Map of Congo | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: Upon independence in 1960 the former French region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a democratically elected government took office in 1992. A brief civil war in 1997 restored former Marxist President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO and ushered in a period of ethnic and political unrest. Southern-based rebel groups agreed to a final peace accord in March 2003 but the calm is tenuous and refugees continue to present a humanitarian crisis. The Republic of Congo was once one of Africa's largest petroleum producers but with declining production it will need to hope for new offshore oil finds to sustain its oil earnings over the long term.


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Location: Western Africa bordering the South Atlantic Ocean between Angola and Gabon

Geographic coordinates: 1 00 S 15 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 342,000 km²
Land: 341,500 km²
Water: 500 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Montana

Land boundaries
Total: 5,504 km
Border countries: (5) Angola 201 km; , Cameroon 523 km; , Central African Republic 467 km; , Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km; , Gabon 1,903 km

Coastline: 169 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 200 nm

Climate: tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to October); persistent high temperatures and humidity; particularly enervating climate astride the Equator

Terrain: coastal plain southern basin central plateau northern basin

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: Mount Berongou 903 m

Natural resources: petroleum timber potash lead zinc uranium copper phosphates gold magnesium natural gas hydropower

Land use
Arable land: 1.45%
Permanent crops: 0.15%
Other: 98.4% (2005)

Irrigated land: 20 km² (2003)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: seasonal flooding

Geography
Note: about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville Pointe-Noire or along the railroad between them


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Population
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 and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.)
Growth rate: 2.6% (2006 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
Adjective: Congolese or Congo

Ethnic groups: Kongo 48% Sangha 20% M'Bochi 12% Teke 17% Europeans and other 3%

Languages: French (official) Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages) many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread)

Religions: Christian 50% animist 48% Muslim 2%

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 46.4% (male 864,407/female 853,728)
15-64 years: 50.7% (male 930,390/female 945,545)
65 years and over: 2.9% (male 44,430/female 63,814) (2006 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age
Total: 16.6 years
Male: 16.4 years
Female: 16.9 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.6% (2006 est.)

Birth rate: 42.57 births/1000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate: 12.93 deaths/1000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate: -3.62 migrant(s)/1000 population (2006 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.01 male/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male/female
Total population: 0.99 male/female (2006 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 85.29 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 91 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 79.41 deaths/1000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 52.8 years
Male: 51.65 years
Female: 53.98 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate: 6.07 children born/woman (2006 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 4.9% (2003 est.)
People living with hivaids: 90,000 (2003 est.)
Deaths: 9,700 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: very high
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vectorborne disease: malaria (2005)

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 83.8%
Male: 89.6%
Female: 78.4% (2003 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of the Congo
Conventional short form: Congo (Brazzaville)
Local long form: Republique du Congo
Local short form: none
Former: Middle Congo, Congo/Brazzaville, Congo

Government type: republic

Capital
Name: Brazzaville
Geographic coordinates: 4 16 S, 15 17 E
Time difference: UTC+1 (six hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions: 10 regions (regions singular - region) and 1 commune*; Bouenza Brazzaville* Cuvette Cuvette-Ouest Kouilou Lekoumou Likouala Niari Plateaux Pool Sangha

Dependent areas

Independence: 15 August 1960 (from France)

National holiday: Independence Day 15 August (1960)

Constitution: approved by referendum 20 January 2002

Legal system: based on French civil law system and customary law

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held in 2009)
Election results: Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO reelected president; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO 89.4%, Joseph Kignoumbi Kia MBOUNGOU 2.7%

Legislative branch
Elections: Senate - last held 11 July 2002 (next to be held July 2007); National Assembly - last held 27 May and 26 June 2002 (next to be held by May 2007)
Election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FDP 56, other 10; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FDP 83, UDR 6, UPADS 3, other 45

Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Cour Supreme

Political parties and leaders: the most important of the many parties are the Democratic and Patriotic Forces or FDP [Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO president] (an alliance of Convention for Alternative Democracy Congolese Labor Party or PCT Liberal Republican Party National Union for Democracy and Progress Patriotic Union for the National Reconstruction and Union for the National Renewal); Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development or MCDDI [Michel MAMPOUYA]; Pan-African Union for Social Development or UPADS [Martin MBERI]; Rally for Democracy and Social Progress or RDPS [Jean-Pierre Thystere TCHICAYA president]; Rally for Democracy and the Republic or RDR [Raymond Damasge NGOLLO]; Union for Democracy and Republic or UDR; Union of Democratic Forces or UFD [Sebastian EBAO]

