Republic of the Congo

Region: Africa

Official language: French

Population: 6,097,665 (2024 est.)

Nationality: Congolese (singular and plural) (noun), Congolese or Congo (adjective)

Land area: 341,500 sq km (131,854 sq miles)

Water area: 500 sq km (193 sq miles)

Capital: Brazzaville

National anthem: "La Congolaise" (The Congolese), by Jacques Tondra And Georges Kibanghi/Jean Royer And Joseph Spadiliere

National holiday: Independence Day, August 15 (1960)

Population growth: 2.38% (2024 est.)

Time zone: UTC +1

Flag: The flag of the Republic of the Congo features a diagonal tricolor design. Divided diagonally from the lower hoist (left) side, it consists of a narrow yellow stripe in the middle, and two equally sized stripes of green and red. The three colors represent the pan-African colors.

Motto: “Unité, Travail, Progrès” (Unity, Work, Progress)

Independence: August 15, 1960 (from France)

Government type: republic

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Legal system: mixed legal system of French civil law and customary law

The Republic of the Congo, sometimes referred to as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic, or simply Congo, is located in the western part of Central Africa. It is bordered by Gabon to the west, Cameroon, and the Central African Republic to the north, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the east, and an exclave of Angola to the south, with a small coastline on the South Atlantic Ocean. Most of the nation is dense tropical rainforest with tributaries that drain into the Congo River. The Congo Basin is home to the second largest tropical rainforest in the world, after the Amazon rainforest of Brazil. Although it is rich in oil reserves, the Republic of the Congo is among the world's least developed nations.

Note: unless otherwise indicated, statistical data in this article is sourced from the CIA World Factbook, as cited in the bibliography.

People and Culture

Population: The largest ethnic group in the Republic of the Congo is the Kongo (or Bakongo) people, who comprise 40.5 percent of the population according to 2014–15 estimates. Smaller groups include the Teke (16.9 percent of the population), Mbochi (13.1 percent), Sangha (5.6 percent), the Mbere/Mbeti/Kele (4.4 percent), Punu (4.3 percent), Oubanguiens (1.6 percent), Duma (1.5), and Makaa (1.3 percent). An estimated 1.6 percent are members of the various peoples often known as pygmies (though that term is increasingly seen as derogatory), including the Aka or Mbenga and the Baka or Bayaka. About 1 percent of the population is of other or unspecified ethnicity.

While French is the official language, Lingala and Monokutuba are spoken as national or trade languages. There are also many local languages spoken, the most common of which Kikongo. In all, there are more than sixty languages spoken in Congo. Languages with more than ten thousand speakers include Akwa, Bobangi, Bomwali, French, Kituba (a Kongo-based creole), Kunyi, Laari, Likuba, Likwala, Mbere, Mboko, Mbosi, Nbaka Ma'bo, Ngugwel, Njebi, Ombamba, Suundi, Teke-Ebbo, Teke-Ibali, Teke-Kukuyu, Teke-Nzikou, Teke-Tege, Teke-Tsaayi, Teke-Tyee, Tsaangi, Yay, and Yombe. All of these except for French fall within the Niger-Congo language classification, and all are considered living languages.

Christianity is the most common religion in Congo. According to 2007 estimates, 33.1 percent of Congolese are Catholic, 22.3 percent belong to Awakening Churches/Christian Revival, and 19.9 percent are Protestant. About 2.2 percent are Salutiste, 1.6 percent are Muslim, 1.5 percent are Kimbanguiste, and 8.1 profess other religions. About 11.3 percent of Congolese profess no religious affiliation.

The southern part of the country is most densely populated, with most of the Congolese population living in or between the cities of Brazzaville (the capital) and Pointe-Noire. Over two-thirds of the population reside in urban areas overall.

Congo ranked 153rd out of 191 countries on the 2022 United Nations Human Development Index, which measures quality-of-life indicators.

Indigenous People: The Bantu people have lived in Congo since the first century. Today, there are about fifteen primary Bantu groups and seventy smaller groups in the Republic of the Congo. Among the largest groups are the Kongo, the Bateke, the M'bochi, the Sangha, and the Vili.

Smaller Indigenous ethnic groups include those often collectively referred to as pygmy peoples, such as the Aka or Mbenga and the Baka or Bayaka. They reside mainly in the rainforests and have often faced discrimination.

