The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), previously known as Zaire, is located in Sub-Saharan Africa.
By area, the nation is the second largest in Africa and eleventh worldwide with an estimated 71 million people (Weiss 2000). Presently, the country is led by President Joseph Kabila who succeeded his father (Nzongola, 2004).
Politically, DRC has been characterized by heinous political acts. Political coups, dictatorships, and civil wars have been the order of the day since independence in 1964 (Weiss, 2000).
This discouraging political environment is one of the major contributing factors towards the poor progress the country has made in governance and development. Until 2003, DRC had no established system of governance.
From 2003 to 2006, the country was governed under an interim constitution, which established different new governing institutions at different levels of the government branches.
In addition, the constitution set up new administrative posts which eventually enabled the mineral-rich country to have a democratic republic led by a legally elected president. In addition, a governing system whose parliament consisted of two chambers was also created in the constitution.
This parliament was composed of the national assembly and the senate. The senate was majorly tasked to draft a new constitution. The executive branch was put in the cabinet and consisted of 60 members. It was headed by the Head of State (Guttieri & Piombo, 2007).
Presently, the country is governed under the 2006 constitution. The constitution divided the country into seven provinces (Guttieri & Piombo, 2007). The head of state (the president), is elected through a democratic election and can serve for at most two five-year terms.
The constitution established a legislative house consisting of two chambers (one hosting the National Assembly and the other the Senate). The national assembly hosts 500 members majority of whom are voted in proportionately while a minimal number are elected directly.
The political party with majority seats in the national assembly appoints the prime minister. The senate is made up of 108 members, who serve for a five year term just like the national assembly members (Vlassenroot & Raeymakers, 2004).
Although DRC plays home to substantial mineral deposits, little has been done to harness them into economic assets. The county has enormous social and economic development potential but its development indices are still low (Wallace et al., 2006). Presently, the country’s mineral wealth is the back bone of the economy.
Unfortunately, the government has concentrated in developing the mining industry at the expense of agriculture. The country’s rich soil therefore, remains underutilized. Vlassenroot & Raeymakers (2004) explain that economic growth was very high during Belgian colonialism in 1950s.
It slowed down during the post-independence civil wars in the country, accelerated in the 1960s when the nation experienced political stability and then slowed considerably in the 1970s during the nationalization of industries.
In the 1990s, the economy nearly collapsed but later improved in the 2000s when the civil warfare ended.
Presently, the number of foreign investors investing in the country is increasing. Political stability and intervention of the international community in ensuring that peace is restored in the DRC has convinced several multi-billion international companies to show interest in the rich nation (Wallace et al., 2006).
Several international bodies such as the World Bank, the International Monitory Fund, the European Union, and the Canadian International Development Agency have held meetings with the DRC government with a view of aiding the country’s economic growth.
President Kabila is currently implementing reforms initiated by these bodies (Nzongola, 2004). However, there remain several rebel groups operating within the country. These groups work so hard to frustrate the government’s efforts of economically, socially, and politically developing the nation.
In conclusion, DRC has had stability in its politics as a result of the implementation of the 2006 constitution. Although security has been enhanced in most parts of the nation, the several rebel groups still operating in some parts of the country still pose a security threat.
References
Guttieri, K. & Piombo, J. (2007). Interim governments: Institution bridges to peace and democracy. Washington, DC: USIP Press Publication.
Nzongola, G. (2004). From Zaire to the Democratic Republic of Congo. Sweden: Elanders Inforlogistic Vast
Vlassenroot, K. & Raeymakers, T. (2004). Conflicting and social transformation in eastern DR Congo. Gent: Academia Press.
Wallace, N. M., Grinon, F. & Kisangani, E. F. (2006). The Democratic Republic of Congo: Economic dimension of war and peace. Washington, DC: USIP Press Publication
Weiss, H. F. (2000). War and peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Sweden: Repro Ekonomikum