Niyumi thilakarathna

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Democratic Republic of the Congo(DR Congo) is located in central Africa. DR Congo has a 25 miles of coastline on the Atlantic ocean but is otherwise land-lock. Congo is the second largest country in Africa. Kinshasa is the capital city in Congo. Congo is rich in natural resources. It boasts vast deposits of industrial diamonds, cobalt, and copper; one of the largest forest reserves in Africa; and about half of the hydroelectric potential of the continent.

Land

Congo is bounded to the north by the Central African Republic and South Sudan; to the east by Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and Tanzania; to the southeast by Zambia; and to the southwest by Angola. To the west are the country’s short Atlantic coastline, the Angolan exclave of Cabinda, and Congo (Brazzaville).

Climate

Tropical climate

Both to the north and the south of the equatorial zone (respectively, zone 1 and 2 on the map), the climate is tropical, since there is a clear dry season. The rainfall in the tropical climate zones is normally between 1,000 and 1,700 mm (40 and 67 in) per year.

Plant and animal life

Plant life is lush and varies between climate zones. The heart of the Congo basin is blanketed by an intricate forest system commonly known as the equatorial rain forest. There trees reach heights of 130 to 160 feet (40 to 50 metres), and numerous varieties and species of plants proliferate. Grasslands and woodlands are characteristic of the tropical climate zone, while stands of mangrove dominate the coastal swamps and the mouth of the Congo. The eastern plateaus are covered by grasslands, and mountain forest, bamboo thickets, and Afro-Alpine vegetation occur on the highest mountains.

Animal life is also rich and diverse. Chimpanzees are found mostly in the equatorial forest, and gorillas live in the eastern mountains around Lake Kivu. Bonobos are also present, though they are found only in lowland rainforests along the south bank of the Congo River. Elephants and various species of monkeys and baboons are found in forest and savanna woodlands; African forest elephants (a smaller, distinct species of elephant) are limited to the forest.In the north, in the primary forests of Uele, Aruwimi, and Ituri, live okapi, giant wild boars, and short antelopes. Lions and leopards inhabit the grasslands, and jackals, hyenas, cheetahs, wildcats, wild dogs, buffaloes, antelopes, wild hogs, and black and white rhinoceroses are found in the grasslands and savanna woods. Giraffes mainly inhabit the northeastern grasslands.

Hippopotamuses and crocodiles are common in the rivers and the lakes, and whales, dolphins, and lungfishes are found near the coast. Congolese rivers, lakes, and swamps are well stocked with a variety of fish, such as capitaine from the Congo River and catfish, electric fish, eels, cichlids, and many others. Jellyfish live in Lake Tanganyika. Reptiles are common and include various snakes—such as pythons, vipers, and tree cobras—as well as lizards, chameleons, salamanders, frogs, and turtles.

Birdlife includes pelicans, parrots, many species of sunbirds, pigeons, ducks, geese, eagles, vultures, cuckoos, owls, cranes, storks, and swallows. Insects are innumerable. There are hundreds of butterfly species; in the savanna woodlands, butterflies fill the skies at the beginning of the rains. There are also numerous varieties of bees, grasshoppers, caterpillars, praying mantises, beetles, dragonflies, scorpions, mosquitoes, tsetse flies, ants, termites, spiders, centipedes, and millipedes.

People

Ethnic groups

More than 200 African ethnic groups live in Congo; of these, Bantu peoples constitute a large majority of the country’s population. They entered the territory of modern Congo between the 10th and the 14th century from the west and north and established kingdoms that were flourishing at the time of European penetration after the 16th century. The major kingdoms were those of the Kongo, Teke (Bateke), Luba, Pende, Yaka, Lunda, Songe, Tetela, and Kuba peoples. Major cultural clusters today include the Mongo (in the centre of the country), the Kongo (west), the Luba (south-central), the Lunda (south), the Bemba (southeast), and the Kasai (southwest). Bantu peoples in the north and northeast include the Ngala, the Buja, the Bira, the Kuumu, and the Lega (Rega).

