Geography

Economics

Demographics

Military

Politics

Surface

Surface (in square kilometers)

Surface (in square miles)

Surface (water)

Water Surface (in square kilometers)

Water Surface (in square miles)

Share of water (%)

Temperature

Average temperature (in Celcius)

Average temperature (in Farenheit)

Average high temperature (in Celcius)

Average high temperature (in Farenheit)

Average low temperature (in Celcius)

Average low temperature (in Farenheit)

Rainfall

Average rainfall (mm)

Average rainfall (inch)

Distance to other capitals (kilometers)

Distance to other capitals (miles)

Proximity

Economic organizations

Gross Domestic Product (US$)

Gross Domestic Product per capita

Amount of memberships (economic organizations)

Absolute earnings for every 1$

Relative earnings

GDP in PPP per capita (in US$)

 

GDP in PPP per capita

Gross Domestic product (in million US$)

GDP per capita (in US$)

Surface GDP

GDP per square kilometer (in US$)

GDP per square mile(in US$)

Relative GDP in PPP

The relative Gross Domestic Product in Purchasing Power Parity compares the purchasing power compared with the rest of the world.

 

 

 

The graph on the left displays the purchasing power parity of the rest of the world in relation to the purchasing power of 1$

Population

Population density

Emigration

Immigration

Literacy

Health

Population density (in km2)

Population density (in mi2)

Religion

Christianity (share of the total population)

Islam (share of the total population)

Buddhism (share of the total population)

Hinduism (share of the total population)

Judaism (share of the total population)

Other religions (share of the total population)

Non-religious (share of the total population)

Military spending (in % of GDP)

Military spending

Around US$300 million is spent on its military annually which represents just over three percent of its GDP.

The military of the Republic of the Congo is called the Armed Forces of the Republic of the Congo. It has an Army an Navy and an Air Force as well as a presidential guard.  

Military membership

It is a member of four international military organizations which makes it the 107th most militarily interconnected state in the world. 

  • South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone 

  • Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons 

  • International Atomic Energy Agency 

  • Non-Aligned Movement 

Military membership

International wars

The Republic of the Congo has not participated in any international wars. 

Number of international wars fought

Military spending (in US$ million)

Membership (international political organizations)

It is a member of eight international political organizations which makes it the 171st most politically interconnected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations: 

  • Member state of the United Nations 
  • International Labour Organization 
  • African Union 
  • International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property 
  • Member states of the Organization internationale de la Francophonie 
  • International Criminal Court 
  • Interpol 
  • World Organization for Animal Health 

Political Membership

Democracy/dictatorship rating

Because of its civil unrest as well as the centralization of power by the president, it is ranked as the 148 most democratic state in the world. 

Democracy/Dictatorship

The politics consists of a multiparty semi-presidential republic of which the president of the Republic of the Congo is head of state, and the Prime Minister is head of government.  

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If you want to know more about other states, click on the flag on the right to discover Costa Rica.

The Republic of the Congo (Brazzaville) 

The Republic of the Congo, or Congo Brazzaville has had its first contact with Europeans in 1482 when the Portuguese explorers first discovered the area. From 1482 until the end of the 19th century, the Republic of the Congo was a central point for the European slave trade where rivalling tribes fought each other and sold the conquered people to Europeans for manufactured goods. At the turn of the 19th century, the Congo came under French rule and became a formal colony in 1905. In 1960, the Republic of the Congo proclaimed its independence, but remained within the French Union. Since its independence, the Republic of the Congo has seen several coups, assassinations as well as nonviolent transitions of power. .

 Located on the equator, the Republic of the Congo has a tropical climate with densely forested areas. Its geography is relatively diverse with valleys as well as mountain ranges. To the north it borders the Central African Republic, to the east the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the south it borders Angola and to the west it borders Gabon and Cameroon. 

With a total surface area of 344,000 square kilometers or 132,600 square miles it is the 64th largest state in the world making it slightly larger than Finland and slightly smaller than Germany. 

It has a total water surface area of 503 square kilometers or 191 square miles which makes it the 119th state with the largest body of water. 

 

Below, a graph is shown which displays the absolute amount of water of each state in square kilometers and square miles.

Aside from being located on the equator and receiving relatively more rainfall, the water of the Republic of the Congo is also being supplied by its many rivers with the Congo River and the Lualaba River being its largest. 

