Congo Democratic Republic of the People - 2022
SOURCE: 2022 CIA WORLD FACTBOOK
Population
108,407,721 (2022 est.)
Nationality
noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Congolese or Congo
Ethnic groups
more than 200 African ethnic groups of which the majority are Bantu; the four largest tribes - Mongo, Luba, Kongo (all Bantu), and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) - make up about 45% of the population
Languages
French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba
major-language sample(s):
Buku oyo ya bosembo ya Mokili Mobimba Ezali na Makanisi ya Liboso Mpenza. (Lingala)
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Religions
Roman Catholic 29.9%, Protestant 26.7%, other Christian 36.5%, Kimbanguist 2.8%, Muslim 1.3%, other (includes syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs) 1.2%, none 1.3%, unspecified 0.2% (2014 est.)
Demographic profile
Despite a wealth of fertile soil, hydroelectric power potential, and mineral resources, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) struggles with many socioeconomic problems, including high infant and maternal mortality rates, malnutrition, poor vaccination coverage, lack of access to improved water sources and sanitation, and frequent and early fertility. Ongoing conflict, mismanagement of resources, and a lack of investment have resulted in food insecurity; almost 30% of children under the age of 5 are malnourished. The overall coverage of basic public services – education, health, sanitation, and potable water – is very limited and piecemeal, with substantial regional and rural/urban disparities. Fertility remains high at more than 5 children per woman and is likely to remain high because of the low use of contraception and the cultural preference for larger families.
The DRC is a source and host country for refugees. Between 2012 and 2014, more than 119,000 Congolese refugees returned from the Republic of Congo to the relative stability of northwest DRC, but more than 850,000 Congolese refugees and asylum seekers were hosted by neighboring countries as of December 2021. In addition, an estimated 5.5 million Congolese were internally displaced as of July 2022, the vast majority fleeing violence between rebel group and Congolese armed forces. Thousands of refugees have come to the DRC from neighboring countries, including Rwanda, the Central African Republic, South Sudan, and Burundi.
Age structure
0-14 years: 46.38% (male 23,757,297/female 23,449,057)
15-24 years: 19.42% (male 9,908,686/female 9,856,841)
25-54 years: 28.38% (male 14,459,453/female 14,422,912)
55-64 years: 3.36% (male 1,647,267/female 1,769,429)
65 years and over: 2.47% (male 1,085,539/female 1,423,782) (2020 est.)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio: 98
youth dependency ratio: 92.1
elderly dependency ratio: 5.9
potential support ratio: 17.1 (2021 est.)
Median age
total: 16.7 years
male: 16.5 years
female: 16.8 years (2020 est.)
Population growth rate
3.14% (2022 est.)
Birth rate
40.08 births/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Death rate
7.94 deaths/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Population distribution
urban clusters are spread throughout the country, particularly in the northeast along the border with Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi; the largest city is the capital, Kinshasha, located in the west along the Congo River; the south is least densely populated as shown in this population distribution map
Urbanization
urban population: 47.4% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 4.33% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas - population
15.628 million KINSHASA (capital), 2.765 million Mbuji-Mayi, 2.695 million Lubumbashi, 1.593 million Kananga, 1.366 million Kisangani, 1.190 million Bukavu (2022)
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2022 est.)
Mother's mean age at first birth
19.9 years (2013/14 est.)
note: data represents median age at first birth among women 20-49
Maternal mortality ratio
473 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)
Infant mortality rate
total: 60.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 66.49 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 55.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2022 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 61.83 years
male: 60.03 years
female: 63.69 years (2022 est.)
Total fertility rate
5.63 children born/woman (2022 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate
28.1% (2017/18)
Drinking water source
improved: urban: 88.8% of population
rural: 34.7% of population
total: 59.4% of population
unimproved: urban: 11.2% of population
rural: 65.3% of population
total: 40.6% of population (2020 est.)
Current health expenditure
3.5% of GDP (2019)
Physicians density
0.38 physicians/1,000 population (2018)
Sanitation facility access
improved: urban: 53.4% of population
rural: 20.5% of population
total: 35.5% of population
unimproved: urban: 46.6% of population
rural: 79.5% of population
total: 64.5% of population (2020 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate
0.7% (2021 est.)
Major infectious diseases
degree of risk: very high (2020)
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, and trypanosomiasis-gambiense (African sleeping sickness)
water contact diseases: schistosomiasis
animal contact diseases: rabies
note: on 21 March 2022, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a Travel Alert for polio in Africa; the Democratic Republic of the Congo is currently considered a high risk to travelers for circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPV); vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV) is a strain of the weakened poliovirus that was initially included in oral polio vaccine (OPV) and that has changed over time and behaves more like the wild or naturally occurring virus; this means it can be spread more easily to people who are unvaccinated against polio and who come in contact with the stool or respiratory secretions, such as from a sneeze, of an “infected” person who received oral polio vaccine; the CDC recommends that before any international travel, anyone unvaccinated, incompletely vaccinated, or with an unknown polio vaccination status should complete the routine polio vaccine series; before travel to any high-risk destination, the CDC recommends that adults who previously completed the full, routine polio vaccine series receive a single, lifetime booster dose of polio vaccine
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
6.7% (2016)
Alcohol consumption per capita
total: 0.56 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
beer: 0.5 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 0.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 0.05 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Tobacco use
total: 12.8% (2020 est.)
male: 22.7% (2020 est.)
female: 2.9% (2020 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
23.1% (2017/18)
Child marriage
women married by age 15: 0%
women married by age 18: 0.1%
men married by age 18: 0% (2017 est.)
Education expenditures
2.7% of GDP (2021 est.)
Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write French, Lingala, Kingwana, or Tshiluba
total population: 77%
male: 88.5%
female: 66.5% (2016)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)
total: 11 years
male: 10 years
female: 9 years (2013)
Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)
total: 8.7%
male: 11.3%
female: 6.8% (2012 est.)
NOTE: The information regarding Congo Democratic Republic of the on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Congo Democratic Republic of the 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Congo Democratic Republic of the 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
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