Kwilu is a province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It's one of the 21 provinces created in the 2015 repartitioning. Kwilu, Kwango, and Mai-Ndombe provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the former

Bandundu province Bandundu is one of eleven former provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It bordered the provinces of Kinshasa and Bas-Congo to the west, Équateur to the north, and Kasai-Occidental to the east. The provincial capital is also ca ...

. Kwilu was formed from the

Kwilu district Kwilu District (french: District du Kwilu, nl, District KwangoKwilu) was a district of the Belgian Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It roughly corresponded to the present province of Kwilu. Location The Free State was annexed by ...

and the independently administered cities of Bandundu and

Kikwit Kikwit is the largest city of Kwilu Province, lying on the Kwilu River in the southwestern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kikwit is also known in the region under the nickname "The Mother". The population is approximately 458,000 ( ...

. Bandundu is the provincial capital. The province takes its name from the

Kwilu River The Kwilu River is a major river in the Kwilu Province formerly known as Bandundu province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to the city of Bandundu, where it joins the Kwango River just before this stream enters the Kasai River. In t ...

, which crosses it from south to north.

Administrative areas

Towns and territories are: * Bagata * Bulungu *

Gungu Gungu is a town in Kwilu Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is the capital of Gungu Territory as well as Gungu Sector. The town lies west of the Kwilu River and is situated between the streams Lukunia in the south-east and Kite ...

Idiofa Idiofa is a town in Kwilu Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Location Idiofa is the administrative center for Idiofa Territory. Idiofa lies at an altitude of 1820 ft (554 m), east of the larger city of Kikwit, and west of the ...

* Mangai *

Masi-Manimba Masi-Manimba is a town in Kwilu Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo, the headquarters of the Masi-Manimba Territory. As of 2012 the population was estimated to be 31,802. The town lies on the Lukula River, a tributary of the Kwilu River. ...

History

Kwilu was administered as a province from 1962 to 1966, however in 1964 the administration was taken over by the central government due to a rebellion in southwestern Congo. A rebel administration under

Pierre Mulele Pierre Mulele (11 August 1929 – 3 or 9 October 1968) was a Congolese rebel active in the Simba rebellion of 1964. Mulele had also been minister of education in Patrice Lumumba's cabinet. With the assassination of Lumumba in January 1961 and ...

ran most of Kwilu province from January 1964.Stephen L. Weigert, Angola: A Modern Military History 1961-2002, 16-22. The province was reconquered by the legal government in June 1965. The provincial government was restored on January 18, 1966, but the province was merged with

Kwango District Kwango District (french: District du Kwango, nl, District Kwango) was a district of the Congo Free State, Belgian Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It went through various changes in extent. It roughly corresponded to the present pro ...

and

Mai-Ndombe District Mai-Ndombe District was a district of pre-2015 Bandundu Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It covered roughly the same area as the colonial-era Lac Léopold II District. In 2015, it was merged with Plateaux District, all in pre-2 ...

to create

Bandundu Province Bandundu is one of eleven former provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It bordered the provinces of Kinshasa and Bas-Congo to the west, Équateur to the north, and Kasai-Occidental to the east. The provincial capital is also ca ...

. President * 8 Sep 1962 - 18 Jan 1964 Norbert Leta * Jan 1964 - Nov 1964 Pierre Mulele (b. 1929 - d. 1968) ** (commander-in-chief and Head of the General Direction) Governor * 18 Jan 1966 - 25 Apr 1966 Henri-Désiré Takizala Between 1966 and 2015, Kwilu was administered as a district as part of Bandundu Province.

References

01 Provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo {{DRCongo-geo-stub