The following

outline Outline or outlining may refer to: * Outline (list), a document summary, in hierarchical list format * Code folding, a method of hiding or collapsing code or text to see content in outline form * Outline drawing, a sketch depicting the outer edge ...

is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Democratic Republic of the Congo – country located in Central Africa. The country is extremely rich in natural resources but political instability, a lack of infrastructure and a culture of corruption have historically limited development, extraction and exploitation efforts. Besides the capital, Kinshasa, the country's other largest cities are both mining communities (Lubumbashi and Mbuji-Mayi) and the country's largest exports are raw minerals.

General reference

* Pronunciation: * Common English country names: The Democratic Republic of the Congo,

Congo-Kinshasa The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

, Zaire * Official English country name: The Democratic Republic of the Congo * Adjectives: Congolese, Congo *

Demonym A demonym (; ) or gentilic () is a word that identifies a group of people (inhabitants, residents, natives) in relation to a particular place. Demonyms are usually derived from the name of the place (hamlet, village, town, city, region, province, ...

(s): * ISO country codes: CD, COD, 180 * ISO region codes: See ISO 3166-2:CD * Internet country code top-level domain:

.cd .cd is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was created in 1997 as a replacement for the .zr (Zaire) ccTLD, which was phased out and eventually deleted in 2001. Except for reserved names ...

Geography of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Geography of the Democratic Republic of the Congo * The Democratic Republic of the Congo is: an

equatorial Equatorial may refer to something related to: *Earth's equator **the tropics, the Earth's equatorial region **tropical climate *the Celestial equator ** equatorial orbit **equatorial coordinate system ** equatorial mount, of telescopes * equatorial ...

megadiverse country * Location: **

Eastern Hemisphere The Eastern Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth which is east of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and west of the antimeridian (which crosses the Pacific Ocean and relatively little land from pole to pol ...

, on the

Equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can als ...

** Africa *** Central Africa *** Middle Africa ** Time zones: *** West Africa Time ( UTC+01) ***

Central Africa Time Central Africa Time or CAT, is a time zone used in central and southern Africa. Central Africa Time is two hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time ( UTC+02:00), which is the same as the adjacent South Africa Standard Time, Egypt Standard Time, ...

(

UTC+02 UTC+02:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +02:00. In ISO 8601, the associated time would be written as 2020-11-08T23:41:45+02:00. This time is used in: As standard time (year-round) ''Principal cities: Cairo, Pretoria, Cape ...

) ** Extreme points of the Democratic Republic of the Congo *** High:

Margherita Peak Mount Stanley or Mount Ngaliema (, also , ) is a mountain located in the Rwenzori Mountains, Rwenzori range. With an elevation of 5,109 m (16,763 ft), it is the highest mountain of both the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, and t ...

*** Low: South Atlantic Ocean 0 m ** Land boundaries: 10,730 km :: 2,511 km :: 2,410 km :: 1,930 km :: 1,577 km :: 765 km :: 628 km :: 459 km :: 233 km :: 217 km :* Coastline: Gulf of Guinea 37 km * Population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo: * * Area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo: * Atlas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Environment of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Climate of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is the largest country of sub-Saharan Africa, occupying some . 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 slopi ...

* Ecoregions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo *

Renewable energy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo was a net energy exporter in 2008. Most energy was consumed domestically in 2008. According to the IEA statistics the energy export was in 2008 small and less than from the Republic of Congo.

Protected areas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The protected areas in the Democratic Republic of the Congo include national parks, biosphere reserves, wildlife reserves, nature reserves, scientific reserves, community reserves, and hunting reserves. These areas total 324,290 km2, or 13.83 ...

** Biosphere reserves in the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Wildlife of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ** Fauna of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ***

Amphibians of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Amphibians are four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terrestrial, fossorial, arbore ...

*** Birds of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ***

Mammals of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur o ...

***

Reptiles of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalians ( ...

Natural geographic features of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

* Lakes of the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Mountains of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ** Volcanoes in the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Rivers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo *

World Heritage Sites in the Democratic Republic of the Congo In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

Regions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Ecoregions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

List of ecoregions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo The following is a list of ecoregions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as identified by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Terrestrial ecoregions ''by major habitat type'' Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests * Albertine R ...

Administrative divisions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Administrative divisions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The Third Republic of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is a unitary state with a five-level hierarchy of types of administrative division. There are nine different types of country subdivision in a new hierarchy with no new types but with two ...

* Provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ** Territories of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

= Provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

= Territories of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

= Municipalities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

= *

Capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

of the Democratic Republic of the Congo:

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...

* Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Demography of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Demographics of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Government and politics of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Politics of the Democratic Republic of the Congo *

Form of government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

: semi-presidential democratic republic *

of the Democratic Republic of the Congo:

* Elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo *

Political parties in the Democratic Republic of the Congo This article details the various political parties in ''the Democratic Republic of the Congo''. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has seen extensive civil conflict since independence in 1960, and no free and fair election had been held there u ...