Education: Since independence, the Congolese government has attempted to promote education beyond the elite ruling class, with marginal success. In principle, education is free for children between the ages of six and eighteen, and primary school (grades 1 through 6) is compulsory. However, the country has a high dropout rate.

Around 80.6 percent of the adult population of Congo is literate, with the literacy rate estimated at 85.9 percent for males and 75.4 percent for women in 2021. The only state university in the country is the Université Marien Ngouabi, named after the former military president, in Brazzaville.

Health Care: Medical facilities are limited and medicines are in short supply, especially outside of the urban areas. Malaria is a persistent and sometimes fatal disease in the country. Other infectious diseases include dengue fever, bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever.

The infant mortality rate in the Republic of the Congo in 2024 was around 30.6 deaths per 1,000 live births. The average life expectancy for Congolese people that year was estimated at 72.9 years—71.5 years for males and 74.3 years for females.

Food: Staples of the Congolese diet include cassava leaves and palm oil. Meat, often used as the basis for stews, is common in Congolese cooking. Beef, chicken, and fish are served, along with more exotic meats such as monkey and crocodile.

Traditional dishes include saka saka, a dish of ground cassava leaves; palm cabbage salad; and maboke, in which fish is wrapped in leaves to give it flavor.

Arts & Entertainment: Examples of Indigenous Congolese traditions include woodcarvings, basketwork, painting, dance, and folk songs. These arts are important aspects of Congolese culture.

In the early part of the twentieth century, Congolese musicians helped to develop a popular music style known as soukous. Originally played with just a guitar, a type of thumb piano, and a bottle, soukous has grown to include entire orchestras. Soukous is also popular in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Holidays: Independence Day is celebrated on August 15. Other public holidays include Christian holy days such as Easter, Labor Day (May 1), Congolese Republic Day (November 28), and New Year's Day (January 1).

Environment and Geography

Topography: The southwestern part of the country is a basin sloping south toward a coastal plain, drained by the Kouilou-Niari River. Central Congo is a plateau, and the northern part of the country descends again into a basin. The lowest point is at sea level along the Atlantic Coast, and the highest is at the tip of Mount Berongou, at an elevation of 905 meters (2,963 feet).

The Congo and Ubangi are the country's major rivers, and are the primary routes for commercial water traffic.

Natural Resources: The northern forests of the Republic of the Congo are some of the most pristine tropical rainforests to be found anywhere in the world. However, they are under threat from logging operations and other human encroachment.

Another important natural resource in Congo is the country's substantial petroleum reserves. However, this supply is at risk of depletion. Other natural resources include copper, hydropower, lead, natural gas, phosphates, potash, uranium, and zinc.

Other environmental issues facing Congo include air pollution from vehicle emissions and water pollution due to the dumping of raw sewage. Much of the country's tap water is not potable.

Plants & Animals: Congo is home to a wide array of plant and animal species, especially in the rainforest. However, there are also severe environmental threats to this biodiversity in the country. Two valuable species of African mahogany, Entandrophragma cylindricum and Entandrophragma utile, account for nearly 70 percent of the timber harvested in Congo. The process by which the trees are harvested may permanently endanger the survival of both species. Some of the endangered species found in Congo include the broad-headed crocodile, chimpanzee, forest elephant, gorilla, leopard, and mandrill.

In 1980, the Conkouati Reserve was formed at the border of Gabon and the Atlantic Ocean over an area of over 144,000 hectares (356,000 acres). The site is important due to its rich biodiversity, making it a critical zone to be conserved if the dense African forests are to last into the future. The portion of the reserve along the Atlantic is one of the most important sites for sea turtles to lay their eggs, and the Conkouati lagoon shelters a large population of manatees. In 2000, the Republic of the Congo expanded its Odzala National Park by four times its original size, to 3.2 million acres. The move was intended to help protect Congo's large mammal population, including forest-dwelling elephants, water buffalo, gorillas, and lions. The park also provides a home for more than two-thirds of the more than 600 bird species found in the country.

Despite such conservation efforts, serious challenges remain. Bush meat hunting is a major problem in Congo. Bush meat markets are known to exist in Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire, and elephant steak has been sold in high-end supermarkets. New roads constructed by the logging industry are making it easier for poachers to gain access to the animals.

