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Geography of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is the largest country of sub-Saharan Africa, occupying some 2,344,858 sqkm. Most of the country lies within the vast hollow of the Congo River basin. The vast, low-lying central area is a plateau-shaped basin sloping toward the west, covered by tropical rainforest and criss-crossed by rivers. The forest center is surrounded by mountainous terraces in the west, plateaus merging into savannas in the south and southwest. Dense grasslands extend beyond the Congo River in the north. High mountains of the Ruwenzori Range (some above 5000 m) are found on the eastern borders with Rwanda and Uganda (see Albertine Rift montane forests for a description of this area).

Geographic regions

Several major geographic regions may be defined in terms of terrain and patterns of natural vegetation, namely the central Congo Basin, the uplands north and south of the basin, and the eastern highlands.

The country's core region is the central Congo Basin. Having an average elevation of about 44 m, it measures roughly 800,000 sqkm, constituting about a third of the DRC's territory. Much of the forest within the basin is swamp, and still more of it consists of a mixture of marshes and firm land.

North and south of the basin lie higher plains and, occasionally, hills covered with varying mixtures of savanna grasses and woodlands. The southern uplands region, like the basin, constitutes about a third of the DRC's territory. The area slopes from south to north, starting at about 1,000 m near the Angolan border and falling to about 500 m near the basin. Vegetation cover in the southern uplands territory is more varied than that of the northern uplands. In some areas, woodland is dominant; in others, savanna grasses predominate. South of the basin, along the streams flowing into the Kasai River are extensive gallery forests. In the far southeast, most of the former Katanga Province is characterized by somewhat higher plateaus and low mountains. The westernmost section of the DRC, a partly forested panhandle reaching the Atlantic Ocean, is an extension of the southern uplands that drops sharply to a very narrow shore about 40 km long.

In the much narrower northern uplands, the cover is largely savanna, and woodlands are rarer. The average elevation of this region is about 600 m, but it rises as high as 900 m where it meets the western edge of the eastern highlands.

The eastern highlands region is the highest and most rugged portion of the country. It extends for more than 1,500 km from above Lake Albert to the country's southern tip and varies in width from 80 to 560 km. Its hills and mountains range in altitude from about 1,000 m to more than 5,000 m. The western arm of the Great Rift Valley forms a natural eastern boundary to this region. The eastern border of the DRC extends through the valley and its system of lakes, which are separated from each other by plains situated between high mountain ranges.

In this region, changes in elevation bring marked changes in vegetation, which ranges from montane savanna to heavy montane forest. The Rwenzori Mountains between lakes Albert and Edward constitutes the highest range in Africa. The height and location of these mountains on the equator make for a varied and spectacular flora.

Rivers and lakes
The Congo River and its tributaries drain this basin and provide the country with the most extensive network of navigable waterways in Africa. 10 km wide at the mid-point of its length, the river carries a volume of water that is second only to the Amazon's. Its flow is unusually regular because it is fed by rivers and streams from both sides of the equator; the complementary alternation of rainy and dry seasons on each side of the equator guarantees a regular supply of water for the main channel. At points where navigation is blocked by rapids and waterfalls, the sudden descent of the river creates a hydroelectric potential greater than that found in any other river system on earth.

Most of the DRC is served by the Congo River system, a fact that has facilitated both trade and outside penetration. Its network of waterways is dense and evenly distributed through the country, with three exceptions: northeastern Mayombe in Kongo Central in the west, which is drained by a small coastal river called the Shilango; a strip of land on the eastern border adjoining lakes Edward and Albert, which is part of the Nile River basin; and a small part of the extreme southeastern DRC, which lies in the Zambezi River basin and drains into the Indian Ocean.

Most of the DRC's lakes are also part of the Congo River basin. In the west are Lac Mai-Ndombe and Lac Tumba, which are remnants of a huge interior lake that once occupied the entire basin prior to the breach of the basin's edge by the Congo River and the subsequent drainage of the interior. In the southeast, Lake Mweru straddles the border with Zambia. On the eastern frontier, Lac Kivu, Central Africa's highest lake and a key tourist center, and Lake Tanganyika, just south of Lac Kivu, both feed into the Lualaba River, the name often given to the upper extension of the Congo River. Only the waters of the eastern frontier's northernmost great lakes, Edward and Albert, drain north, into the Nile Basin.

Climate
Climate ranges from tropical rain forest in the Congo River basin to tropical wet-and-dry in the southern uplands to tropical highland in eastern areas above 2,000 m in elevation. In general, temperatures and humidity are quite high. The highest and least variable temperatures are to be found in the equatorial forest, where daytime highs range between 30 and 35 °C, and nighttime lows rarely go below 20 °C. The average annual temperature is about 25 °C. In the southern uplands, particularly in the far southeast Katanga region, winters are cool and dry, whereas summers are warm and damp. The area embracing the chain of lakes from Lake Albert to Lake Tanganyika in the eastern highlands has a moist climate and a narrow but not excessively warm temperature range. The mountain sections are cooler, but humidity increases with altitude until the saturation point is reached; a nearly constant falling mist prevails on some slopes, particularly in the Rwenzori Mountains.

The seasonal pattern of rainfall is affected by the DRC's straddling of the equator. In the third of the country that lies north of the equator, the dry season (roughly early November to late March) corresponds to the rainy season in the southern two-thirds. There is a great deal of variation, however, and a number of places on either side of the equator have two wet and two dry seasons. Rainfall averages range from about 1,000 to 2,000 mm. Annual rainfall is highest in the heart of the Congo River basin and in the highlands west of Bukavu and with some variation tends to diminish in direct relation to distance from these areas. The only areas marked by long four-month to five-month dry seasons and occasional droughts are parts of the Southeast.

Data
Area:

total: 2,344,858 km2

land: 2,267,048 km2

water: 77,810 km2 Area - comparative:
 * 11th-largest country in the world (and 2nd in Africa)
 * smaller than Algeria but larger than Greenland and Saudi Arabia
 * about $1⁄4$ the size of the United States as a whole
 * Australia comparative: slightly smaller than Western Australia
 * Canada comparative: slightly less than twice the size of the Northwest Territories

Land boundaries: total: 10,481 km border countries: "Angola 2,646 km, Burundi 236 km, Central African Republic 1,747 km, Republic of the Congo 1,229 km, Rwanda 221 km, South Sudan 714 km, Tanzania 479 km, Uganda 877 km, Zambia 2,332 km"

Coastline: 37 km.

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nmi exclusive economic zone: boundaries with neighbors

Climate: tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler-cold and wetter in eastern highlands and the Ruwenzori Range; 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 plateau covered by tropical rainforest, surrounded by mountains in the west, plains and savanna in the south/southwest, and grasslands in the north. The high mountains of the Ruwenzori Range on the eastern borders.

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m

Natural resources: cobalt, copper, niobium, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, uranium, coal, hydropower, timber

Land use: arable land: 3.09% permanent crops: 0.36% 96.55 (2012 est.)

Irrigated land: 105 km2 (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 1,283 km3 (2011)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)
total: 0.68 km3/yr (68%/21%/11%)

per capita: 11.25 m3/yr (2005)

Natural hazards:

periodic droughts in south; Congo River floods (seasonal); in the east, in the Albertine Rift, there are active volcanoes

Current issues
Poaching threatens wildlife populations (for example, the painted hunting dog, Lycaon pictus, is now considered extirpated from the Congo due to human overpopulation and poaching); water pollution; deforestation (chiefly due to land conversion to agriculture by indigenous farmers ); refugees responsible for significant deforestation, soil erosion, and wildlife poaching; mining of minerals (coltan — a mineral used in creating capacitors, diamonds, and gold) causing environmental damage

Environment - international agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification

Geography:

D.R. Congo is one of six African states that straddles the equator; it's the largest African state that has the equator passing through it. Very narrow strip of land that controls the lower Congo River and is the only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical rainforest in the central river basin and eastern highlands.

Extreme points
This is a list of the extreme points of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the points that are farther north, south, east or west than any other location.

 * Northernmost point - unnamed location on the border with the Central African Republic in the Bomu river immediately west of the town of Mbaga in CAR, Orientale Province
 * Easternmost point - at the point where the northern section of the border with Uganda enters Lake Albert immediately west of Mahagi Port, Orientale Province
 * Southernmost point - unnamed location on the border with Zambia immediately to north-west of the Zambian town of Ndabala, Katanga province
 * Westernmost point - the point at which the border with Cabinda enters the Atlantic Ocean, Bas-Congo province


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Demographics of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Demographic features of the population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo include ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

As many as 250 ethnic groups have been distinguished and named. The most numerous people are the Luba, Mongo, and Kongo.

Although 700 local languages and dialects are spoken, the linguistic variety is bridged both by the use of French, and the intermediary languages Kikongo ya leta, Tshiluba, Swahili, and Lingala.

Population
The CIA World Factbook estimated the population to be over 105 million as of 2022 (the exact number being 108,407,721), now exceeding that of Vietnam (with 98,721,275 inhabitants as of 2020) and ascending the country to the rank of 14th most populous in the world. The proportion of children below the age of 14 in 2020 was 46.38%, 51.15% of the population was between 15 and 65 years of age, while 2.47% was 65 years or older.

Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.VII.2020) (Post-censal estimates.) (Provisional.):

Census
The first and so far only census conducted in DR Congo dates from 1984. A census is supposed to be conducted decennially, but this has been obstructed by periods of instability such as the political reorganization in 1991 and the civil war in 1996.

In January 2015, the parliament passed a law requiring that a census be completed before the next election. Opponents said this was intended to keep Joseph Kabila in power by delaying the next election, leading to protests that caused several deaths. The parliament repealed the law and the census did not take place.

The second general census of population and housing is underway as of 2024. President Félix Tshisekedi called for a census to improve demographic policies and to enable the creation of national identity cards. The National Office for Population Identification (ONIP), founded in 2011, was tasked with leading the census, settling a dispute between bids by the Ministries of Interior, Planning, and Digital Technology. Preliminary mapping was conducted in 2018 under Minister of State Modeste Bahati Lukwebo. Data collection began on 2 March 2020 and was scheduled to end on 10 June, but implementation was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Data collection was arranged by the Ministries of Planning, Budget, and Finance, and the electoral commission sent materials to the ONIP and the National Statistics Institute (Democratic Republic of the Congo). In 2022, Prime Minister Sama Lukonde issued a decree about the operations of the census. The government allocated the census 250 million dollars of its 2022 budget. The census is planned to be completed in 2025 with an expected budget of US$153,700,453.

Vital statistics
Registration of vital events in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is incomplete. The Population Department of the United Nations prepared the following estimates.

Population estimates by INS
The Institute of National Statistics of the DRC has provided population estimates from 1984 and 2000-2019:
 * 1984: 30,631,000
 * 2000: 52,099,000
 * 2001: 53,870,000
 * 2002: 55,702,000
 * 2003: 57,596,000
 * 2004: 59,554,000
 * 2005: 61,579,000
 * 2006: 63,673,000
 * 2007: 65,837,000
 * 2008: 68,076,000
 * 2009: 70,391,000
 * 2010: 72,784,000
 * 2011: 75,259,000
 * 2012: 77,817,000
 * 2013: 80,462,000
 * 2014: 83,197,000
 * 2015: 86,024,000
 * 2016: 88,957,000
 * 2017: 91,994,000
 * 2018: 94,921,000
 * 2019: 98,370,000

Fertility and Births
Total Fertility Rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR) for urban and rural areas:

The Wanted Fertility Rate is an estimate of what the fertility rate would be if all unwanted births were avoided.

Fertility data per province, as of 2014:

Ethnic groups
Over 250 ethnic groups and 450 tribes (ethnic subgroups) populate the Democratic Republic of Congo. These ethnic groups are from the Bantu, Sudanic, Nilotic, Ubangian and Pygmy linguistic groups. There is no dominant ethnic group in Congo; the following ethnic groups account for 51.5% of the population:
 * Luba-Kasaï

 * Kongo

 * Mongo

 * Lubakat

 * Lulua

 * Tetela

 * Nande

 * Ngbandi

 * Ngombe

 * Yaka

 * Ngbaka

Ethnic groups include:

 * Bantu peoples: Ambala, Ambuun, Angba, Babindi, Baboma, Baholo, Bangala, Bango, Bapindi, Batsamba, Bazombe, Bemba, Bembe, Bira, Bowa, Dikidiki, Dzing, Fuliru, Havu, Hema, Hima, Hunde, Iboko, Kanioka, Kaonde, Kongo, Kuba, Kumu, Kwango, Lengola, Lokele, Luba, Lunda, Lupu, Lwalwa, Mbala, Mbole, Mbuza (Budja), Mongo, Nande, Ngoli, Bangoli, Ngombe, Nkumu, Nyanga, Pende, Popoi, Poto, Sango, Shi, Nyindu, Songo, Sukus, Tabwa, Chokwe, Téké, Tembo, Tetela, Topoke, Ungana, Vira, Wakuti, Yaka, Yakoma, Yanzi, Yéké, Yela, etc.

 * Central Sudanic: Manvu, Mbunja, Moru-Mangbetu, Lugbara

 * Nilotic peoples: Alur, Bari, Kakwa, Logo

 * Ubangian: Azande, Banda, Ngbandi, Ngbaka

 * Fulani: Mbororo

 * Pygmy peoples: Mbuti, Twa, Baka, Babinga

Languages
The four major languages in the DRC are French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca, or trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Swahili), Kikongo ya leta, and Tshiluba. In total, there are over 200 ethnic languages.

French is generally the language of instruction in schools. English is taught as a compulsory foreign language in Secondary and High Schools around the country. It is a required subject in the Faculty of Economics at major universities around the country and there are numerous language schools in the country that teach it. Former President Kabila himself is fluent in both English and French, as was his father.

Religions
A survey conducted by the Demographic and Health Surveys program in 2013–2014 indicated that Christians constituted 93.7% of the population (Catholics 29.7%, Protestants 26.8%, and other Christians 37.2%). An indigenous religion, Kimbanguism, was practiced by 2.8% of the population, while Muslims make up 1.2%.

Another estimate (by the Pew Research Center in 2010) found Christianity was followed by 95.8% of the population.

The CIA The World Factbook gives the following percentages: Roman Catholic 29.9%, Protestant 26.7%, Kimbanguist 2.8%, Other Christian 36.5%, Islam 1.3%, Other (includes Syncretic Sects and Indigenous beliefs) 2.7%.

The Joshua Project, a Christian missionary organisation, gives the following percentages: Roman Catholic 43.9%, Protestant 24.8%, Other Christian 23.7%, Muslim 1.6%, Non-religious 0.6%, Hindu 0.1% other syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs 5.3%.

Other demographic statistics
These are some other demographic statistics according to the World Population Review in 2022.

 * One birth every 9 seconds
 * One death every 38 seconds
 * One net migrant every 111 minutes
 * Net gain of one person every 11 seconds

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook.

Population

 * 108,407,721 (2022 est.)
 * 85,281,024 (July 2018 est.)
 * Note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and gender than would otherwise be expected (July 2017 est.)

Religions
Roman Catholic 29.9%, Protestant 26.7%, other Christian 36.5%, Kimbanguist 2.8%, Muslim 1.3%, other (includes syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs) 1.2%, none 1.3%, unspecified 0.2% (2014 est.)

Age structure

 * 0-14 years: 46.38% (male 23,757,297/female 23,449,057)
 * 15-24 years: 19.42% (male 9,908,686/female 9,856,841)
 * 25-54 years: 28.38% (male 14,459,453/female 14,422,912)
 * 55-64 years: 3.36% (male 1,647,267/female 1,769,429)
 * 65 years and over: 2.47% (male 1,085,539/female 1,423,782) (2020 est.)

 * 0-14 years: 41.25% (male 17,735,697 /female 17,446,866)
 * 15-24 years: 21.46% (male 9,184,871 /female 9,117,462)
 * 25-54 years: 30.96% (male 13,176,714 /female 13,225,429)
 * 55-64 years: 3.63% (male 1,472,758 /female 1,625,637)
 * 65 years and over: 2.69% (male 974,293 /female 1,321,297) (2018 est.)

Median age

 * total: 16.7 years. Country comparison to the world: 222nd
 * male: 16.5 years
 * female: 16.8 years (2020 est.)

 * total: 18.8 years. Country comparison to the world: 206th
 * male: 18.6 years
 * female: 19 years (2018 est.)

Birth rate

 * 40.08 births/1,000 population (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 7th
 * 40.1 births/1,000 population (2020 est.)

Death rate

 * 7.94 deaths/1,000 population (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 95th
 * 9.1 deaths/1,000 population (2020 est.)

Total fertility rate

 * 5.56 children born/woman (2023 est.) Country comparison to the world: 3rd
 * 5.63 children born/woman (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 3rd
 * 5.7 children born/woman (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

 * 3.14% (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 9th
 * 2.33% (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 31st
 * 2.42% (2016)

Mother's mean age at first birth

 * 19.9 years (2013/14 est.)
 * note: median age at first birth among women 25-29

Contraceptive prevalence rate

 * 28.1% (2017/18)
 * 20.4% (2013/14)

Net migration rate

 * -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 131st
 * -0.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 105th
 * -0.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population

note: fighting between the Congolese Government and Uganda- and Rwanda-backed Congolese rebels spawned a regional war in DRC in August 1998, which left 2.33 million Congolese internally displaced and caused 412,000 Congolese refugees to flee to surrounding countries (2011 est.)

Given the situation in the country and the condition of state structures, it is extremely difficult to obtain reliable data however evidence suggests that DRC continues to be a destination country for immigrants in spite of recent declines. Immigration is seen to be very diverse in nature, with refugees and asylum-seekers - products of the numerous and violent conflicts in the Great Lakes Region - constituting an important subset of the population in the country.

