Congo

Sovereign Congo Congo Souverain (French)
Flag Shield
Motto: "Liberté et équité" (French) "Freedom and Fairness"
Anthem: Debout Congolais  (French) "Arise, Congolese"
Capital	Kinshasa
Largest city	Matadi
Official language and lingua franca	French
Common languages	215 native languages
Religion (2021)	95.4% Christianity 2.6% traditional faiths 1.5% Islam 0.5% others/none
Demonym(s)	Congolese
Government	Federal semi-presidential republic
• President	Kazi Mbuta
• Vice-president	Londa Kanza
• Prime minister	Baku Nsimba
Legislature	Parliament
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	Common Assembly
Formation
• Colonized	17 November 1879
• Congo Free State	1 July 1885
• Belgian Congo	15 November 1908
• Independence from Belgium	30 June 1960
• Admitted to the United Nations	20 September 1960
• Current governmental framework	1 August 1964
Area
• Total	2,345,409 km2 (905,567 sq mi) (11th)
• Water (%)	3.32
Population
• 2023 estimate	111,859,928 (14th)
• Density	46.3/km2 (119.9/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)	2023 estimate
• Total	$1.589 trillion (26th)
• Per capita	$14,205 (106th)
GDP (nominal)	2023 estimate
• Total	$614.575 billion (25th)
• Per capita	$5,494 (109th)
Gini (2012)	39.4 medium · 117th
HDI (2021)	0.693 medium · 179th
Currency	Congolese franc (CDF)
Time zone	UTC+1 to +2 (WAT and CAT)
Date format	dd/mm/yyyy
Driving side	right
Internet TLD	.cg

The Congo, officially the Sovereign Congo (French: Congo Souverain) is a federal semi-presidential republic in Central Africa. By land area, the Congo is the second-largest country in Africa and the 11th-largest in the world. With a population of roughly 112 million, the Congo is also the most populous Francophone country in the world. The national capital is Kinshasa, while the largest city is the entrepôt and economic hub Matadi. The Congo consists of 5 states and one self-administered territory. The country borders the Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, South Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania (across Lake Tanganyika), Zambia, Angola, and the South Atlantic Ocean.

Encapsulating the majority of the Congo Basin, the territory of the Congo was first inhabited by Central African foragers around 90,000 years ago and was reached by the Bantu expansion roughly 3,000 years ago. In the western portion of what is now the Congo, the Kingdom of Kongo ruled from the 14th to 19th centuries. In the northeast, center, and east, the kingdoms of Azande, Luba, and Lunda ruled from the 16th and 17th centuries to the 19th century. King Leopold II of Belgium acquired rights to the Congo territory from the colonial nations of Europe in 1885 and declared the land his private property, providing it with its modern official name. From 1885 to 1908, his colonial military forced the local population to produce rubber and committed widespread atrocities. In 1908 Leopold ceded the territory, thus subsequently becoming a Belgian colony.

Congo achieved independence from Belgium on 30 June 1960 and was immediately rocked by a series of secessionist movements, resulting in the ousting of Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba and a new government forming under Joseph Kasa-Vubu; Lumumba's short tenure was nonetheless highly influential by consolidating the basis for an independent, liberal and democratic Congo. Cyrille Adoula succeeded him and introduced the nonalignment and non-interventionism philosophies. Vubu and Adoula managed to appease secessionist movements throughout the country by instituting a series of reforms and government decentralization. Moïse Tshombe subsequently became prime minister in 1963 and introduced a lasting doctrine of economic liberalism. By 1967 virtually all secessionist movements had been quelled as the government had consolidated its sovereignty through monopoly on violence; the Tshombe administration had rapidly disarmed most militias through arms-for-amnesty programs.

