Lébamba is a small town in south-western

Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north ...

. It is the capital of Louetsi-Wano Department in

Ngounié Province Ngounié is a province of south-central Gabon covering an area of . Its capital is Mouila. At the 2013 census it had 100,838 inhabitants. In 2016, its governor was Benjamin Nzigou. History The province is named after the Ngounié River, which ...

. It lies along the N6 road, 38.3 kilometres northeast of

Ndendé Ndendé is a town and capital of the Dola Department in Ngounié Province, southern Gabon. It is located 549 kilometres southeast of Libreville Libreville is the capital and largest city of Gabon. Occupying in the northwestern province of ...

. A Catholic Mission has long been established in Lébamba.

Geography

Lébamba is located in south-western Gabon, and in the southeast of Ngounié Province.

Kanda Kanda may refer to: People * Kanda (surname) *Kanda Bongo Man (born 1955), Congolese soukous musician Places *Kanda, Tokyo, an area in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan **Kanda Station (Tokyo), a railway station in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo *Kanda River, a rive ...

and Moukoundou lie nearby to the northeast. The

Ngounié River The Ngounié River (also Ngunyé) is a river flowing through southwest-central Gabon. It is the last and second most important tributary of the Ogooué River, the first being the Ivindo River. It initially flows down from the Chaillu Mountains, al ...

flows just to the west of the town and the Louetsi River is also nearby. The land between Lébamba and

Mouila Mouila is the capital of the Ngounié region of Gabon. It lies on the Ngounié River and the N1 road and has a population of about 20,000 people. Its main sight is Lac Bleu, a lake known for its bright blue water. Mouila is very spread out ...

is mainly floodplain. Two kilometres from Lébamba are "massive underground cave networks", known as the Bongolo Caves or Malibé Caves. The caves lie at an altitude of 1150 metres. The Lekindou waterfall is also nearby.

Economy

An agronomical research center was established at Lébamba in the 1960s. Since, the Lébamba Agro-pastoral Project has conducted studies on the socio-economic aspects of livestock production in the region. In the 1970s, an oil mill for processing

palm oil Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from the mesocarp (reddish pulp) of the fruit of the oil palms. The oil is used in food manufacturing, in beauty products, and as biofuel. Palm oil accounted for about 33% of global oils produced from ...

was established in Lébamba by the Agro-Gabon Company. In 1981, a two-year,

UNDP The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human dev ...

funded project, Agro-pastoral Development of Lébamba Zone, was developed to study the socio-economic aspects of livestock production in the region. In the same decade, rice based farming systems were established in three villages of the Lébamba region. In 1990, it was noted that a soil conditioner project in Lébamba would continue for a few years as the country's soil has fairly low agricultural fertility.

Culture

The Nzebi people (or Banzebi, or Ndzebi)) live in the area between Lébamba and extending to west of Franceville. Njebi, a Northwest Bantu language, is spoken in Lébamba. The Wumbvu people live in the same province, but to the east of Lébamba; they speak the

Wumbvu language Wumbvu (Wumvu) is a Bantu language spoken in Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equa ...

and are of a different tribal cluster, that of the Central Congo. It was reported in 1971 that the Christian and Missionary Alliance opened a bookstore, reading room and youth center in the village. The Bongolo Hospital, which is considered to be one of the best in Gabon, is located in Lébamba. Established in 1977, the hospital is staffed by American missionary doctors and is one of only three hospitals in Gabon that offers

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...

testing (the others are the

Libreville Libreville is the capital and largest city of Gabon. Occupying in the northwestern province of Estuaire, Libreville is a port on the Komo River, near the Gulf of Guinea. As of the 2013 census, its population was 703,904. The area has been inh ...

and Port Gentil Hospitals).

Transportation

In 1993, a bridge financed by the US, Canada and France was announced costing CFA69.280m for construction over the Louetsi River near Lébamba; the total cost of the scheme was estimated at CFA281.745m. The Ndende to Lébamba road was constructed with the assistance of China. An laterite and grass airstrip services the hospital.

References

External links

Bongolo Hospital, Lébamba
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lebamba Populated places in Ngounié Province