Habitat loss and increasing contact between humans and wild animals also has other serious impacts. At the Lossi Gorilla Sanctuary, located about 15 kilometers (9 miles) to the south and west of Odzala, researchers have noted the impact of the Ebola virus on gorilla populations. The virus has also infected humans who have come into contact with the ape carcasses. This has been a substantial setback to both the villagers and to environmentalists in the area.

Climate: Congo has a tropical climate, due to its location near the equator. The weather is hot and humid throughout the year, with temperatures generally between 27 and 32 degrees Celsius (80 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit). Most of the country receives a good deal of rain, as much as 178 centimeters (70 inches) throughout the year.

Economy

The Republic of the Congo's economy remains dominated by its petroleum production. Although it has been one of the largest oil producers in Africa, economic benefits have been unevenly distributed. Furthermore, the nation is vulnerable to negative impacts from fluctuating global oil prices and the eventual depletion of its oil reserves. Efforts to diversify the economy and implement financial reforms have been hampered by political instability and corruption. The timber industry, small-scale agriculture, and handicrafts are supplementary economic sectors. Government bureaucracy is also a major employer.

In 2023, Congo's gross domestic product (GDP; purchasing power parity) was estimated at US$38.163 billion, or US$6,200 per capita.

Industry: Petroleum drives the industrialized sector of the Congolese economy. Prior to the discovery of oil, timber was the leading industry, and it remains the second most important sector. Logging operations have expanded during periods of low global oil prices.

Other industries include brewing, cement, flour, lumber, palm oil, soap, flour, and tobacco products. Primary exports are petroleum (crude and refined), lumber, copper, and tin. Imports include ships, chicken products, refined petroleum, processed fish, packaged medicines. In 2020, exports totaled approximately US$4.67 billion, and imports totaled US$3.279 billion.

Agriculture: Primary crops grown in Congo include cassava, cocoa, coffee, corn, forest products, peanuts, rice, sugar, and vegetables. Most of these are grown by small farmers to feed their own families. Much of the farming is done through slash-and-burn agriculture, also called swidden farming.

Tourism: Due to the volatility of the political situation and the lack of security, the tourism sector does not account for a significant part of the Congolese economy. Brazzaville and the coastal town of Pointe-Noire are relatively safe, but travel between the two towns should be done by air rather than by ground transportation, as robberies and extortion, even by police and security forces, are frequently reported. In general, the country's tourism infrastructure is not well developed.

Government

The Republic of the Congo, formerly the Middle Congo, was created on August 15, 1960, when it gained independence from France. A Marxist-styled government was formed soon after, which dissolved in 1990. A democratically elected government took power in 1992, but a two-year civil war that broke out in 1997 marked a return to Marxism and an extended period of civil unrest, when many party leaders fled the country. A new constitution was adopted on January 20, 2002. A referendum resulted in a substantially new constitution in October 2015.

Administratively, the nation is divided into twelve departments: Bouenza, Brazzaville, Cuvette, Cuvette-Ouest, Kouilou, Lékoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pointe-Noire, Pool, and Sangha. The government's executive branch consists of a president, who serves as the head of state, and a prime minister, who serves as the head of government. The president is elected by popular vote to a five-year term.

The legislative branch is a bicameral parliament, with a Senate and a National Assembly. There are 72 seats in the Senate and 151 in the National Assembly. Senators are indirectly elected by regional councils to six-year terms, while National Assembly members are directly elected to five-year terms.

The judicial branch headed by the country's Supreme Court, with lower courts including courts of appeals, regional and district courts, employment tribunals, and juvenile courts.

Interesting Facts

• The Republic of the Congo is home to the largest concentration of lowland gorillas in the world.
• Congolese men known as "sapeurs" are known for their fashionable clothing style.
• The Congolese rebel group known as the Ninjas was named after the famous Japanese mercenary warriors and was led by a priest. The group signed a ceasefire in December 2017.

Bibliography

"Congo." World Health Organization, www.who.int/countries/cog/en/. Accessed 4 Dec. 2023.

"Congo, Republic of the." The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 30 Jan. 2025, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/congo-republic-of-the/. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.

"Human Development Insights." 13 Mar. 2024 Human Development Reports, UNDP, hdr.undp.org/data-center/country-insights#/ranks. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.

"Republic of Congo Country Profile." BBC News, 11 Apr. 2023, www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14121191. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.