Unless on essential business, we advise against all travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo outside of Kinshasa, Lubumbashi, Matadi and other Government-controlled towns.
This advice is based on information provided by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in the UK. It is correct at time of publishing. As the situation can change rapidly, visitors are advised to contact the following organisations for the latest travel advice: :

British Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Website: www.fco.gov.uk
Tel: (0845) 850 2829.

US Department of State
Website: http://travel.state.gov/travel

Central Africa.

Kinshasa and Mbandaka: GMT + 1.
Haut-Zaïre, Kasai, Kivu and Shaba: GMT + 2.

2,345,410 sq km (905,563 sq miles).

60.1 million (UN estimate 2005).

26 per sq km.

Kinshasa. Population: 6.5 million (UN estimate 2005).

The Democratic Republic of Congo is the third-largest country in Africa and is bordered to the north by the Central African Republic and Sudan, to the east by Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania, to the south by Zambia and Angola, and to the west by the Republic of Congo and the Angolan enclave, Cabinda. The country has a coastline of only 27km (17 miles), at the outlet of the Congo River, which flows into the Atlantic. The country straddles the Equator and has widely differing geographical features, including mountain ranges in the north and west, a vast central plain through which the Congo River flows, and the volcanoes and lakes of the Kivu region. The river has given rise to extensive tropical rainforests on the western border with the Republic of Congo.

Republic. Gained independence from Belgium in 1960. Head of State: President Joseph Kabila since 2001. Kabila took over following the assassination of his father, Laurent-Désiré Kabila. Recent history: Laurent Kabila, then a little-known Zairian opposition figure who had been based in Uganda for several decades, was adopted as leader of this newly-formed anti-Mobutu coalition. By the autumn of 1996, this disparate formation, operating as the Alliance des Forces Démocratiques pour la Liberation du Congo-Zaire (AFDL), had completed their takeover of the entire country. However, once in power, Kabila proved incapable either of handling the multifarious elements in his coalition or tackling the huge problems which faced the country, which was renamed the Democratic Republic of Congo. By the middle of 1998, full-scale fighting had broken out in the northeast of the country between disenchanted former allies and forces loyal to Kabila, who appealed for support from other African countries: Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe came in on Kabila’s side; Uganda and Rwanda against him. As ever, it is the civilian population who have suffered the most. Laurent Kabila was assassinated in 2001 by one of his bodyguards; his son Joseph took over the presidency. There have been a number of attempts by the UN and the South Africans to broker a settlement. The most recent one, signed in April 2003, brought a European-led peace-keeping force into the north-eastern region where much of the fighting has taken place.
A constitutional decree issued in May 1997 placed all executive and legislative powers in the hands of the President of the Republic. A referendum on a new constitution was held in December 2005. If approved, this would pave the way for the country's first democratic election in 2006. It would also limit the power of the President and give more influence to the regions, as well as strengthening the judicial system.

The official language is French. There are many local languages, the most widely spoken being Lingala, Swahili, Tshiluba and Kikongo.

Roman Catholic 50 per cent, Islam 10 per cent, Protestant 20 per cent, indigenous beliefs 10 per cent and Kimbanguist 10 per cet.

220 volts AC, 50Hz.

Casual clothes are widely suitable although scanty beachwear should be confined to the beach or poolside. Photography: A permit is required. Even then, local authorities are likely to be sensitive. Avoid official areas, airports and riverbanks.