International organization participation: ACCT ACP AfDB AU BDEAC CEMAC FAO FZ G-77 IBRD ICAO ICCt ICFTU ICRM IDA IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ITU MIGA NAM OIF OPCW (signatory) UN UN Security Council (temporary) UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UPU WCL WCO WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Serge MOMBOULI
In the us chancery: 4,891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,011
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 726-5,500
In the us fax: [1] (202) 726-1860
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Mark BIEDLINGMAIER
From the us embassy: NA
From the us mailing address: NA
From the us telephone: [243] (88) 43,608
From the us note: the embassy is temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (US Embassy Kinshasa, 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa)

Flag description: divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts an industrial sector based largely on oil support services and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings through oil-backed loans that have contributed to a growing debt burden and chronic revenue shortfalls. Economic reform efforts have been undertaken with the support of international organizations notably the World Bank and the IMF. However the reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997 publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. Economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998 which worsened the republic's budget deficit. The current administration presides over an uneasy internal peace and faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. Recovery of oil prices has boosted the economy's GDP and near-term prospects. The Republic of Congo may be eligible for an IMF-World Bank heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC) initiative in early 2006 provided it meets the strict fiscal and monetary targets set out for it under a new three-year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) with the IMF.

Real gdp purchasing power parity: $4.585 billion (2005 est.)

Real gdp growth rate: 8.2% (2005 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $1300 (2005 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 6.2%
Industry: 57%
Services: 36.9% (2005 est.)

Agriculture products: cassava (tapioca) sugar rice corn peanuts vegetables coffee cocoa; forest products

Industries: petroleum extraction cement lumber brewing sugar palm oil soap flour cigarettes

Industrial production growth rate: 0% (2002 est.)

Labor force: NA

Unemployment rate: NA%

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: NA%

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $1.328 billion
Expenditures: $1.065 billion; including capital expenditures of $N/A (2005 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 2.2% (2005 est.)

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance: $493 million (2005 est.)

Exports: $2.209 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Commodities: petroleum lumber plywood sugar cocoa coffee diamonds
Partners: China 38.9% US 29% Taiwan 11.8% South Korea 7.2% (2005)

Imports: $806.5 million f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Commodities: capital equipment construction materials foodstuffs
Partners: France 25.6% China 11.3% US 8.1% India 8% Italy 7.5% Belgium 5.1% Netherlands 4.2% (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $273 million (2005 est.)

Debt external: $5 billion (2000 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005) 528.29 (2004) 581.2 (2003) 696.99 (2002) 733.04 (2001)


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Electricity
Production: 343 million kWh (2003)
Consumption: 619 million kWh (2003)
Exports: 0 kWh (2003)
Imports: 300 million kWh (2003)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2003 est.)
Consumption: 0 m³ (2003 est.)
Exports: 0 m³
Imports: 0 m³
Proven reserves: 90.61 billion m³ (1 January 2002)

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 13,800 (2004)
Mobile cellular: 490,000 (2005)

Telephone system
General assessment: services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out of order
Domestic: primary network consists of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable
International: country code - 242; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Broadcast media

Internet
Country code: .cg
Hosts: 46 (2004)
Users: 36,000 (2005)

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: 1.4% (2005 est.)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 32 (2006)
With paved runways total: 4
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2 (2006)
With unpaved runways total: 28
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 6
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 11
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 11 (2006)

Heliports

Pipelines: gas 89 km; liquid petroleum gas 4 km; oil 744 km (2006)

Railways
Total: 894 km
Narrow gauge: 894 km 1.067-m gauge (2005)

Roadways
Total: 12,800 km
Paved: 1,242 km
Unpaved: 11,558 km (1999)

Waterways: 4,385 km (on Congo and Oubanqui rivers) (2005)

Merchant marine
Registered in other countries: 1 (Congo, Democratic Republic of the 1) (2006)

Ports and terminals: Brazzaville Djeno Impfondo Ouesso Oyo Pointe-Noire


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Disputes international: about 7,000 Congolese refugees fleeing internal civil conflicts since the mid-1990s still reside in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs