Democratic Republic Congo
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GEOGRAPHY
Location
Central Africa, northeast of Angola
Area
- Total area: 2,345,410 sq km
- Land area: 2,267,600 sq km
- Comparative area: slightly more than one-quarter the size of U.S.
Land Boundaries
Total 10,271 km, Angola 2,511 km, Burundi 233 km, Central African Republic 1,577 km, Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Uganda 765 km, Zambia 1,930 km
Coastline
37 km
Maritime Claims
- Exclusive economic zone: boundaries with neighbors
- Territorial sea: 12 nm
International Disputes
Tanzania-Democratic Republic Congo-Zambia tripoint in Lake Tanganyika may no longer be indefinite since it is reported that the indefinite section of the Democratic Republic Congo-Zambia boundary has been settled; long section with Congo along the Congo River is indefinite (no division of the river or its islands has been made)
Climate
Tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of Equator - wet season April to October, dry season December to February; south of Equator - wet season November to March, dry season April to October
Terrain
Vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Margherita Peak (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m
Natural Resources
- Cobalt
- Copper
- Cadmium
- Petroleum
- Industrial and gem diamonds
- Gold
- Silver
- Zinc
- Manganese
- Tin
- Germanium
- Uranium
- Radium
- Bauxite
- Iron ore
- Coal
- Hydropower potential
Land Use
- Arable land: 3%
- Permanent crops: 0%
- Meadows and pastures: 4%
- Forest and woodland: 78%
- Other: 15%
Irrigated Land
100 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment
- Current issues: poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; deforestation; 1.2 million Rwandan refugees are responsible for significant deforestation, soil erosion, and wildlife poaching in eastern Zaire
- Natural hazards: periodic droughts in south; volcanic activity
- International agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83; signed, but not ratified - Desertification, Environmental Modification
Note: Straddles Equator; very narrow strip of land that controls the lower Congo River and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands
PEOPLE
Population
46,498,539 (July 1996 est.)
44,060,636 (July 1995 est.)
Age Structure
0-14 Years
48% (male 11,161,347; female 11,124,583) (July 1996 est.)
48% (male 10,527,451; female 10,522,368) (July 1995 est.)
15-64 Years
49% (male 11,197,097; female 11,783,524) (July 1996 est.)
50% (male 10,630,118; female 11,211,353) (July 1995 est.)
65 Years and Over
3% (male 539,775; female 692,213) (July 1996 est.)
2% (male 522,039; female 647,307) (July 1995 est.)
Population Growth Rate
1.67% (1996 est.)
3.18% (1995 est.)
Birth Rate
48.1 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
48.33 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death Rate
16.9 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
16.57 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net Migration Rate
-14.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Note: In 1994, more than one million refugees fled into then called Zaire to escape the fighting between the Hutus and the Tutsis in Rwanda and Burundi; a small number of these returned to their homes in 1995 despite fear of the ongoing violence; additionally, Democratic Republic Congo is host to about 100,000 Angolan, and about 100,000 Sudanese refugees
Sex ratio
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
0.78 male(s)/female
all ages:
0.97 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant Mortality Rate
108 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
108.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Life Expectancy at Birth
- Total population: 46.7 years (1996 est.), 47.54 years (1995 est.)
- Male: 44.97 years (1996 est.), 45.68 years (1995 est.)
- Female: 48.47 years (1996 est.), 49.46 years (1995 est.)
Total Fertility Rate
6.64 children born/woman (1996 est.)
6.7 children born/woman (1995 est.)
Nationality
- Noun: Zairian(s)
- Adjective: Zairian
Ethnic Divisions
- Over 200 African ethnic groups, the majority are Bantu; four largest tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population
Religions
Languages
French, Lingala, Swahili, Kingwana, Kikongo, Tshiluba
Literacy
Age 15 and over that can read and write (1995 est.)
- Total population: 77.3%
- Male: 86.6%
- Female: 67.7%
Labor Force
14.51 million (1993 est.)
By occupation:
- Agriculture 65%
- Industry 16%
- Services 19% (1991)
GOVERNMENT
Names
- Conventional long form: Democratic Republic of Congo
- Conventional short form: Democratic Republic Congo
- Local long form: Republique Democratique du Congo
- Local short form: Republique Democratique Congo
- Former: Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville, Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire
Digraph
CG
Type
Republic with a strong presidential system
Capital
Kinshasa
Administrative Divisions
10 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 town* (ville); Bandundu, Bas-Zaire, Equateur, Haut-Zaire, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Kinshasa*, Maniema, Nord-Kivu, Shaba, Sud-Kivu
Independence
30 June 1960 (from Belgium)
National Holiday
Anniversary of the Regime (Second Republic), 24 November (1965)
Constitution
24 June 1967, amended August 1974, revised 15 February 1978; amended April 1990; new transitional constitution promulgated in April 1994
Legal System
Based on Belgian civil law system and tribal law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive Branch
- Chief of state: Laurent KABILA, renamed former Zaire into Democratic Republic Congo on may 20th 1997, he took over after a few months of fighting against troops of ex-president Marshal MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga (who was in power since 24 November 1965 and died in Morocco in the summer of 1997, after fleeing Zaire). More information is not available at the moment, but we will keep this updated as much as possible. The following information might not be correct because of the changes currently processing.
