Democratic Republic of the Congo

Geography

Economics

Demographics

Military

Politics

Surface

Surface (in square kilometers)

Surface (in square miles)

Surface (water)

Water Surface (in square kilometers)

Water Surface (in square miles)

Share of water (%)

Temperature

Average temperature (in Celcius)

Average temperature (in Farenheit)

Average high temperature (in Celcius)

Average high temperature (in Farenheit)

Average low temperature (in Celcius)

Average low temperature (in Farenheit)

Rainfall

Average rainfall (mm)

Average rainfall (inch)

Distance to other capitals (kilometers)

Distance to other capitals (miles)

Proximity

Economic organizations

Gross Domestic Product (US$)

Gross Domestic Product per capita

Amount of memberships (economic organizations)

Absolute earnings for every 1$

Relative earnings

GDP in PPP per capita (in US$)

GDP in PPP per capita

Gross Domestic product (in million US$)

GDP per capita (in US$)

Surface GDP

GDP per square kilometer (in US$)

GDP per square mile(in US$)

Relative GDP in PPP

Population

Population density

Emigration

Immigration

Literacy

Health

Population density (in km2)

Population density (in mi2)

Religion

Christianity (share of the total population)

Islam (share of the total population)

Buddhism (share of the total population)

Hinduism (share of the total population)

Judaism (share of the total population)

Other religions (share of the total population)

Non-religious (share of the total population)

Military spending (in % of GDP)

Military spending

It spends a total of US$353 million on its military which is 0.77 percent of its GDP and makes the Democratic Republic of the Congo the 108th largest military spender in the world.

The military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is called the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and mostly consists of a land force with a relatively small navy and a small air force. The Congolese military is being trained by South Africa and Belgium which also allocate funds in order to establish a fully functioning military. However, due to corruption and misallocation of funds this process has been delayed.

Military membership

It is also a member of six international military organizations making it the 51st most militarily interconnected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations:

South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone
Conference on Disarmament
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
International Atomic Energy Agency
Non-Aligned Movement

Military membership

International wars

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has been involved in four international wars. It has partaken in the following wars:

Angolan Civil War 1975-1001
First Congo War 1996-1997
Second Congo War 1998-1003
M13 rebellion 2011-2013

Number of international wars fought

Military spending (in US$ million)

Membership (international political organizations)

It is a member of eight international political organizations which ranks the Democratic Republic of the Congo as the 172nd most politically interconnected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations:

Member state of the United Nations
International Labour Organization
African Union
Member states of the Organization internationale de la Francophonie
International Criminal Court
Interpol
Association of World Election Bodies
World Organization for Animal Health

Political Membership

Democracy/dictatorship rating

Because of the establishment of a transitional government, and the lack of democratic representation, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is ranked as the 158th most democratic state in the world. Other factors that hinder its democratic development are heavy corruption as well as ongoing clashes throughout its territory.

Democracy/Dictatorship

The politics of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is characterized by being a multiparty presidential republic. The executive power is exercised by the president which is also head of state and its Prime Minister is head of government.

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Known for having large reserves of rare earth minerals as well as diamonds, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has had a violent history. Its first European contact was at the end of the 15th century with Portuguese explorers which mainly explored the coastline. Nearly 400 years later, the interior of the Democratic Republic of the Congo was explored and claimed by King Leopold the second of Belgium. From 1885 until 1960, a harsh Belgian regime was established that forced the inhabitants to work in the extraction of natural resources. During this period, a large part of the population had died as a result of harsh conditions. When it gained independence in 1960, several provinces attempted to secede, but were stopped in their secession by the Belgian Army. .

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is the second largest state in Africa behind Algeria. Despite being the second largest African state, it only has a small coastline that spans just over 30 kilometers. The vast majority of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is covered by dense tropical rain forest and its geography mainly consists of flat planes with mountains on its eastern and southern border. It borders a total of eight other states with the Central African Republic and South Sudan to its north, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania and Burundi to its east, Zambia and Angola to its south and the Republic of the Congo to its west.

With a total landmass of 2,356,000 square kilometers or 910,000 square miles, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the 11th largest state being slightly smaller than Algeria and slightly larger than Saudi Arabia.

It is also the 11th state with the largest body of water and the largest water holding state in Africa with an estimated 78,200 square kilometers or 30,190 square miles.

Below, a graph is shown which displays the absolute amount of water of each state in square kilometers and square miles.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has a total share of 3.34 percent which is covered by water. Some of the largest rivers are the Congo of which it derives its name and the Kasai River.

Because it is located on the equator, the climate of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is characterized by a tropical climate. With an average temperature of 23.8 degrees Celsius or 74.8 degrees Fahrenheit it as the 83rd warmest state in the world.

