Repubblica democratica del Congo (Zaire)

Democratic Republic of Congo

GEOGRAPHY:
Location:-------------------- Central Africa
Area:
Total area:--- 2,345,410 sq km
Land area:--- 2,267,600 sq km
Capital city:------------- Kinshasa
Natural Resources:------------- Hard coal, soft coal, kaolin clay, graphite

PEOPLE:
Population:----------------- 49,000,511
Literacy Rate:-------------- 77.3% of total population, (Males:86.6%,
Females:67.7%)
Languages:------------------ French (official), lingala(a lingua fraca trade
language), kingwana(a dilect of kiswahili or swahili), kikongo, tshiluba.
Religions:------------------ 50% roman catholic, 20% protestans, 10%
kimbanguist, 10% muslim, 10% other syncretic sects & traditional beliefs.

VITAL STATISTICS:
Birth Rate:------------- 48.1 (per 1,000 population)
Death Rate:------------- 16.9 (per 1,000 population)
Infant Mortality Rate:------------ 108 (deaths per 1,000 live births)
Fertility Rate:-------------- 6.64 (per woman)
Life Expectancy at Birth:
Total population:--- 46.7 (Males:44.97, Females:48.47)

GOVERNMENT:
Independence:---------------- June 30, 1960 (from Belgium)
President:-------------- Laurent Kabila

ECONOMY:
GDP:------------ purchasing power parity - $16.5 billion GDP real growth
rate:--- 7.4% GDP per capita:--- $400
Inflation Rate:---------------- (consumer prices): --- 12%
National Budget:
Revenues:--- $479 million
Expenditures:--- $479 million
External Debt:-------------- $11.3 billion
Currency:-------------- 1 zaire = 100 makuta
Labor Force:------------- 14.51
Unemployment Rate:------------- NA%
Agriculture:---------------- Coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber, tea, quinine,
cassava (topioca), palm oil, bananas, root crops, corn, fruits; wood
products
Industries:---------------- Mining, mineral processing, consumer products
(including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages),
cement, diamonds
Imports:----------------- $382 million
Commodities:--- Consumer goods, foodstuffs, mining and other
machinery, transport equipment, fuels.
Exports:----------------- $382 million
Commodities:--- Copper, coffee, diamonds, cobalt, crude oil.

DEFENCE:
Defence Expenditures:--------------- Exchange rate conversion - $46 million,
1.5% of GDP.

Geography:Zaire is in west central Africa