CONGO, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE (DROC)



Democratic Republic of the Congo

République Democratique du Congo

CAPITAL : Kinshasa

FLAG: The flag is a blue field with seven gold stars; six arranged vertically at the hoist and a larger one in the center.

ANTHEM: Song of Independence.

MONETARY UNIT: In 1997, the New Congo replaced the zaire ( Z ) as the national currency with the Congolese franc ( CF ). 1 CF = $0.0024 (or $1 = CF 417) as of May 2003.

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES: The metric system is the legal standard.

HOLIDAYS: New Year's Day, 1 January; Commemoration of Martyrs of Independence, 4 January; Labor Day, 1 May; Anniversary of the Popular Movement of the Revolution, 20 May; Promulgation of the 1967 Constitution, 24 June; Independence Day, 30 June; Parents' Day, 1 August; Youth Day, 14 October; Army Day, 17 November; the Anniversary of the Regime, 24 November; and Christmas Day, 25 December.

TIME: In Kinshasa, 1 PM = noon GMT; in Lubumbashi, 2 PM = noon GMT.


FISHING

Fish are the single most important source of animal protein in the DROC. Total production of marine, river, and lake fisheries in 2000 was estimated at 208,448 tons, all but 3,945 tons from inland waters. PEMARZA, a state agency, carries on marine fishing.

INSURANCE

In 1959, there were eight insurance firms, each representing many foreign companies. Workers' compensation was the only form of compulsory insurance in the territory. In 1967, all private insurance companies were abolished and replaced by the state-owned National Society of Insurance (SONAS-La Société Nationale d'Assurance).

DEPENDENCIES

The DROC has no territories or colonies.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

American University. Zaire: A Country Study. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. 4th ed., 1994.

Background Notes: Congo. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2000.

Depelchin, Jacques. From the Congo Free State to Zaire: How Belgium Privatized the Economy: A History of Belgian Stock Companies in Congo-Zaire from 1885 –1974. Oxford: Codesria Book Series, 1992.

Hochschild, Adam. King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1998.

James, Alan. Britain and the Congo Crisis, 1960–63. Houndmills, U.K.: Macmillan, 1996.

Jennings, Christian. Across the Red River: Rwanda, Burundi, and the Heart of Darkness. London: Phoenix, 2001.

Lumumba-Kasongo, Tukumbi. The Dynamics of Economic and Political Relations Between Africa and Foreign Powers: A Study in International Relations. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 1999.

McElrath, Karen (ed.). HIV and AIDS: A Global View. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2002.

Mokoli, Mondonga M. State against Development: The Experience of Post-1965 Zaire. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1992.

Mukenge, Tshilemalema. Culture and Customs of the Congo. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2002.

Nelson, Jack E. Christian Missionizing and Social Transformation: A History of Conflict and Change in Eastern Zaire. New York: Praeger, 1992.

Nelson, Samuel Henry. Colonialism in the Congo Basin, 1880–1940. Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Center for International Studies, 1994.

Nzongola-Ntalaja, Georges. The Congo from Leopold to Kabila: A People's History. New York: Zed Books, 2002.

O'Ballance, Edgar. The Congo-Zaire Experience, 1960–98. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2000.

Sangmpam, S. N. Pseudocapitalism and the Overpoliticized State: Reconciling Politics and Anthropology in Zaire. Aldershot, U.K.: Avebury, 1994.

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