Congo (DR)

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is located in central Africa. It is the third-largest country in the African continent. The equator passes right through Congo-DRC and in this part of the country, the temperature does not drop below 20 degrees Celsius.

Congolese Population in Canada

24,965

Congo-DRC, formerly Zaire, is home to nearly 250 ethnolinguistic groups and numerous sub-groups. In 1972, President Mobutu (who gained power as a result of a military coup in 1965) decreed that only six organized religions were allowed to operate and own property, but there has been religious freedom since 1980. Today, the majority of the population identifies as Christian, but traditional beliefs are also prevalent. According to these traditional beliefs, life never ends (for example, people may offer ancestors a drink by pouring beer onto the ground.) These traditional animistic beliefs also hold that even inanimate objects have life and deserve respect.

• Central Intelligence Agency. (2019, December 17). The World Factbook: Congo, Democratic Republic of the. Retrieved December 29, 2019, from https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/congo-democratic-republic-of-the/
• Congolese (Zairians). (2009). In T. L. Gall & J. Hobby (Eds.), Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life (2nd ed., Vol. 1, pp. 144-149). Detroit: Gale. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
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• Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada. (2011, December 15). Overview – Congo, Democratic Republic of the. Retrieved July 8, 2014, from https://www.international.gc.ca/cil-cai/country_insights-apercus_pays/overview-apercu_cd.aspx?lang=eng
• Mandryk, J. (2010). Operation World: The Definitive Prayer Guide to Every Nation (7th ed.). Colorado Springs: Biblica Publishing.
• Statistics Canada. (2017, October 25). Data Tables, 2016 Census – Ethnic Origin (279), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3), Generation Status (4), Age (12) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces and Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2016 Census – 25% Sample Data. Retrieved December 14, 2017, from http://www5.statcan.gc.ca/olc-cel/olc.action?objId=98-400-X2016187&objType=46&lang=en&limit=0