Bata is a port city in the Litoral

Litoral Province (Equatorial Guinea)

Litoral Province is a province of Equatorial Guinea. Its capital is Bata the other two cities are Mbini and Kogo. The Littoral Province has the largest population of Equatorial Guinea....

 Province

Provinces of Equatorial Guinea

||Equatorial Guinea is divided into 2 regions and seven provinces :-Regions:#Insular Region #Continental Region -Provinces:Provinces 1–3 in Insular Region; Provinces 4–7 in Continental Region....

 of Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea where the capital Malabo is situated.Annobón is the southernmost island of Equatorial Guinea and is situated just south of the equator. Bioko island is the northernmost point of Equatorial Guinea. Between the two islands and to the...

. With a 2005 estimated population of 173,046, it is the largest city in Equatorial Guinea. It lies on the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

 coast of Río Muni

Río Muni

Río Muni is the Continental Region of Equatorial Guinea, and comprises the mainland geographical region, covering 26,017 km².-History:Río Muni was ceded by Portugal to Spain in 1778 in the Treaty of El Pardo...

.
Bata was formerly capital of Equatorial Guinea and is a transport hub and port

Port

A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....

, from which ferries

Ferry

A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...

 sail to Malabo

Malabo

Malabo is the capital of Equatorial Guinea, located on the northern coast of Bioko Island on the rim of a sunken volcano....

 and Douala

Douala

Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Province. Home to Cameroon's largest port and its major international airport, Douala International Airport, it is the commercial capital of the country...

, and fliers can land at Bata Airport

Bata Airport

Bata Airport is the second largest airport in Equatorial Guinea, after Malabo Airport, and is the only other paved runway.- About :The airport is located some way north of Bata and a short way south of Ulonde, it has a 2.3 km runway that operates only during the daytime and in good light...

. It is also known for its nightlife and market

Market

A market is one of many varieties of systems, institutions, procedures, social relations and infrastructures whereby parties engage in exchange. While parties may exchange goods and services by barter, most markets rely on sellers offering their goods or services in exchange for money from buyers...

.

History and economy

Bata has one of the deepest seaports in the region. Despite this, Bata has no natural harbor and a jetty was built to facilitate offshore handling of ships' cargoes. The principal exports are timber

Timber

Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...

 and coffee

Coffee

Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...

. The international airport at Bata Airport

Bata Airport

Bata Airport is the second largest airport in Equatorial Guinea, after Malabo Airport, and is the only other paved runway.- About :The airport is located some way north of Bata and a short way south of Ulonde, it has a 2.3 km runway that operates only during the daytime and in good light...

 has flights to several cities, including the capital, Malabo and to Libreville

Libreville

Libreville is the capital and largest city of Gabon, in west central Africa. The city is a port on the Komo River, near the Gulf of Guinea, and a trade center for a timber region. As of 2005, it has a population of 578,156.- History :...

 in Gabon

Gabon

Gabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...

. Bata, like Malabo

Malabo

Malabo is the capital of Equatorial Guinea, located on the northern coast of Bioko Island on the rim of a sunken volcano....

, contains some of the country's best hotels including the Hotel Panafrica

Hotel Panafrica

Hotel Panafrica is a hotel located in the coastal city of Bata, Equatorial Guinea. The hotel has been cited as one of the finest in the country and overlooks the beach, Calle Onu on the Playa de los Cocoteros.A little to the south of the hotel lies the Estadio La Libertad, Bata's stadium. The hotel...

, overlooking the beach.

Recent history

After the anti-Spanish riots of 1969, the European population declined in Bata, and severe economic stagnation affected Bata in the 1970s and early 1980s. The recent oil boom of the country in the late 1980s and 1990s has boosted the development of the city with more than 20.