there is no road linking port gentil and libreville.eans of transportation are by air and sea. libreville, the capital of the country, has grown since the oil boom of the '70s. economic, political and administrative services are concentrated here. with 350,000 inhabitants, it has one-third of the population of gabon. during the prosperous 1980s, vast public works were planned for improving the city. in the hauts de gue-gue area, those privileged by the regime have built luxurious villas. but the gabonese economy, based on oil revenue, was fragile. from 1986, the fall in oil prices combined with the fall in the dollar rate brought a serious financial crisis. the state, which had launched an ambitious policy of investments, found itself heavily indebted and was unable to meet its commitments. the great schemes for improvement were interrupted, particularly at libreville, where today public services and utilities are clearly inadequate. it is estimated that 80% of the capital's population are housed in badly-equipped living quarters withou