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Provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

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Main article: Subdivisions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Article 2 of the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo divides the country into the capital city of Kinshasa and 25 named provinces. It also gives the capital the status of a province.[1] Therefore, in many contexts Kinshasa is regarded as the 26th province.

Provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Provinces de la République démocratique du Congo (French)
  • Also known as:
  • Mikoa ya Jamhuri ya Kidemokrasia ya Kongo (Swahili)
    Bitúká bya Kongó-Kinsásá (Lingala)
Category1st-level administrative division of a unitary state
LocationDemocratic Republic of the Congo
Number26 provinces (1 is a city-province)
Populations1,250,000 (Bas-Uele) – 13,916,000 (Kinshasa)
Areas9,545 km2 (3,685 sq mi) (Kasaï-Oriental) – 199,567 km2 (77,053 sq mi) (Tshopo)
Government
  • Provincial government
Subdivisions

List

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Map Province ISO
3166-2
Code 		Capital Area in km2
(sq mi)[2] 		Population
(2019)[2] 		Population density

(per km2in 2019)

Previous
province 		Time
zone
1 Kinshasa KN – 9,965 (3,848) 13,916,000 1,396.5 Kinshasa UTC+1
2 Kongo Central BC Matadi 53,920 (20,820) 6,365,000 118 Bas-Congo UTC+1
3 Kwango KG Kenge 89,974 (34,739) 2,416,000 26.9 Bandundu UTC+1
4 Kwilu KL Bandundu 78,533 (30,322) 6,169,000 78.6 Bandundu UTC+1
5 Mai-Ndombe MN Inongo 127,243 (49,129) 2,082,000 16.4 Bandundu UTC+1
6 Kasaï KS Tshikapa 95,631 (36,923) 3,165,000 33.1 Kasaï-Occidental UTC+2
7 Kasaï-Central KC Kananga 59,500 (23,000) 3,743,000 62.9 Kasaï-Occidental UTC+2
8 Kasaï-Oriental KE Mbuji-Mayi 9,545 (3,685) 3,601,000 377.3 Kasaï-Oriental UTC+2
9 Lomami LO Kabinda 56,426 (21,786) 2,801,000 49.6 Kasaï-Oriental UTC+2
10 Sankuru SA Lusambo 104,331 (40,282) 2,417,000 23.2 Kasaï-Oriental UTC+2
11 Maniema MA Kindu 132,250 (51,060) 2,654,000 20.1 Maniema UTC+2
12 South Kivu SK Bukavu 64,791 (25,016) 6,565,000 101.3 South Kivu UTC+2
13 North Kivu NK Goma 59,483 (22,967) 7,574,000 127.3 North Kivu UTC+2
14 Ituri IT Bunia 65,658 (25,351) 4,008,000 61 Orientale UTC+2
15 Haut-Uele HU Isiro 89,683 (34,627) 2,046,000 22.8 Orientale UTC+2
16 Tshopo TO Kisangani 199,567 (77,053) 2,582,000 12.9 Orientale UTC+2
17 Bas-Uele BU Buta 148,331 (57,271) 1,250,000 8.4 Orientale UTC+2
18 Nord-Ubangi NU Gbadolite 56,644 (21,870) 1,425,000 25.1 Équateur UTC+1
19 Mongala MO Lisala 58,141 (22,448) 1,950,000 33.5 Équateur UTC+1
20 Sud-Ubangi SU Gemena 51,648 (19,941) 2,755,000 53.3 Équateur UTC+1
21 Équateur EQ Mbandaka 103,902 (40,117) 1,712,000 16.5 Équateur UTC+1
22 Tshuapa TU Boende 132,957 (51,335) 1,789,000 13.5 Équateur UTC+1
23 Tanganyika TA Kalemie 134,940 (52,100) 3,570,000 24.5 Katanga UTC+2
24 Haut-Lomami HL Kamina 108,204 (41,778) 3,444,000 31.8 Katanga UTC+2
25 Lualaba LU Kolwezi 121,308 (46,837) 2,993,000 24.7 Katanga UTC+2
26 Haut-Katanga HK Lubumbashi 132,425 (51,130) 5,378,000 40.6 Katanga UTC+2

History

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When Belgium annexed the Belgian Congo as a colony in November 1908, it was initially organised into 22 districts. Ten western districts were administered directly by the main colonial government, while the eastern part of the colony was administered under two vice-governments: eight northeastern districts formed Orientale Province, and four southeastern districts formed Katanga. In 1919, the colony was organised into four provinces:

In 1932, the colony was reorganised into six provinces. Initially they were named after their capital cities, but in 1947 regional names were adopted.[3]

The Belgian Congo became an independent country in 1960, named Republic of the Congo.[citation needed] Under the first constitution, the Loi Fondementale, six provinces were provided for: Equateur, Kasai, Katanga, Kivu, Leopoldville, and Orientale.[4] The provinces were organized with their own elected assemblies and parliamentary governments responsible to them.[5] Provincial authorities had the power to organise the "political structures of the province within the framework of the general principles contained in the Loi Fondementale", manage provincial police and judicial officials, establish educational systems lower than higher education, tend to agricultural and mining concessions, construct and maintain local railways, roads, and public works, and manage their own finances,[6] though their funding was heavily subsidized by the central government.[7] Social legislation and national minimum wages were to be concurrent powers shared with central authorities. All other duties and responsibilities rested with the central government.[6] As central authority collapsed due to the outbreak of the Congo Crisis following an army mutiny in July, provincial governments were able to leverage the situation to increase their political autonomy.[8]

