Congo, Democratic Republic of the (2004) | Senegal (2001) | |
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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 | 10 regions (regions, singular - region); Dakar, Diourbel, Fatick, Kaolack, Kolda, Louga, Saint-Louis, Tambacounda, Thies, Ziguinchor |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 48.2% (male 14,122,237; female 14,008,654)
15-64 years: 49.3% (male 14,097,301; female 14,646,285) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 590,262; female 853,191) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
44.07% (male 2,279,996; female 2,252,255) 15-64 years: 52.88% (male 2,603,829; female 2,834,328) 65 years and over: 3.05% (male 155,877; female 158,644) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine, cassava (tapioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood products | peanuts, millet, corn, sorghum, rice, cotton, tomatoes, green vegetables; cattle, poultry, pigs; fish |
Airports | 230 (2003 est.) | 20 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 24
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total:
10 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 206
1,524 to 2,437 m: 17 914 to 1,523 m: 92 under 914 m: 97 (2004 est.) |
total:
10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 2,345,410 sq km
land: 2,267,600 sq km water: 77,810 sq km |
total:
196,190 sq km land: 192,000 sq km water: 4,190 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US | slightly smaller than South Dakota |
Background | Since 1997, 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 in 1994 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 by the DROC, Zimbabwe, Angola, Uganda, Namibia, Rwanda, and Congolese armed rebel groups, but sporadic fighting continued. KABILA was assassinated on 16 January 2001 and his son Joseph KABILA was named head of state ten days later. In October 2002, the new president was successful in getting occupying Rwandan forces to withdraw from eastern Congo; two months later, the Pretoria Accord was signed by all remaining warring parties to end the fighting and set up a government of national unity. A transitional government was set up in July 2003; Joseph KABILA remains as president and is joined by four vice presidents from the former government, former rebel camps, and the political opposition. | Independent from France in 1960, Senegal joined with The Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia in 1982. However, the envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out, and the union was dissolved in 1989. Despite peace talks, a southern separatist group sporadically has clashed with government forces since 1982. Senegal has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping. |
Birth rate | 44.73 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 37.46 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $269 million
expenditures: $244 million, including capital expenditures of $24 million (1996 est.) |
revenues:
$885 million expenditures: $885 million, including capital expenditures of $125 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | Kinshasa | Dakar |
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 | tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry, harmattan wind |
Coastline | 37 km | 531 km |
Constitution | a new constitution was adopted 17 July 2003 | 3 March 1963, revised 1991 |
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:
Republic of Senegal conventional short form: Senegal local long form: Republique du Senegal local short form: Senegal |
Currency | Congolese franc (CDF) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 14.64 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 8.35 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $11.6 billion (2000 est.) | $4.1 billion (1998 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Aubrey HOOKS
embassy: 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa mailing address: Unit 31550, APO AE 09828 telephone: [243] (88) 43608 FAX: [243] (88) 43467 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Harriet L. ELAM-THOMAS embassy: Avenue Jean XXIII at the corner of Rue Kleber, Dakar mailing address: B. P. 49, Dakar telephone: [221] 823-4296, 823-7384 FAX: [221] 822-2991 |
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 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Mamadou Mansour SECK chancery: 2112 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-0540 |
Disputes - international | Democratic Republic of the Congo is in the grip of a civil war, tribal conflict, and rebel gang fighting that has drawn in neighboring states of Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda; in the Great Lakes region and Sudan, heads of the Great Lakes states and UN pledge to end conflict, but unchecked localized violence continues unabated; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $195.3 million (1995) | $647.5 million (1995) |
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 war, which began in August 1998, has dramatically reduced national output and government revenue, has increased external debt, and has resulted in the deaths from war, famine, and disease of perhaps 3.5 million people. Foreign businesses have curtailed operations due to uncertainty about the outcome of the conflict, lack of infrastructure, and the difficult operating environment. The war has intensified the impact of such basic problems as an uncertain legal framework, corruption, inflation, and lack of openness in government economic policy and financial operations. Conditions improved in late 2002 with the withdrawal of a large portion of the invading foreign troops. Several IMF and World Bank missions have met with the government to help it develop a coherent economic plan, and President KABILA has begun implementing reforms. Much economic activity lies outside the GDP data. Economic stability, aided by international donors, improved in 2003. New mining contracts have been approved, which - combined with high mineral and metal prices - could improve Kinshasa's fiscal position and GDP growth. | In January 1994, Senegal undertook a bold and ambitious economic reform program with the support of the international donor community. This reform began with a 50% devaluation of Senegal's currency, the CFA franc, which is linked at a fixed rate to the French franc. Government price controls and subsidies have been steadily dismantled. After seeing its economy contract by 2.1% in 1993, Senegal made an important turnaround, thanks to the reform program, with real growth in GDP averaging 5% annually in 1995-99. Annual inflation has been pushed down to 2%, and the fiscal deficit has been cut to less than 1.5% of GDP. Investment rose steadily from 13.8% of GDP in 1993 to 16.5% in 1997. As a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), Senegal is working toward greater regional integration with a unified external tariff. Senegal also realized full Internet connectivity in 1996, creating a miniboom in information technology-based services. Private activity now accounts for 82% of GDP. On the negative side, Senegal faces deep-seated urban problems of chronic unemployment, juvenile delinquency, and drug addiction. Real GDP growth is expected to rise above 6%, while inflation is likely to hold at 2% in 2001-02. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.839 billion kWh (2001) | 1.181 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 1.097 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 60 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 5.243 billion kWh (2001) | 1.27 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed feature near Nepen Diakha 581 m |
