North Kivu

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North Kivu
Province du Nord-Kivu (French)
Mkoa wa Kivu Kaskazini (Swahili)
Province
Rwenzori mountains FP.jpg
View of the Rwenzori Mountains
Emblem of North Kivu Province.png
Seal
Democratic Republic of the Congo (26 provinces) - Nord-Kivu.svg
Coordinates: 0°34′S28°42′E / 0.567°S 28.700°E / -0.567; 28.700
CountryFlag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg  Democratic Republic of the Congo
Named for Lake Kivu
Capital
and largest city		 Goma
Government
 • Governor Peter Cirimwami (military) [1]
Area
 • Total59,483 km2 (22,967 sq mi)
 • Rank18th
Population
 (2020)
 • Total8,147,400
 • Rank2nd
 • Density140/km2 (350/sq mi)
Demonym North Kivutian
License Plate Code Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg CGO / 19
Official languageFrench
National language Swahili
HDI (2017)0.440 [2]
low
Website www.provincenordkivu.cd OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

North Kivu (Jimbo la Kivu Kaskazini in Swahili) is a province bordering Lake Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. [3] Its capital is Goma. The 2020 population was estimated to be 8,147,400. [4]

Contents

North Kivu borders the provinces of Ituri to the north, Tshopo to the northwest, Maniema to the southwest, and South Kivu to the south. To the east, it borders Uganda and Rwanda.

The province consists of three cities—Goma, Butembo and Beni—and six territories—Beni, Lubero, Masisi, Rutshuru, Nyiragongo and Walikale. The Rwenzori Mountains, which form part of the Albertine Rift, are located on the province's eastern edge, serving as a vital source of freshwater and sustaining a plethora of flora and fauna. [5] [6] A project has been underway since 2013 to grant city status to Kasindi, Oïcha and Luholu. The province is home to the Virunga National Park, a World Heritage Site containing the endangered mountain gorillas.

The province is politically unstable and has been one of the flashpoints of military conflict in the region since 1998.

From 2018 to 2020, North Kivu was the site of an Ebola epidemic, which was compounded by political instability in the region.

History

The frontiers of the Congo Free State were defined by the Neutrality Act during the 1885 Berlin Conference, in which the European powers staked out their territorial claims in Africa. The Congo Free State's northeastern boundary was defined in 1885 as "a straight line coming from the northern end of Lake Tanganyika and ending at a point located on the 30th east meridian and at 1° 20' south latitude; further north, the border is formed by the 30th meridian east." On this basis, all of Lake Kivu and both banks of the Ruzizi River were in the Free State. [7]

In June 1909, John Methuen Coote started the Kivu frontier incident when he travelled southwest from the British Uganda Protectorate and established fortified camps at Burungu and Rubona on Lake Kivu. [7] British troops under Coote withdrew from the Rubona post on 29 June 1909, and the Belgians occupied the post. [8] After a series of incidents, the boundaries of the Congo, Uganda and Rwanda were settled in May 1910, with the eastern part of Kivu assigned to Uganda and the German colony of Rwanda. [9]

Kivu District was created by an arrêté royal of 28 March 1912, which divided the Congo into 22 districts. [10] By 1954, Kivu District had been split into Sud-Kivu District and Nord-Kivu District.

The region was the scene of much fighting during the Second Congo War (1998–2003) and the Kivu conflict (2004–present).

On August 19, 2003, DRC government decree 019/2003 offered Laurent Nkunda the rank of Brigadier General and command of the new Congo Government's FARDC Eighth Military Region, covering North Kivu. He declined. On May 26, 2004, General Obed Wibasira (RCD-Goma) was named to the position. But Wibasira was suspected of complicity with the soldiers in Goma who had triggered a mutiny in Bukavu in February 2004, and on January 23, 2005, he was switched with Gabriel Amisi Kumba, at the time commander of the Fifth Military Region in Kasaï-Oriental. [11] Kumba was named as a Brigadier General when taking up the post. General Louis Ngizo, a former commander of the Rally for Congolese Democracy, was appointed a commander in November 2006. Brigadier General Vainqueur Mayala was transferred from command of the Ituri operational zone, promoted to Major General, and appointed military region commander in May 2007.[ citation needed ] Ngizo left Goma on May 13, 2007, his next posting not being known at the time. During late 2008, the FARDC maintained its dismal record in combat against Nkunda's CNDP faction, losing the Rumangabo military camp to the rebels.

