Tomas+&+Tyrone+CAR+1A

African Country Project Checklist to include in webpage: Proficient • Size of country in square miles (compare it to the United States)

CAR 240,535 US 3,794,100 • Population density in people per square mile (compare it to the United States) \ CAR 20 people per square mile USA 82 people per square mile • Gross Domestic Product per capita (explain what “GDP per capita” means and how your country relates to the United States’ GDP per capita)

CAR $713 US $45,592

• Political and physical map of your country

• Image of their flag (and any significance of the symbols, colors, etc.)



Life expectancy (compare it to the United States) • •  • Car: male=45 female=48 • USA male=77 female=81 • • Birth rate (compare it to the United States)

• Infant mortality rate (compare it to the United States) • CAR-81 • USA-6

• Language(s) spoken CAR- Sango and French are the two main languages, but each ethnic group also has its own language. Sango (a Bantu tongue) is the national language. It was spread years ago as a trade language. French is the official language but is used mostly in government. Most people are fluent in their own tongue and Sango. French is spoken only by the more educated (about 10 percent). • Monetary Unit

• Type of Government (and explain what this means and how it is different from the United States) • Political Leader Central African Republic Pres. François Bozizé PM Faustin-Archange Touadéra

• Religions practiced Several religions are practiced in the Central African Republic. About half of the population is Christian, mainly Catholic and Baptist. About 15 percent of the population is Muslim. Other Central Africans practice local religions. Even Christians and Muslims maintain traditional beliefs or combine local practices with Christianity or Islam. For example, funerals may be less Catholic and more African. A belief in magic and witchcraft is widespread. People also seek the services of local charmers for guidance.

• Literacy Rate (compare it to the United States)

CAR-65%=MALE 34%=FEMALE USA-99% FOR BOTH

• Economic Summary (can include natural resources, trading partners, types of industry, etc.) The economy is based on agriculture, and most people are subsistence farmers. Coffee, cotton, tobacco, peanut and palm oils, and wood are exported and used locally; food crops and livestock are raised for domestic consumption. Industry usually centers on food processing. Diamonds and timber account for most export earnings, but corruption in these industries prevents the profits from significantly improving the country's overall economic well-being. France is an important trade partner. It also provides loans and grants to the country. The Central African Republic's real gross domestic product per capita reflects the wealth of a small number of people rather than the great poverty among the vast majority of people (e.g., subsistence farmers) who do not earn an income or do not earn enough to meet basic needs. The nation's currency is the CFA franc (XAF). • Brief history (DO NOT copy and paste…use your own words!). Central Africa has an ancient heritage,. Just prior to French control of the region in 1887,the Aka (Pygmy) and peoples migrating inland to escape the coastal slave trade. The French established the area as the Ubangi-Shari territory in 1894 and united it with Chad in 1906 as the Ubangi-Shari-Chad colony. In 1910, the colony was united with the Congo and Gabon as the Federation of French Equatorial Africa. Ubangi-Shari became autonomous in 1958 and independent in 1960. At independence, the name was changed to Central African Republic.