The continued political stability would continue throughout the 1970s, as Prime Minister Évariste Kimba coined and implemented a strategy aimed at inducing apathie armée (lit. armed apathy); these preventative efforts aimed to ensure that fringe militias and their efforts would be unable to materialize, through both law and order and societal stability. Kimba's tenure would see the departure of the soft power which Belgium still possessed over the Congo, relations with the former colonial power remained courteous but were hardly amicable. The 1970s were a period of great economic growth in the Congo, as resource exploitation boomed. The newly formed Congo Petroleum Exploration Corporation (CONPEC) helped alleviate the 1973 and 1979 oil crises, with most profits reinvested into accelerating the modernization of the automotive infrastructure of the country.

To ensure that a sizable amount of foreign extractors' profits benefited the Congo itself, the government levied taxes and land leases in return for access to the resource-rich lands of the basin. This would in turn lay the foundation for the land grant system, introduced in the late 1990s. The handling of and redistribution of profits from these companies, made possible through the stability and efforts to build trust in the ability and transparency of the government years prior, has been attributed as the main source of continued prosperity of the Congo.

The Congo has been earmarked by continued adherence to political pragmatism, economic liberalism, aspects of paternalistic conservatism, and staunch non-interventionism. Its foreign policy has been both praised for its perceived stability, but criticized as complacent. Despite its high gross domestic product, it continues to struggle with comparatively low life expectancy and a sizable amount of the population is reliant on subsistence agriculture. The urban-rural gap is considerable, with the average city-dweller earning 22 times as much as a rural Congolese. It ranks comparatively high on the democracy index, amongst the highest in Africa. Its economy is reliant on resource extraction and its commitments to combating climate change have been criticized as vague.

History

Prehistory

The area encompassing much of modern Congo, the Congo Basin and surrounding valleys, was populated as early as 90,00 years ago. Supporting this is one of the oldest barbed harpoons ever found, the Semliki harpoon, was found at Katanda in southern central Congo. Archeologists uncovered the Ishago bone tool in 1960, which is believed to be more than 20,000 years old and was found in eastern Congo. It is among the oldest mathematical tools ever found. The prehistoric inhabitants of Congo were foragers living a hunter-gatherer lifestyle, and belonged to three distinct groups, all found within the basin.

Bantu migration and Kingdoms

The prehistoric inhabitants of the Congo basin were largely assimilated into the encroaching expansion of Bantu-speaking peoples, beginning in 500 BC. The Bantu lived a pastoral lifestyle and possessed Iron Age craftsmanship, which is sometimes attributed to their ability to expand across southern and central Africa. Their complex use of metal tools revolutionized the local agriculture and animal husbandry, which in turn displaced the hunter-gatherer groups to the northern basin.

In the 5th century a complex society began developing in the Upemba depression along the banks of the Lualaba River in what is now Katanga, in southeastern Congo. By the 10th century the rising population of now settled Bantu made interconnected trade networks possible, which mostly traded in salt, iron, and copper. This society was the precursor to the Luba Empire, which came to rule large portions of the southern basin. The inhabitants of Luba were able to form governments durable enough to withstand major disruptions, resulting in its 300 year long existence from 1585 to 1889. At its peak, the kingdom had over one million taxed inhabitants.

The Luba Empire was in turn rivaled by the Kuba Kingdom, established in 1625 in the heartland of the Congo basin. Beginning as a confederacy of several chiefdoms of varying ethnic groups, it lacked a central authority until Shyaam a-Mbul, a political outsider, managed to unite the chiefdoms under his leadership. The leadership was later reformed toward a merit-based system, and was controlled by a king belonging to the Bushoong clan. It was comparatively advanced for its time, and had a constitution, elected offices, separation of political powers, courts and juries, a police force and taxation to support it. The Kuba Kingdom adapted to new crops introduced from the Americas, and in turn grew wealthy. Its stability is in part attributed to its isolation from the slave trade. It was disestablished in 1884, becoming a part of the colonial empire.

