Popokabaka is a city in the

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

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 ...

. It is the administrative center of

Popokabaka Territory Popokabaka Territory is a territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is located in the Kwango province. The territory is divided into three sectors: Yonso, Popokabaka and Lufuna. The Kwango River runs through the territory. The admini ...

. Popokabaka lies on the right bank of the river

Kwango River The Cuango or Kwango ( pt, Rio Cuango) is a transboundary river of Angola and Democratic Republic of Congo. It is the largest left bank tributary of the Kasai River in the Congo River basin. It flows through Malanje in Angola. The Kwango River ...

Francis Dhanis Francis Ernest Joseph Marie Dhanis (11 March 1861 – 13 November 1909) was a Belgian colonial civil servant and soldier noted for his service for the Congo Free State during the Congo Arab War and Batetela Rebellion. Early life and career ...

, an agent of the

Congo Free State ''(Work and Progress) , national_anthem = Vers l'avenir , capital = Vivi Boma , currency = Congo Free State franc , religion = Catholicism (''de facto'') , leader1 = Leopo ...

, established a station here around 1890. The territory of Popokabaka borders with

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

in the southwest. For a long time Popokabaka was the commercial center for trade with Portuguese traders who were selling essential items and buying local products. The military post at Popokabaka was used to control the flow of rubber into Portuguese Congo. The city is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Popokabaka. It is served by Popokabaka Airport, a grass

airstrip An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...

References

Populated places in Kwango {{DRCongo-geo-stub