Democratic Republic Of Congo Export

The area known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo was populated as early as 10,000 years ago and settled in the 7th and 8th centuries A.D. by Bantus from present-day Nigeria. Discovered in 1482 by Portuguese navigator Diego Cao and later explored by English journalist Henry Morton Stanley, the area was officially colonized in 1885 as a personal possession of Belgian King Leopold II as the Congo Free State. In 1907, administration shifted to the Belgian Government, which renamed the country the Belgian Congo. Following a series of riots and unrest, the Belgian Congo was granted its independence on June 30, 1960. Parliamentary elections in 1960 produced Patrice Lumumba as prime minister and Joseph Kasavubu as president of the renamed Democratic Republic of the Congo. ... [Read More]

Congo Basin Forest Partnership: U.S. Contribution

Monte Alen -- Mont de Cristal Inselbergs Forest Landscape (Equatorial Guinea & Gabon) Gamba -- Conkouati Forest Landscape (Gabon, Congo & (Democratic Republic of Congo) Lope -- Chaillu -- Louesse Forest Landscape (Gabon & Congo) Dja -- Minkebe -- Odzala Tri-national Forest Landscape (Cameroon, Congo & Gabon) Sangha Tri-national Forest Landscape (Cameroon, Congo, (Central African Republic) Lac Tele-Lac Tumba Swamp Forest Landscape (Congo & Democratic Republic of Congo) Bateke Plateau Forest Savanna Landscape (Congo & Gabon) Maringa/Lopori -- Wamba Forest Landscape (Democratic Republic of Congo) Salonga -- Lukenie - Sankuru Forest Landscape (Democratic Republic of Congo) Maik ... [Read More]

Congo (Brazzaville) (04/05)

The Congo's economy is based primarily on its petroleum sector, which is by far the country's major revenue earner. The Congolese oil sector is dominated by the French oil company TotalFinaElf. In second position is the Italian oil firm Agip. ChevronTexaco (in partnership with TotalFinaElf) is the primary American oil company active in petroleum exploration or production. Murphy Oil has signed a contract but has not begun exploration or production. Congo's oil production is expected to decline over the next 15 years with fields yielding less. However, based on an agreement with Angola signed in 2002 to jointly administer certain Congo-Cabinda border areas, Congo's production could rise if exploration is successful. Murphy Oil signed a Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) with Congo in 2003 for two deepwater off-shore permits. Congo hopes to offset declining production in other fields with these new PSAs. ... [Read More]

Congo, Republic of

A local FM radio station rebroadcast Radio France International, VOA, and the BBC. Radio and television broadcasts from the Democratic Republic of the Congo were received in Brazzaville. The private independent radio station, Radio Liberte, continued to broadcast as well as the new privately owned radio station DR-Radio. Local rebroadcasts of the Gabon-based Africa Number One also continued during the year. A Christian missionary group in Pointe Noire broadcast during daylight hours; it voluntarily provided its material to the Government prior to broadcast. Government broadcast media primarily focused their attention on the activities of government officials, but also provided news on other activities by international and local NGOs. During the year, the broadcasts included airing of alternative political views of some opposition members in talk show format, but overall opposition political parties did not have access to the governme ... [Read More]

Congo, Democratic Republic of the

The Democratic Republic of the Congo remained divided into territories controlled by the Government and several rebel factions. On January 16, President Laurent Desire Kabila, whose Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo-Zaire (AFDL) overthrew the authoritarian regime of Mobutu Sese Seko by armed force in 1997, was assassinated by one of his guards. On January 26, the Government installed his son Joseph Kabila as president. Joseph Kabila ruled by decree, and the Government continued to operate without a constitution. The State continued to be highly centralized formally, although in practice the country's dilapidated transportation and communications infrastructure impaired central government control. On May 17, the Government adopted a law liberalizing political activity; however, the Government continued to restrict political activity in practice. The judiciary continued to be subject to executive influence and corruption. ... [Read More]

