Background
The Democratic Republic of Congo is a huge central African country with enormous economic resources. However, extended military conflicts with internal and external armed forces and the collapse of the country’s entire infrastructure have resulted in one of the greatest humanitarian crises in modern times.
The history of DRC has been one of continued instability and poor governance from the time of the despicable slave trade which brought down the ancient kingdom of Kongo, through the period of brutal colonial rule, to the more recent succession of dictatorships, mismanagement and bloody civil wars.
Foreign commercial interests have repeatedly manipulated regional and tribal tensions in an effort to destabilise the country in order to plunder its vast natural wealth.
The civil war of 1997-2002 and the continuing conflict in the in the east of the country have produced a humanitarian crisis of enormous dimensions which is having disastrous effects on the lives of the people throughout the country, especially the children.
Quick facts
Full name: Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire)
Capital: Kinshasa
Population: 56 million (2005)
Main languages: French (official), Lingala, Kiswahili, Kikongo, Tshiluba
People: 200+ ethnic groups, of which the majority is Bantu
Life expectancy: Women: 44 years, men: 42 years
Major religions: Roman Catholic (50%), Protestant (20%), Muslim (10%), Kimbanguist (10%), traditional & others (10%)
Natural Wealth: Vast mineral resources; a huge hydroelectric potential from the massive Congo River which runs through the country; a wide range of climatic areas capable of supporting diversified agricultural production.