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Compare Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2001) - West Bank (2003)

Compare Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2001) z West Bank (2003)

 Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2001)West Bank (2003)
 Congo, Democratic Republic of theWest Bank
Administrative divisions 10 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and one city* (ville); Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Equateur, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Katanga, Kinshasa*, Maniema, Nord-Kivu, Orientale, Sud-Kivu -
Age structure 0-14 years:
48.24% (male 12,988,488; female 12,878,232)

15-64 years:
49.21% (male 12,931,886; female 13,459,109)

65 years and over:
2.55% (male 575,113; female 791,890) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 44.1% (male 505,880; female 481,369)


15-64 years: 52.4% (male 598,992; female 572,511)


65 years and over: 3.5% (male 33,688; female 44,754) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood products olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products
Airports 232 (2000 est.) 3 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways total:
24

over 3,047 m:
4

2,438 to 3,047 m:
3

1,524 to 2,437 m:
15

914 to 1,523 m:
2 (2000 est.)
total: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
208

1,524 to 2,437 m:
20

914 to 1,523 m:
96

under 914 m:
92 (2000 est.)
-
Area total:
2,345,410 sq km

land:
2,267,600 sq km

water:
77,810 sq km
total: 5,860 sq km


land: 5,640 sq km


water: 220 sq km


note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967
Area - comparative slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US slightly smaller than Delaware
Background Since 1994 the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC; formerly called Zaire) has been rent by ethnic strife and civil war, touched off by a massive inflow of refugees from the fighting in Rwanda and Burundi. The government of former president MOBUTU Sese Seko was toppled by a rebellion led by Laurent KABILA in May 1997; his regime was subsequently challenged by a Rwanda- and Uganda-backed rebellion 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, but sporadic fighting continued. KABILA was assassinated in January 2001 and his son Joseph KABILA was named head of state. The new president quickly began overtures to end the war. The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of the interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external security and for internal security and public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Direct negotiations to determine the permanent status of Gaza and West Bank had begun in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, but have been derailed by a second intifadah that broke out in September 2000. The resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability within the Palestinian Authority continue to undermine progress toward a permanent agreement.
Birth rate 46.02 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 34.07 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget revenues:
$269 million

expenditures:
$244 million, including capital expenditures of $24 million (1996 est.)
revenues: $930 million


expenditures: $1.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $15 million


note: includes Gaza Strip (2000 est.)
Capital Kinshasa -
Climate tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; 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 temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters
Coastline 37 km 0 km (landlocked)
Constitution 24 June 1967, amended August 1974, revised 15 February 1978, amended April 1990; transitional constitution promulgated in April 1994; in November 1998, a draft constitution was approved by former President Laurent KABILA but it has not been ratified by a national referendum -
Country name conventional long form:
Democratic Republic of the Congo

conventional short form:
none

local long form:
Republique Democratique du Congo

local short form:
none

former:
Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville, Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire

abbreviation:
DROC
conventional long form: none


conventional short form: West Bank
Currency Congolese franc (CDF) new Israeli shekel (ILS); Jordanian dinar (JOD)
Death rate 15.15 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 4.16 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external $13 billion (1998 est.) $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador William Lacy SWING

embassy:
310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa

mailing address:
Unit 31550, APO AE 09828

telephone:
[243] (12) 21804, 21807

FAX:
[243] (88) 43805
-
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Faida MITIFU

chancery:
1800 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009

telephone:
[1] (202) 234-7690, 7691

FAX:
[1] (202) 234-2609
-
Disputes - international the Democratic Republic of the Congo is in the grip of a civil war that has drawn in military forces from neighboring states, with Uganda and Rwanda supporting the rebel movements that occupy much of the eastern portion of the state; most of the Congo river boundary with the Republic of the Congo is indefinite (no agreement has been reached on the division of the river or its islands, except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area) West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation
Economic aid - recipient $195.3 million (1995) $800 million (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.)
Economy - overview The economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo - a nation endowed with vast potential wealth - has declined drastically since the mid-1980s. The new government instituted a tight fiscal policy that initially curbed inflation and currency depreciation, but these small gains were quickly reversed when the foreign-backed rebellion in the eastern part of the country began in August 1998. The war has dramatically reduced national output and government revenue and has increased external debt. Foreign businesses have curtailed operations due to uncertainty about the outcome of the conflict and because of increased government harassment and restrictions. The war has intensified the impact of such basic problems as an uncertain legal framework, corruption, raging inflation, and lack of openness in government economic policy and financial operations. A number of IMF and World Bank missions have met with the government to help it develop a coherent economic plan but associated reforms are on hold. Real per capita GDP for the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBGS) declined by about one-third between 1992 and 1996 due to the combined effect of falling aggregate incomes and rapid population growth. The downturn in economic activity was largely the result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted labor and commodity market relationships between Israel and the WBGS. The most serious social effect of this downturn was rising unemployment; unemployment in the WBGS during the 1980s was generally under 5%; by 1995 it had risen to over 20%. Israel's use of comprehensive closures during the next five years decreased and, in 1998, Israel implemented new policies to reduce the impact of closures and other security procedures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes fueled an almost three-year-long economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and 6% in 1999. Recovery was upended in the last quarter of 2000 with the outbreak of violence, which triggered tight Israeli closures of Palestinian self-rule areas and severely disrupted trade and labor movements. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in Palestinian Authority areas have resulted in the destruction of much capital plant and administrative structure, widespread business closures, and a sharp drop in GDP. Another major loss has been the decline in earnings of Palestinian workers in Israel. International aid of $2 billion in 2001-02 to the West Bank and Gaza Strip have prevented the complete collapse of the economy.
Electricity - consumption 4.55 billion kWh (1999) NA kWh
Electricity - exports 404 million kWh (1999) -
Electricity - imports 55 million kWh (1999) NA kWh
Electricity - production 5.268 billion kWh (1999) NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
2.05%

