Country name:

conventional long form: Democratic Republic of the Congo
conventional short form: none
local long form: Republique Democratique du Congo
local short form: none
former: Congo Free State, Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville, Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire

Capital:

Kinshasa

Location:

Central Africa, northeast of Angola

Area:

total: 2,345,410 sq km
land: 2,267,600 sq km
water: 77,810 sq km

Population:

58,317,930

Languages:

French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba

Economy- Overview:

Industries:

mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer products (including textiles, footwear, cigarettes, processed foods and beverages), cement

Exports - commodities:

 diamonds, copper, crude oil, coffee, cobalt

Imports - commodities:

foodstuffs, mining and other machinery, transport equipment, fuels

Exchange rates: