Economy of the Democratic Republic
of the Congo
Economy of Democratic Repub-
lic of Congo
Currency
Congolese Franc (CDF)
Fiscal year
Calendar year
Trade
organisations
AU, WTO, SADC
Statistics [1]
GDP ranking
81st (2004) [2]
GDP
$42.74 billion (2004)
GDP growth
7.5% (2004)
GDP per capita $700 (2004)
GDP by sector agriculture (55%), in-
dustry (11%), services
(34%) (2000)
Inflation
14% (2004)
Pop below
poverty line
N/A
Labour force
14.51 million (1993)
Labour force
by occupation
N/A
Unemployment N/A (2003)
Main
industries
mining (diamonds, cop-
per, zinc), mineral pro-
cessing, consumer
products (including tex-
tiles, footwear, cigar-
ettes, processed foods
and beverages), ce-
ment, commercial ship
repair
Trading Partners [3]
Exports
$1.417bn (2002)
Export
Commodities
diamonds, copper,
crude oil, coffee, cobalt
Main partners Belgium 42.5%, Finland
17.8%, Zimbabwe
12.2%, U.S. 9.2%,
People’s Republic of
China 6.5% (2004)
Imports
$933 million (2002)
Imports
Commodities
foodstuffs, mining and
other machinery, trans-
port equipment, fuels
Main Partners South Africa 18.5%,
Belgium 15.6%, France
10.9%, U.S. 6.2%, Ger-
many 5.9%, Kenya 4.9%
(2004)
Public finances [4]
Public debt
N/A
Revenues
$269 million (2004)
Expenses
$244 million (1996)
Economic aid
$195.3 million (recipi-
ent) (1995)
Woman carrying bananas.
Sparsely populated in relation to its area,
the Democratic Republic of the Congo is
home to a vast potential of natural resources
and mineral wealth, yet the economy of the
DRC has declined drastically since the
mid-1980s. Agriculture is the mainstay of the
economy, accounting for 57.9% of GDP in
1997. Main cash crops include coffee, palm
oil, rubber, cotton, sugar, tea, and cocoa.
Food crops include cassava, plantains, maize,
groundnuts, and rice. In 1996, agriculture
employed 66% of the work force. Rich in min-
erals, the DRC has a difficult history of pred-
atory mineral extraction, which has been at
the heart of many struggles within the
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Economy of the Democratic Republic of