Its average high temperature is 28.9 degrees Celsius or 84 degrees Fahrenheit.

Its average lowest temperature is 18.5 degrees Celsius or 65.3 degrees Fahrenheit.

The rain forest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the second largest in the world and has a self-sustainable ecosystem where the majority of its water remains within the rain forest. In total, it receives around 151 centimetres or 59.1 inches of rainfall per year.

The capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is Kinshasa which is a home to more than 7 million people. The capital that is closest located to Kinshasa is Brazzaville which is on the opposite side of the Congo River. The capital that is furthest removed from Kinshasa is Apia Samoa with a distance of 17,841 kilometers or 11,086 miles.

The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is mainly based on the extraction of its natural resources, with the largest being diamonds and cobalt. Its economy is characterized by being a mixed economy with the freedom of private enterprise but with the central regulation of its government.

It is a member of 13 international economic organizations which makes it the 73rd most economically interconnected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations:

Alliance for Financial Inclusion
African development Bank
International Monetary Fund
OPEC Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
World Bank Group
World Customs Organization
World Trade Organization
International Bamboo and Rattan Organization
Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States
Southern African Development Community
International Solar Alliance
Group of 77
Group of 24

Despite having resources that are worth trillions of dollars, it's GDP is US$45.4 billion.

Its GDP per square kilometer is US$19,247 and per square mile it is US$49,848. This makes the Democratic Republic of the Congo the 185th highest in terms of GDP per surface area.

It is also the 185th highest in terms of GDP per capita which stands at US$520 per year.

The absolute earnings (GDP per capita) reflect the average yearly income. The figure below shows how much, on average, an inhabitant of another state earns for every $1 earned by a citizen of this state.

Its purchasing power is among the lowest in the world. As the 191st highest, it is estimated to be US$975.

The relative Gross Domestic Product in Purchasing Power Parity compares the purchasing power of this state with that of the rest of the world. The graph on the left shows how much purchasing power of 1$ compared to the purchasing power of other states

It is the 16th most populous state in the world with a population of 87,150,000 people. The population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has several hundred ethnic tribes of which the pygmies are believed to be the first inhabitants of the area. Despite this, the majority speaks French which is its official language.

Its population density is the 144th highest in the world with 37 people per square kilometer or 95 people per square mile.

Around two percent of its population, or just over 1,750,000 people, have migrated from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This makes the Democratic Republic of the Congo the 38th state in terms of migrated people and represents 0.7 percent of total global migration. A large portion has migrated to Uganda and the majority and to adjacent states. A smaller portion, around 200,000 people have migrated to mainly France and Belgium.

Immigration to the Democratic Republic of the Congo stands at 950,000 people which makes it the 45th state with the highest number of immigrants. This represents one percent of the population and mainly consists of immigration from neighbouring states with the Central African Republic being its largest supplier of migrants.

The literacy rate in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the 150th highest in the world with a share of 76.9 percent. This is mainly due to a lack of attendance by children as well as an underfunding and underdevelopment of its educational system due to its civil war that lasted from 1998 to 2003.

Because of its low GDP and its size, healthcare has been insufficient for the majority of its inhabitants. There is a lack of healthcare in rural areas and communicable diseases as well as the spread of HIV AIDS has put severe pressure on the overall health care of its citizens. The average life expectancy is the 186th highest in the world and is estimated to be 61.6 years with women reaching 63.2 years and men reaching 60 years.

Religion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has been mainly dominated the by Christian religions that were introduced during the period of colonization when tribe leaders were converted to Catholicism by missionaries.

Christianity is followed by 95.2 percent of the population making it the sixth most Christian state in the world. Catholicism represents around half of the Christian population, Protestantism around 20 percent and the remaining 30 percent adheres to smaller or local denominations.

On the right, the global share of Christians per state is displayed

Islam is the second largest religion and is believed to be followed by around four percent of its population. Its introduction to Islam came with Arab traders around the 11th century. During the period of colonization, the Muslim minority was suppressed by the Belgian government due to distrust. After gaining independence, the Muslim community received foreign aid from Pakistan and Libya for the construction of several mosques. At present, there have been religious clashes between Christians and Muslims in the Congo and tensions have been growing.

There are no official organizations that represent the Buddhist faith in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Hinduism is not represented in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

There is a small Jewish community present. These number in the hundreds and represents 0.001 percent of the population.

Other religions are mainly in the form of African religions and represent 0.5 percent of the population. It is argued that with the introduction of Islam and Christianity in the Democratic Republic of the Congo there has been a combination between traditional African beliefs and mainstream religions.

Around 1.2 percent of the population does not adhere to any faith.