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Media in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are both nationally and internationally state owned and operated.
While the constitution provides for freedom of speech and the press, the government has restricted this right in practise. Arrests, murders and other harassment of journalists is frequently reported.
In 2009, the freedom of the press global ranking released each year by Reporters Without Borders ranked the Democratic Republic of the Congo at 146 out of 175 countries. [1] [2]
There are several organizations monitoring freedom of the press in the Democratic Republic of the Congo:
Many journalists in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are subjected to the practise of coupage (in English: cutting), where journalists are paid to write articles on behalf of persons who are the article's actual subject. [3] [4] Press independence remains stifled. There are two significant impacts from this practise:
Major newspapers are only nominally privately owned. Journalists must be members of the state-controlled union to practise their profession. The press today is firmly under MPR control. The largest dailies were Elima, Courrier d’Afrique, and Salongo (fr) (10,000).
The majority of print press publications are in French, an official language of the country. Despite their ambitions of national news coverage, it is difficult for these publications to attain broad coverage, both due to challenges in gathering information, and in physically distributing the publications. Many journalists are therefore tied to a city or a region, essentially Kinshasa.
Several daily newspapers are published, of which the majority have a pro-government bias. Some newspapers are published irregularly.
| Name | Circulation |
|---|---|
| Alerte Plus | ? |
| L'Avenir (RDC) | 3,000 |
| Demain le Congo | ? |
| Elima (RDC) [5] | 1,000 |
| L'Éveil (RDC) | 1,000 |
| Forum des As | ? |
| Le Messager Africain | ? |
| L'Observateur | ? |
| Le Palmarès (RDC) | 1,000 |
| Le Phare (RDC) [5] | 2,500 |
| Le Potentiel [5] | 2,500 |
| La Prospérité | ? |
| La Référence Plus (RDC) | 5,000 |
| La République (Congo-Kinshasa) | ? |
| Le Soft international | ? |
| La Tempête des tropiques | ? |
| UHURU | 550 |
| Journal Congopress | ? |
| Name | Circulation |
|---|---|
| La Cité africaine (RDC) | 1,000 |
| La Manchette | ? |
| Le Climat Tempéré (RDC) | 1,200 |
| Le Révélateur | 1,000 |
| Salongo | 1,000 |
| Journal Congopress | 1,000 |
| Name | Circulation |
|---|---|
| L’Alerte | ? |
| Le Collimateur | ? |
| La Conscience | ? |
| L'Éveil (RDC) | ? |
| La Flamme du Congo | ? |
| La Libre Afrique | ? |
| Kin Telegraph | ? |
| Mukuba | ? |
| Le Peuple | ? |
| Umoja | ? |
The postal, telephone, and telegraph services are owned and operated by the government. In 2002 there were an estimated 10,000 mainline phones in use nationwide. In 2003 there were an estimated 19 cell phones in use for every 1,000 people. State-controlled radio and television transmissions, operated under Radio-Television Nationale Congolaise (RTNC), are the prominent broadcasting stations, reaching the largest number of citizens. The RTNC radio broadcast of La Voix du Congo, is available in French, Swahili, Lingala, Tshiluba, and Kikongo. There are also many privately run broadcasting stations. In 2001, there were 3 AM and 11 FM radio stations and 4 television stations. In 2003, there were an estimated 385 radios and 2 television sets for every 1,000 people.
Since 1990 many television stations have been broadcasting in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In 2006, 58 television channels were available. Of these, 38 are in Kinshasa. [6]
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has many radio stations, the majority of which are based in Kinshasa. The transitional Constitution installed an entity called Haute autorité des Medias (HAM), which oversees media activity, including radio broadcasting.
It is estimated that 60% of broadcasts are in the four national languages: (Kikongo, Lingala, Swahili, Tshiluba). The rest are in French and, rarely, in English. [7]
Telecommunications in the Democratic Republic of the Congo include radio, television, fixed and mobile telephones, and the Internet.
Ground transport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has always been difficult. The terrain and climate of the Congo Basin present serious barriers to road and rail construction, and the distances are enormous across this vast country. Furthermore, chronic economic mismanagement and internal conflict has led to serious under-investment over many years.
Matadi is the chief sea port of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the capital of the Kongo Central province, adjacent to the border with Angola. It has a population of 245,862 (2004). Matadi is situated on the left bank of the Congo River, 148 km (92 mi) from the mouth and 8 km (5.0 mi) below the last navigable point before the rapids that make the river impassable for a long stretch upriver. It was founded by Sir Henry Morton Stanley in 1879.
The Pool Malebo, formerly Stanley Pool, also known as Lake Nkunda by local indigenous people in pre-colonial times, is a lake-like widening in the lower reaches of the Congo River. The former name Stanley Pool was named after early European explorer and journalist Henry Morton Stanley.
Mbanza-Ngungu, formerly known as Thysville or Thysstad, named after Albert Thys, is a city and territory in Kongo Central Province in the western part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, lying on a short branch off the Matadi-Kinshasa Railway. It has a population of nearly 100,000 people.
The Matadi–Kinshasa Railway is a railway line in Kongo Central province between the port of Matadi and Kinshasa, the capital of Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Articles related to the Democratic Republic of the Congo include:
Rail transport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is provided by the National Railway Company of the Congo, the ONATRA and the Office of the Uele Railways.
The National Assembly is the lower house and main legislative political body of the Parliament of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was established by the 2006 constitution.
Bundu dia Kongo, known as BDK, is a new religious movement with a political and cultural agenda that is associated with the Kongo ethnic group. It was founded in June 1969 by Ne Muanda Nsemi, who is the group's current leader, and is mainly based in the Kongo Central (Bas-Congo) province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The movement supports Kongo nationalism and the creation of an ethnically-Kongo state that would encompass parts of the modern-day Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, and the Republic of the Congo.
For the equivalent tournament in the Republic of the Congo, see Coupe du Congo.
The Archdiocese of Kinshasa is an archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its ecclesiastic territory includes the capital city of Kinshasa and surrounding districts. The archdiocese is the metropolitan see for the Ecclesiastical Province of Kinshasa. The current archbishop is Fridolin Ambongo Besungu.
Radio Okapi is a radio network that operates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. On an annual budget of USD$4.5 million, a staff of 200 provide news and information to the entire urban population of the DRC. Radio Okapi provides programming in French and in the four national languages of Congo: Lingala, Kituba, Swahili and Tshiluba,
The Republican Guard of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly known as the Special Presidential Security Group, is maintained by President Félix Tshisekedi. Military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) military officials state that the Garde Républicaine is not the responsibility of FARDC, but the Head of State. Apart from Article 140 of the Law on the Army and Defence, no legal stipulation on the DRC's Armed Forces makes provision for the GR as a distinct unit within the national army. In February 2005, President Joseph Kabila passed a decree which appointed the GR's commanding officer and 'repealed any previous provisions contrary' to that decree. The GR is more than 10,000 strong, and formerly consisted of three brigades, the 10th, at Kinshasa, the 15th, and the 16th, at Lubumbashi. It has better working conditions and is paid regularly, but still commits numerous crimes near their bases, including against United Nations officials.
Trust Merchant Bank or TMB, is a commercial bank based in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with its headquarters located in Lubumbashi. The bank began operations in 2004. TMB operates in all sectors of the local banking market, including in retail banking, SME banking, corporate banking, and mobile banking.
Kinzau-Mvuete is a town in the Kongo Central province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, about 70 kilometres (43 mi) north of Matadi. It had an estimated population of 18,676 as of 2012.
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