Environment - current issues | poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; deforestation; refugees responsible for significant deforestation, soil erosion, and wildlife poaching; mining of minerals (coltan - a mineral used in creating capacitors, diamonds, and gold) causing environmental damage | wildlife populations threatened by poaching; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; overfishing |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping |
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 | Wolof 43.3%, Pular 23.8%, Serer 14.7%, Jola 3.7%, Mandinka 3%, Soninke 1.1%, European and Lebanese 1%, other 9.4% |
Exchange rates | Congolese francs per US dollar - NA (2003), 346.485 (2002), 206.617 (2001), 21.82 (2000), 4.02 (1999) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1966); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Joseph KABILA (since 26 January 2001); note - following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, on 16 January 2001, Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency; the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: National Executive Council, appointed by the president elections: prior to the overthrow of MOBUTU Sese Seko, 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, there was also a prime minister who was elected by the High Council of the Republic; note - a Transitional Government is drafting a new constitution with free elections scheduled to be held in NA 2005 election results: results of the last election were: MOBUTU Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga reelected president in 1984 without opposition note: Joseph KABILA succeeded his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, following the latter's assassination in January 2001, negotiations with rebel leaders led to the establishment of a transitional government in July 2003 with free elections scheduled to be held in NA 2005 |
chief of state:
President Abdoulaye WADE (since 1 April 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Madior BOYE (since 3 March 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 27 February and 19 March 2000 (next to be held 27 February 2007); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Abdoulaye WADE elected president; percent of vote in the second round of voting - Abdoulaye WADE (PDS) 58.49%, Abdou DIOUF (PS) 41.51% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $959 million (f.o.b., 2000) |
Exports - commodities | diamonds, copper, crude oil, coffee, cobalt | fish, ground nuts (peanuts), petroleum products, phosphates, cotton |
Exports - partners | Belgium 54.9%, US 15.4%, Zimbabwe 11.1%, Finland 4.8% (2003) | France 17%, India 17%, Italy 12%, Spain 6%, Mali 6%, Cote d'Ivoire 4% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow, and red with a small green five-pointed star centered in the yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $40.05 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $16 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 55%
industry: 11% services: 34% (2000 est.) |
agriculture:
19% industry: 20% services: 61% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $700 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,600 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.5% (2003 est.) | 5.7% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 0 00 N, 25 00 E | 14 00 N, 14 00 W |
Geography - note | straddles equator; has 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 | The Gambia is almost an enclave of Senegal |
Highways | total: 157,000 km (including 30 km of expressways)
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km (1999 est.) |
total:
14,576 km paved: 4,271 km unpaved: 10,305 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%:
1.4% highest 10%: 42.8% (1991) |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption; while rampant corruption and inadequate supervision leaves the banking system vulnerable to money laundering, the lack of a well-developed financial system limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center | transshipment point for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin moving to Europe and North America; illicit cultivator of cannabis |
Imports | NA (2001) | $1.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels | foods and beverages, consumer goods, capital goods, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | South Africa 17%, Belgium 14.9%, France 12.6%, Germany 6.8%, Kenya 5.4%, Netherlands 4% (2003) | France 30%, Nigeria 7%, Italy 6%, Thailand 5%, Germany 4%, US 4% (1999) |
Independence | 30 June 1960 (from Belgium) | 4 April 1960 (from France); complete independence was achieved upon dissolution of federation with Mali on 20 August 1960 |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 7% (1998 est.) |
Industries | mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages), cement | agricultural and fish processing, phosphate mining, fertilizer production, petroleum refining, construction materials |
Infant mortality rate | total: 94.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 103.18 deaths/1,000 live births female: 85.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
56.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14% (2003 est.) | 1.5% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW (signatory), PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNTAET, UPU, WADB, WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 110 sq km (1998 est.) | 710 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Constitutional Court; Council of State; Court of Final Appeals or Cour de Cassation; Court of Appeals; note-the judicial system was reformed in 1992 |
Labor force | 14.51 million (1993 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | agriculture 60% |
Land boundaries | total: 10,730 km
border countries: Angola 2,511 km (of which 225 km is the boundary of Angola's discontiguous Cabinda Province), Burundi 233 km, Central African Republic 1,577 km, Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Rwanda 217 km, Sudan 628 km, Tanzania 459 km, Uganda 765 km, Zambia 1,930 km |
