The small Central African country of two million inhabitants is almost 90% covered by forest, and is now cited as a model for its forest conservation efforts. In Gabon, one part of the forest is completely preserved within national parks that cover a little more than 10% of the territory, while the other is exploited. In this case, the state leases part of its forest estate to a commercial company that produces timber but in exchange must comply with the laws and regulations in force, which are supposed to preserve the forest cover. STOCKSHOTS of a forest explotation in Gabon