo deep-water port and its main port which includes; rubber, wood and cocoa. The city also serves as the Gabon airlines headquarters located at the Libreville International Airport which was as a result of discussion that was prior to dissolutions between the Gabon express and Air Gabon at the Libreville International Airport. Also, the city has a French Army 6th Marine Infantry Battalion based in the northern part of the city. The city also has different notable residents that reside within. Some of them include; trade union leader known as Simone-Saint Denis ,writer and economist known as Nadege Noele Anglo-Obiang, the Miami Heat professional basketball player known as Chris Silva, traditional Roman Catholic bishop named as Marcel Lefebvre who was a missionary at Libreville city, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who is a footballer for Gabon team and the Arsenal club, Charles Tchen who serves as the Netherlands Honorary Consul in Gabon , Taekwondo Olympic silver medalist known as Antony Obame who won the summer Olympics that took place in 2012 and the Gabon National team and Larissa FC footballer known as Daniel Cousin.
Leave the capital city, the only real city in Gabon, and you’ll find yourself in a vast and largely undiscovered paradise of white sandy beaches, dense jungle, raging rivers, and pristine landscapes. Gabon is unique among its equatorial African neighbours.It enjoys stability and peace. It’s also the most progressive and tourist friendly destination in the area.