Additionally, the country's large mine operations attract migrant workers from Africa and beyond and there is considerable migration for commercial activities from other African countries and the rest of the world, but these movements are not well studied. Transit migration towards South Africa and Europe also plays a role. Immigration in the DRC has decreased steadily over the past two decades, most likely as a result of the armed violence that the country has experienced.

According to the International Organization for Migration, the number of immigrants in the DRC has declined from just over 1 million in 1960, to 754,000 in 1990, to 480,000 in 2005, to an estimated 445,000 in 2010. Valid figures are not available on migrant workers in particular, partly due to the predominance of the informal economy in the DRC. Data are also lacking on irregular immigrants, however given neighbouring country ethnic links to nationals of the DRC, irregular migration is assumed to be a significant phenomenon in the country.

Figures on the number of Congolese nationals abroad vary greatly depending on the source, from 3 to 6 million. This discrepancy is due to a lack of official, reliable data. Emigrants from the DRC are above all long-term emigrants, the majority of which live within Africa and to a lesser extent in Europe; 79.7% and 15.3% respectively, according to estimates on 2000 data. Most Congolese emigrants however, remain in Africa, with new destination countries including South Africa and various points en route to Europe.

In addition to being a host country, the DRC has also produced a considerable number of refugees and asylum-seekers located in the region and beyond. These numbers peaked in 2004 when, according to UNHCR, there were more than 460,000 refugees from the DRC; in 2008, Congolese refugees numbered 367,995 in total, 68% of which were living in other African countries.

Religions

 * Roman Catholic (55.8%), Other Christian (39.1%), Folk religion (2.5%), Islam (2.1%), None (0.5%)

Dependency ratios

 * total dependency ratio: 97.5 (2015 est.)
 * youth dependency ratio: 91.5 (2015 est.)
 * elderly dependency ratio: 6 (2015 est.)
 * potential support ratio: 16.8 (2015 est.)

Gender ratio

 * At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
 * Under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
 * 15–64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
 * 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female
 * Total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

 * total population: 61.83 years. Country comparison to the world: 216th
 * male: 60.03 years
 * female: 63.69 years (2022 est.)

 * total population: 58.1 years (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 213rd
 * male: 56.5 years (2018 est.)
 * female: 59.7 years (2018 est.)

 * total population: 56.93 years
 * male: 55.39 years
 * female: 58.51 years (2015 est.)

Urbanization

 * urban population: 46.8% of total population (2022)
 * rate of urbanization: 4.33% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

 * urban population: 44.5% of total population (2018)
 * rate of urbanization: 4.53% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

HIV/AIDS

 * Adult prevalence rate: 0.7% (2017 est.)
 * People living with HIV/AIDS: 390,000 (2017 est.)
 * Deaths: 17,000 (2017 est.)

Major infectious diseases

 * Degree of risk: very high
 * Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, typhoid fever and ebola.
 * Vectorborne diseases: malaria, plague, and African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness) are high risks in some locations
 * Water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2005)

Nationality

 * Noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
 * Adjective: Congolese or Congo

Literacy

 * Definition: age 15 and over can read and write French, Lingala, Kingwana, or Tshiluba
 * Total population: 77%
 * Male: 88.5%
 * Female: 66.5% (2016 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

 * total: 10 years (2013)
 * male: 11 years (2013)
 * female: 9 years (2013)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24

 * total: 8.7% (2012 est.) Country comparison to the world: 134th
 * male: 11.3% (2012 est.)
 * female: 6.8% (2012 est.)

Congolese diaspora
The table below shows DRC born people who have emigrated abroad in selected Western countries (although it excludes their descendants).

These are only estimates and do not account for Congolese migrants residing illegally in these and other countries.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


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Economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has declined drastically around the 1980s, despite being home to vast potential in natural resources and mineral wealth; their gross domestic product is $69.474 billion as of 2023. During the last five reported years the exports of Democratic Republic of the Congo have changed by $15.2B from $13.3B in 2017 to $28.5B in 2022.

At the time of its independence in 1960, the Democratic Republic of the Congo was the second most industrialized country in Africa after South Africa. It boasted a thriving mining sector and its agriculture sector was relatively productive. Since then, decades of corruption, war, and political instability have been a severe detriment to further growth, today leaving DRC with a GDP per capita and a HDI rating that rank among the world's lowest and make the DRC one of the most fragile and, according to the United Nations, least developed countries in the world.

Despite this the DRC is quickly modernizing; it tied with Malaysia for the largest positive change in HDI development in 2016. Government projects include strengthening the health system for maternal and child health, expansion of electricity access, water supply reconstructions, and urban and social rehabilitation programs.

Economic implications of conflicts
The two recent conflicts (the First and Second Congo Wars), which began in 1996, have dramatically reduced national output and government revenue, have increased external debt, and have resulted in deaths of more than five million people from war, and associated famine and disease. Malnutrition affects approximately two-thirds of the country's population.

Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, accounting for 57.9% of GDP in 1997. In 1996, agriculture employed 66% of the work force.

Rich in minerals, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has a difficult history of predatory mineral extraction, which has been at the heart of many struggles within the country for many decades, but particularly in the 1990s. The economy of the second largest country in Africa relies heavily on mining. However, much economic activity occurs in the informal sector and is not reflected in GDP data.

In 2006 Transparency International ranked the Democratic Republic of the Congo 156 out of 163 countries in the Corruption Perception Index, tying Bangladesh, Chad, and Sudan with a 2.0 rating. President Joseph Kabila established the Commission of Repression of Economic Crimes upon his ascension to power in 2001.

The conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo were over water, minerals, and other resources. Political agendas have worsened the economy, as in times of crisis, the elite benefit while the general populace suffers. This is worsened as a result of corrupt national and international corporations. The corporations instigate and allow the fighting for resources because they benefit from it. A large proportion of fatalities in the country are attributed to a lack of basic services. The influx of refugees since the war in 1998 only serves to worsen the issue of poverty. Money of the taxpayers in the DRC is often misappropriated by the corrupt leaders of the country, who use the money to benefit themselves instead of the citizens of the DRC. The DRC is consistently rated the lowest on the UN Human Development Index.

After Leopold
Forced labor (slavery) was important for the rural sector. The corporations that dominated the economy were mostly owned by Belgium, but British capital also played an important role. The 1950s were a period of rising income and expectations. Congo was said to have the best public health system in Africa, but there was also a huge wealth disparity. Belgian companies favored workers in certain areas more and exported them to work in different areas, restricting opportunities for others. Favored groups also received better education and were able to secure jobs for people in the same ethnic group which increased tensions. In 1960 there were only 16 university graduates out of a population of 20 million. Belgium still had economic power and independence gave little opportunity for improvement. Common refrains included "no elite, no trouble" and "before independence = after independence". When the Belgians left, most of the government officials and educated residents left with them. Before independence, there were just 3 out of 5000 government jobs held by Congolese people. The resulting loss of institutional knowledge and human capital crippled the government.

Zaire
After the Congo Crisis, Mobutu arose as the country's sole ruler and stabilized the country politically. Economically, however, the situation continued to decline, and by 1979, the purchasing power was only 4% of that from 1960. Starting in 1976 the IMF provided stabilizing loans to the dictatorship. Much of the money was embezzled by Mobutu and his circle. This was not a secret as the 1982 report by IMF's envoy Erwin Blumenthal documented. He stated, it is "alarmingly clear that the corruptive system in Zaire with all its wicked and ugly manifestations, its mismanagement and fraud will destroy all endeavors of international institutions, of friendly governments, and of the commercial banks towards recovery and rehabilitation of Zaire’s economy". Blumenthal indicated that there was "no chance" that creditors would ever recover their loans. Yet the IMF and the World Bank continued to lend money that was either embezzled, stolen, or "wasted on elephant projects". "Structural adjustment programmes" implemented as a condition of IMF loans cut support for health care, education, and infrastructure.

1990s
Poor infrastructure, an uncertain legal framework, corruption, and lack of openness in government economic policy and financial operations remain a brake on investment and growth. A number of International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank missions have met with the new government to help it develop a coherent economic plan but associated reforms are on hold.

Faced with continued currency depreciation, the government resorted to more drastic measures and in January 1999 banned the widespread use of American dollars for all domestic commercial transactions, a position it later adjusted. The government has been unable to provide foreign exchange for economic transactions, while it has resorted to printing money to finance its expenditure. Growth was negative in 2000 because of the difficulty of meeting the conditions of international donors, continued low prices of key exports, and post-coup instability. Although depreciated, congolese francs have been stable for few years (Ndonda, 2014)

2000s
Conditions improved in late 2002 with the withdrawal of a large portion of the invading foreign troops. A number of IMF and World Bank missions have met with the government to help it develop a coherent economic plan, and President Kabila has begun implementing reforms.

DRC's economic growth decelerated from its pre-COVID level of 4.4% in 2019, to an estimated 0.8% in 2020. Growth was driven by the extractives sector which, helped by robust demand from China, expanded by 6.9% in 2020 (compared to 1% in 2019). Meanwhile, non-mining sectors contracted by 1.6% (vs. growth of 5.7% in 2019) due to pandemic-related mobility restrictions, weaker trading activities and constrained government spending. Private consumption and government investment fell in 2020 by an estimated 1.0 and 10.2%, respectively.