 

 

The Republic of the Congo experiences two different climates which are being characterized by its wet season and its dry season. During the dry season which is between December and February, the Republic of the Congo experiences warm and clear weather while in its wet season which is from March to November it experiences hot and oppressive temperatures. The average temperature in the Republic of the Congo is around 24.3 degrees Celsius or 75.7 degrees Fahrenheit making it the 77th warmest state in the world. 

During the wet season temperatures can go up to an average of 28.4 degrees Celsius or 83.1 degrees Fahrenheit. 

During the dry season the temperature cools down to 20.4 degrees Celsius or 68.7 degrees Fahrenheit. 

The majority of its rainfall originates from the evaporated water that travels from the Atlantic Ocean inland. It receives the 53rd highest amount of rainfall in the world with an annual precipitation of 153 centimetres or 60 inches per year. 

The capital of the Republic of the Congo, Brazzaville is home to a population of 1.6 million people. The capital that is closest located to Brazzaville is Kinshasa of the Democratic Republic of the Congo which is located just under 17 kilometers or 11 miles away from Brazzaville and is only separated by the Congo River. 

The economy of the Republic of the Congo is characterized by being an underdeveloped economy. The majority of its population is dependent on subsistence farming as well as exports of petroleum related products. However, in recent years foreign investment have started to increase which are mainly active in the energy and mining sector. Products that are mostly exported are petroleum, clothing and minerals. These are largely exported to China which is solely responsible for nearly 60 percent. Most of its imports comes from Belgium France and China which combined make up nearly 40 percent of total imports. 

It is a member of eight international economic organizations making it the 91st most economically interconnected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations: 

 

  • African development Bank 
  • International Monetary Fund 
  • World Bank Group 
  • World Customs Organization 
  • World Trade Organization 
  • Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States 
  • International Solar Alliance 
  • Group of 77 

Its GDP is estimated to be around US$10.9 billion making it the 144th largest GDP in the world. 

Its GDP per surface area is estimated to be US$31,500 per square kilometer or US$81,700 per square mile. 

Its GDP per capita is just over US$2000.  

The absolute earnings (GDP per capita) reflect the average yearly income. The figure below shows how much, on average, an inhabitant of another state earns for every $1 earned by a citizen of this state.

The purchasing power is estimated to be just under $5000. 

Because of its French colonial history, the majority of the inhabitants of the Republic of the Congo speak French. However, many other languages are present at our mostly spoken by native tribes. The majority of these tribes identify as Congo people. There is a small minority of French people that remained in the Republic of the Congo, but this is under 1000 of the total population of 5.4 million people. 

It has one of the lowest population densities in the world with a population of 16 people per square kilometer or 41 people per square mile. This makes the Republic of the Congo the 176 most densely populated state. 

Due to civil unrest in the past as well as the spread of epidemics and an increase in natural disasters around 4.5 percent of the population has left the Republic of the Congo. Around a quarter of the 442,000 people have emigrated to France. 

Immigration to the Republic of the Congo is not stimulated and many immigrants experience harassment by local officials. Still there are some 400,000 people that have emigrated to the Republic of the Congo. Around half originates from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

Literacy rates in the Republic of the Congo is estimated to be around 79.2 percent. Even though the government spent a large portion, around 10 percent of its GDP, on education, a large part of the Congolese population does not have sufficient access to education. 

The health care system is of relatively low quality. It has a high maternal mortality rate and around 25 percent of the population suffers from diseases that are related to malnutrition. The average life expectancy is the 166th highest in the world and is 65.2 years. Men have an average life expectancy of 63.7 years and women around 66.7 years. 

The Republic of the Congo is a Christian majority state. 

Christianity represents around 86.7 percent of the total population which ranks it as the 29th most Christian state in the world. Because of its French colonial past, around one third of Christians adhere to Catholicism while Protestantism and revival churches make up 20 percent each. 

 

On the right, the global share of Christians per state is displayed 

It is estimated that around 1.7 percent of the population adheres to Islam. The Islamic population mainly originate from West Africa where migrants arrived from Senegal Togo and Mali. 

There are no official Buddhist organizations in the Republic of the Congo. 

There are no Hindu organizations known in the Republic of the Congo. 

There are no Jewish organizations known in the Republic of the Congo. 

Around 2.6 percent of the population adheres to other religions. A notable religion is Kimbanguism where it is believed that Simon Kimbangu was its prophet. This religion has its roots in Christianity and is mixed with many African religions. 

It is estimated that around 6.14 percent of the population do not adhere to any faith.