6 I- GENERAL OVERVIEW OF THE CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC The Central African Republic, formerly known as Oubangui-Chari, and a former French colony, is a landlocked country located at the heart of Africa. It has several aspects, notably: c Physical Aspects: The Central African Republic is a continental country which has common borders with the Republic of Chad in the North, the Republic of Sudan in the East, the Republic of Cameroon in the West, in the South East with the Democratic Republic of Congo and in the South West with the Republic of Congo. It has a total surface area of 623,000 sq. kms, of which 3.2% is under agricultural cultivation, 4.8% is pastureland, 57.5% constitutes forest areas and 34.5% is used for habitation and other uses. The Central African Republic’s land area is characterized by Plains in the Centre and in the South, by Plateaus in the West and two major mountainous areas (the Fertit mountain range in the North East and the Yadé range in the North West. The highest peak of these two ranges is Mount Ngaoui in the North West which has an altitude of 1,420 metres. The Central African landscape comprises a raised median compartment or two subsided dorsal compartments: the Chad Basin in the North and the Congo Basin in the South. The two Basins constitute the basis of the hydraulic system for the country. The rivers from the two Basins which divide the CAR water the country remarkably in opposing directions. The Chari in the North with its tributaries and the Oubangui in the South with its tributaries have a very simple regimen. The waters rise during the rainy season. The Chari is navigable from Batangafo and the Oubangui whose upper reaches are intersected by rapids in the East, is navigable from Bangui. d Climate There are three types of climate: - The equatorial or forest Guinean climate in the South; The Soudano-Guinean or inter-tropical climate in the Centre; The Sahelo-Soudanese or South Sahelian climate in the North. Within each type of climate, sub climates can be observed depending on the rainfall pattern and the length of the rainy season. Therefore, there are two major seasons in CAR: the rainy season lasting from May to October and the dry season lasting from November to April. It is important to note that the Central African climate is subjected to the influence of the two large areas of high pressure which control the climatic situation of the whole of Central and West Africa. These are the Libyan anticyclone on North and North East Africa and the St. Helen anticyclone located in the Atlantic in the South West of the Continent.