Skip Navigation

Central African Republic

Travel Guide > Africa > Central African Republic

In this Article

Quick Facts

Central African Republic flag

Map of Central African Republic

[edit]

Capital
Bangui
Population
3,580,000
Government
Republic
Religions
Indigenous beliefs, Christianity (Protestant, Catholic), Islam
Languages
Sango, French
Calling Code
+236
Nationality
Central African
Local name
Republique Centrafricaine

Help contribute to this article to share the ad revenue.

[edit]

Introduction

Located in, well, the center of Africa, the Central African Republic (CAR) boasts many of the same attractions as its surrounding African nations, but presents them in a different way. Its national park and other parks are home to a vast variety of animals, as are its rainforests. The towns have that characteristic bustling African feel. What sets CAR apart is the low-key way the country has taken to displaying its assets. Tour operators are few. Instead, travellers are helpfully assisted by pygmies or other locals, who add a cultural dynamism which most tour operators can't match.

Like many of its surrounding African nations, however, CAR is home to much violence. Care should be taken, since foreigners are a particularly popular target amongst thieves and muggers.

Top

[edit]

Brief History

Top

[edit]

Geography

Top

[edit]

Regions

The Central African Republic is made up of 14 administrative prefectures, 2 economic prefectures (Nana-Grébizi and Sangha-Mbaéré) and an autonomous commune (Bangui).

The administrative prefectures are

  • Bamingui-Bangoran
  • Basse-Kotto
  • Haute-Kotto
  • Haut-Mbomou
  • Kémo
  • Lobaye
  • Mambéré-Kadéï
  • Mbomou
  • Nana-Mambéré
  • Ombella-M'Poko
  • Ouaka
  • Ouham
  • Ouham-Pendé
  • Vakaga

Top

[edit]

Cities

  • Bangui - The capital
  • Berbérati
  • Bimbo
  • Carnot
  • Bambari
  • Bouar
  • Bossangoa
  • Bria
  • Bangassou

Top

[edit]

Sights and Activities

Top

[edit]

Events and Festivals

Top

[edit]

Weather

Top

[edit]

Getting there

Plane

Bangui M’Poko International Airport (BGF) near the capital Bangui is where all international planes arrive and depart. Destinations include Douala and Tripoli with Afriqiyah Airways, Paris with Air France, Brazzaville, Douala, Yaoundé with Cameroon Airlines and Brazzaville, Cotonou, Douala, N'Djamena with Toumaï Air Chad.

By Train

By Car

By Bus

By Boat

Top

[edit]

Getting Around

By Plane

By Train

By Car

By Bus

By Boat

Top

[edit]

Red Tape

Top

[edit]

Money

See also Money matters

Central African Republic uses the CFA Franc as a currency. The CFA Franc is divided into 100 centimes. Coins come in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 500 francs while banknotes come in denominations of 500, 1000, 2000, 5000, 10,000 francs
The exchange range is fixed at aproximately 656 CFA Francs for one Euro.

In Central African Republic the Central African CFA Franc (XAF) is used which has the same vallue as the West African CFA Franc (XOF), but it's not possible to use both currencies in the same country.

Fourteen countries in Africa use this currency, eight in West Africa and six in Central Africa. The West African CFA Franc can only be used in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo, while the Central African CFA Franc can only be used in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

Top

[edit]

Work

Top

[edit]

Study

Top

[edit]

Language

Top

[edit]

Eat

Top

[edit]

Sleep

Top

[edit]

Drink

Top

[edit]

Health

Top

[edit]

Safety

Top

[edit]

Keep Connected

Internet

Phone

Post

This is version 6. Last edited at 18:40 on Jul 23, 08 by Utrecht (+1465). 11 articles link to this page.

More about Central African Republic on Travellerspoint

Community Activity

Creative Commons License
Except where otherwise noted, content of this article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License