With its wealth of natural resources, Gabon is classified as a middle-income country and therefore does not benefit from German bilateral development cooperation.

The two countries do however cooperate bilaterally in the fields of science and research, climate action and the preservation of biodiversity, and have done so for many years. There are also exchange programmes for students and researchers. The Centre des Récherches Médicales de Lambaréné (CERMEL), founded in 1981, is one of the top institutions for malaria research. It collaborates closely with the German Center for Infection Research, the Institute for Tropical Medicine at the University of Tübingen, and other German universities.

In 2010, a German Department was established at the Université Omar Bongo, a public university in Libreville. Two schools that teach German receive special funding as part of the Schools: Partners for the Future initiative.