At the center of the slave trade, the Kingdom of Kongo existed parallel to the Luba Empire and Kuba Kingdom, in what is now the Congo and Angola. It was founded in 1390 and began as a loose federation of tribes, but eventually came to adapt a royal patrimony. The arrival of the Portuguese in 1483 resulted in the king and price, Nzinga a Nkuwu and Nvemba a Nzinga, being baptized as assuming Christian names. Nzinga conquered new territory for the Kingdom upon being crowned in 1509. He modernized the Kingdom and centralized its administration, and came to organize the slave trade in conjunction with the Portuguese. Internal instability on the part of the patrimonial system of governance resulted in feuds and conflict with the Portuguese. By 1665 Portuguese forces managed to defeat the forces of António I Nvita a Nkanga, the current king, resulting in the Kingdom being made a vassal state to Portugal. The murder of Nkanga by the Portuguese launched a power struggle, and in turn, a civil war, with thousands of Kongo subjects made salves. By the end of the 19th century the king Pedro V Agua Rosada Lelo ceded the Kingdom to Portugal in exchange for increased royal powers over outlying areas, and by 1914 the Kingdom collapsed under revolts against Lelo's complicity to the Portuguese.

Colonial period (1877–1908)

Belgian exploration and administration existed between the 1870s and the 1920s. It was pioneered by explorer Henry Morton Stanley, who undertook explorations into the basin on behalf of King Leopold II of Belgium. The eastern regions of the basin were considerably unstable due to the frequent raids by Arab–Swahili slave traders, the most infamous being the explorer and slaver Tippu Tip. This would eventually result in the Congo Arab war, the departure of Tippu Tip from Congo, and the consolidation of colonial power over the region.

Leopold II had elaborate visions for what the Congo colony would become, and used the front organization International African Association to convince the major powers of Europe to establish a private state encompassing the Congo Basin. Leopold claimed to have altruistic and humanitarian intent with the state, in reality he established the Congo Free State and coerced the local population into producing rubber, which would later result in numerous atrocities and previously unseen brutalities enacted in the name of profit. A local militia, the exceedingly violent and infamous Force Publique, was established to enforce rubber quotes with violence against the natives being a matter of policy.

Though some infrastructure projects were constructed, such as a railway that ran from the coast to the capital of Leopoldville, now Kinshasa, these did not benefit the natives and were built to benefit the colonial exports. The rubber extracted at the expense of the native population resulted in a fortune being made for Leopold, who in turn built several buildings in Brussels and Ostend to honor himself. The brutal conditions of the Congo would be investigated by diplomat Roger casement on behalf of Great Britain. His report, entitled the Casement Report, confirmed the accusations of humanitarian abuses, resulting in the Belgian Parliament forcing Leopold to set up an independent commission of inquiry. Its findings in turn confirmed the Casement report, concluding that the population of the Congo basin had halved during the period of colonial rule. International pressure called for the state's ownership to be transferred from Leopold to Belgium, which it did in 1908. Leopold never set foot in the Congo.

Belgian Congo (1908–1960)

The Belgian parliament reluctantly took over the personal state of Leopold II in 1908, following international pressure to so as a direct result of the Casement report detailing the atrocities perpetuated during the personal union. Executive power was now exercised by the Belgian minster of colonial affairs and the Colonial Council, both located in Belgium. The decision was made to move the capital from the port town of Boma to Léopoldville, some 300 kilometers upstream. Belgian Congo was administered through four massive provinces, Congo-Kasaï, Equateur, Orientale, and Katanga. In 1932 the provinces were split up into six. At the same time the amount of Belgians residing in the Congo increased threefold, from just 3,615 in 1920 to 17,676 in 1930.

The horrid conditions of many native Congolese improved in certain aspects after the transfer of ownership to the Belgian state. The exploitation and arbitrary use of violence was curbed. However, locals had no say in governmental affairs, as no political activity was permitted in the Congo. The infamously violent Force Publique continued to act as the maintainers of public order, it would take until the 1950s for the regular units of the Belgian army to replace it. The colonial authority was referred to by the native Congolese as bula matari (lit. "break rocks"), in reference to the crushing force of the colonial state and white rule.

