Geography of Congo-Kinshasa

Introduction to Geography of Congo-Kinshasa

Congo (Kinshasa), a country in central Africa. Prior to independence in 1960, it was known as the Belgian Congo; from 1960 until 1971 it was the Democratic Republic of the Congo; from 1971 until 1997 it was known as Zaire. The current name was readopted in 1997. For the purposes of this article, the country is referred to simply as the "Congo".

The Congo lies on the Equator and is bounded by Cabinda (part of Angola), the Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia, and Angola. It is landlocked except for a narrow frontage on the Atlantic Ocean between Cabinda and Angola, With an area of 905,568 square miles (2,345,409 km2 ), the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the third largest nation in Africa, after Sudan and Algeria. It is about one-fourth the size of the United States. Maximum dimensions, both north-south and east-west, are about 1,200 miles (1,900 km).

Physical Geography

Most of the Congo lies in the Congo Basin, a large, saucer-shaped depression that extends into the Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic. The basin lies at an average elevation of 1,300 feet (400 m) above sea level and is covered by one of the world's largest tropical rain forests, a luxuriant growth of trees, shrubs, and vines. Plateaus and uplands rim the basin in the north, east, and south; along the Congo's eastern boundary they rise to form mountains. The plateaus and uplands are relatively narrow on the north and east but widen in the south to cover about a third of the country. This upland terrain varies in elevation from about 2,000 to 5,000 feet (600 to 1,500 m). It consists chiefly of rolling savannas.

The mountains of eastern Congo include several forested ranges that are flanked on the east by the Great Rift Valley. Elevations increase from nearly 10,000 feet (3,000 m) in the Mitumba Mountains in the south to 16,763 feet (5,109 m) at Margherita Peak, the summit of the Ruwenzori range on the Uganda border.

The Congo is drained by the vast Congo River system, including such major tributaries as the Lomami, Aruwimi, Ubangi, and Kwa rivers. The Congo River crosses the country in a giant arc from headwaters in the southeast and empties into the Atlantic Ocean at the Congo-Angola border. Its upper course, above Boyoma Falls, is called the Lualaba Hydroelectric installations on the Congo River generate most of the nation's electricity.

Some of Africa's largest natural lakes—Tanganyika, Albert, Mweru, Kivu, and Edward—lie in the Great Rift Valley on the Congo's eastern border Other sizable lakes include Tumba and Mai-Ndombe, in the Congo Basin, and Upemba and Retenue, in the southeast.

The Congo Basin has a tropical rainy climate, with temperatures near 80° F (27° C.) and high humidity the year round. Rainfall totals 60 to 80 inches (1.520 to 2,030 mm) annually and occurs throughout the year On the plateaus away from the Equator, a tropical savanna type of climate emerges, with alternate wet and dry seasons and an annual rainfall of 40 to 60 inches (1,015 to 1,520 mm). The rainy season usually lasts from April to November in the north and from October to May in the south. Except where elevations exceed 4,000 feet (1,200 m)—mainly in the southeast—temperatures are similar to those in the Congo Basin, with slightly greater seasonal and daily variations. In the mountains climate is determined largely by elevation.

Economy

The Congo is one of the most potentially wealthy nations in Africa, with the natural resources and raw materials necessary to develop a modern, diversified economy. However, large-scale economic growth has been hindered by political instability, inadequate transportation facilities, and a lack of skilled labor and capital for investment. Mining, originally developed by the Belgians, and agriculture are the leading sectors of the economy, followed by manufacturing.

Only a small portion of the Congo's area is devoted to crops. Agriculture accounts for about 65 per cent of the work force and about 10 per cent of the gross domestic product. Most farmers have small plots, growing cassava, plantains, corn, rice, beans, and peanuts for their own use and for local markets. Traditional shifting cultivation, whereby a plot is worked until no longer productive and then temporarily abandoned, is widely practiced.

Coffee is the Congo's principal export crop. Other crops grown primarily for export include tea, sugar, and rubber. Many crops are grown commercially for the domestic market. These include cotton, sugarcane, tobacco, palm kernels (for palm oil), and a variety of tropical fruits.

Goats, hogs, sheep, and chickens, kept mainly on small farms, account for most of the Congo's livestock. There is little cattle raising in the north because the tsetse fly, which transmits diseases to animals and humans, infests much of that area. Only in the east and south are sizable herds kept.

The Congo has abundant and varied mineral resources, and mining is a major industrial activity. Mineral products account for more than three-fourths of the country's exports.

The Congo is one of the world's leading producers of diamonds, which are mined in the south-central part of the country. The Congo's Shaba province, in the southeast, has long been one of the world's leading producers of copper and cobalt. During the late 1980's and early 1990's, however, production declined dramatically, largely because of obsolete mining equipment and labor unrest. Small amounts of petroleum are also produced.

Manufacturing industries are better developed in the Congo than in many African countries. They are concentrated in the major cities, especially Kinshasa and Lubumbashi. Consumer goods, including foods, beverages, textiles, clothing, and household items, account for much of the production. The making of light industrial products such as fabricated metal goods and chemicals is also significant. Heavy industries include the smelting and refining of minerals and the making of cement.

Despite abundant forests, the lumbering industry has developed slowly in the Congo, hampered by inadequate transportation and the scattered occurrence of valuable trees. The chief forest products are raw lumber, plywood, and veneer.

Fish abound in virtually all the nation's rivers and lakes and are a locally important source of food.

The Congo River system, navigable by barge traffic throughout much of the country, provides the main transportation routes. Railways supplement the waterways and bypass such obstacles to navigation as falls and rapids. Roads are generally poor and unpaved, except in and around major cities.

Ocean shipping is conducted primarily through the port at Matadi, on the Congo River about 80 miles (130 km) from its mouth. Kinshasa is the chief river port. Most international traffic, including that of foreign airlines, is through the airports near Kinshasa and Lubumbashi.

The People

Most of the people are Bantus. Sudanese and Nilotic groups inhabit the eastern uplands. Pygmies follow a traditionally nomadic existence in the central rain forest. The Europeans are mainly of Belgian or Portuguese descent. There is also a small Asian population.

The country's overall density is about 52 persons per square mile (19 per km 2 ). However, more than half the country has fewer than 3 persons to the square mile (1 per km 2 ), and a tenth of the land was virtually uninhabited. Most of the population is rural, despite heavy migration to cities and towns since independence in 1960.

The Congo's official language is French, but its use is limited largely to government and the educational system. Indigenous languages consist mainly of Bantu tongues and dialects. A few Sudanic languages are spoken in the northeast.

Half of the country's inhabitants are Roman Catholics. There are also various Protestant denominations. Many of the Africans who profess Christianity tend to adhere to animistic beliefs, and several churches—of which the best known is the Church of Simon Kimbangu—combine Christian doctrine with animism. Most of the Asians are Muslims.

The government provides free, compulsory primary education. The major universities are located in Kinshasa, Kinshasa/Limete, Kisangani and Lubumbashi. There are several technical colleges.

Government

The constitution of 1978 was abolished after the change of government in 1996, and all power was vested in the head of state until a new constitution could be drafted. Continued civil war, however, made this impossible. As of late 2000, the country had no constitutional structure. In 2003, a transitional government was established. A new constitution was adopted in February 2006. Today, the president holds office for five-year terms. Parliament includes a National Assembly and a Senate.