Special economic zones
The DRC is embarking on the establishment of special economic zones (SEZ) to encourage the revival of its industry. The first SEZ was planned to come into being in 2012 in N'Sele, a commune of Kinshasa, and will focus on agro-industries. The Congolese authorities also planned to open another zone dedicated to mining (Katanga) and a third dedicated to cement (in the Bas-Congo). There are three phases to the program that each have their own objectives. Phase I was the precursor to the actual investment in the Special Economic Zone where policymakers agreed to the framework, the framework was studied for its establishment, and to predict the potential market demand for the land. Stage one of Phase II involved submitting laws for the Special Economic Zone, finding good sites for businesses, and currently there is an effort to help the government attract foreign investment. Stage two of Phase II hasn't been started yet and it involves assisting the government in creating framework for the country, creating an overall plan for the site, figuring out what the environmental impact of the project will be, and guessing how much it will cost and what the return can be made on the investment. Phase III involves the World Bank creating a transaction phase that will keep everything competitive. The program is looking for options to hand over the program to the World Bank which could be very beneficial for the western part of the country.

Data
The following table shows the main economic indicators in 1980–2023. Inflation below 5% is in green.

Economic implications of instability
Ongoing conflicts dramatically reduced government revenue and increased external debt. As Reyntjens wrote, "Entrepreneurs of insecurity are engaged in extractive activities that would be impossible in a stable state environment. The criminalization context in which these activities occur offers avenues for considerable factional and personal enrichment through the trafficking of arms, illegal drugs, toxic products, mineral resources and dirty money." Ethnic rivalries were made worse because of economic interests and looting and coltan smuggling took place. Illegal monopolies formed in the country where they used forced labor for children to mine or work as soldiers. National parks were overrun with people looking to exploit minerals and resources. Increased poverty and hunger from the war and that increased the hunting of rare wildlife. Education was denied when the country was under foreign control and very few people make money off the minerals in the country. The national resources are not the root cause for the continued fighting in the region, however, the competition has become an incentive to keep fighting.[1] The DRC's level of economic freedom is one of the lowest in the world, putting it in the repressed category. The armed militias fight with the government in the eastern section of the country over the mining sector or the corruption of the government, and weak policies lead to the instability of the economy. Human rights abuses also ruin economic activity; the DRC has a 7% unemployment rate, but still has one of the lowest GDP's per capita in the world. A major problem for people trying to start their own companies is that the minimum amount of capital needed to launch the company is five times the average annual income, and prices are regulated by the government, which almost forces people to have to work for the larger, more corrupt businesses; otherwise, they won't have work. It is hard for the DRC to encourage foreign trade because of the regulatory barriers.

International relations
Poor infrastructure, an uncertain legal framework, corruption, and lack of openness in government economic policy and financial operations remain a brake on investment and growth. A number of International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank missions have met with the new government to help it develop a coherent economic plan but associated reforms are on hold.

Faced with continued currency depreciation, the government resorted to more drastic measures and in January 1999 banned the widespread use of U.S. dollars for all domestic commercial transactions, a position it later adjusted. The government has been unable to provide foreign exchange for economic transactions, while it has resorted to printing money to finance its expenditure. Growth was negative in 2000 because of the difficulty of meeting the conditions of international donors, continued low prices of key exports, and post-coup instability. 125 companies in 2003 contributed to the conflict in DRC showing the corruption.

World Bank
With the help of the International Development Association the DRC has worked toward the reestablishment of social services. This is done by giving 15 million people access to basic health services and giving bed nets to prevent malaria from spreading to people. With the Emergency Demobilization and Reintegration Program more than 107,000 adults and 34,000 child soldiers stood down their militarized posture. The travel time from Lubumbashi to Kasomeno in Katanga went down from seven days to two hours because of the improved roads which led to the decrease of prices of main goods by 60%. With the help of the IFC, KfW, and the EU the DRC improved its businesses by reducing the time it took to create a business by 51%, reducing the time it took to get construction permits by 54%, and reducing the number of taxes from 118 to 30. Improvements in health have been noticeable specifically that deliveries attended by trained staff jumped from 47 to 80%. In education 14 million textbooks were provided to children, completion rates of school have increased, and higher education was made available to students that chose to pursue it.

International Monetary Fund
The IMF plans on giving the DRC a $1 billion loan after its two-year suspension after it failed to give details about a mining deal from one of its state owned mines and an Israeli billionaire, Dan Gertler. The loan may be necessary for the country because there will be elections in December 2016 for the next president and the cost of funding this would range around $1.1 billion. The biggest problem with the vote is getting a country of 68 million people the size of Western Europe to polling stations with less than 1,860 miles of paved roads.

Agriculture
Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, accounting for 57.9% of the GDP in 1997. Main cash crops include coffee, palm oil, rubber, cotton, sugar, tea, and cocoa. Food crops include cassava, plantains, maize, groundnuts, and rice. In 1996, agriculture employed 66% of the work force.

The Democratic Republic of Congo produced, in 2018:

 * 29.9 million tons of cassava (3rd largest producer in the world, second only to Nigeria and Thailand);
 * 4.7 million tons of plantain (largest producer in the world);
 * 2 million tons of maize;
 * 1.1 million tons of palm oil;
 * 990 thousand tons of rice;
 * 384 thousand tons of sweet potato;
 * 309 thousand tons of banana;
 * 307 thousand tons of peanut;
 * 213 thousand tons of mango (including mangosteen and guava);
 * 213 thousand tons of papaya;
 * 205 thousand tons of beans;
 * 186 thousand tons of pineapple;
 * 168 thousand tons of orange;
 * 101 thousand tons of potato;

In addition to smaller productions of other agricultural products, such as coffee (29 thousand tons), cocoa (3.6 thousand tons), natural rubber (14 thousand tons) and tea (3.6 thousand tons).

Fishing
The Democratic Republic of Congo also possesses 50 percent of Africa's forests and a river system that could provide hydro-electric power to the entire continent, according to a United Nations report on the country's strategic significance and its potential role as an economic power in central Africa. Fish are the single most important source of animal protein in the DRC. Total production of marine, river, and lake fisheries in 2003 was estimated at 222,965 tons, all but 5,000 tons from inland waters. PEMARZA, a state agency, carries on marine fishing.

Forestry
Forests cover 60 percent of the total land area. There are vast timber resources, and commercial development of the country's 61 e6ha of exploitable wooded area is only beginning. The Mayumbe area of Bas-Congo was once the major center of timber exploitation, but forests in this area were nearly depleted. The more extensive forest regions of the central cuvette and of the Ubangi River valley have increasingly been tapped.

Roundwood removals were estimated at 72,170,000 m2 in 2003, about 95 percent for fuel. Some 14 species are presently being harvested. Exports of forest products in 2003 totalled $25.7 million. Foreign capital is necessary in order for forestry to expand, and the government recognizes that changes in tax structure and export procedures will be needed to facilitate economic growth.

Mining
Rich in minerals, the DRC has a difficult history of predatory mineral extraction, which has been at the heart of many struggles within the country for many decades, but particularly in the 1990s. Although the economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the second largest country in Africa who has historically relied heavily on mining, is no longer reflected in the GDP data as the mining industry has suffered from long-term "uncertain legal framework, corruption, and a lack of transparency in government policy." The informal sector.

In her book entitled The Real Economy of Zaire, MacGaffey described a second, often illegal economy, "system D", which is outside the official economy (MacGaffey 1991:27). and therefore is not reflected in the GDP.

Exploitation of mineral substances by companies
The economy of the second largest country in Africa relies heavily on mining. The Congo is the world's largest producer of cobalt ore, and a major producer of copper and industrial diamonds. The Congo has more than 30% of the world's diamond reserves., mostly in the form of small, industrial diamonds. The coltan is a major source of tantalum, which is used in the fabrication of electronic components in computers and mobile phones. In 2002, tin was discovered in the east of the country, but, to date, mining has been done on a small scale. Manono in Central DRC has a significant deposit of lithium and tin with tantalum and niobium and is being developed by an Australian company. Production is expected in 2023. According to a 2011 report the total value of the major mineral reserves in the DRC amounted to a total of over 300 billion US dollars at the time.

Smuggling of the conflict minerals, coltan and cassiterite (ores of tantalum and tin, respectively), has helped fuel the war in the Eastern Congo.

Today's larger mining companies are making changes and adhering to global demand for ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) and IRMA (Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance). One such globally recognised certification is the 3T iTSCi, the only widely implemented and accepted mineral traceability and due diligence system in the region for the 3T minerals – Tin, Tantalum and Tungsten, an internationally recognised certification for responsible mining and traceability under the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act. Today four central African countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) provides legitimate and ethical 3T minerals. ITSCI is the only industry initiative with standards 100% aligned with the OECD Guidance. Much has been done in the last 15 years, providing artisanal and small-scale miners a support network through iTSCi, to build the foundations and regulate the industry. At the end of 2019 ITSCI has seen to 2000 mines, employment of around 80,000 miners, and the supply of over 2000 tonnes of tin, tantalum and tungsten minerals per month; the initiative has come a long way in the last decade. A report had been done by Pact in 2015, detailing iTSCi's progress over the previous five years, it discusses the successes, the challenges ahead and the work yet to be done. Entitled Unconflicted: Making Conflict-Free Mining a Reality in the DRC, Rwanda and Burundi.

