What countries border Congo, Republic of the ?
What is the current weather in Congo, Republic of the ?
What is Congo, Republic of the famous for?
What is the capital of Congo, Republic of the ?
Capital | Brazzaville |
Government Type | Presidential republic |
Currency | Cooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs (XAF) |
Total Area |
132,046 Square Miles 342,000 Square Kilometers |
Location | Central Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and Gabon |
Language | French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.7% |
GDP - per capita (PPP) | $6,800.00 (USD) |
What is the population of Congo, Republic of the ?
Ethnic Groups |
Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans and other 3% Note: Europeans estimated at 8,500, mostly French, before the 1997 civil war; may be half that in 1998, following the widespread destruction of foreign businesses in 1997 |
Nationality Noun | Congolese |
Population | 5,293,070 |
Population - note | 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, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected |
Population Growth Rate | 2.86% |
Population in Major Urban Areas | BRAZZAVILLE (capital) 1.611 million; Pointe-Noire 834,000 |
Urban Population | 63.700000 |
What type of government does Congo, Republic of the have?
Executive Branch |
Chief of State: President Denis SASSOU-Nguesso (since 25 October 1997) Head of Government: Prime Minister Clement MOUAMBA (since 24 April 2016); note - a constitutional referendum held in 2015 approved the change of the head of government from the president to the prime minister (2019) Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president Elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for 2 additional terms); election last held on 20 March 2016 (next to be held in 2021) Election results: Denis SASSOU-Nguesso reelected president in the first round; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-Nguesso (PCT) 60.4%, Guy Price Parfait KOLELAS (MCDDI) 15.1%, Jean-Marie MOKOKO (independent) 13.9%, Pascal Tsaty MABIALA (UPADS) 4.4%, other 6.2% |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal |
Citizenship |
Citizenship by descent only: At least one parent must be a citizen of the Republic of the Congo Dual citizenship recognized: No Residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years |
National Holiday | Independence Day, 15 August (1960) |
Constitution |
History: Several previous; latest approved by referendum 25 October 2015 Amendments: Proposed by the president of the republic or by Parliament; passage of presidential proposals requires Supreme Court review followed by approval in a referendum; such proposals may also be submitted directly to Parliament, in which case passage requires at least three-quarters majority vote of both houses in joint session; proposals by Parliament require a three-fourths majority vote of both houses in joint session; constitutional articles including those affecting the country’s territory, republican form of government, and secularity of the state are not amendable |
Independence | 15 August 1960 (from France) |
What environmental issues does Congo, Republic of the have?
Overview |
The Congo, which has a total area of 132,000 square miles, is located near the Equator in West-Central Africa. It extends more than 800 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean and is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC - formerly Zaire), and the Angolan enclave of Cabinda. The country has four topographical regions: a coastal plain extending inland about 40 miles to the foothills of the Mayombe Mountains; the alluvial soils of the fertile Niari Valley in the south-central area; the Central Bateke Plateau separating the basins of the Ogooue and Congo Rivers; and the Congo River basin in the north, composed of mainly impassable floodplains in the lower portion and dry savanna in the upper portion. Much of the Congo is densely forested. In December 1993, nearly a million acres of land in the north became Nouabale-Ndoki National Park—one of the most significant tropical forest preserves in the world. Brazzaville, a city of over 900,000 people, lies on the north bank of the Congo River, 315 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean and 4.25 degrees south of the Equator. Surrounded by a vast savanna of high grasslands and dark green thickets of low trees spread over rolling hills, the town is fairly level, with an altitude of 1,043 feet. Violent rapids make the Congo River un-navigable from Brazzaville to the Atlantic. To the northeast the river widens into Stanley Pool—15 miles wide and dotted with many small islands (during the dry season). From Brazzaville inland, the river becomes navigable for 1,000 miles. Goods arriving at the Atlantic seaport of Pointe-Noire are shipped by rail or truck to Brazzaville, which, due to its position above the rapids, is a transit point for commercial and passenger traffic heading North. The city of Pointe-Noire, with over 500,000 people, is one of the best ports on the African west coast between Luanda, Angola, and Lagos, Nigeria. Almost all goods moving into and out of the Congo pass through Pointe-Noire. |
Climate | The climate is tropical, with the rainy season lasting from October to April and the dry season from June to September. Humidity is high during the rainy season, and temperatures can climb to 31°C. Humidity and temperatures are lower during the dry season, ranging from 25°C to 28°C. |
Border Countries | Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon 1,903 km |
Environment - Current Issues | Air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation |
Environment - International Agreements |
Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands Signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Terrain | Coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin |
How big is the Congo, Republic of the economy?
Economic Overview |
The Republic of the Congo’s economy is a mixture of subsistence farming, an industrial sector based largely on oil and support services, and government spending. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. Natural gas is increasingly being converted to electricity rather than being flared, greatly improving energy prospects. New mining projects, particularly iron ore, which entered production in late 2013, may add as much as $1 billion to annual government revenue. The Republic of the Congo is a member of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) and shares a common currency – the Central African Franc – with five other member states in the region. The current administration faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. The drop in oil prices that began in 2014 has constrained government spending; lower oil prices forced the government to cut more than $1 billion in planned spending. The fiscal deficit amounted to 11% of GDP in 2017. The government’s inability to pay civil servant salaries has resulted in multiple rounds of strikes by many groups, including doctors, nurses, and teachers. In the wake of a multi-year recession, the country reached out to the IMF in 2017 for a new program; the IMF noted that the country’s continued dependence on oil, unsustainable debt, and significant governance weakness are key impediments to the country’s economy. In 2018, the country’s external debt level will approach 120% of GDP. The IMF urged the government to renegotiate debts levels to sustainable levels before it agreed to a new macroeconomic adjustment package. |
Industries | Petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes |
Currency Name and Code | Cooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs (XAF) |
Export Partners | China 42.1%, Italy 16.9%, US 4.9%, India 4.7%, Portugal 4.2% |
Import Partners | China 20.3%, France 14.2%, South Korea 9.8%, US 4.9%, UK 4.4%, Italy 4.1%, India 4.1% |
What current events are happening in Congo, Republic of the ?
Source: Google News
What makes Congo, Republic of the a unique country to travel to?