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National Day
Gabon

National Day 2023, 2024 and 2025 in Gabon

National Day in Gabon falls on the 16 and 17 of August, following Assumption of Mary Day on 15 August. This creates at least a three-day break for works, and potentially a five-day break if National Day connects to a weekend.

YearDateDayHoliday
202316 AugWedNational Day
17 AugThuNational Day
202416 AugFriNational Day
17 AugSatNational Day
202516 AugSatNational Day
17 AugSunNational Day
202616 AugSunNational Day
17 AugMonNational Day
Please scroll down to end of page for previous years' dates.

On 17 August, in 1960, Gabon declared itself an independent nation, thus breaking with the French overseas empire of which it had been a part. This was part of a wave of independence sweeping Africa at the time and breaking up both French and British colonial strongholds.

Gabon was originally explored and named by Portuguese sailors in the 1400s, and it was not until the 1800s that the French arrived for the sake of carrying on the slave trade. Tribes in the region of coastal Gabon gave away their freedom to become a part of the French Empire so as to facilitate the slave trade. French explorers and conquerors then defended and extended these holdings. But total and “official” occupation didn’t actually come until 1885.

In 1910, Gabon joined with three other French colonies to form French Equatorial Guinea. The other colonies were the modern Congo, Central African Republic, and Chad. During the 1940s and 1950s, Gabon gained a degree of local autonomy under French suzerainty, but full independence came only in 1960.

Previous Years

YearDateDayHoliday
202216 AugTueNational Day
17 AugWedNational Day
202116 AugMonNational Day
17 AugTueNational Day
202016 AugSunNational Day
17 AugMonNational Day
201916 AugFriNational Day
17 AugSatNational Day
201816 AugThuNational Day
17 AugFriNational Day
201716 AugWedNational Day
17 AugThuNational Day