Copper and cobalt
Katanga Mining Limited, a London-based company, owns the Luilu Metallurgical Plant, which has a capacity of 175,000 tonnes of copper and 8,000 tonnes of cobalt per year, making it the largest cobalt refinery in the world. After a major rehabilitation program, the company restarted copper production in December 2007 and cobalt production in May 2008.

Informal sector
Much economic activity occurs in the informal sector and is not reflected in GDP data.

Transport

Ground transport in the Democratic Republic of Congo has always been difficult. The terrain and climate of the Congo Basin present serious barriers to road and rail construction, and the distances are enormous across this vast country. Furthermore, chronic economic mismanagement and internal conflict has led to serious under-investment over many years.

On the other hand, the Democratic Republic of Congo has thousands of kilometres of navigable waterways, and traditionally water transport has been the dominant means of moving around approximately two-thirds of the country.


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Politics of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Politics of the Democratic Republic of Congo take place in the framework of a republic in transition from a civil war to a semi-presidential republic.

On 18 and 19 December 2005, a successful nationwide referendum was carried out on a draft constitution, which set the stage for elections in 2006. The voting process, though technically difficult due to the lack of infrastructure, was facilitated and organized by the Congolese Independent Electoral Commission with support from the UN mission to the Congo (MONUC). Early UN reports indicate that the voting was for the most part peaceful, but spurred violence in many parts of the war-torn east and the Kasais.

Since 1996, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been a battleground, starting with neighboring states invading Zaire, which ended the 32-year rule of Joseph Mobutu and saw Laurent Désiré Kabila becoming the new president. These conflicts originated from the 1994 Rwanda genocide and subsequent destabilization of the DRC’s eastern region. There were nine African countries involved directly, with many more offering military, financial, and political support. Internal rebellions further complicated matters. This has led to a severe humanitarian crisis.

In 2001, Laurent Kabila was killed, and his son Joseph Kabila took over as the leader of the country. Under the new president's leadership, efforts were made to bring an end to the presence of foreign troops in the eastern DRC, instead a cooperative approach was adopted, focusing on discussions to resolve conflicts and keep it peaceful. By 2002, the Pretoria Accord was achieved through negotiations known as the Inter-Congolese Dialogue. This agreement involved all warring factions, political opposition groups, and civil society, aiming to halt the fighting and establish a government of national unity. Referred to as the “Global and All-Inclusive Agreement on the Transition,” it outlined a plan for the DRC's journey toward stability, peace, and democracy. The agreement proposed that former warring factions, civil society, and political opposition would share political, military, and economic authority during a two-year transition phase, extendable by two six-month periods. During this period, plans were made for a referendum on the post-transition constitution and the conduct of general elections.

In 2006, many Congolese complained that the constitution was a rather ambiguous document and were unaware of its contents. This is due in part to the high rates of illiteracy in the country. However, interim President Kabila urged Congolese to vote 'Yes', saying the constitution is the country's best hope for peace in the future. 25 million Congolese turned out for the two-day balloting. According to results released in January 2006, the constitution was approved by 84% of voters. The new constitution also aims to decentralize authority, dividing the vast nation into 25 semi-autonomous provinces, drawn along ethnic and cultural lines.

The country's first democratic elections in four decades were held on 30 July 2006.

Political history
From the day of the arguably ill-prepared independence of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the tensions between the powerful leaders of the political elite, such as Joseph Kasa Vubu, Patrice Lumumba, Moise Tshombe, Joseph Mobutu and others, jeopardize the political stability of the new state. From Tshombe's secession of the Katanga, to the assassination of Lumumba, to the two coups d'état of Mobutu, the country has known periods of true nationwide peace, but virtually no period of genuine democratic rule.

The Mobutu era
The regime of President Mobutu Sese Seko lasted 32 years (1965–1997), during which all but the first seven years the country was named Zaire. His dictatorship operated as a one-party state, which saw most of the powers concentrated between President Mobutu, who was simultaneously the head of both the party and the state through the Popular Movement of the Revolution (MPR), and a series of essentially rubber-stamping institutions.

One particularity of the Regime was the claim to be thriving for an authentic system, different from Western or Soviet influences. This lasted roughly between the establishment of Zaire in 1971, and the official beginning of the transition towards democracy, on 24 April 1990. This was true at the regular people's level as everywhere else. People were ordered by law to drop their Western Christian names; the titles Mr. and Mrs. were abandoned for the male and female versions of the French word for "citizen"; Men were forbidden to wear suits, and women to wear pants. At the institutional level, many of the institutions also changed denominations, but the end result was a system that borrowed from both systems:

 * The MPR's Central Committee: Under the system of the "party-state", this committee had a higher position in the institutional make-up than the government or cabinet. It had both executive oversight authority, and in practice, binding legislative authority, as it dictated the party platform. Mobutu headed the Central Committee as Founding-President. The Vice-President of the Central Committee was essentially the country's Vice President, without the succession rights.
 * The Executive Council: Known elsewhere as the Government or the Cabinet, this council was the executive authority in the country, made of State Commissioners (known elsewhere as ministers). For a long period of time, Mobutu was the sole leader of the Executive Council. He eventually would appoint First State Commissioners (known elsewhere as prime ministers) with largely coordinating powers and very little executive power. The last "First State Commissioner" was Kengo Wa Dondo.
 * The Legislative Council: essentially the rubber-stamp parliament, it was made up of People Commissioners (known elsewhere as MPs), who were sometimes elected, as individual members of the MPR, and always on the party platform.
 * The Supreme Court: As the judiciary, this court was seemingly the only independent branch of government, but in effect it was subordinate to a Judicial Council over which the regime had a very strong influence.

Every corporation, whether financial or union, as well as every division of the administration, was set up as branches of the party. CEOs, union leaders, and division directors were each sworn-in as section presidents of the party. Every aspect of life was regulated to some degree by the party, and the will of its founding-president, Mobutu Sese Seko.

Most of the petty aspects of the regime disappeared after 1990 with the beginning of the democratic transition. Democratization would prove to be fairly short-lived, as Mobutu's power plays dragged it in length until ultimately 1997, when forces led by Laurent Kabila eventually successfully toppled the regime, after a 9-month-long military campaign.

The Kabilas' governments and war
The government of former president Mobutu Sese Seko was toppled by a rebellion led by Laurent Kabila in May 1997, with the support of Rwanda and Uganda. They were later to turn against Kabila and backed a rebellion against him in August 1998. Troops from Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Chad, and Sudan intervened to support the Kinshasa regime. A cease-fire was signed on 10 July 1999 by the DROC, Zimbabwe, Angola, Uganda, Namibia, Rwanda, and Congolese armed rebel groups, but fighting continued.

Under Laurent Kabila's regime, all executive, legislative, and military powers were first vested in the President, Laurent-Désiré Kabila. The judiciary was independent, with the president having the power to dismiss or appoint. The president was first head of a 26-member cabinet dominated by the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo (ADFL). Towards the end of the 90s, Laurent Kabila created and appointed a Transitional Parliament, with a seat in the buildings of the former Katanga Parliament, in the southern town of Lubumbashi, in a move to unite the country, and to legitimate his regime. Kabila was assassinated on 16 January 2001 and his son Joseph Kabila was named head of state ten days later.

Initially underestimated as a mere figurehead chosen by his father's advisors, Kabila surprised many by quickly asserting his authority and turning the government in new directions. Shortly after taking office, he went on his first international trip, where he engaged in diplomatic talks with leaders from France, Belgium, and the United States, including the Secretary of State Colin Powell, as well as officials from global institutions like the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the United Nations. During his visit to the United States, he met with Paul Kagame, the Rwandan president, despite their past differences. In a significant move in February 2001, Kabila committed to implementing a ceasefire agreement signed in July 1999, which had previously been disregarded by all involved. He initiated discussions with rebel groups and negotiated the withdrawal of troops from Rwanda, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Angola, and Namibia, which had a military presence in Congo. UN peacekeepers were deployed in March to oversee the ceasefire and troop withdrawals.

The younger Kabila continued with his father's Transitional Parliament, but overhauled his entire cabinet, replacing it with a group of technocrats, with the stated aim of putting the country back on the track of development, and coming to a decisive end of the Second Congo War. In October 2002, the new president was successful in getting occupying Rwandan forces to withdraw from eastern Congo; two months later, an agreement was signed by all remaining warring parties to end the fighting and set up a Transition Government, the make-up of which would allow representation for all negotiating parties. Two founding documents emerged from this: The Transition Constitution, and the Global and Inclusive Agreement, both of which describe and determine the make-up and organization of the Congolese institutions, until planned elections in July 2006, at which time the provisions of the new constitution, democratically approved by referendum in December 2005, will take full effect and that is how it happened.

