]! ^! Upon independence in 1960, the former French region of Middle Congo became the Republic of the Congo. A quarter century of experimentation with Marxism was abandoned in 1990 and a democratically elected government installed in 1992. A brief civil war in 1997 restored former Marxist President SASSOU-NGUESSO, but ushered in a period of ethnic unrest. Southern-based rebel groups agreed to a final peace accord in March 2003, but the calm is tenuous and refugees continue to present a humanitarian crisis. The Republic of Congo is one of Africa's largest petroleum producers with significant potential for offshore development. 
]" ^" Western Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Angola and Gabon ^# 1 00 S, 15 00 E ^$ Africa ^% `! 342,000 sq km `" 341,500 sq km `# 500 sq km ^& slightly smaller than Montana ^' `! 5,504 km `U Angola 201 km, Cameroon 523 km, Central African Republic 467 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 2,410 km, Gabon 1,903 km ^( 169 km ^) `$ 200 nm ^* tropical; rainy season (March to June); dry season (June to October); constantly high temperatures and humidity; particularly enervating climate astride the Equator ^+ coastal plain, southern basin, central plateau, northern basin ^, `% Atlantic Ocean 0 m `& Mount Berongou 903 m ^- petroleum, timber, potash, lead, zinc, uranium, copper, phosphates, gold, magnesium, natural gas, hydropower ^. `' 0.51% `( 0.13% `) 99.36% (2001) ^/ 10 sq km (1998 est.) ^0 seasonal flooding ^1 air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from the dumping of raw sewage; tap water is not potable; deforestation _J `K Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands `L Law of the Sea ^2 about 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or along the railroad between them 
]# ^3 3,039,126 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) ^4 `* 37.3% (male 571,011/female 563,414) `+ 59% (male 886,297/female 907,348) `, 3.7% (male 45,799/female 65,257) (2005 est.) ^5 `! 20.7 years `- 20.2 years `. 21.1 years (2005 est.) ^6 1.31% (2005 est.) ^7 27.88 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^8 14.82 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^9 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^: `/ 1.01 male(s)/female `0 1.01 male(s)/female `+ 0.98 male(s)/female `, 0.7 male(s)/female `1 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) ^; `! 92.41 deaths/1,000 live births `- 98.48 deaths/1,000 live births `. 86.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) ^< `1 52.26 years `- 51.17 years `. 53.39 years (2005 est.) ^= 3.54 children born/woman (2005 est.) ^> 4.9% (2003 est.) ^? 90,000 (2003 est.) ^@ 9,700 (2003 est.) __ degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne disease: malaria (2004) ^A `2 Congolese (singular and plural) `3 Congolese or Congo ^B Kongo 48%, Sangha 20%, M'Bochi 12%, Teke 17%, Europeans and other 3% note: Europeans estimated at 8,500, mostly French, before the 1997 civil war; may be half that in 1998, following the widespread destruction of foreign businesses in 1997 ^C Christian 50%, animist 48%, Muslim 2% ^D French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread) ^E `M age 15 and over can read and write `1 83.8% `- 89.6% `. 78.4% (2003 est.) 
]$ ^F `4 Republic of the Congo `5 Congo (Brazzaville) `V Republique du Congo `W none `X Middle Congo, Congo/Brazzaville, Congo ^H republic ^I Brazzaville ^J 10 regions (regions, singular - region) and 1 commune*; Bouenza, Brazzaville*, Cuvette, Cuvette-Ouest, Kouilou, Lekoumou, Likouala, Niari, Plateaux, Pool, Sangha ^K 15 August 1960 (from France) ^L Independence Day, 15 August (1960) ^M approved by referendum 20 January 2002 ^N based on French civil law system and customary law ^O 18 years of age; universal ^P `6 President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government `7 President Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO (since 25 October 1997, following the civil war in which he toppled elected president Pascal LISSOUBA); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government `8 Council of Ministers appointed by the president `9 president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second seven-year term); election last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA 2009) `: Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO reelected president; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO 89.4%, Joseph Kignoumbi Kia MBOUNGOU 2.7% ^Q bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (66 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the National Assembly (137 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) `9 Senate - last held 11 July 2002 (next to be held July 2007); National Assembly - last held 27 May and 26 June 2002 (next to be held by NA May 2007) `: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 56, other 10; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 83, UDR 6, UPADS 3, other 45 ^R Supreme Court or Cour Supreme ^S the most important of the many parties are the Democratic and Patriotic Forces or FDP (an alliance of Convention for Alternative Democracy, Congolese Labor Party or PCT, Liberal Republican