- Head of government: Prime Minister Leon KENGO wa Dondo (since 14 June 1994)
- Cabinet: National Executive Council; appointed by mutual agreement of the president and the prime minister
Legislative Branch
Unicameral
- Parliament: a single body consisting of the High Council of the Republic and the Parliament of the Transition with membership equally divided between presidential supporters and opponents
Judicial Branch
Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
Political Parties and Leaders
Sole legal party until January 1991 - Popular Movement of the Revolution (MPR); other parties include Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), Etienne TSHISEKEDI wa Mulumba; Democratic Social Christian Party (PDSC); Union of Federalists and Independent Republicans (UFERI); Unified Lumumbast Party (PALU), Antoine GIZENGA; Union of Independent Democrats (UDI), Leon KENGO wa Dondo
Member of
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO
Anthem
Flag
Seven five-pointed stars on a dark blue field. Six stars on the hoist side and a seventh slightly bigger one in the middle. (this is the flag as shown when Laurent Kabila took over the power in former Zaire, the old (Zaire)-flag used to be light green with a yellow disk in the center bearing a black arm holding a red flaming torch; the flames of the torch were blowing away from the hoist side; used the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia)
ECONOMY
Overview
DR Congo's economy has continued to disintegrate, although Prime Minister KENGO has had some success in slowing the rate of economic decline. While meaningful economic figures are difficult to come by, DR Congo's hyperinflation, chronic large government deficits, and plunging mineral production have made the country one of the world's poorest. Most formal transactions are conducted in hard currency as indigenous bank notes have lost almost all value, and a barter economy now flourishes in all but the largest cities. Most individuals and families hang on grimly through subsistence farming and petty trade. The government has not been able to meet its financial obligations to the IMF nor put in place the financial measures advocated by it. Although short-term prospects for improvement remain doubtful, improved political stability would boost DR Congo's long-term potential to effectively exploit its vast mineral and agricultural resources.
National Product
GDP - purchasing power parity - $16.5 billion (1995 est.), $18.8 billion (1994 est.)
National Product Real Growth Rate
-7.4% (1995 est.)
4% (1994 est.)
National Product Per Capita
$400 (1995 est.)
$440 (1994 est.)
Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)
12% monthly average (1995 est.)
40% per month (1993 est.)
Unemployment Rate
NA
Budget
- Revenues: $479 million
- Expenditures: $479 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1996 est.)
Exports
$419 million (f.o.b., 1994)
$362 million (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
Commodities:
- Copper
- Coffee
- Diamonds
- Cobalt
- Crude oil
Partners:
Imports
$382 million (c.i.f., 1994)
$356 million (f.o.b., 1993 est.)
Commodities:
- Consumer goods
- Foodstuffs
- Mining and other machinery
- Transport equipment
- Fuels
Partners:
- South Africa
- U.S.
- Belgium
- France
- Germany
- Italy
- Japan
- U.K.
External Debt
$11.3 billion (December 1993 est.)
$9.2 billion (May 1992 est.)
Industrial Production
Growth rate -20% (1993); accounts for 16% of GDP
Electricity
- Capacity: 2,830,000 kW
- Production: 6.2 billion kWh
- Consumption per capita: 133 kWh (1993)
Industries
- Mining
- Mineral processing
- Consumer products (including textiles
- Footwear
- Cigarettes
- Processed foods and beverages)
- Cement
- Diamonds
Agriculture
Cash crops - coffee, palm oil, rubber, quinine; food crops - cassava, bananas, root crops, corn
Illicit Drugs
Illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption
Economic Aid
- Recipient: U.S. commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1.1 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $6.9 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $35 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $263 million
Note: Except for humanitarian aid to private organizations, no U.S. assistance has been given to Zaire since 1992
Currency
1 zaire (Z) = 100 makuta
Exchange Rates
New zaires (Z) per US$1 - 10,618 (October 1995), 1,194 (1994), 3 (1993); zaire (Z) per US$1 - 645,549 (1992), 15,587 (1991), 719 (1990)
Note: On 22 October 1993 the new zaire, equal to 3,000,000 old zaires, was introduced
Fiscal Year
Calendar year
TRANSPORTATION
Railroads
- Total: 5,138 km; note - severely reduced trackage in use because of civil strife
- Narrow gauge: 3,987 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); 125 km 1.000-m gauge; 1,026 km 0.600-m gauge
Highways
- Total: 145,000 km
- Paved: 290 km
- Unpaved: 144,710 km (1991 est.)
Inland Waterways
15,000 km including the Congo, its tributaries, and unconnected lakes
Pipelines
Petroleum products 390 km
Ports
Banana, Boma, Bukavu, Bumba, Goma, Kalemie, Kindu, Kinshasa, Kisangani, Matadi, Mbandaka
Merchant Marine
None
Airports
- Total: 217
- With paved runways over 3,047 m: 4
- With paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
- With paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15
- With paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 2
- With paved runways under 914 m: 82
- With unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 17
- With unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 94 (1995 est.)
COMMUNICATIONS
Telephone System
34,000 telephones (1991 est.)
- Domestic: barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations
- International: 1 INTELSAT (Atlantic Ocean) earth station
Radio
- Broadcast stations: AM 10, FM 4, shortwave 0
- Radios: 3.87 million (1992 est.)
Television
- Broadcast stations: 18
- Televisions: 55,000 (1992 est.)
DEFENSE FORCES
Branches
Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, paramilitary Civil Guard, Special Presidential Division
Manpower Availability
Males age 15-49 10,025,536; males fit for military service 5,108,385 (1996 est.)
Defense Expenditures
Exchange rate conversion - $46 million, 1.5% of GDP (1990)
History
World Atlas
