A woman in front of a mural at the railway station of Kinshasa, the capital of the DR Congo.

    Historical background Colonial rule, dictatorship, civil war

    In 1885, the territory of what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo was declared the private property of the Belgian king, Leopold II, and in 1908 it then became a colony of the Belgian state. The colonial era was accompanied by reckless exploitation of people and nature. Millions of people lost their lives through slavery and forced labour, disease and famine.

    The colonial power did engage in developing infrastructure, for instance road networks and the health system. However, local people were denied access to education and the administrative system, and they were unable to benefit from the revenues derived from the country’s abundant natural resources. With protests against its authoritarian colonial policy growing, Belgium withdrew in the late 1950s, granting independence to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1960. At this time, the country had neither a functioning political system nor the expert staff and leaders it would have needed for a capable administration.

    In 1965, Joseph Mobutu took power over the country, which he renamed Zaire. His particularly corrupt regime lasted for 32 years.

    State and economy

    In 1994, the ethnic conflict raging between Hutus and Tutsis in neighbouring Rwanda and Burundi spilled over into Zaire. Civil war broke out – a war in which Uganda, Angola, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Chad all had a hand (which is why it is also referred to as “Africa’s World War”).

    Mobuto was deposed in 1997, and rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila became the new president. The country reverted back to its former name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. After the assassination of his father Laurent-Désiré Kabila, Joseph Kabila took over as president in 2001. He was officially confirmed in office in 2006.

    In 2003, a peace agreement was adopted by the warring factions, among them the Government of the DR Congo, the rebel movement RCD (Rassemblement Congolais pour la Démocratie) and the MLC (Mouvement de Libération du Congo). By this point, the country’s economy and government institutions were in a desolate state, and its infrastructure was largely in ruins. The war is estimated to have claimed more than five million lives.

    As at: 26/11/2025