Party, National Union for Democracy and Progress, Patriotic Union for the National Reconstruction, and Union for the National Renewal) [Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, president]; Congolese Movement for Democracy and Integral Development or MCDDI [Michel MAMPOUYA]; Pan-African Union for Social Development or UPADS [Martin MBERI]; Rally for Democracy and Social Progress or RDPS [Jean-Pierre Thystere TCHICAYA, president]; Rally for Democracy and the Republic or RDR [Raymond Damasge NGOLLO]; Union for Democracy and Republic or UDR [leader NA]; Union of Democratic Forces or UFD [Sebastian EBAO] ^T Congolese Trade Union Congress or CSC; General Union of Congolese Pupils and Students or UGEEC; Revolutionary Union of Congolese Women or URFC; Union of Congolese Socialist Youth or UJSC ^U ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, BDEAC, CEMAC, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO ^V `N Ambassador Serge MOMBOULI `O 4891 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20011 `P [1] (202) 726-5500 `Q [1] (202) 726-1860 ^W `N Ambassador Roger A. MEECE `Z NA `[ NA `P [243] (88) 43608 note: the embassy is temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (US Embassy Kinshasa, 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa) ^X divided diagonally from the lower hoist side by a yellow band; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia 
]% ^Y The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts, an industrial sector based largely on oil, support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings, contributing to a shortage of revenues. The 12 January 1994 devaluation of Franc Zone currencies by 50% resulted in inflation of 61% in 1994, but inflation has subsided since. Economic reform efforts continued with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. The reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. However, economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. The current administration presides over an uneasy internal peace and faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. ^Z $2.324 billion (2004 est.) ^[ 3.7% (2004 est.) ^\ purchasing power parity - $800 (2004 est.) ^] `; 7.4% `< 52% `= 40.6% (2004 est.) ^^ NA ^` NA (2003) ^a NA _! `> NA `? NA _" 1.8% (2004 est.) _P 25.8% of GDP (2004 est.) _# `@ $870.1 million `A $1.102 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) _$ cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products _% petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes _& 0% (2002 est.) _' 348 million kWh (2002) _( 573.6 million kWh (2002) _) 0 kWh (2002) _* 250 million kWh (2002) _+ 227,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) _, 5,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) _- NA _. NA _R 93.5 million bbl (1 January 2002) _S 0 cu m (2001 est.) _T 0 cu m (2001 est.) _U 0 cu m (2001 est.) _V 0 cu m (2001 est.) _W 495.5 million cu m (1 January 2002) _X $266 million (2004 est.) _/ $2.224 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.) _0 petroleum, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds _1 China 26.8%, Taiwan 19.2%, North Korea 8.4%, US 7.3%, France 5.5%, South Korea 4.8% (2004) _2 $749.3 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) _3 capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs _4 France 32.7%, US 10.1%, Germany 6.2%, Italy 6%, China 5.2%, Netherlands 4.5% (2004) _Y $40.42 million (2004 est.) _5 $5 billion (2000 est.) _6 $159.1 million (1995) _7 Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States _8 Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000) _9 calendar year 
]& _: 7,000 (2003) _; 330,000 (2003) _< `B services barely adequate for government use; key exchanges are in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and Loubomo; intercity lines frequently out of order `C primary network consists of microwave radio relay and coaxial cable `D country code - 242; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) _= AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 3 (2001) _> 1 (2002) _? .cg _@ 46 (2003) _A 15,000 (2003) 
]' _e `! 894 km `c 894 km 1.067-m gauge (2004) _B `! 12,800 km `E 1,242 km `F 11,558 km (1999 est.) _b 4,385 km (on Congo and Oubanqui rivers) (2004) _[ gas 53 km; oil 646 km (2004) _C Brazzaville, Djeno, Impfondo, Ouesso, Oyo, Pointe-Noire _D 32 (2004 est.) _E `! 4 `] 1 `^ 3 (2004 est.) _L `! 28 `^ 6 `_ 11 `T 11 (2004 est.) 
]( _F Congolese Armed Forces (FAC): Army, Air Force (Armee de l'Air Congolaise), Navy, Gendarmerie, Republican Guard (2005) _M 18 years of age for voluntary military service (2001) _] males age 18-49: 686,123 (2005 est.) Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 360,492 (2005 est.) _^ `` 34,281 (2005 est.) _N $126.5 million (2004) _O 2.8% (2004) 
]) _H about 7,000 Congolese refugees fleeing internal civil conflicts since the mid-1990s still reside in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; the location of the boundary in the broad Congo River with the Democratic Republic of the Congo is indefinite except in the Pool Malebo/Stanley Pool area _c IDPs: 60,000 (multiple civil wars since 1992; most IDPs are ethnic Lari) (2004) 