Congo

This Page was last updated on the 19th. October, 2005.

Country	Congo
Official Name	Republic of the Congo
Former Name	Middle Congo, Congo Brazzaville (came under French sovereignty in the 1880s; treaties with local rulers placed lands under French protection between 1882 and 1891; French began to organized the French Equatorial Africa [A.E.F.] which included Congo [Brazzaville], , Gabon, Chad, and Oubangui-Chari in 1908; after referendum in September 1958 the A.E.F. was dissolved, members became autonomous in the French Community; Middle Congo renamed the Congo Republic.)
Capital	Brazzaville
Main Towns	Brazzaville (population: 1.2m), Dolisie (150,000), Kinkala, Loubomo, Madingou-Kayes, Pointe Noire (450,000)
Subdivisions	9 regions: Bouenza, Cuvette, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha. 1 commune: Brazzaville.
Independence	15 August 1960 (from France)
Constitution	constitution approved by referendum 20 January 2002
National Holiday	Independence Day, 15 August (1960)
UN Membership	20 September 1960
OAU Membership	25 May 1963
Commonwealth	n/a
Other Organisations	In alphabetical order according to abbreviation/acronym: Agency for the French-Speaking Community (ACCT), Africa-Caribbean-Pacific-European Union (ACP-EU), African Development Bank (AfDB or AFDB), Central African States Development Bank (BDEAC), Central African States Economic Community (CEAC), Central African Economic and Monetary Community (or Economic and Monetary Community of Central African States, CEMAC), Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Franc Zone (FZ), Group of 77 at the United Nations (G-77), International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), International Criminal Court (ICCt - signatory), International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (ICRM), International Development Association (IDA), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), International Finance Corporation (IFC), International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCS), International Labour Organisation (ILO), International Monetary Fund (IMF), International Maritime Organisation (IMO), International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), International Olympic Committee (IOC), International Organisation for Migration (IOM), International Telecommunications Union (ITU), Non Aligned Movement (NAM), Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW - signatory), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), Universal Postal Union (UPU), World Confederation of Labour (WCL), World Customs Organization (WCO, former Customs Cooperation Council [CCC]), World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), World Health Organisation (WHO), World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), World Tourism Organisation (WToO), World Trade Organisation (WTrO).
Population	World Bank Figures: 3,338,760 (1999), 3,447,000 (2000), 3,553,102 (2001), 3,656,658 (2002), 3,757,263 (2003) Other Sources: 2,504,996 (July 1995), 2,894,336 (July 2001 est.) 2,954,258 (July 2003 est.) 3,039,126 (July 2005 est.)
Area	132,047 sq. mls. (342,000 sq. kms.)
Density	7 per sq.km. (1995)
Highest Point	Mt. Nabeba 3,219 ft. (981 m.)
Lowest Point	Atlantic Ocean - sea level
Neighbours	Cabinda (S), Cameroon (NW), Central African Republic (N), Gabon (W),
Life Expectancy	51 years (1995), total population: 47.57 years, male: 44.38 years, female: 50.85 years (2001 est.) total population: 50.02 years male: 49.04 years female: 51.02 years (2003 est.) total population: 48.97 years male: 47.94 years female: 50.04 years (2005 est.)
Infant Mortality Rate	total: 95.34 deaths/1,000 live births female: 89.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 101.45 deaths/1,000 live births total: 92.41 deaths/1,000 live births male: 98.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 86.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS	adult prevalence rate: 7.2% (2001 est.) people living with HIV/AIDS: 110,000 (2001 est.) deaths: 11,000 (2001 est.)
Adult Literacy Rate	total population: 74.9%, male: 83.1%, female: 67.2% (1995 est.) total population: 83.8% male: 89.6% female: 78.4% (2003 est.)
Ethnic Groups	Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans and other 3%
Languages	French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca), Kikongo (most users) and many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread)
Religions	Muslim 2%, Protestant 17%, Catholic 33%, Traditional Religion (Animist) 47%
Type of Government	Republic
President	Denis Sassou-Nguesso (since 25 October 1997 [19/10/2005])
Prime Minister	---
Political Parties	Democratic and Patriotic Forces (FDP, alliance of Convention for Alternative Democracy, Congolese Labor Party [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 (MCDDI); Pan-African Union for Social Development (UPADS); Rally for Democracy and Social Progress (RDPS); Rally for Democracy and the Republic (RDR); Union for Democracy and Republic (UDR); Union of Democratic Forces (UFD)
Ruling Party	Democratic and Patriotic Forces (FDP)
Currency	Communaute Financiere Africaine (CFA, XAF) Franc (100 centimes) Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000)
GDP	US$1,189 (1992) US$510 (1994) US$2,163m (1995) GDP: US$2.186 billion (2003 est.) US$ 2.148bn (2004) purchasing power parity - US$2.324 billion (2004 est.) per capita purchasing power parity - US$900 (2002 est.) per capita purchasing power parity - US$800 (2004 est.)
GNP	US$1,150 (1992) US$700 (1994) US$680 (1995)
Per Capita Income	GDP per head: US$700 (2004) Per capita income: $700 (2003)
Population Below Poverty Line	NA%
Land Use	arable land: 0.51% permanent crops: 0.13% other: 99.36% (2001) Irrigated land: 10 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural Resources	petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, gold, magnesium, natural gas, hydropower
Oil and Natural Gas	Oil production: 275,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) 227,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) consumption: 5,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) 5,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) exports: NA (2001) imports: NA (2001) proved reserves: 93.5 million bbl (1 January 2002) Natural gas - proved reserves: 495.5 million cu m (1 January 2002) Pipelines - crude oil 15 mls (25 kms)(2001) Pipelines - gas 53 km; oil 646 km (2004)
Military	Branches: Army, Air Force, Navy, Gendarmerie, National Police Manpower availability: males age 15-49: 754,814 (2003 est.) males age 18-49: 686,123 (2005 est.) Expenditures US$84 million, 2.8% of GDP (FY01) US$126.5 million, 2.8% of GDP (2004)
Economic Aid Received	US$159.1 million (1995) Aid per Capita (World Bank): US$42 (1999), US$10 (2000), US$21 (2001), US$16 (2002), US$19 (2003)
Debt	Severely indebted (HIPC) World Bank Figures: US$4,595,100,160 (2000), US$4,231,899,904 (2001), US$4,886,600,192 (2002), US$8,385,099,776 (2003) Other Sources: US$4.6bn (1995), US$5 billion (1999 est.) US$5 billion (2000 est.)
Major Imports	capital equipment, construction materials, machinery & transport equipment, metals & products, food capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs (2003 est.)
Imports from	France 20.5%, Italy 10.9%, US 9.5%, Belgium 5.1%, South Africa 2.5% (2001) France 20.2%, China 6.6%, Italy 6.5%, India 4.8%, Belgium 4.7%, US 4.6% (2004) U$666.9 million (2003 est.) US$749.3 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Major Exports	Crude petroleum 90%, timber 10%, lywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds petroleum (89% of export earnings), lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds. (2003 est.)
Exports to	US 17.2%, South Korea 12.7%, China 9.9%, Germany 5.6%, France 2.4% (2001) China 30.8%, US 18.2%, Taiwan 16.8%, South Korea 11.2%, Trinidad and Tobago 5.6% (2004) U$2.293 billion (2003 est.) US$2.224 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

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The White Fathers, Sutton Coldfield, 19 October 2005

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