The dissident Mai-Mai 85th Brigade, commanded by Colonel Samy Matumo, controlled the cassiterite mine at Bisie, just north of Manoire in Walikale, in southeastern North Kivu. [12] The former RCD-K/ML also has fighters in the province; 'at the beginning of the transition [2002-3] the RCD-Mouvement de Libération president declared he had 8-10,000 Armée Patriotic Congolaise (APC) troops in the Beni-Lubero area of North Kivu.' This exaggerated figure seems to have been reduced to 'several thousand' (2-4,000?) as of early 2006, following demobilizations and men joining the integrated brigades. [13]

The Effacer le tableau and Beni massacre occurred in the province.

Approximate correspondence between historical and current province

Approximate correspondence between historical and current province
Belgian CongoRepublic of the CongoZaireDemocratic Republic of the Congo
1908191919321947196319661971198819972015
22 districts4 provinces6 provinces6 provinces21 provinces + capital8 provinces + capital8 provinces + capital11 provinces11 provinces26 provinces
Bas-Uele Orientale Stanleyville Province OrientaleUeleOrientaleHaut-Zaïre Orientale Bas-Uele
Haut-Uele Haut-Uele
Ituri Kibali-Ituri Ituri
Stanleyville Haut-Congo Tshopo
Aruwimi
Maniema Costermansville Kivu Maniema Kivu Maniema
Lowa
Kivu Nord-Kivu Nord-Kivu
Kivu-Central Sud-Kivu

Geography

North Kivu borders Lake Edward to its east with Uganda and Lake Kivu to its southeast with Rwanda. The Virunga Mountains extends through the province. The mountain range is the site of the volcanoes Mount Nyiragongo and Nyamuragira, where approximately 40% of Africa's volcanic activity takes place, and Virunga National Park, which hosts mountain gorillas, an endangered species.

Human rights issues

A UN Mi-24 flight reconnaissance in North Kivu. MONUSCO Ml-24 flight reconnaissance in North Kivu.jpg
A UN Mi-24 flight reconnaissance in North Kivu.

In October 2007, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) warned of an increasing number of internally displaced people (IDP) in North Kivu related to the fighting there between the government army, the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) rebels and renegade troops, including Laurent Nkunda's forces, and a buildup of military supplies and forces, including recruitment of child soldiers by armed groups across North Kivu. The UNHCR thought that there were over 370,000 people in North Kivu displaced since December 2006, and is expanding its camps in the Mugunga area, where over 80,000 IDPs were estimated. [14] The brief capture of Goma by M23 rebels caused "tens of thousands" of refugees. The town of Sake was abandoned. [15]

Localities

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mai-Mai</span> Militia groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goma</span> Provincial capital and city in North Kivu, DR Congo

Goma is the capital and largest city of the North Kivu Province in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. It shares its borders with Bukumu Chiefdom to the north, Rwanda to the east, Masisi Territory to the west, and is flanked by Lake Kivu to the south. The city lies in the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift System, and is only 13–18 km (8.1–11.2 mi) south of the active Nyiragongo Volcano. With an approximate area of 75.72 square kilometers, the city has an estimated population of nearly 2 million people according to the 2022 census, while the 1984 estimate placed the number at 80,000.

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Masisi Territory is a territory which is located within the North Kivu Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its political headquarters are located in the town of Masisi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kivu conflict</span> Conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Kivu conflict is an umbrella term for a series of protracted armed conflicts in the North Kivu and South Kivu provinces in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo which have occurred since the end of the Second Congo War. Including neighboring Ituri province, there are more than 120 different armed groups active in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Currently, some of the most active rebel groups include the Allied Democratic Forces, the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo, the March 23 Movement, and many local Mai Mai militias. In addition to rebel groups and the governmental FARDC troops, a number of national and international organizations have intervened militarily in the conflict, including the United Nations force known as MONUSCO, and an East African Community regional force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walikale Territory</span> Territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Walikale Territory is a territory located within the Congolese province of North Kivu, in the eastern regions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The headquarters are in the town of Walikale. The locality is situated between Bukavu and Lubutu on DR Congo National Road No. 3 in the valley of the river Lowa, 135 km to the west of Goma.