Under the Global and All-Inclusive Agreement, signed on 17 December 2002, in Pretoria, there was to be one President and four Vice-Presidents, one from the government, one from the Rally for Congolese Democracy, one from the MLC, and one from civil society. The position of Vice-President expired after the 2006 elections.

After being for three years (2003–06) in the interregnum between two constitutions, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is now under the regime of the Constitution of the Third Republic. The constitution, adopted by referendum in 2005, and promulgated by President Joseph Kabila in February 2006, establishes a decentralized semi-presidential republic, with a separation of powers between the three branches of government - executive, legislative and judiciary, and a distribution of prerogatives between the central government and the provinces.

In September 2016, violent protests were met with brutal force by the police and Republican Guard soldiers. Opposition groups claim 80 dead, including the Students' Union leader. From Monday 19 September Kinshasa residents, as well as residents elsewhere in Congo, where mostly confined to their homes. Police arrested anyone remotely connected to the opposition as well as innocent onlookers. Government propaganda, on television, and actions of covert government groups in the streets, acted against opposition as well as foreigners. The president's mandate was due to end on 19 December 2016, but no plans were made to elect a replacement at that time and this caused further protests.

As of 8 August 2017 there are 54 political parties legally operating in the Congo.

On 15 December 2018 US State Department announced it had decided to evacuate its employees’ family members from Democratic Republic of Congo just before the Congolese elections to choose a successor to President Joseph Kabila.

Félix Tshisekedi Presidency (2019-)
On 30 December 2018 the presidential election to determine the successor to Kabila was held. On 10 January 2019, the electoral commission announced opposition candidate Félix Tshisekedi as the winner of the vote. He was officially sworn in as President on 24 January 2019. In the ceremony of taking of the office Félix Tshisekedi appointed Vital Kamerhe as his chief of staff. In June 2020, chief of staff Vital Kamerhe was found guilty of embezzling public funds and he was sentenced to 20 years in prison. His initial campaign pledged to enhance living standards in the DRC, a country abundant in minerals but plagued by widespread poverty among its 100 million people, and to bring an end to 25 years of violence in the eastern region.

The political allies of former president Joseph Kabila, who stepped down in January 2019, maintained control of key ministries, the legislature, judiciary and security services. However, President Felix Tshisekedi succeeded to strengthen his hold on power. In a series of moves, he won over more legislators, gaining the support of almost 400 out of 500 members of the National Assembly. The pro-Kabila speakers of both houses of parliament were forced out. In April 2021, the new government was formed without the supporters of Kabila. President Felix Tshisekedi succeeded to oust the last remaining elements of his government who were loyal to former leader Joseph Kabila.

After the 2023 presidential election, Tshisekedi had a clear lead in his run for a second term. Despite the economic growth, numerous Congolese citizens were voicing concerns about the decline of the Congolese franc, which is significantly affecting their everyday experiences. Despite the nation's abundant mineral resources and sizable population, the quality of life has not substantially improved for the majority, as conflict, corruption, and inadequate governance continue to endure. During his reelection campaign, he reiterated promises from five years prior, including job creation, enhancing economic stability, and addressing the persistent insecurity that has plagued the eastern region for thirty years, resulting in the loss of millions of lives. On 20 December 2023, official said that President Felix Tshisekedi had been re-elected with 73% of the vote. Nine opposition candidates signed a declaration rejecting the election and called for a rerun. In January, following the election, the major opposition candidate, Moise Katumbi was momentarily placed under house arrest but this was quickly rectified by the governor of Haut-Katanga province. The ruling party, President Tshisekedi's UDPS, won the majority of seats in general elections, winning 69 seats in the 500-member National Assembly ahead of 44 other parties.

Executive branch
Since the July 2006 elections, the country is led by a semi-presidential, strongly-decentralized state. The executive at the central level, is divided between the President, and a Prime Minister appointed by him/her from the party having the majority of seats in Parlement. Should there be no clear majority, the President can appoint a "government former" that will then have the task to win the confidence of the National Assembly. The President appoints the government members (ministers) at the proposal of the Prime Minister. In coordination, the President and the government are in charge of the executive, but the Prime minister and the government are responsible to the lower-house of Parliament, the National Assembly.

At the province level, the Provincial legislature (Provincial Assembly) elects a governor, and the governor, with his government of up to 10 ministers, is in charge of the provincial executive. Some domains of government power are of the exclusive provision of the Province, and some are held concurrently with the Central government. This is not a Federal state; however, it is simply a decentralized one, as the majority of the domains of power are still vested in the Central government. The governor is responsible to the Provincial Assembly.

Criticisms
The semi-presidential system has been described by some as "conflictogenic" and "dictatogenic", as it ensures frictions, and a reduction of pace in government life, should the President and the Prime Minister be from different sides of the political arena. This was seen several times in France, a country that shares the semi-presidential model. It was also, arguably, in the first steps of the Congo into independence, the underlying cause of the crisis between Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba and President Joseph Kasa Vubu, who ultimately dismissed each other, in 1960.

In January 2015 the 2015 Congolese protests broke out in the country's capital following the release of a draft law that would extend the presidential term limits and allow Joseph Kabila to run again for office.

Under the Transition Constitution
The Inter-Congolese dialogue, that set-up the transitional institutions, created a bicameral parliament, with a National Assembly and Senate, made up of appointed representatives of the parties to the dialogue. These parties included the preceding government, the rebel groups that were fighting against the government, with heavy Rwandan and Ugandan support, the internal opposition parties, and the Civil Society. At the beginning of the transition, and up until recently, the National Assembly is headed by the MLC with Speaker Hon. Olivier Kamitatu, while the Senate is headed by a representative of the Civil Society, namely the head of the Church of Christ in Congo, Mgr. Pierre Marini Bodho. Hon. Kamitatu has since left both the MLC and the Parliament to create his own party, and ally with current President Joseph Kabila. Since then, the position of Speaker is held by Hon. Thomas Luhaka, of the MLC.

Aside from the regular legislative duties, the Senate had the charge to draft a new constitution for the country. That constitution was adopted by referendum in December 2005, and decreed into law on 18 February 2006.

Under the New Constitution
The Parliament of the third republic is also bicameral, with a National Assembly and a Senate. Members of the National Assembly, the lower - but the most powerful - house, are elected by direct suffrage. Senators are elected by the legislatures of the 26 provinces.

Under the New Constitution
The Congolese Judicial Branch Consists of a Supreme Court, which handles federal crimes.

Under the Transition Constitution
10 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and one city* (ville): Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Équateur, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Katanga, Kinshasa*, Maniema, North Kivu, Orientale.

Each province is divided into districts and cities.

Under the New Constitution
25 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and city* (ville): Bas-Uele | Équateur | Haut-Lomami | Haut-Katanga | Haut-Uele | Ituri | Kasaï | Kasaï oriental | Kongo central | Kwango | Kwilu | Lomami | Lualaba | Lulua | Mai-Ndombe | Maniema | Mongala | North Kivu | Nord-Ubangi | Sankuru | South Kivu | Sud-Ubangi | Tanganyika | Tshopo | Tshuapa | Kinshasa*

Each province is divided into territories and cities.

International organization participation
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEEAC, CEPGL, East African Community, ECA, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO


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Telecommunications in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Telecommunications in the Democratic Republic of the Congo include radio, television, fixed and mobile telephones, and the Internet.

Radio and television

 * Radio stations:
 * Two state-owned radio stations are supplemented by more than 100 private radio stations; transmissions of at least 2 international broadcasters are available (2007);
 * 27 stations (2005);
 * 13 stations: 3 AM, 11 FM, and 2 shortwave (2001);
 * 16 stations: 3 AM, 12 FM, and 1 shortwave (1999).
 * Radios: 18.0 million (1997).
 * Television stations:
 * One state-owned TV broadcast station with near national coverage; more than a dozen privately owned TV stations with two having near national coverage (2007);
 * 23 stations (2005);
 * 4 stations (2001);
 * 20 stations (1999).
 * Television sets: 6.5 million (1997).

Radio is the dominant medium; a handful of stations, including state-run Radio-Télévision Nationale Congolaise (RTNC), broadcast across the country. The United Nations Mission (MONUSCO) and a Swiss-based NGO, Fondation Hirondelle, operate one of country's leading stations, Radio Okapi. The network employs mostly-Congolese staff and aims to bridge political divisions. Radio France Internationale (RFI), which is widely available on FM, is the most popular news station. The BBC broadcasts on FM in Kinshasa (92.7), Lubumbashi (92.0), Kisangani (92.0), Goma (93.3) and Bukavu (102.2).

Radio Okapi
Radio Okapi was first established in February 2002 by the United Nations Mission in the Democratic of Republic of Congo (MONUC). Radio Okapi provides news, music, and political information to all corners of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The major purpose behind Radio Okapi is to provide all DRC citizens with radio services regardless of political affiliation. The FM waves Radio Okapi provided were aimed to be free of hate speech. Most importantly, Radio Okapi caters to the various different ethnicities within the DRC. This is done through the broadcasting of content in 5 of major languages spoken in the DRC. These five languages are French, Lingala, Swahili, Tshiluba, and Kikongo.