Languages

More than 200 languages are spoken in Congo. Communication between groups has been facilitated by four “national” languages: Swahili, Tshiluba (Kiluba), Lingala, and Kongo. French is the official language and the language of instruction, business, administration, and international communications. The four national languages are used in regional commerce and on the radio. The use of Lingala is growing rapidly: under Mobutu it was the official language of the military, and it is widely spoken in Kinshasa, where it is used in popular music, as well as along the lower Congo River.

Religion

Traditional African religious beliefs in a supreme being, the power of the ancestors, spirits of nature, and the efficacy of magic have been greatly influenced by the introduction of Christianity in Congo. There is a very sizable Christian population, the largest proportion of which is Roman Catholic. Other Christians include Protestants and followers of the local sect of the Church of Jesus Christ on Earth Through the Prophet Simon Kimbangu (Kimbanguist Church). The remainder of the African population continues to adhere to traditional African beliefs or follows Islam. The foreign community includes Hindus and Muslims.

Demographic trends

Congo’s rate of natural increase is among the highest in the world. More than two-fifths of the population is younger than age 15, with some three-fourths under age 30; on the other hand, only a small fraction of the population is 60 or older. The negligible provision of medical care by the state—along with poverty, violence, and endemic disease—has limited life expectancy, which for both men and women is far below the global average.

Economy

At independence in 1960, the formal economy of Congo was based almost entirely on the extraction of minerals, primarily copper and diamonds. Most of this economic activity was controlled by foreign companies, such as the Belgian Union Minière du Haut-Katanga (UMHK), whose assets in 1965 were valued at nearly $430 million. By that time, UMHK was one of the largest single sources of Congolese governmental revenue and accounted for a large proportion of the country’s foreign exchange earnings

Cultural Life

Holidays celebrated in Congo include Commemoration of the Martyrs of Independence, observed on January 4; Labour Day and National Liberation Day, celebrated on May 1 and May 17, respectively; Independence Day, celebrated on June 30; Parents’ Day, celebrated on August 1; Youth Day, observed on October 14; Army Day and the Anniversary of the Second Republic, observed on November 17 and November 24, respectively; and Christmas, celebrated on December 25.

The arts

Congo’s many ethnic groups and regions have developed a mosaic of traditional arts, including painting, sculpture, music, and dance. There has been a tendency to classify sculpture and carving according to the styles of the areas from which they originate. The southwest is known for the stone and nail-studded nkisi statues of the Kongo people and the masks and figurines of the Yaka. The Kuba, from the south-central region, are known for ndop, statues created in the likeness of the king that can serve as a symbolic representative in his absence. . Luba art dominates the southeast region and reflects the strong influence of women in society through statuettes depicting motherhood. North of the Luba, the Lega produce masks and ivories. Zande and Mangbetu art are included in the northern region. Zande art is characterized by cult statuettes, spear or bow shafts, and anthropomorphic pottery, while Mangbetu art features figures with stylized elongated heads. Other folk traditions include making pottery, weaving raffia, and creating ceremonial dress.

Cultural institutions

The cities, especially Kinshasa, are the greatest creators, propagators, and promoters of national cultural life and arts. The Academy of Fine Arts in Kinshasa offers training programs in painting, sculpture, carving, architecture, and ceramics. The National Institute of the Arts offers training in classical as well as traditional music and drama. Congolese authors write poetry, plays, and novels in French, Lingala, or local languages.

History

The country that began as a king’s private domain (the Congo Free State), evolved into a colony (the Belgian Congo), became independent in 1960 (as the Republic of the Congo), and later underwent several name changes (to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, then to Zaire, and back again to the Democratic Republic of the Congo) is the product of a complex pattern of historical forces. Some are traceable to the precolonial past, others to the era of colonial rule, and others still to the political convulsions that followed in the wake of independence. All, in one way or another, have left their imprint on Congolese societies.