In 2003, the Republic of the Congo was a country located in Central Africa, bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo. It was home to around 3.5 million people and its economy was largely reliant on oil production, with some additional income from forestry and fishing. In 2003, the Republic of the Congo had recently recovered from a civil war and it remained politically unstable. According to computergees, the nation had adopted a democratic multi-party system but corruption and human rights abuses were still common. In 2003, the Republic of the Congo had close diplomatic ties with other African countries such as Angola and Gabon. It also maintained strong relations with France due to its colonial past. Despite its political instability, tourism to the country was growing as visitors were drawn to its lush rainforests and diverse wildlife. The nation had several national parks that were home to rare species such as gorillas and chimpanzees which could be seen in their natural habitat.
Yearbook 2003
Congo. In March, the government and the so-called Ninjamilisi signed an agreement to end the fighting in the Pool region near the capital, Brazzaville. According to Countryaah.com, Republic of Congo Independence Day is August 15. The Ninjamilis was originally formed by then-Prime Minister Bernard Kolelas during the civil war in Republic of the Congo at the end of the 1990s and had continued to engage in guerrilla warfare against military and civilian targets after the formal end of the war. In the settlement, the militia promised to surrender arms to the members in return being guaranteed impunity. Milisen also promised that the civilian population could again move freely in the area. The war and the ongoing unrest have left deep traces in Congolese society.
The think tank Mercer Human Resources Consulting ranked Brazzaville as the worst city in the world to live in. The port city of Pointe-Noire ended up in third place from the bottom. The assessment was based on a number of economic, social and environmental criteria, including access to health care, education, communications and other public services, as well as personal security. Both Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire were also considered to be among the five most dangerous cities in the world.
As stipulated in the constitution adopted in 2002, a commission was formed in January to investigate human rights violations during the civil war and the years thereafter. However, the Commission has neither the powers to prosecute nor to formally interrogate those responsible for the abuses.
A French court has launched a preliminary investigation against Congolese government officials, including President Denis Sassou-Nguesso, who has been accused of torture and for lying behind the disappearance of hundreds of people. The notification had been filed by several civil rights movements. In June, the International Court of Justice in The Hague rejected a request by the K government to close the preliminary investigation.
Republic of the Congo Brief Guide
According to AbbreviationFinder, The Republic of the Congo is a state in Central Africa. Its capital is Brazzaville, and is bordered by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, Cameroon and Gabon. The country also uses the names Brazzaville Congo and Congo-Brazzaville.
Economic conditions
The country has a serious backward situation, weighed down not only by the rate of population growth, but also by internal instability, heavy debt with foreign countries (over 5 billion dollars: almost 300% of GDP) and price variability. of oil on international markets, a commodity of which the country is relatively well endowed (in 2005 the production of crude oil exceeded 12,000,000 tons).
Agriculture (peanuts, bananas, sugar cane, pineapple, cassava) is in decline. On the other hand, timber production remains remarkably high; the forests, which occupy about 62% of the entire territorial surface and are not adequately exploited due to the difficulties of penetration and the scarcity of means of transport, still supply about 2 million m 3of wood per year: okumè, ebony, mahogany and small quantities of rubber, which is largely processed on site. Breeding is of no importance, especially for climatic reasons; river fishing, practiced especially in northern rivers, is of some importance in the food balance, while sea fishing – although favored by the fish richness of coastal waters, influenced by the cold current of the Benguela – is still neglected activity. The extracted mineral resources are scarce and the industrial sector is almost non-existent, with the exception of the oil sector (extraction and first processing of crude oil) for which, since the mid-1990s, various fields have entered into activity (including, very important, the offshore one of Nkossa, off the coast of Point-Noire); some food, textile and tobacco manufacturing industries are in Loutété. Oil and timber are the two absolutely prevalent items (over four-fifths of exports) of the trade balance, which regularly records a rather large surplus, however largely due to the limited spending capacity of the population, whose consumption is at levels elementary.
The level of infrastructures is modest: the asphalted roads are about 1200 km and the railways slightly exceed 1000 km; the main axis of communication are the waterways, navigable for about 4000 km.