Hate Speech
Specific media platforms in the Democratic Republic of Congo have used its platforms for the dissemination of hate speech. Media in the DRC has propagated hatred and ethnic divisions by reinforcing nationalistic sentiments. Numerous media outlets are owned by presidential candidates and their supporters. This increases the probability that news will tend to favor the political base of these presidential candidates. These presidential candidates use their media platforms to attack political opponents which include ethnically charged hate speech. The result of such propaganda is evident in recent conflicts between ethnic groups, Hema and Lendu. The conflict was fueled by hate speech on media platforms. As a result, the conflict between these ethnic groups has transformed to one of the bloodiest conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Combating Hate Speech
Peacekeeping agencies in the Democratic Republic of Congo observed the dangerous risk hate speech posed to communal welfare in the region. In order to combat such harmful speech, Non-governmental agencies (NGO's) began promoting large scale media campaigns. Campaigns consisted of several different radio programs aimed at reconciliation and peacekeeping. Research concluded that such programs showed measurable positive effects.

Telephones

 * Calling code: +243
 * International call prefix: 00
 * Main lines:
 * 58,200 lines in use, 161st in the world (2012);
 * 20,000 lines in use (2000);
 * 36,000 lines in use (1995).
 * Mobile cellular:
 * 19.5 million lines, 52nd in the world (2012);
 * 2.6 million lines (2005);
 * 15,000 lines (2000);
 * 10,000 lines (1995).
 * Telephone system: barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations; inadequate fixed line infrastructure, state-owned operator providing less than 1 fixed-line connection per 1000 persons; given the inadequate fixed-line infrastructure, the use of mobile-cellular services has surged and mobile teledensity is roughly 20 per 100 persons (2011).
 * Satellite earth stations: 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2011).

Internet

 * Top-level domain: .cd (formerly .zr).
 * Internet users:
 * 1.2 million users, 110th in the world; 1.7% of the population, 202nd in the world (2012); In 2023 22.9% of the population had Internet access, which is about 23 million people.
 * 290,000 users, 132nd in the world (2008);
 * 50,000 users (2002).
 * Internet hosts: 2,515 hosts, 159th in the world (2012).
 * IPv4: 21,248 addresses allocated, less than 0.05% of the world total, 0.3 addresses per 1000 people (2012).
 * Internet Service Providers: 188 ISPs (2005); 1 ISP (1999).

Internet cables

 * List of terrestrial fibre optic cable projects in Africa
 * West Africa Cable System (WACS), a fibre optic submarine communications cable linking countries along the west coast of Africa with the United Kingdom, was connected in early 2013.

Internet Censorship and Surveillance
After the First Congo War (1996–1997) and Second Congo War (1998–2003), the nation transitioned to a renewed national unity under the rule of President Joseph Kabila and 4 vice presidents, all from former rebel and political opposition groups. The establishment of a democratic model required checks on corruption in public finance and natural resources, executive political parties, and hyperlocal militias and bandits. Peace agreements, in turn, did not end state violence, hence the need for absolute clarity to the public. The right to report on hostile resolutions was adopted in a 2002 resolution as a part of the eventual Inter-Congolese Dialogue. This accord declared that “independent, free, responsible and efficient media are a guarantee for public freedoms, the smooth running of democracy and social cohesion”, giving the voters direct insight into public figures, programs, and overall transparency. Article 27, 28, and Clause 29 established individual freedom of expression, moral press freedom, and the public right to information, respectively. During the time of continuing 2002 conflict, radios served as stages for peace songs and “come-home” messaging. Hosts had conversations with military and government officials, army members, and rebels to discuss the challenges of peace talks and demobilization. Censorship was lenient as long as radio personnel covered both sides.

Major exceptions to the right of free press imminently ensued. In 1996, censorship had begun to target Congo's artistic freedoms. Beyond broadcasts and news, the nation began to censor those who expressed political sentiments through music. The National Censorship Commission banned six songs that mentioned common opposition outcries relating to employment opportunities, civilian killings, corruption, and faltering human rights. If these songs are played on the radio, the artists may be fined up to $500 per song in accordance with a 1996 censorship decree. Freedom of the press was restricted for artists offending political elites or speaking against Congolese leaders and parties. For those using telecommunications as an outlet, interference was backed by such legislation. Open discussion about political corruption or unmentioned events, such as riots or uprisings against the ruling party, are avoided in news media but continuously active on pavement radio.

Intentional Shutdowns
The Congolese government performed a series of intentional internet shutdowns. The first was conducted in December 2011 and lasted approximately 25 days. During the 25 days, Short Message Service otherwise known as SMS was the only one affected by the shutdown. According to an article by CIPESA, "One of the reasons cited by the government for blocking communication was to prevent the spread of fake results over the internet before the electoral commission announced official results"

Unlike the first shutdown the second intentional shutdown had a broader range of impact.The second intentional shutdown occurred in January 2015. The Congolese government directed telecommunication companies within the country to halt all its services. Not only was SMS affected, but the entire internet itself. This action by the government came on the eve of political protest on a proposed electoral bill.

The most recent government shutdown occurred on December 19, 2016. This was an important date as President Joseph Kabila was supposed to step down as head of state. In order to quell, political upheaval the Congolese government ordered telecom operators to block social media in the country.

In September 2016, the government cut the signals of the Radio France Internationale (RFI) and United Nations Radio Okapi (UNRO). Later, the general and program director of the Radio-Télévision Manika de Kolwezi was arrested after intentionally broadcasting a phone interview with Katumbi, the opposition leader. The censorship of human freedoms of expression to information was condemned by the Congo's United Nations on Human Rights. Kabila was given until December 19, 2016, to step down. If he decided not to, precautionary measures were set to counter organization and public protests. The government ordered a temporary blocking of images, videos, and voiceovers on social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Skype, and WhatsApp right after Kabila was to step down. Digital media was the central counter to government oversight and regulation seen in other telecommunication outlets. Media was used in lieu of radio broadcasting to avoid self-censorship, financial restraints that may affect networks, or news station shutdowns. Removing the intermediary for independent journalism and coverage prevented communication among those who wanted to organize and speak out against Kabila. Black-outs were utilized to prevent anticipated politically motivated violence. Additionally, the then Telecommunications Minister Thomas Luhaka was “not informed” of such interference by the government.


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Transport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Ground transport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has always been difficult. The terrain and climate of the Congo Basin present serious barriers to road and rail construction, and the distances are enormous across this vast country. Furthermore, chronic economic mismanagement and internal conflict has led to serious under-investment over many years.

On the other hand, the DRC has thousands of kilometres of navigable waterways, and traditionally water transport has been the dominant means of moving around approximately two-thirds of the country.

Transport problems
As an illustration of transport difficulties in the DRC, even before wars damaged the infrastructure, the so-called "national" route, used to get supplies to Bukavu from the seaport of Matadi, consisted of the following: In other words, goods had to be loaded and unloaded eight times and the total journey would take many months. Many of the routes listed below are in poor condition and may be operating at only a fraction of their original capacity (if at all), despite recent attempts to make improvements. Up to 2006 the United Nations Joint Logistics Centre (UNJLC) had an operation in Congo to support humanitarian relief agencies working there, and its bulletins and maps about the transport situation are archived on ReliefWeb.
 * Matadi to Kinshasa – rail
 * Kinshasa to Kisangani – river boat
 * Kisangani to Ubundu – rail
 * Ubundu to Kindu – river boat
 * Kindu to Kalemie – rail
 * Kalemie to Kalundu (the lake port at Uvira) – boat on Lake Tanganyika
 * Kalundu to Bukavu – road

The First and Second Congo Wars saw great destruction of transport infrastructure from which the country has not yet recovered. Many vehicles were destroyed or commandeered by militias, especially in the north and east of the country, and the fuel supply system was also badly affected. Consequently, outside of Kinshasa, Matadi and Lubumbashi, private and commercial road transport is almost non-existent and traffic is scarce even where roads are in good condition. The few vehicles in use outside these cities are run by the United Nations, aid agencies, the DRC government, and a few larger companies such as those in the mining and energy sectors. High-resolution satellite photos on the Internet show large cities such as Bukavu, Butembo and Kikwit virtually devoid of traffic, compared to similar photos of towns in neighbouring countries.

Air transport is the only effective means of moving between many places within the country. The Congolese government, the United Nations, aid organisations and large companies use air rather than ground transport to move personnel and freight. The UN operates a large fleet of aircraft and helicopters, and compared to other African countries the DRC has a large number of small domestic airlines and air charter companies. The transport (and smuggling) of minerals with a high value for weight is also carried out by air, and in the east, some stretches of paved road isolated by destroyed bridges or impassable sections have been turned into airstrips.

For the ordinary citizen though, especially in rural areas, often the only options are to cycle, walk or go by dugout canoe.

