Country Information
| Official Name: | Democratic Republic of Congo |
| Capital: | Kinshasa |
| Area: | 2,344,858 km² |
| Languages: | French |
| Independence: | 1960-06-30 |
| Leader: | Félix Tshisekedi |
About Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo is located in the equatorial heart of the continent, dominated by the Congo Basin rainforest and the river system that drains it. Its capital is Kinshasa, and it covers roughly 2,344,858 square kilometres. The population of about 105.0 million makes it one of 9 countries that make up Central Africa. Democratic Republic of Congo is the most populous country in Central Africa, and ranks in the region's top three by reported GDP. The country marks its modern statehood from 1960.
Central Africa contains the second-largest tropical rainforest on Earth and substantial mineral and hydrocarbon reserves. French is the most widely-used official language across the region, alongside Portuguese and Spanish in specific countries, and the Central African CFA franc is shared by most of the bloc. Economies are heavily resource-dependent, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo as by far the most populous member. Within that setting, The working official language is french, and the legal-tender currency is the Congolese Franc (CDF) (see Africa's currency arrangements).
The figures above are sourced from World Bank, IMF, UN agency and national statistics-office releases. Reported nominal GDP for Democratic Republic of Congo is about US$69 billion. Population growth is currently estimated at about 3.1% per year, which influences how quickly the labour force, school cohorts and urban demand shift over a decade. The longer-form note on what growth rate hides is on reading African demographic data. At an urbanisation rate of about 47%, Democratic Republic of Congo is transitioning toward an urban majority. Life expectancy at birth is reported at 61.6 years, and the adult literacy rate at about 77% — figures that summarise decades of investment in health systems and basic education.
How to read these figures
Country indicators on Africa Center are point-in-time estimates that are revised when new census or survey data is published. GDP is reported here as nominal US dollars at current exchange rates, which is the format most widely used by international institutions for cross-country comparison; for the difference between this and the purchasing-power-parity variant, and why GDP rankings reorder between releases, see reading African economic data. Per-capita figures divide GDP by population and are most useful when read alongside the absolute total. Definitions for every indicator are in the glossary; the rules we follow when sources disagree are written up in the methodology.
For the full regional context — neighbouring economies, shared languages, regional organisations — see the Central Africa overview. To compare Democratic Republic of Congo with other countries on the continent, browse the full country directory or open the interactive map.
Last reviewed: 28 April 2026. Figures are revised when underlying source organisations publish new releases.