Congo, Republic of

During the civil conflicts of the 1990s, tens of thousands of citizens fled into neighboring countries, particularly Gabon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. According to office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), there were 283 returnees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and 344 returnees from Gabon during the year. Approximately 15,000 citizens fled to Gabon and, according to U.N. figures, 12,000 persons remained there because they did not wish to return and had integrated into Gabonese society. ... [Read More]

Congo, Democratic Republic of the

In territory under central government control, the Transitional Government's security forces consisted of a national police force and an immigration service, both under the Ministry of Interior; the National Intelligence Agency (ANR) and the Special Group for Presidential Security (GSSP), both reporting directly to the President; and the Armed Forces, which were integrated at headquarters level only by year's end. The Office for the Military Detection of Anti-Patriotic Activities (DEMIAP), the military's intelligence service, was technically disbanded but continued to operate under the new chief of military intelligence, who was the former chief of DEMIAP. The ANR was responsible for internal and external security, including border security matters. The Armed Forces retained some residual police functions. Military police had jurisdiction over armed forces personnel, but also had domestic security responsibilities, including the patrolling of urban areas. Security forces were poorly tr ... [Read More]

Congo, Democratic Republic of the

As the war grew into an increasing stalemate, government forces controlled less than half of the country.  Several rebel groups, the Congolese Rally for Democracy based in Goma (RCD/Goma), the Movement for the Liberation of the Congo (MLC), and the Congolese Rally for Democracy based in Bunia (RCD/ML) controlled the remaining territory, with the active military support of the Rwandan and Ugandan Governments.  The RCD/Goma remained dominated by members of the Tutsi ethnic minority and continued to be supported by the Government of Rwanda; the RCD/ML commanded fewer troops and, like the largely non-Tutsi MLC, was supported by the Government of Uganda.  War broke out in August 1998, when Kabila tried to expel Rwandan military forces that had helped him overthrow Mobutu.  Congolese Tutsis as well as the Governments of Burundi, Rwanda, and Uganda all relied on the Rwandan military presence for protection against hostile armed groups operating from the eastern part of the ... [Read More]

Central African Republic (06/05)

Political parties: Alliance for Democracy and Progress (ADP), Central African Democratic Assembly (RDC), Civic Forum (FC), Democratic Forum (FODEM), Liberal Democratic Party (PLD), Movement for Democracy and Development (MDD), Movement for the Liberation of the Central African People (MLPC), Patriotic Front for Progress (FPP), People's Union for the Republic (UPR), National Unity Party (PUN), and Social Democratic Party (PSD). ...

The Central African Republic is classified as one of the world's least developed countries, with an annual per capita income of $260 (2002). Sparsely populated and landlocked, the nation is overwhelmingly agrarian, with the vast bulk of the population engaged in subsistence farming and 55% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) arising from agriculture. Principal crops include cotton, food crops (cassava, yams, bananas, maize), coffee, and tobacco. In 2002, timber accounted for about 30% of export earnings. The country also has rich but largely unexploited natural resources in the form of diamonds, gold, uranium, and other minerals. There may be oil deposits along the country's northern border with Chad. Diamonds are the only of these mineral resources currently being developed; in 2002, diamond exports made up close to 50% of the C.A.R.'s export earnings. Industry contributes only about 20% of the country's GDP, with artesian diamond mining, breweries, and sawmills making up th ... [Read More]

Congo, Democratic Republic of the

Armed groups detained persons in underground prisons at military installations in Orientale (including Ituri), the Kivus, Maniema, and Equateur. MONUC's prison report stated that, in 2003, the worst prison conditions were found in prisons run by RCD/G soldiers (former members of the armed group National Army of Congo, or ANC), Mai Mai, UPC, Party for the Safeguarding of the Congo (PUSIC), and the Movement for the Liberation of Congo (MLC). There were reports that in 2003, several camps in North Kivu belonging to the Beni-Butembo-based Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD/ML) operated illegal detention centers where prisoners were summarily executed and tortured. ... [Read More]