Gabon announced plans Thursday to introduce a new monthly housing tax starting January 2026 to finance public infrastructure needs as the Central African oil producer’s debt surged to 8.6 trillion CFA francs, approximately 15.45 billion dollars.
The tax will be paid monthly by dwelling owners or tenants and varies between 1,000 CFA francs, equivalent to 1.80 dollars, and 30,000 CFA francs, approximately 53.88 dollars, depending on location, special adviser Marie Noelle Ada Meyo announced on the Gabon presidency’s social media platforms. The most vulnerable households, schools and places of worship will be exempted from the levy. Ada Meyo stated that treasury funds from the tax will improve public lighting, road maintenance and city cleanliness across the country.
The announcement comes as Gabon faces an acute liquidity squeeze that has left it increasingly reliant on regional capital markets for financing. Outstanding public debt increased to 8.6 trillion CFA francs at the end of October 2025 from 7.1 trillion for the same period last year, according to documents released Tuesday by the country’s debt authority. The overall amount comprises 4.2 trillion CFA francs of external debt and 4.4 trillion of domestic debt, including 3.2 trillion issued on the regional financial market. Arrears stood at 443.6 billion CFA francs at the end of October.
The World Bank has warned that Gabon’s debt trajectory poses serious sustainability concerns, with projections showing public debt climbing to 86.1 percent of GDP by 2027 from 72.5 percent in 2024, well above the CEMAC regional threshold of 70 percent. The debt ratio already breached this limit in 2024, rising from 70.6 percent in 2023. Forecasts put it at 80.2 percent in 2025 and 82.6 percent in 2026, raising concerns about fiscal sustainability.
The surge in debt is linked to expansionary spending, with public expenditure jumping 24 percent in 2024. Capital investment rose 155 percent, mainly in infrastructure such as roads, water and electricity. Social transfers and subsidies also grew by 48 percent, covering scholarships and fuel subsidies. The increase has been compounded by falling oil revenues, which account for approximately 50 percent of tax revenues in the oil producing country. Gains in tax collection through digitalization have not been enough to offset the decline.
Authorities have attempted to ease pressures through active debt management, including early buybacks of maturing debt and reprofiling of domestic liabilities. Yet debt service remains heavy, consuming 42.6 percent of total public revenues in 2024. Gabon also struggles to access markets following sovereign downgrades by Fitch and Moody’s in 2024, which reduced investor appetite and made borrowing more expensive. In February 2025, the government repurchased Eurobonds at 12.7 percent, highlighting perceived default risks. External arrears have built up to 1.8 percent of GDP.
More than one third of Gabon’s population lives in poverty according to World Bank data, and access to basic services such as water and electricity remains difficult in rural areas despite the country’s oil wealth. The former French colony is a member of OPEC, but its oil wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few, with nearly 40 percent of Gabonese aged 15 to 24 out of work in 2020 according to World Bank statistics. Oil export revenue was six billion dollars in 2022 according to United States government data.
The housing tax initiative recalls a similar measure that was implemented in 2018 and subsequently repealed, according to reports from Senegalese media outlets. Expected annual revenue from the new tax is estimated at 2.8 billion CFA francs, though exact tax rates by specific area classifications have not yet been fully disclosed. The reintroduction of housing taxation reflects the government’s search for additional domestic revenue sources amid constrained access to external financing.
Gabon has been governed by a military junta since August 2023, when General Brice Oligui Nguema, commander of the Republican Guard, led a coup that ousted President Ali Bongo Ondimba shortly after disputed election results were announced. The coup ended 56 years of rule by the Bongo family, with Omar Bongo governing from 1967 until his death in 2009, followed by his son Ali Bongo. Oligui, a cousin of Ali Bongo who previously served as his bodyguard, was initially sworn in as transitional president in September 2023.
The junta promised to organize free and transparent elections and return power to civilians. However, Oligui ran for president in his own right in April 2025 and was elected with nearly 95 percent of the vote, raising questions about the democratic credentials of the electoral process. He was inaugurated as president on May 3, 2025, formally ending the transitional period. The African Union and regional bloc ECCAS had condemned the coup and suspended Gabon’s membership, though ECCAS lifted political sanctions and reintegrated the country in March 2024.
The World Bank has urged Gabon to implement strict fiscal consolidation and accelerate structural reforms, with priorities including stronger domestic revenue mobilization, more efficient public spending, and rationalization of budgetary allocations. Looking ahead, the institution projects modest growth of 2.4 percent annually coupled with persistent fiscal deficits exceeding five percent of GDP between 2025 and 2027. With oil output and prices expected to decline, financing sources may shrink further.
In 2025, the budget deficit is expected to widen as a result of increased public spending, notably the extension of fuel subsidies, the rise in the public sector wage bill and election related costs. At the same time, public revenues are projected to decline due to lower oil revenues. The deficit will be financed mainly by drawing on the country’s foreign exchange reserves. Public debt will continue to increase, with domestic debt accounting for a large share at approximately 66 percent of the total, as access to external financing remains limited.
The introduction of the housing tax represents one element of broader efforts by Gabon’s government to diversify revenue sources and address chronic fiscal imbalances. As part of its national transition plan covering 2024 to 2026, Gabon has emphasized stepping up efforts to diversify its economy beyond oil dependence. The dynamism of construction and agriculture, particularly timber and palm oil development, is expected to play a key role in growth, alongside mining industry expansion driven by rising manganese prices and production.
FDI inflows are projected to remain strong due to relatively high world oil prices and potential production gains if recent oilfield explorations bear fruit. The mining sector is gaining importance with exploitation of new deposits at Okondja and Okouma, while FDI in the Banianka and Belinga iron ore mines, due to come on stream in 2025, will boost non oil exports. However, the overall economic outlook remains challenging given fiscal pressures, limited financing options, and structural vulnerabilities that have accumulated during decades of oil dependent development.
