Capital: Kinshasa

Ethnic Makeup: 250 ethnic groups, speaking 700 languages.

Standard of Living: One of the lowest living standards in the world.

Life Expectancy: 48

Industry: mining (diamonds, copper, zinc), mineral processing, consumer products.

Agriculture: coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber; wood products.

Exports: diamonds, copper, crude oil, coffee, cobalt.

• The Democratic Republic of the Congo is the third largest country in Africa, with a population of 56,625,000 people.
• Just to give you an idea of how large the country is, it is half the size of the United States.
• Home of the Congo River, which flows North and then South through a land rich in minerals, fertile farmlands and rain forests.
• The country has a small portion of the western coast of Africa, just large enough to accommodate the mouth of the Congo River.
• On the map to the left, the equator is identified and is a defining feature of the climate of the country.
• The average year around temperature of the Congo Basin is 90 degrees and humid. Unlike Oregon, the people living in the basin do not experience a change of season.