hydro:
97.95%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0%
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m

highest point:
Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m
lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m


highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m
Environment - current issues poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; deforestation; refugees who arrived in mid-1994 were responsible for significant deforestation, soil erosion, and wildlife poaching in the eastern part of the country (most of those refugees were repatriated in November and December 1996) adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment
Environment - international agreements party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, 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
-
Ethnic groups over 200 African ethnic groups of which the majority are Bantu; the four largest tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17%
Exchange rates Congolese francs per US dollar - 50 (January 2001), 4.5 (January 2000), 4.02 (1999), 1.61 (1998), 1.31 (1997), 0.50 (1996)

note:
on 30 June 1998 the Congolese franc was introduced, replacing the new zaire
new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997); Jordanian dinars per US dollar - fixed rate of 0.7090 (from 1996)
Executive branch chief of state:
Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - the president succeeded his father Laurent Desire KABILA after his assassination on 16 January 2001; as president he is both chief of state and head of government

head of government:
Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - the president succeeded his father Laurent Desire KABILA after his assassination on 16 January 2001; as president he is both chief of state and head of government

cabinet:
National Executive Council, appointed by the president

elections:
before Laurent Desire KABILA seized power, the president was elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 29 July 1984 (next was scheduled to be held in May 1997); formerly, the prime minister was elected by the High Council of the Republic; note - elections were not held in 1991 as called for by the constitution

election results:
results of the last election were: MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga reelected president in 1984 without opposition

note:
Marshal MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga was president from 24 November 1965 until forced into exile on 16 May 1997 when his government was overthrown militarily by Laurent Desire KABILA, who immediately assumed governing authority; KABILA pledged to hold elections by April 1999, but in December 1998 announced that elections would be postponed until all foreign military forces attempting to topple the government had withdrawn from the country; KABILA was assassinated in January 2001 and was succeeded by his son Joseph KABILA
-
Exports $960 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) $603 million f.o.b., includes Gaza Strip
Exports - commodities diamonds, copper, coffee, cobalt, crude oil olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone
Exports - partners Benelux 62%, US 18%, South Africa, Finland, Italy (1999) Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year (since 1 January 1992)
Flag description light blue with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center and a columnar arrangement of six small yellow five-pointed stars along the hoist side -
GDP purchasing power parity - $31 billion (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $1.7 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
58%

industry:
17%

services:
25% (1997 est.)
agriculture: 9%


industry: 28%


services: 63%


note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $600 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $800 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate -15% (2000 est.) -22% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 0 00 N, 25 00 E 32 00 N, 35 15 E
Geography - note straddles Equator; very narrow strip of land that controls the lower Congo river and is only outlet to South Atlantic Ocean; dense tropical rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank and 29 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.)
Highways total:
157,000 km (including 30 km of expressways)(1996)

paved:
NA km

unpaved:
NA km
total: 4,500 km


paved: 2,700 km


unpaved: 1,800 km


note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements (1997 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
NA%

highest 10%:
NA%
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption -
Imports $660 million (c.i.f., 2000 est.) $1.9 billion c.i.f., includes Gaza Strip
Imports - commodities foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels food, consumer goods, construction materials
Imports - partners South Africa 28%, Benelux 14%, Nigeria 9%, Kenya 7%, China (1999) Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2000)
Independence 30 June 1960 (from Belgium) -
Industrial production growth rate NA% NA%
Industries mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages), cement generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers
Infant mortality rate 99.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 20.68 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 22.86 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 18.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 540% (2000 est.) 2.2% (includes Gaza Strip) (2001 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO -
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 2 (2000) 8 (1999)
Irrigated land 100 sq km (1993 est.) NA sq km
Judicial branch Supreme Court or Cour Supreme -
Labor force 14.51 million (1993 est.) NA
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 65%, industry 16%, services 19% (1991 est.) services 66%, industry 21%, agriculture 13% (1996)
Land boundaries total:
10,744 km

