Central African Republic Travel Guide

Central African Republic — Country and Tourist Information

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Country Facts

Location: Central Africa.
Language: The national language is Sango, but French is the official administrative language and is essential for business. Another 68 languages and dialects have been identified in addition to these.
Area: 622,984 sq km (240,535 sq miles).
Time Zone: GMT + 1.
Electricity: 220 volts AC, 50Hz.
Population: 3.9 million (UN estimate 2005).
Population Density: 6.2 per sq km.
Capital City: Bangui. Population: 690,000.
Government: Republic.
Head of Government: Prime Minister Elie Doté since June 2005.
Head of State: President François Bozizé since 2003.
Religion: 25% of the population is Protestant. 25% is Roman Catholic. There is a small Islamic minority of 15% and 35% of the population have indigeneous beliefs.

Recent History

The two dominant figures in the country’s recent history have been André Kolingba, a former army commander who took over in 1981’s military coup, and Ange-Félix Patassé, who later emerged as Kolingba’s principal opponent. During the 1980s, Kolingba consolidated his rule as leader of the country’s sole legal political party, Rassemblement Démocratique Centrafricain (RDC). In the early 1990s, as democracy swept through Francophone Africa, violent domestic protests and heavy French pressure forced Kolingba to concede the introduction of a multi-party system.

Patassé won the first election held under the new democratic constitution in 1993, defeating both Kolingba and Dacko. In December 1998, elections to the National Assembly returned the MLPC as the largest party but short of an absolute majority. In September the following year, Patassé and Kolingba once again competed for the presidency, and again Patassé won a comfortable victory. The last few years have seen a series of attempted coups by Kolingba and his principal supporter, army chief Francois Bozizé: first in May 2001, then in October 2002, and finally in March 2003. On the third occasion, Patassé was out of the country and, despite the intervention of French troops, the coup was successful and Bozizé proclaimed himself president.

Following a transitional period which led to presidential and parliamentary elections in May 2005, François Bozizé was elected as president. He chose Elie Doté as prime minister.

The government is a republic comprised of a strong executive branch (president, vice president, prime minister and council of ministers) and weak legislative and judicial branches. The National Assembly is made up of 109 members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms.

Communications

Telephone

Country Code: +236.

Mobile Telephone

Roaming agreements exist with a few international mobile phone companies. Coverage is limited to the capital, Bangui.

Internet

Internet access is available in some towns.

Media

There is journalistic freedom in the Central African Republic to the extent that private newspapers criticize Government policies and allegations of corruption, but these are likely permitted because most of the populace both cannot afford them and cannot read them (there is a high rate of illiteracy in the country). Televsion stations include Television Centrafricaine (state-run) and Tropic RTV (private); newspapers include the state-owned Centrafrique-Presse; and radio stations include the UN-backed Radio Ndeke Luka. State run radio and TV stations provide little to no coverage of the political opposition. It was only until 2004 that prison terms for press offenses were abolished.

Post

There is a post office in each prefecture. Local postal services are unreliable. Both postal and telecommunications services are in the process of being developed. Airmail services to Europe take approximately one week, although it is often much longer; surface mail can take up to three months.Mon-Fri 0730-1130 and 1430-1630; Sat 1430-1830; Sun 0800-1100, open for stamps and telegrams only.

Press

There are several daily newspapers, including Le Citoyen (an independent publication), Le Confident (an independent publication) and L'Hirondelle (an independent publication).

The weekly publications have limited distribution and are in French.

Centrafrique-Presse is a state-owned bi-monthly publication.

Public Holidays

Below are listed Public Holidays for the January 2011-December 2012 period.
2011
1 Jan New Year’s Day
29 Mar Anniversary of the Death of Barthélemy Boganda
13 Apr Independence Day
25 Apr Easter Monday
15 Aug Assumption
1 Nov All Saint’s Day
1 Dec National Day
25 Dec Christmas

2012
1 Jan New Year’s Day
29 Mar Anniversary of the Death of Barthélemy Boganda
9 Apr Easter Monday
13 Aug Independence Day
15 Aug Assumption
1 Nov All Saint’s Day
1 Dec National Day
25 Dec Christmas