Some parts of the DRC are more accessible from neighbouring countries than from Kinshasa. For example, Bukavu itself and Goma and other north-eastern towns are linked by paved road from the DRC border to the Kenyan port of Mombasa, and most goods for these cities have been brought via this route in recent years. Similarly, Lubumbashi and the rest of Katanga Province is linked to Zambia, through which the paved highway and rail networks of Southern Africa can be accessed. Such links through neighbouring countries are generally more important for the east and south-east of the country, and are more heavily used, than surface links to the capital.

Major infrastructure programs
In 2007 China agreed to lend the DRC US$5bn for two major transport infrastructure projects to link mineral-rich Katanga, specifically Lubumbashi, by rail to an ocean port (Matadi) and by road to the Kisangani river port, and to improve its links to the transport network of Southern Africa in Zambia. The two projects would also link the major parts of the country not served by water transport, and the main centres of the economy. Loan repayments will be from concessions for raw materials which China desperately needs: copper, cobalt, gold and nickel, as well as by toll revenues from the road and railway. In the face of reluctance by the international business community to invest in DRC, this represents a revitalisation of DRC's infrastructure much needed by its government.

The China Railway Seventh Group Co. Ltd will be in charge of the contract, under signed by the China Railway Engineering Corporation, with construction to be started from June 2008.

Highways
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has fewer all-weather paved highways than any country of its population and size in Africa — a total of 2250 km, of which only 1226 km is in good condition (see below). To put this in perspective, the road distance across the country in any direction is more than 2500 km (e.g. Matadi to Lubumbashi, 2700 km by road). The figure of 2250 km converts to 35 km of paved road per 1,000,000 of population. Comparative figures for Zambia and Botswana  are 721 km and 3427 km respectively.

Categories
The road network is theoretically divided into four categories (national roads, priority regional roads, secondary regional roads and local roads), however, the United Nations Joint Logistics Centre (UNJLC) reports that this classification is of little practical use because some roads simply do not exist. For example, National Road 9 is not operational and cannot be detected by remote sensing methods.

The two principal highways are:
 * National Road No. 1 connecting the Atlantic seaports with Kinshasa and southeast Katanga, the most important economic area of the country due to its copper and other mines.
 * National Road No. 2, Mbuji-Mayi–Bukavu–Goma–Beni
 * Note that the so-called Kinshasa Highway is not a physical road but a metaphor applied to the route by which AIDS is believed to have been spread east through Uganda and Kenya and neighbouring countries by truck drivers from the Congo. In the DR Congo the only highway which physically matches the route is National Road No. 2, and most passengers and freight moving between Kinshasa and that road go by boat along the Congo River.

Inventory
The total road network in 2005, according to the UNJLC, consisted of:

 * paved: 2,801 km
 * unpaved: 15,000 km
 * tracks 43,000 km
 * country roads 21,000 km
 * local roads or footpaths 90,000 km
 * total: 171,250 km

The UNJLC also points out that the pre-Second Congo War network no longer exists, and is dependent upon 20,000 bridges and 325 ferries, most of which are in need of repair or replacement. In contrast, a Democratic Republic of the Congo government document shows that, also in 2005, the network of main highways in good condition was as follows:
 * paved: 1,226 km
 * unpaved: 607 km

The 2000 Michelin Motoring and Tourist Map 955 of Southern and Central Africa, which categorizes roads as "surfaced", "improved" (generally unsurfaced but with gravel added and graded), "partially improved" and "earth roads" and "tracks" shows that there were 2694 km of paved highway in 2000. These figures indicate that, compared to the more recent figures above, there has been a deterioration this decade, rather than improvement.

International highways
Three routes in the Trans-African Highway network pass through DR Congo:
 * Tripoli-Cape Town Highway: this route crosses the western extremity of the country on National Road No. 1 between Kinshasa and Matadi, a distance of 285 km on one of the only paved sections in fair condition.
 * Lagos-Mombasa Highway: the DR Congo is the main missing link in this east–west highway and requires a new road to be constructed before it can function.
 * Beira-Lobito Highway: this east–west highway crosses Katanga and requires re-construction over most of its length, being an earth track between the Angolan border and Kolwezi, a paved road in very poor condition between Kolwezi and Lubumbashi, and a paved road in fair condition over the short distance to the Zambian border.

Waterways
The DRC has more navigable rivers and moves more passengers and goods by boat and ferry than any other country in Africa. Kinshasa, with 7 km of river frontage occupied by wharfs and jetties, is the largest inland waterways port on the continent. However, much of the infrastructure — vessels and port handling facilities — has, like the railways, suffered from poor maintenance and internal conflict.

The total length of waterways is estimated at 16,238 km including the Congo River, its tributaries, and unconnected lakes.

The 1000-kilometre Kinshasa-Kisangani route on the Congo River is the longest and best-known. It is operated by river tugs pushing several barges lashed together, and for the hundreds of passengers and traders these function like small floating towns. Rather than mooring at riverside communities along the route, traders come out by canoe and small boat alongside the river barges and transfer goods on the move.

Most waterway routes do not operate to regular schedules. It is common for an operator to moor a barge at a riverside town and collect freight and passengers over a period of weeks before hiring a river tug to tow or push the barge to its destination.
 * Description of Inland Waterways in the Congo from the UN Joint Logistics Centre

International links via inland waterways

 * Kinshasa is linked to Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo) by regular boat and ferry services 3.5 km across the Congo River.
 * Kinshasa and other river ports via the Ubangui River to Bangui (Central African Republic).
 * Goma and Bukavu on Lake Kivu to Gisenyi, Kibuye and Cyangugu in Rwanda.
 * Kalemie, Kulundu-Uvira and Moba on Lake Tanganyika to Kigoma (Tanzania), Bujumbura (Burundi) and Mpulungu (Zambia).
 * Kasenga and Pweto on the Luapula River-Lake Mweru system to Nchelenge, Kashikishi and Kashiba in Zambia.
 * Lake Albert: two small ports on the DRC side, Kisenye near Bunia and Mahadi-Port in the north can link to Ugandan ports at Butiaba and Pakwach (served by Uganda Railways) on the Albert Nile, which is navigable as far as Nimule in southern Sudan. Water transport is conducted principally in small craft, and commercial water transport is relatively absent.
 * Lake Edward: located within national parks, settlements are small, water transport is conducted principally in small craft, commercial water transport is absent.

Domestic links via inland waterways
The middle Congo River and its tributaries from the east are the principal domestic waterways in the DRC. The two principal river routes are: See the diagrammatic transport map above for other river waterways.
 * Kinshasa to Mbandaka and Kisangani on the River Congo
 * Kinshasa to Ilebo on the Kasai River

The most-used domestic lake waterways are:
 * Kalemie to Kalundu-Uvira on Lake Tanganyika
 * Bukavu to Goma on Lake Kivu
 * Fimi River to Inongo on Lake Mai-Ndombe
 * Irebu on the Congo to Bikoro on Lake Tumba
 * Kasenga to Pweto on the Luapula-Mweru system
 * Kisenye to Mahadi-Port on Lake Albert.

Most large Congo river ferry boats were destroyed during the civil war. Only smaller boats are running and they are irregular.

Atlantic Ocean

 * Matadi - largest port, and railhead for portage railway to Kinshasa - draft: 6.4 m
 * Banana - oil terminal for pipeline to Kinshasa
 * Boma - second-largest port

Inland river ports

 * Bumba
 * Ilebo - railhead
 * Kindu - railhead
 * Kinshasa - railhead
 * Kisangani - railhead
 * Mbandaka
 * N'dangi - former military harbor

Lake Tanganyika

 * Kalemie - railhead
 * Kalundu-Uvira
 * Moba

Lake Kivu

 * Bukavu
 * Idjwi
 * Goma

Pipelines
petroleum products 390 km

Merchant marine
1 petroleum tanker

Airports
Due to the lack of roads, operating railroads and ferry transportation many people traveling around the country fly on aircraft. As of 2016 the country does not have an international passenger airline and relies on foreign-based airlines for international connections. Congo Airways provides domestic flights and are based at Kinshasa's N'djili Airport which serves as the country's main international airport. Lubumbashi International Airport in the country's south-east is also serviced by several international airlines.

Airports - with paved runways
total: 24

over 3,047 m: 4

2,438 to 3,047 m: 2

1,524 to 2,437 m: 16

914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways
total: 205

1,524 to 2,437 m: 19

914 to 1,523 m: 95

under 914 m: 91 (2002 est.)

Transport safety and incidents
All air carriers certified by the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been banned from operating at airports in the European Community by the European Commission because of inadequate safety standards.

2010

 * Kasai River disaster. A passenger ferry capsized on the Kasai River in July with at least 80 dead.

2008

 * 2008 Hewa Bora Airways crash - April 15 plane crash killed at least 18 people after taking off from the Goma International Airport, tearing the roofs off houses as it plowed through a densely populated marketplace near the runway.

2007

 * August 1 train derailment killed 100, many riding on roof.

2005

 * Kindu rail accident, on November 29, at least 60 people were killed

Rocketry
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has a rocketry program called Troposphere.