the
Hutus and the Tutsis in Rwanda and Burundi; the outbreak of widespread
fighting between rebels and government forces in October 1996 spurred
about 875,000 refugees to return to Rwanda in late 1996 and early
1997; additionally, Democratic Republic of the Congo is host to about
200,000 Angolan, about 110,000 Burundi, about 100,000 Sudanese, about
15,000 Ugandan, and about 18,000 Republic of the Congo refugees

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female (1998 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 101.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1998 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 49.31 years
male: 47.27 years
female: 51.4 years (1998 est.)

Total fertility rate: 6.51 children born/woman (1998 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Congolese or Congo

Ethnic groups: over 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

Religions: Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim
10%, other syncretic sects and traditional beliefs 10%

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

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write in French, Lingala,
Kingwana, or Tshiluba
total population: 77.3%
male: 86.6%
female: 67.7% (1995 est.)

@Congo, Democratic Republic of the:Government

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: Belgian Congo, Congo/Leopoldville, Congo/Kinshasa, Zaire

Data code: CG

Government type: dictatorship; presumably undergoing a transition to
representative government

National capital: Kinshasa

Administrative divisions: 10 provinces (provinces, singular-province)
and one city* (ville); Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Equateur,
Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Katanga, Kinshasa*, Maniema,
Nord-Kivu, Orientale, Sud-Kivu

Independence: 30 June 1960 (from Belgium)

National holiday: anniversary of independence from Belgium, 30 June
(1960)

Constitution: 24 June 1967, amended August 1974, revised 15 February
1978, amended April 1990; transitional constitution promulgated in
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