Congo, Rep.*

Overview

Congo, Rep.*

The Republic of the Congo lies in Central Africa, with a 170-km coastline on the Atlantic Ocean. It covers about 342,000 km², has about 6.5 million people, and borders Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Angolan exclave of Cabinda. Its landscape ranges from coastal plains and the Mayombe Mountains in the southwest to the Niari Valley, central plateaus, and extensive tropical forests and swamps in the north. Forests cover about 64% of the land, and the country contains one of the world's largest areas of tropical peatland. More than half of the population lives in its two largest cities, Brazzaville, the capital, and Pointe-Noire. The country was a French colony until it gained independence in 1960. It has a semi-presidential system led by Denis Sassou Nguesso, who served as president from 1979 to 1992 and has held office again since 1997. He was re-elected in March 2026. French is the official language, and Christianity is the predominant religion.

The Republic of the Congo is a lower-middle-income country whose economy depends heavily on oil, which accounts for about half of GDP and 80% of exports. Public debt stood at 97.4% of GDP in 2025, and about half of the population lives below the poverty line of US$3.00 a day. Agriculture employs about 36% of the workforce. In 2025, the country’s GDP per capita was approximately US$2,515, and real GDP grew by 3.1%.

Source: World Bank. (2026). World Development Indicators, from https://data.worldbank.org/country/congo-rep