The First World War led to an increase in demand for, and in turn, Congolese copper output. The British government purchased this copper, the funds of which going directly to the Belgian government in exile. A system of "mandatory cultivation" was introduced, forcing farmers to grow certain cash crops, such as cotton, coffee, and groundnuts, strictly for export. The system was widely unpopular and the territorial administrators were tasked with sanctioning evaders.

By the beginning of the 1920s, the living conditions of the Congo would improve as the Belgian government loaned 300 million francs to fund public infrastructure programs. Between 1920 and 1932 over 2,400 kilometers of railroads were constructed. Harbor infrastructure was constructed in many towns, and basic necessities, such as waterworks and electricity projects were completed. This modernization, though largely catered for the European companies operating in the Congo, nonetheless simultaneously improved the living conditions for the native Congolese. Urbanization began to take a hold between the 1920s and 1940s, with many young men leaving their often impoverished villages in order to work for the companies in the cities. Labor shortages plagued the regions where the workers had left, and as such quotas were introduce to curb this. Lands not used by the local population was taken by the government and redistributed to private companies, white landowners (colons), or to Christian missions. This resulted in a plantation economy, though the Belgian Congo was also among the leading copper-ore producers worldwide.

The Great Depression of the 1930s severely affected the now export-based economy of the Belgian Congo. In some areas, such as that of the mineral rich Katanga, the employment declined by 70%. Laborers returned in large numbers to their villages, and as a result, the populations of cities declined significantly. In order to rectify the economic downturn, the government launched the "indigenous peasantry program", which aimed to modernize indigenous agriculture, and in turn, make the economy of the colony more resilient to dramatic swings in demand. The National Institute for Agronomic Study of the Belgian Congo, established in 1934, helped develop crop selection, agronomic research, and general know-how among indigenous farmers.

The Second World War again caused an increase in industrial production and agricultural output, the Congolese natives bore the brunt of this war effort. After Malaya fell to Japanese forces in January of 1942, the Congo became an important supplier of rubber to the Allies. Perhaps even more significant, the mines of the Congo excavated the uranium which would be used in the Manhattan Project, including in the atomic bombs dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

Following the end of World War II, the colonial government became more active in the economic and social development of the Congo. Native Congolese were granted the right to purchase and sell private property in their own names, and a middle class emerged in the larger cities of Léopoldville, Elisabethville, Stanleyville, and Luluabourg. An ambitious ten-year plan for the Congo was put forth by the Belgian government in 1949; it sought to expand housing, energy supply, rural development, health-care infrastructure. This plan ushered in a decade of strong economic growth from which the native Congolese began to benefit from on a large scale for the first time. Simultaneously, the number of Belgian expats residing in the Congo doubled from 39,000 in 1950 to 88,000 by 1960.

Independence and instability (1960–1967)

Patrice Lumumba (left) and Joseph Kasa-Vubu were often at odds with each other but are both considered instrumental in shaping the modern Congolese republic.

The growing middle class ushered in a nationalist movement, as modern political ideas resonated with an educated youth. Elections were held in May of 1960, and the Mouvement National Congolais (MNC), led by Patrice Lumumba, won the parliamentary elections. Lumumba became the first Prime Minister of the now independent Congo, on the 24th of June 1960. The parliament in turn elected Joseph Kasa-Vubu as president, who belonged to the Alliance des Bakongo (ABAKO) party. Six days later, on the 30th of June, Belgian Congo officially achieved independence from Belgium, and the official name Sovereign Congo was instituted.