total:
2,640 km border countries: The Gambia 740 km, Guinea 330 km, Guinea-Bissau 338 km, Mali 419 km, Mauritania 813 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.96%
permanent crops: 0.52% other: 96.52% (2001) |
arable land:
12% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 16% forests and woodland: 54% other: 18% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba | French (official), Wolof, Pulaar, Jola, Mandinka |
Legal system | based on Belgian civil law system and tribal law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on French civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court; the Council of State audits the government's accounting office; 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 Laurent Desire KABILA |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (120 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
note: the former National Assembly, dissolved in the spring of 2001, had 140 seats elections: last held 29 April 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SOPI Coalition 89, AFP 11, PS 10, other 10 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.14 years
male: 47.06 years female: 51.28 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
62.56 years male: 60.94 years female: 64.22 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write French, Lingala, Kingwana, or Tshiluba
total population: 65.5% male: 76.2% female: 55.1% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 33.1% male: 43% female: 23.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, northeast of Angola | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: boundaries with neighbors |
contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | none | - |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Army, Navy, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police (Surete Nationale) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $115.5 million (2003) | $68 million (FY97) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (2003) | 1.4% (FY97) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 12,706,971 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,311,063 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 6,480,645 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,207,360 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
114,189 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 30 June (1960) | Independence Day, 4 April (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Congolese or Congo |
noun:
Senegalese (singular and plural) adjective: Senegalese |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts in south; Congo River floods (seasonal); in the east, in the Great Rift Valley, there are active volcanoes | lowlands seasonally flooded; periodic 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 | fish, phosphates, iron ore |
Net migration rate | -0.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: 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 internally displaced and caused 300,000 Congolese refugees to flee to surrounding countries (2004 est.) |
0.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 54 km; oil 71 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Social Christian Party or PDSC [Andre BO-BOLIKO]; Forces for Renovation for Union and Solidarity or FONUS [Joseph OLENGHANKOY]; National Congolese Lumumbist Movement or MNC [Francois LUMUMBA]; Popular Movement of the Revolution or MPR (three factions: MPR-Fait Prive [Catherine NZUZI wa Mbombo]; MPR/Vunduawe [Felix VUNDUAWE]; MPR/Mananga [MANANGA Dintoka Mpholo]); 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 (two factions: UFERI [Lokambo OMOKOKO]; UFERI/OR [Adolph Kishwe MAYA]) | African Party for Democracy and Socialism or And Jef (also known as PADS/AJ) [Landing SAVANE, secretary general]; African Party of Independence [Majhemout DIOP]; Alliance of Forces of Progress or AFP [Moustapha NIASSE]; Democratic and Patriotic Convention or CDP (also known as Garab-Gi) [Dr. Iba Der THIAM]; Democratic League-Labor Party Movement or LD-MPT [Dr. Abdoulaye BATHILY]; Front for Socialism and Democracy or FSD [Cheikh Abdoulaye DIEYE]; Gainde Centrist Bloc or BGC [Jean-Paul DIAS]; Independence and Labor Party or PIT [Amath DANSOKHO]; National Democratic Rally or RND [Madier DIOUF]; Senegalese Democratic Party or PDS [Abdoulaye WADE]; Senegalese Democratic Party-Renewal or PDS-R [Serigne Lamine DIOP, secretary general]; Senegalese Democratic Union-Renewal or UDS-R [Mamadou Puritain FALL]; Socialist Party or PS [President Abdou DIOUF]; SOPI Coalition (a 40-party coalition led by the PDS) [Abdoulaye WADE]; Union for Democratic Renewal or URD [Djibo Leyti KA]; other small parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | labor; Muslim brotherhoods; students; teachers |
Population | 58,317,930
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 2004 est.) |
10,284,929 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.99% (2004 est.) | 2.93% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Banana, Boma, Bukavu, Bumba, Goma, Kalemie, Kindu, Kinshasa, Kisangani, Matadi, Mbandaka | Dakar, Kaolack, Matam, Podor, Richard Toll, Saint-Louis, Ziguinchor |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2001) | AM 10, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 1.24 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 5,138 km
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 (2003) |
total:
906 km narrow gauge: 906 km 1.000-meter gauge (70 km double track) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs 10% | Muslim 92%, indigenous beliefs 6%, Christian 2% (mostly Roman Catholic) |
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: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.98 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: poor
domestic: barely adequate wire and microwave radio relay service in and between urban areas; domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: country code - 243; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment:
good system domestic: above-average urban system; microwave radio relay, coaxial cable and fiber-optic cable in trunk system international: 4 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,000 (2002) | 116,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1 million (2003) | 1,149 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (2001) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east | generally low, rolling, plains rising to foothills in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 6.62 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA (2003 est.) | NA%; urban youth 40% |
Waterways | 15,000 km (navigation on the Congo curtailed by fighting) (2004) | 897 km
note: 785 km on the Senegal river, and 112 km on the Saloum river |