CONGO
_Congo.jpg)
|
| (See reference map VII) |
LAND
349,650 km2; 63% dense forest or woodland, 33% cultivable or grazing (2% cultivated est.), 4% urban or waste
Land boundaries: 4,514 km
WATER
Limits of territorial waters (claimed): 200 nm
Coastline: 169 km
PEOPLE
Population: 1,641,000 (July 1982), average annual growth rate 2.8%
Nationality: noun—Congolese (sing., pl.); adjective—Congolese or Congo
Ethnic divisions: about 15 ethnic groups divided into some 75 tribes, almost all Bantu; most important ethnic groups are Kongo (48%) in south, Teke (17%) in center, Sangha (20%) and M'Bochi (12%) in north; about 8,500 Europeans, mostly French
Religion: about half animist, half nominally Christian, less than 1% Muslim
Language: French official, many African languages with Lingala and Kikongo most widely used
Literacy: about 20%
Labor force: about 40% of population economically active, most engaged in subsistence agriculture; 79,100 wage earners; 40,000-60,000 unemployed
Organized labor: 16% of total labor force (1965 est.)
GOVERNMENT
Official name: People's Republic of the Congo
Type: republic; military regime established September 1968
Capital: Brazzaville
Political subdivisions: nine regions divided into districts
Legal system: based on French civil law system and customary law; constitution adopted 1973
National holiday: National Day, 15 August
Branches: President, Military Committee, Council of State; judiciary; all policy made by Congolese Labor Party Central Committee and Politburo
Government leaders: President Col. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO replaced Joachim Yhombi-Opango as President in March 1979, following an intraparty squabble; Prime Minister Col. Louis-Sylvain GOMA is Head of Government
Suffrage: universal over age 18
Elections: elections for local and regional organs and the National Assembly were held in July 1979—the first elections since June 1973
Political parties and leaders: Congolese Workers Party (PCT) is only legal party
Communists: unknown number of Communists and sympathizers
Other political or pressure groups: Union of Congolese Socialist Youth (UJSC), Congolese Trade Union Congress (CSC), Revolutionary Union of Congolese Union (URFC), General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students (UGEEC)
Member of: AFDB, Conference of East and Central African States, EAMA, ECA, EIB (associate), FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMCO, IMF, ITU, NAM, OAU, UDEAC, UEAC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
ECONOMY
GDP: about $1.0 billion (1980 est.), $667 per capita; real growth rate 3.5% per year (1971-81)
Agriculture: cash crops—sugarcane, wood, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, peanuts, tobacco; food crops—root crops, rice, corn, bananas, manioc, fish
Fishing: catch 19,447 metric tons (1978 est.)
Major industries: crude oil, sawmills, brewery, cigarettes, sugar mill, soap
Electric power: 116,000 kW capacity (1980); 130 million kWh produced (1980), 83 kWh per capita
Exports: $910.6 million (f.o.b., 1980); oil, lumber, tobacco, veneer, and plywood
Imports: $545 million (f.o.b., 1980); machinery, transport equipment, manufactured consumer goods, iron and steel, foodstuffs, petroleum products, sugar
Major trade partners: France and other EC countries
Budget: (1980) revenues $345.6 million, current expenditures $345.6 million, development expenditures $81.2 million
Monetary conversion rate: 202 Communaute Financiere Africaine (CFA) francs=US$1 (1980)
Fiscal year: calendar year
COMMUNICATIONS
Railroads: 800 km, 1.067-meter gauge, single track
47