Almost immediately after independence the majority native Congolese soldiers of the Force Publique, the de-facto national police force, mutinied against its white officers. This was reportedly sparked by a speech held by a Belgian general, proclaiming that independence would not bring any change to the status or role of the troops, who expected a significant improvement following independence. At the same time, the province of Katanga, led by local businessman and politician Moïse Tshombe, engaged in a secessionist struggle. The state of South Kasai joined soon after. These three incidents sparked unrest and displayed an apparent failure of the state to control its armed forces and secure the safety of its citizens. Subsequently almost 100,000 of the skilled European workforce and aristocracy fled the country. In an effort to stabilize the Force Publique, many of its white officers were replaced by native Congolese, which brought the force back under government control.

President Lumumba's calls for help to quash the secessionist movements went ignored by the United Nations and the United States. In light of this, he turned to the Soviet Union for assistance, which it provided in the form of military supplies and advisers. A state of emergency was declared on the 8th of August. On the 23rd of August, the Force Publique invaded South Kasai. Lumumba was dismissed from office on the 5th of September by Vubu, who scrutinized the call upon assistance to the Soviets. Lumumba declared his dismissal unconstitutional, and increasingly replaced his cabinet with officials he trusted, growing paranoid of foreign plots targeting him. Facing growing pressure, Vubu, with the backing of the United States and Belgium, forcibly vacated Lumumba from his office by the Force Publique; however, this only occurred after Vubu managed to convince both Resident Minister and Belgian loyalist Albert Delvaux and Foreign Minister Justin Bomboko, as according to Belgian law, the decision had to be countersigned by at least one minister. The former's signing was anticipated, the latter's came as a surprise as Bomboko had appeared to concur with Lumumba. By managing to unite two politically different ministers, Vubu's decision to oust Lumumba gained a much needed legitimacy, and he eventually managed to convince the parliament to form a new government, as many members were already upset by Lumumba's increasingly authoritarian style of governance.

The trade unionist and politician Cyrille Adoula was elected the next prime minister, managing to appease many former Lumumba supporters, especially Antoine Gizenga, a Lumumbist powerhouse of a politician. Coining the principle of équilibre (lit. "balance"), he pursued a foreign policy of non-interventionism, which he would later become famous for. This was also reflected in his style of governance, he emphasized the need for constant dialogue between the different parties and political blocs in parliament, as to prevent any conflict escalating to the levels seen during the Lumumba ousting. Adoula worked to stabilize the government, and attempted to mitigate any secessionist waves in the eastern parts of the country. In 1961, Adoula and Kasa-Vubu formed the Congo National League (CNL), a paternalistic conservative and catch-all party.

Economy

Transportation and infrastructure

Following the rapid increase in living standards in the cities of the Congo, a national plan for an extensive highway network was ratified in 1975, mainly to facilitate the transport of oil across the country. The rich oil deposits of the Lake Albert Basin required a 3,500 km route in order to be transported to the ports of Matabi, which resulted in the C1 highway between Kasenyi and Matabi. It was completed in 1977 and was largely funded by the profits from the highly successful CONPEC extraction company. It greatly increased the yield for CONPEC, and in turn provided enough funds to construct a complete, national highway network.

Demographics

Urbanization

Whilst most of the Congolese population resides in rural townships, communes, an estimated 32 million live in the various five major cities in the Congo. These are Kinshasa, Matabi, Katangamta, Wagenya and Kanangayi. Kinshasa is the administrative capital of the country, hosting all three branches of government, including various federal agencies and the official residence of the President. The largest city in the Congo, Matabi, is situated on a coastal delta at the mouth of the Congo river. It is considered to be the cultural and educational hub of the country. Katangamta, capital of the Katanga Province, is the economic capital of the Congo, hosting various corporate offices and headquarters. Wagenya, the largest city in the north of the country, is an industrial hub for the large oil refinement and metallurgy industry. Kanangayi, home to various diamond mines, is globally the largest exporter of high-carat diamonds and often considered the diamond trading capital of Africa.