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Kanyabayonga is one of the groupements (groupings) within the Bwito Chiefdom in the Rutshuru Territory of North Kivu Province in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The region has suffered from continued violence between the army and rival militias since 1993.

The Congolese Rally for Democracy–Goma was a faction of the Congolese Rally for Democracy, a rebel movement based in Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) during the Second Congo War (1998–2003). After the war, some members of the group continued sporadic fighting in North Kivu. The movement also entered mainstream politics, participating in democratic elections with little success.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rutshuru Territory</span> Place in North Kivu, DR Congo

Rutshuru Territory is a territory in the North Kivu province of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with headquarters is the town of Rutshuru.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bunagana, Democratic Republic of the Congo</span> Place in North Kivu, DR Congo

Bunagana is a small town in Rutshuru Territory, North Kivu Province, in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, at the border with Uganda. It served as the headquarters of the March 23 Movement (M23) rebel militia in 2013 and has been occupied by M23 since 13 June 2022.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kivu frontier incident</span>

The Kivu frontier incident was a 1909–1910 stand-off between Belgian, British and German forces in the region around Lake Kivu, now divided between the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Rwanda. War was averted through diplomatic negotiations, and it was agreed that the western and northwestern part of the region came within the jurisdiction of the Belgian Congo, while the eastern part was divided between the British Uganda Protectorate to the northeast and the Rwanda district of German East Africa to the southeast.

Yusufu Eric Mboneza, more commonly called Yusuf Mboneza, is or was a Congolese military officer and rebel. During his career he served in the Rally for Congolese Democracy, the National Congress for the Defence of the People, the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and finally the March 23 Movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bwito Chiefdom</span> Chiefdom in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Bwito Chiefdom is a chiefdom located in the Rutshuru Territory of North Kivu Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is bordered to the north by Batangi Chiefdom in Lubero Territory, Bwisha Chiefdom in the east, and to the north-east by Lake Edward and the Republic of Uganda. To the west, it is bordered by Bashali-Mokoto Chiefdom in Masisi Territory, and to the northwest by Wanyanga Chiefdom in Walikale Territory. To the south, it is bordered by Nyiragongo Territory.

References

  1. ↑ "RDC: un nouveau gouverneur militaire intérimaire au Nord-Kivu". RFI. September 20, 2023. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  3. ↑ Central Intelligence Agency (2014). "Democratic Republic of the Congo". The World Factbook. Langley, Virginia: Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Congo (Dem. Rep.): Provinces, Major Cities & Towns - Population Statistics, Maps, Charts, Weather and Web Information". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  5. ↑ Travel, Love; Trekking, Gorilla (October 23, 2020). "Gorilla Trekking". Gorilla Trekking Tours Uganda. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  6. ↑ Kaufmann, Georg; Hinderer, Matthias; Romanov, Douchko (2016). "Shaping the Rwenzoris: balancing uplift, erosion, and glaciation" (PDF). Berlin/Heidelberg, Germany: Springer. p. 1762. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
  7. 1 2 Lederer 1993, p. 2.
  8. ↑ Rutanga 2011, p. 70.
  9. ↑ Rutanga 2011, p. 89.
  10. ↑ Lemarchand 1964, p. 63.
  11. ↑ Jean Omasombo (ed.), RDC: Biographies des Acteurs de la Troisième République, Africa Museum, Bruxelles, 24-25.
  12. ↑ Polgreen, Lydia (November 16, 2008). "Congo's Riches, Looted by Renegade Troops". The New York Times. Retrieved April 9, 2010.
  13. ↑ International Crisis Group, Security Sector Reform in the Congo, Africa Report N°104, February 13, 2006, p.14
  14. ↑ "DR Congo: UN agency concerned at military buildup in North Kivu". UN News Service. October 5, 2007. Retrieved October 6, 2007.
  15. ↑ Gordts, Eline (November 23, 2012). "PHOTOS: Tens Of Thousands Of Civilians Flee Goma". Huffington Post.

Sources

Further reading

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