Republic of the Congo in 2010

Congo, Republic of the in 2010

Area: 342,000 sq km (132,047 sq mi)
Population (2010 est.): 3,932,000
Capital: Brazzaville
Head of state and government: President Denis Sassou-Nguesso

On Aug. 15, 2010, UN General Assembly Pres. Ali Abdussalam Treki, along with dignitaries from Africa and France, attended ceremonies in Brazzaville marking the Republic of the Congo’s 50th year of independence from France. In celebration of the event, Pres. Denis Sassou-Nguesso announced that by January 2011 civil servants would begin receiving raises (of 25%) and promotions, both of which had been frozen for 15 years.

In recognition of the country’s continuing progress toward modernization and development, the IMF and the World Bank agreed in January to jointly provide $1.9 billion in debt relief. Both Italy and the U.S. followed suit by annulling all debts owed to them by Congo, and France forgave Congo’s entire €646 million debt (about $835 million). The IMF approved a disbursement of $1.83 million in international credits as part of its program to assist the world’s most indebted nations.

On February 23 the UN Development Programme granted Congo $830,000 for environmental protection and the fight against climate change. The following day the African Union announced that it would contribute $200,000 toward the relief of an estimated 115,000 refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo situated in camps in northern Republic of the Congo. A rare polio outbreak, primarily in the port city of Pointe Noire, killed more than 200 people.

On March 31, French oil giant Total announced a project to extract up to 300 million bbl from existing offshore wells where production had been halted. Congo, which earned more than €125 million (about $168 million) from its exports of timber to the EU, signed an agreement in May with the EU that committed both parties to the fight against illegal harvesting of hardwoods. On July 8 a €76 million (about $96 million) project was launched in the suburb of Kintélé, 25 km (16 mi) north of the capital, to construct 1,000 housing units over the next four years.

by: Nancy Ellen Lawler