border countries:
Angola 2,511 km, Burundi 233 km, Central African Republic 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Tanzania 473 km, Uganda 765 km, Zambia 1,930 km
total: 404 km


border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km
Land use arable land:
3%

permanent crops:
0%

permanent pastures:
7%

forests and woodland:
77%

other:
13% (1993 est.)
arable land: NEGL%


permanent crops: 0%


other: 100% (1998 est.)
Languages French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood)
Legal system based on Belgian civil law system and tribal law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction -
Legislative branch a 300-member Transitional Constituent Assembly established in August 2000

elections:
NA; members of the Transitional Constituent Assembly were appointed by former President KABILA
-
Life expectancy at birth total population:
48.94 years

male:
46.96 years

female:
50.98 years (2001 est.)
total population: 72.68 years


male: 70.95 years


female: 74.51 years (2003 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write French, Lingala, Kingwana, or Tshiluba

total population:
77.3%

male:
86.6%

female:
67.7% (1995 est.)
definition: NA


total population: NA%


male: NA%


female: NA%
Location Central Africa, northeast of Angola Middle East, west of Jordan
Map references Africa Middle East
Maritime claims exclusive economic zone:
boundaries with neighbors

territorial sea:
12 NM
none (landlocked)
Merchant marine none (2000 est.) -
Military branches Army, Navy, Air Force, Special Presidential Security Group -
Military expenditures - dollar figure $250 million (FY97) $NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 4.6% (FY97) NA%
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
11,615,554 (2001 est.)
-
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
5,915,251 (2001 est.)
-
National holiday Independence Day, 30 June (1960) -
Nationality noun:
Congolese (singular and plural)

adjective:
Congolese or Congo
noun: NA


adjective: NA
Natural hazards periodic droughts in south; volcanic activity droughts
Natural resources cobalt, copper, cadmium, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, germanium, uranium, radium, bauxite, iron ore, coal, hydropower, timber arable land
Net migration rate 0.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

note:
one million refugees fled into Zaire (now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo or DROC) in 1994 to escape the fighting between the Hutus and the Tutsis; fighting in the DROC between rebels and government forces in October 1996 caused 875,000 refugees to return to Rwanda in late 1996 and early 1997; an additional 173,000 Rwandan refugees disappeared in early 1997 and are assumed to have been killed by Zairian forces; fighting between the Congolese government and Uganda- and Rwanda-backed Congolese rebels spawned a regional war in DROC in August 1998, which left 1.8 million Congolese displaced in DROC and caused 300,000 Congolese refugees to flee to surrounding countries
3.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Pipelines petroleum products 390 km -
Political parties and leaders Democratic Social Christian Party or PDSC [Andre BO-BOLIKO]; Popular Movement of the Revolution or MPR [leader NA]; Unified Lumumbast Party or PALU [Antoine GIZENGA]; Union for Democracy and Social Progress or UDPS [Etienne TSHISEKEDI wa Mulumba]; Union of Federalists and Independent Republicans or UFERI [Kouyoumba MUCHULI Mulembe] -
Political pressure groups and leaders NA -
Population 53,624,718

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 sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.)
2,237,194 (July 2002 est.)


note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.) (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% 60% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate 3.1% (2001 est.) 3.3% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors Banana, Boma, Bukavu, Bumba, Goma, Kalemie, Kindu, Kinshasa, Kisangani, Matadi, Mbandaka none
Radio broadcast stations AM 3, FM 12, shortwave 1 (1999) AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0


note: the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local, private stations are reported to be in operation (2000)
Radios 18.03 million (1997) -
Railways total:
5,138 km (1995)

note:
severely reduced route-distance in use because of damage to facilities by civil strife

narrow gauge:
3,987 km 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified); 125 km 1.000-m gauge; 1,026 km 0.600-m gauge (2000)
0 km
Religions Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs 10% Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8%
Sex ratio at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.01 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
0.96 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
0.73 male(s)/female

total population:
0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female


total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal and compulsory -
Telephone system general assessment:
NA

domestic:
barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations

international:
satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: NA


note: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for communication services in the West Bank
Telephones - main lines in use 21,000 (1997) 95,729 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular 8,900 (1997) NA
Television broadcast stations 20 (1999) NA
Terrain vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east
Total fertility rate 6.84 children born/woman (2001 est.) 4.65 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% 50% (includes Gaza Strip) (2002 est.)
Waterways 15,000 km (including the Congo and its tributaries, and unconnected lakes) none
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