Branches of the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Executive branch of the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

* Head of state: President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, * Head of government: Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo,

Legislative branch of the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

* Parliament of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (

bicameral Bicameralism is a type of legislature, one divided into two separate assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate and vote as a single grou ...

) ** Upper house: Senate of the Democratic Republic of the Congo **

Lower house A lower house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has co ...

: House of Commons of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Judicial branch of the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Court system of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Foreign relations of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Foreign relations of the Democratic Republic of the Congo *

Diplomatic missions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Diplomatics (in American English, and in most anglophone countries), or diplomatic (in British English), is a scholarly discipline centred on the critical analysis of documents: especially, historical documents. It focuses on the conventions, p ...

* Diplomatic missions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

International organization membership

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a member of: * African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States (ACP) *

African Development Bank Group The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) or (BAD) is a multilateral development finance institution headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, since September 2014. The AfDB is a financial provider to African governments and private companies in ...

(AfDB) *

African Union The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling for the establishment of the Africa ...

(AU) *

Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) is a regional economic community in Africa with twenty-one member states stretching from Tunisia to Eswatini. COMESA was formed in December 1994, replacing a Preferential Trade Area whic ...

(COMESA) * Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries (CEPGL) * Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) * Group of 24 (G24) *

Group of 77 The Group of 77 (G77) at the United Nations (UN) is a coalition of 134 developing countries, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 fou ...

(G77) *

International Atomic Energy Agency The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is an intergovernmental organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. It was established in 1957 ...

(IAEA) *

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) is an international financial institution, established in 1944 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, that is the lending arm of World Bank Group. The IBRD offers l ...

(IBRD) * International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) * International Criminal Court (ICCt) *

International Criminal Police Organization The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...

(Interpol) *

International Development Association The International Development Association (IDA) (french: link=no, Association internationale de développement) is an international financial institution which offers concessional loans and grants to the world's poorest developing countries. Th ...

(IDA) *

International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is a worldwide humanitarian aid organization that reaches 160 million people each year through its 192-member National Societies. It acts before, during and after disas ...

(IFRCS) * International Finance Corporation (IFC) *

International Fund for Agricultural Development The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD; french: link=no, Fonds international de développement agricole (FIDA)) is an international financial institution and a specialised agency of the United Nations that works to address ...

(IFAD) * International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) (suspended) * International Labour Organization (ILO) *

International Maritime Organization The International Maritime Organization (IMO, French: ''Organisation maritime internationale'') is a specialised agency of the United Nations responsible for regulating shipping. The IMO was established following agreement at a UN conference ...

(IMO) * International Monetary Fund (IMF) * International Olympic Committee (IOC) * International Organization for Migration (IOM) * International Organization for Standardization (ISO) *

International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, an ...

(ICRM) * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) * International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (ITSO) * International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) *

Inter-Parliamentary Union The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU; french: Union Interparlementaire, UIP) is an inter-parliamentary institution, international organization of national parliaments. Its primary purpose is to promote democratic governance, accountability, and coop ...

(IPU) * Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) *

Nonaligned Movement The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a forum of 120 countries that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc. After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide. The movement originated in the aftermath ...

(NAM) *'' Organisation internationale de la Francophonie'' (OIF) * Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) * Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) * Southern African Development Community (SADC) * United Nations (UN) * United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) *

United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

(UNESCO) * United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) * United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) * Universal Postal Union (UPU) * World Confederation of Labour (WCL) * World Customs Organization (WCO) * World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) * World Health Organization (WHO) * World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) * World Meteorological Organization (WMO) * World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) * World Trade Organization (WTO)

Law and order in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Law of the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Crime in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ** Sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo *

Human rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo In all areas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the human rights record remained considerably poor, and numerous serious abuses were committed. Unlawful killings, disappearances, torture, rape, and arbitrary arrest and detention by securit ...

** LGBT rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ** Freedom of religion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ** Women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo *

Law enforcement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Law enforcement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has historically been focused on furthering the state's aims with no regard for human rights. The Police nationale congolaise (Congolese National Police) is the police throughout the territory ...

Military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Command ** Commander-in-chief: * Forces ** Land Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ** Navy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo **

Air Force of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The Congolese Air Force (french: Force Aérienne Congolaise, or FAC) is the air force branch of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo-Kinshasa). From 1971 to 1997, it was known as the Zairian Air Force (, or FAZA). Hi ...

** Republican Guard of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Local government in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

History of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

History by period

* Pre-colonial history

History by region

History of the Kasai region This is a history of the Kasai region in the Democratic Republic of Congo and of the political divisions which have occupied it since human settlement began. Earliest residence Not much is known of pre-Bantu residence in the region, although it is ...

History of Katanga This is a history of Katanga Province and the former independent State of Katanga, as well as the history of the region prior to colonization. Earliest residents Prior to Bantu migration around 500 BCE, the area was probably the site of dwellings ...

History of Kinshasa Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is situated on the Congo river near Pool Malebo and forms a single urban area with Brazzaville which is the capital of the neighbouring Republic of the Congo. ...