The disintegration of central authority led to numerous political discussions aimed at reconciliation and territorial reorganization marked by various political leaders arguing for the creation of new provinces from which many of them sought to personally benefit.[9] In August 1962, 16 additional provinces were promulgated.[10] By 1963, the country was organised into 21 provinces (informally called provincettes) plus the capital city of Léopoldville, similar to the original 22 districts under colonial rule.[3] This framework was confirmed in the Luluabourg Constitution, promulgated in 1964.[11]

Following a coup on 24 November 1965, Colonel Joseph Mobutu became president of the country and the constitution was suspended.[12] Measures were instituted to reduce provincial autonomy and increase political centralisation.[13] On 6 April 1966, a presidential decree reduced the number of provinces to 12.[14] On 24 December, Mobutu declared that the number of provinces would be further reduced to eight.[15] Under the constitution of 27 June 1976, provincial assemblies and ministers were eliminated in favor of appointed governors and advisory bodies. The constitution also left the organisation of provinces to be determined by law.[15][16]

In 1971, the country was renamed Zaire, and three provinces were also renamed. In 1975, the capital city of Kinshasa obtained the status of a province. In 1988, the province of Kivu was split into three. In 1997, the country was renamed Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the three provinces that had been renamed in 1971 either retook their previous name or took another.[3]

Article 2 of the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, adopted in 2006, specifies a territorial organisation into 26 provinces,[17] again resembling the previous provincettes and original colonial districts. The reorganisation was scheduled to take effect within three years of the new constitution's promulgation, however progress was slow.[18] In October 2007 the Minister for Decentralisation, Denis Kalume Numbi, presented a bill for decentralisation in the National Assembly. The subsequent debate turned up a variety of issues that first had to be addressed with changes to related laws.[19] In an October 2010 conclave of the ruling AMP coalition, it was proposed to revise Article 226, which calls for the creation of 26 provinces out of the current 11, in order to allow more time for the transition.[20] On 9 January 2015 the National Assembly passed a law on the new administrative divisions of the country, according to which new provinces should be installed in period of 12 months.[21][22]

Maps

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  •  
    Districts of the Belgian Congo in 1914
  •  
    Provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 1997–2015
  •  
    Provinces since 2015 (officially formed in 2006)

Approximate correspondence between historical and current provinces

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Approximate correspondence between historical and current provinces
Belgian Congo First Republic Second Republic (Zaire) Third Republic
1908 1919 1932 1947 1963 1966 1971 1988 1997 2015
22 districts 4 provinces 6 provinces 6 provinces 21 provinces + capital 8 provinces + capital 8 regions + capital 11 regions 11 provinces 26 provinces
Tanganika-Moero Katanga Élisabethville Katanga Nord-Katanga Katanga Shaba Katanga Tanganyika
Haut-Lomami
Lulua Lualaba Lualaba
Haut-Luapula Katanga-Oriental Haut-Katanga
Lomami Lusambo Kasaï Lomami Kasaï-Oriental Lomami
Sankuru Congo-Kasaï Sankuru Sankuru
Kasaï Sud-Kasaï Kasaï-Oriental
Luluabourg Kasaï-Occidental Kasaï-Central
Unité-Kasaïenne Kasaï
Moyen-Congo Léopoldville Léopoldville Kinshasa
Bas-Congo Congo-Central Bas-Zaïre Bas-Congo Kongo Central
Kwango Kwango Bandundu Kwango
Kwilu Kwilu
Lac Léopold II Équateur Mai-Ndombe Mai-Ndombe
Équateur Coquilhatville Équateur Cuvette-Centrale Équateur Équateur
Tshuapa
Lulonga Moyen-Congo Mongala
Bangala
Ubangi Ubangi Nord-Ubangi
Sud-Ubangi
Bas-Uele Orientale Stanleyville Orientale Uele Orientale Haut-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

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Constitution de la Republique Democratique du Congo" [The Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo] (PDF). LEGANET.CD (in French). 20 January 2011. Article 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 February 2019. Retrieved 11 Jan 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Annuaire statistique RDC 2020" [Statistical Yearbook DRC 2020] (PDF) (in French). National Institute of Statistics of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. March 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-12-11. Retrieved 2022-12-11.
  3. ^ a b c d Provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo Archived 2012-02-05 at the Wayback Machine, Statoids, accessed 1 May 2016.
  4. ^ Willame 1972, p. 42.
  5. ^ Leibholz 1966, p. 652.
  6. ^ a b Lemarchand 1964, p. 216.
  7. ^ Leibholz 1966, p. 653.
  8. ^ Leibholz 1966, p. 652–653.
  9. ^ Willame 1972, pp. 36–44.
  10. ^ Willame 1972, p. 45.
  11. ^ Kahombo 2019, p. 189.
  12. ^ Kahombo 2019, p. 190.
  13. ^ Willame 1972, pp. 134–135.
  14. ^ Willame 1972, p. 135.
  15. ^ a b Willame 1972, p. 136.
  16. ^ Kahombo 2019, p. 191.
  17. ^ Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, article 2 Archived 2011-10-25 at the Wayback Machine, Wikisource. (in French)
  18. ^ "Provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (Congo Kinshasa)". Statoids. Archived from the original on 2012-02-05. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
  19. ^ "La décentralisation dans l'impasse". Le Potentiel. 23 October 2007. Archived from the original on 2012-04-06. Retrieved 2011-11-21.
  20. ^ JASON STEARNS (October 12, 2010). "The AMP conclave: Another step towards 2011 elections". Archived from the original on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2011-11-23.
  21. ^ The National Assembly adopts the laws regarding the limits of the provinces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Archived 2015-01-27 at the Wayback Machine, National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 10 January 2015. (in French)
  22. ^ Election of governors: definite results expected on 18 April Archived 2016-03-28 at the Wayback Machine, Radio Okapi, 27 March 2016. (in French)

Bibliography

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