Country explorer: Central African Republic

The Central African Republic's economy has grappled with profound challenges, including a relatively stagnant GDP per capita reflecting limited economic growth, extensive poverty with a significant portion of the population living below various poverty thresholds, persistently high unemployment rates, and fluctuating inflation, which together underscore the nation's struggle with economic instability and underdevelopment compared to its peers.

The Central African Republic has experienced marked demographic changes, characterized by fluctuating net migration influenced by political instability and violence, a persistently high fertility rate compared to global averages, and gradual improvements in life expectancy despite ongoing health and humanitarian challenges, mirroring patterns observed in several other low-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

The Central African Republic has witnessed modest improvements in basic needs indicators such as access to clean fuels for cooking, electricity, safely managed drinking water, and sanitation facilities; however, these improvements remain significantly lower than regional and low-income country averages, underscoring persistent challenges in meeting the basic needs of its population.

The Central African Republic has struggled with marginal improvements in human development indicators like the Human Development Index, literacy rate, and learning-adjusted years of schooling amidst high child mortality rates, highlighting a significant challenge compared to its peers in achieving substantial human development progress.

The Central African Republic has experienced a gradual decline in per capita CO2 emissions and renewable freshwater resources per capita, amidst a slight annual decrease in forest area, reflecting broader environmental challenges similar to those faced by other low-income countries, while its electricity production has remained largely based on traditional sources with minimal contributions from renewable energy.

The Central African Republic has experienced gradual growth in internet usage and mobile phone subscriptions, indicative of slow but positive advancements in technology access, although it still lags behind global averages and shows limited data on research and development activities.

The Central African Republic has experienced a decline in its share of the population born in another country, modest improvements in self-reported life satisfaction despite low scores, persistent gender inequality with only slight improvements, and an increasing age dependency ratio that indicates a growing burden on its working-age population, trends that reflect both unique challenges and some commonalities with other low-income countries.

The Central African Republic has experienced significant governance challenges, reflected by persistently low scores in rule of law, corruption perception, political civil liberties, and press freedom indexes, indicating deep-rooted issues that align with those faced by many low-income countries yet are distinct in their severity and persistence.