History by subject

* Economic history of the Democratic Republic of the Congo * History of the Jews in the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Postage stamps and postal history of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Culture of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Culture of the Democratic Republic of the Congo *

Cuisine of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The cuisine of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo varies widely, representing the food of indigenous people. Cassava, ''fufu'', rice, plantain and potatoes are generally the staple foods eaten with other side dish ...

* Languages of the Democratic Republic of the Congo *

Media in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Mass media in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are both nationally and internationally state owned and operated. Freedom of speech and the press While the constitution provides for freedom of speech and the press, the government has rest ...

* National symbols of the Democratic Republic of the Congo **

Coat of arms of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The arms of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has changed several times since 1997. The current one was introduced in 2006 and depicts a leopard head, surrounded by an elephant tusk to the left and a spear to the right. Below are the three wo ...

Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The national flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: drapeau de la république démocratique du Congo) is a sky blue flag, adorned with a yellow star in the upper left canton and cut diagonally by a red stripe with a yellow fimbr ...

National anthem of the Democratic Republic of the Congo "" ( kg, italic=no, Telama besi Kongo; "Arise, Congolese") is the national anthem of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was originally adopted in 1960 upon independence from Belgium but was replaced by " La Zaïroise" when the Congo cha ...

People of the Democratic Republic of the Congo This article is about the demographic features of the population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population. As many as 250 ...

Prostitution in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Prostitution in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is legal but related activities are prohibited. The Congolese penal code punishes pimping, running a bawdy house or brothel, the exploitation of debauchery or prostitution, as well as forced pros ...

* Public holidays in the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Religion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo **

Christianity in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Christianity is the majority religion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and is professed by a majority of the population. The number of Christians of all denominations in the Congo is estimated at over 63 million by the Pew Research Center, ...

Hinduism in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Christianity is the predominant religion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. , the US State Department reported that roughly 96% of the population are members of Christian denominations (of which nearly half are Roman Catholic, nearly hal ...

** Islam in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ** Judaism in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Art in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Cinema of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Cinema of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC; French: ''Cinéma de la République Démocratique du Congo'') originated with educational and propaganda films during the colonial era of the Belgian Congo. Development of a local film industry a ...

Music of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Congolese music is one of the most influential music forms of the African continent since the 1930s. Congolese musicians had a huge impact on the African musical scene and outside. Many contemporary genres of music were created or heavily influe ...

Sport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Sport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

Football in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Football is the most popular sport played in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The national football team has won the African Cup of Nations twice: in 1968 and 1974 under the nations' former name Zaire. The national team qualified for the Wor ...

Rugby union in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Rugby union in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is a minor but growing sport. Governing body The national union is a member of the Confederation of African Rugby, but not of the International Rugby Board. History Rugby in the Democratic Repu ...

Democratic Republic of the Congo at the Olympics The Democratic Republic of the Congo (''DR Congo'') first participated at the Olympic Games in 1968, when it was known as ''Congo Kinshasa''. The nation's next Olympic appearance was sixteen years later in 1984, when it was known as Zaire. The na ...

Economy and infrastructure of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

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 $48.994 billion as of 2019. At the time ...

* Economic rank, by nominal GDP (2007): 117th (one hundred and seventeenth) * Agriculture in the Democratic Republic of the Congo **

Cassava production in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Cassava (''Manihot esculenta'') production is important to the economy of Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is one of the country's principal crops, with per capita consumption of 353 kg per year, which is the highest in the world. ...

Communications 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 priva ...

Internet 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 priva ...

Companies of the Democratic Republic of the Congo A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

* Currency of the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Franc **

ISO 4217 ISO 4217 is a standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) that defines alpha codes and numeric codes for the representation of currencies and provides information about the relationships between individual cu ...

: CDF *

Energy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo was a net energy exporter in 2008. Most energy was consumed domestically in 2008. According to the IEA statistics the energy export was in 2008 small and less than from the Republic of Congo.

Health care in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Health problems have been a long-standing issue limiting development in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo). The Human Rights Measurement Initiative finds that the Democratic Republic of the Congo is fulfilling 73.1% of what it shoul ...

Mining in the Democratic Republic of the Congo The mining industry of the Democratic Republic of the Congo produces copper, diamonds, tantalum, tin, gold, and more than 63% of global cobalt production. Minerals and petroleum are central to the DRC's economy, making up more than 95% of value of ...

* Tourism in the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Transport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo **

Airports in the Democratic Republic of the Congo This is a list of airports in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, sorted by location. Airports Airport names shown in bold indicate the airport has scheduled service on commercial airlines. See also * Transport in the Democratic Republic ...

Rail transport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Rail transport is provided in the Democratic Republic of the Congo by the ''Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer du Congo'' (SNCC), the Société commerciale des transports et des ports (SCTP) ''(previously Office National des Transports'' ...

Education in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Health in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

References

External links

BBC country profile

Democratic Republic of the Congo
'' The World Factbook''. Central Intelligence Agency. *
RD Congo (In French and English)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Democratic Republic Of The Congo Democratic Republic of the Congo