According to COUNTRYAAH, Republic of the Congo is a Central African state (342,000 km²). Capital: Brazzaville. Administrative division: departments (10), municipalities (6). Population: 3,733,548 (2008 estimate). Language: French (official), Kikongo, Kituba, Lingala. Religion: Catholics 41%, Animists / Traditional Beliefs 32.8%, Protestants 24.4%, Muslims 1.8%. Monetary unit: CFA franc (100 cents). Human Development Index: 0.619 (130th place). Borders: Cameroon and Central African Republic (N), Democratic Republic of Congo (E and S), Angola and Atlantic Ocean (SW), Gabon (W). Member of: UN, AU and WTO, EU associate.
Population
Originally the territory of today’s Republic of Congo was inhabited by pygmies, nomadic hunters and gatherers who have always lived in the forests, and of which a few thousand individuals survive, constituting only 1.5% of the population. In fact, almost all of it is made up of Bantu, which are divided into groups and subgroups (bakongo, the most numerous, 51.5%; bateke 17.3%; mboshi 11.5%; mbeti 4.9%; punu 3%; sango 2.7%; maka 1, 8%; others 5.8%). A predominantly forested country, Congo is overall sparsely inhabited, with a density of just 11 residents / km². The scarce population was however one of the characteristic aspects of the area; in 1910 the population did not exceed 400,000 residents. In the first complete census (1951), having counted all the tribes present in the territory, there were 759,000 individuals. The constant increase that has taken place since the 1950s is due both to the high birth rate and to the decrease in the infant mortality rate. Over a third of the population lives in the countryside, in villages where a few hundred people live. Brazzaville, which hosts about a third of the population, has a strong demographic attraction, being the main administrative and commercial center of the country and hosting some of the major industrial activities. It is also an active river port on the main inland waterway that connects it to the country’s only major maritime outlet, Pointe-Noire.. Brazzaville saw its importance grow as an obligatory crossing point for goods from surrounding areas when the 500 km long Congo-Océan railway line was opened in 1934. The cities reflect in their structure their own French colonial past: a central nucleus with administrative and commercial functions, and around the residential areas. Before independence, the differences between the European and African neighborhoods were quite marked: the former were in fact characterized by a marked modernization, and the latter by a rapid but very little controlled expansion.
Environment
The rainforest, rich in precious essences, covers a large part of the territory, specifically the NW plain, the Mayombe chain and the wettest areas of the inner plateaus. It is a forest rich in precious wood such as okoumé, mahogany, ebony, African cedar, kapok and various species of palm trees. In the least rainy areas (highlands and NE regions) grassy and wooded savannah prevails, interrupted along the watercourses by the tunnel forest. In the flood-prone areas of Congo and Oubangui, the vegetation is grassy and amphibious. There are many species of animals living on the Congolese territory, from mammals (antelope, giraffe, cheetah, gorilla and chimpanzee), to reptiles (crocodiles), birds and, finally, to the numerous species of insects such as dragonflies, mosquitoes and the tse-tse fly. The country’s main environmental problems derive from air and water pollution, deforestation and disorderly urbanization. These factors have led many wild animal species to risk of extinction. In Congo there are three national parks, for a total of 8.9% of protected areas throughout the national territory.
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Temperatures, precipitation, sunshine in Brazzaville (Congo)
| Jan | Feb | March | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| Daytime temperature | 32 ° C | 32 ° C | 33 ° C | 33 ° C | 32 ° C | 29 ° C | 28 ° C | 30 ° C | 31 ° C | 32 ° C | 31 ° C | 31 ° C |
| Night temperature | 21 ° C | 22 ° C | 22 ° C | 22 ° C | 22 ° C | 19 ° C | 18 ° C | 19 ° C | 21 ° C | 21 ° C | 21 ° C | 22 ° C |
| Precipitation in mm | 160 | 137 | 167 | 191 | 118 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 34 | 139 | 261 | 172 |
| Rainy days | 10 | 8 | 11 | 12 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 14 | 12 |
| Hours of sunshine | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
| Sunrise | 6:00 | 6:05 | 6:05 | 6:00 | 6:00 | 6:05 | 6:10 | 6:05 | 5:50 | 5:40 | 5:35 | 5:45 |
| Sunset | 18:20 | 18:20 | 18:10 | 18:00 | 17:55 | 17:55 | 18:00 | 18:05 | 17:55 | 17:50 | 17:55 | 18:05 |
Temperatures
The annual average temperature in Brazzaville is 26 ° C. For comparison: Munich reaches an average of 8.6 ° C, in Berlin it is 9.6 ° C. The warmest month is April (27.4 ° C), coldest month of July with averages of 22.9 ° C.
Precipitation
The annual precipitation is 1394 mm on 91 days with precipitation. For comparison: In Munich, 967 mm, in Berlin 570 mm, precipitation is measured annually. The months of April and November are considered the rainy season, as more than 175 mm of precipitation can be expected per month. Overall, around 452 mm of precipitation can be expected in the rainy season. You cannot expect snow in any month in Brazzaville.
Sunshine
As our climate table shows, April is the sunniest month with an average of 5.9 hours of sunshine per day. On average over the year the sun shines an average of 5 hours a day. For comparison: In Munich and Berlin, the sun shines an average of 4.7 hours per day throughout the year.
Cities nearby
The following larger towns are nearby and have a similar climate: Kinshasa, Masina, Kinshasa and Kinshasa.
