Republic of the Congo
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - 5/2014
The Republic of the Congo (French: République du Congo), sometimes referred to as Congo Republic or Congo-Brazzaville, is a country located in Central Africa.
It is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Angolan exclave of Cabinda.
The region was dominated by Bantu-speaking tribes, who built trade links leading into the Congo River basin.
Congo-Brazzaville was formerly part of the French colony of Equatorial Africa.
Upon independence in 1960, the former colony of French Congo became the Republic of the Congo.
The People's Republic of the Congo was a Marxist-Leninist single-party state from 1970 to 1991.
Multi-party elections have been held since 1992, although a democratically elected government was ousted in the 1997 Republic of the Congo Civil War.
Republic of the Congo - République du Congo
Motto: "Unité, Travail, Progrès" - "Unity, Work, Progress"
Anthem: La Congolaise - The Congolese
Capital and largest city: Brazzaville (4°16′S 15°17′E)
Official languages: French
Recognised regional languages:
• Kongo
• Lingala
Ethnic groups:
• 48% Kongo
• 20% Sangha
• 17% Teke
• 12% M'Bochi
• 3% Europeans / others
Demonym: Congolese
Government: Dominant-party presidential republic
• President: Denis Sassou Nguesso
Legislature: Parliament
• Upper house: Senate
• Lower house: National Assembly
Independence from France: August 15, 1960
Area:
• Total: 342,000 km2 (64th) - 132,047 sq mi
• Water (%): 3.3
Population: 2014 estimate 4,662,446 (125th)
Density: 12.8/km2 (204th) - 33.1/sq mi
GDP (PPP): 2014 estimate
• Total: $21.992 billion
• Per capita: $5,145
Currency: Central African CFA franc (XAF)
Time zone: WAT (UTC+1)
Drives on the right
Calling code: +242
ISO 3166 code: CG
Internet TLD: .cg