Facts and Figures

Full name: Congo, Democratic Republic of the

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

Flag:

Area
total: 2,345,410 sq km
water: 77,810 sq km

Population: 60,085,804
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 2005 est.)

Ethnic groups: over 200 African ethnic groups of which the majority are Bantu; the four largest tribes – Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) make up about 45% of the population

Capital: Kinshasa, population 4,660,000

Largest Cities
Lumbumbashi – 860,000
Kananga – 395,000
Likasi – 300,000
Matadi – 175,000

Official Language
French (official)
Lingala (a lingua franca trade language)
Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili)
Kikongo
Tshiluba

Religion
Roman Catholic 50%
Protestant 20%
Kimbanguist 10%
Muslim 10%
other syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs 10%

Political system: Democratic Republic

GDP: purchasing power parity – $42.74 billion (2004 est.)

GDP per head: purchasing power parity – $700 (2004 est.)

Annual growth: 7.5% (2004 est.)

GDP – composition by sector
agriculture: 55%
industry: 11%
services: 34% (2000 est.)

Inflation: 14% (2003 est.)