Leopard; national colors: sky blue, red, yellow.
Title | "Debout Congolaise" (Arise Congolese) |
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Lyric/music | Joseph LUTUMBA/Simon-Pierre BOKA di Mpasi Londi |
Date of Independence | 30 June 1960 (from Belgium) |
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National holiday | Independence Day, 30 June (1960) |
Legal system | civil law system primarily based on Belgian law, but also customary and tribal law |
International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
Constitution | |
History | Several previous; latest adopted 13 May 2005, approved by referendum 18-19 December 2005, promulgated 18 February 2006 |
Amendments | Proposed by the president of the republic, by the government, by either house of Parliament, or by public petition; agreement on the substance of a proposed bill requires absolute majority vote in both houses; passage requires a referendum only if both houses in joint meeting fail to achieve three-fifths majority vote; constitutional articles, including the form of government, universal suffrage, judicial independence, political pluralism, and personal freedoms, cannot be amended; amended 2011 |
Citizenship | |
Citizenship by birth | no |
Citizenship by descent only | at least one parent must be a citizen of the Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Dual citizenship recognized | no |
Residency requirement for naturalization | 5 years |
Executive Branch | |
Chief of state | President Felix TSHISEKEDI (since 20 January 2024) |
Head of government | Prime Minister Judith SUMINWA Tuluka (since 29 May 2024) |
Cabinet | Ministers of State appointed by the president |
Elections/appointments | president directly elected by simple majority vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 20 December 2023 (next to be held on 20 December 2028); prime minister appointed by the president |
Election results | 2023: Felix TSHISEKEDI reelected president; percent of vote - Felix TSHISEKEDI (UDPS) 73.3%, Moise KATUMBI (Ensemble) 18.8%, Martin FAYULU (ECIDE) 5.3%, other 2.6% 2018: Felix TSHISEKEDI elected president; percent of vote - Felix TSHISEKEDI (UDPS) 38.6%, Martin FAYULU (Lamuka coalition) 34.8%, Emmanuel Ramazani SHADARY (PPRD) 23.9%, other 2.7%; note - election marred by serious voting irregularities |
Legislative branch | |
Description | Bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of: Senate (109 seats; 109 members to include 108 indirectly elected by provincial assemblies by proportional representation vote to serve 5-year terms and a former president, appointed for life) National Assembly (500 seats; 439 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote and 61 directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote; members serve 5-year terms)
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Elections | Senate - last held on 29 April 2024 (next to be held 29 April 2029) National Assembly - last held on 20 December 2023 (next to be held in December 2028) |
Election results | Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UDPS 15, AFDC-A 6, AB 5, A24 4, AACPG 4, MLC 4, A/VK2018 3, ANB 3, Ensemble 3, 2ATDC 2, A/A-UNC 2, AA/C 2, AAAP 2, AVC-A 2, FPAV 2. A/B50 1, A1 1, A3A 1, AAAD 1, AAeC 1, ACP-A 1, AN 1, APCF 1, ARDEV-A 1, ART&A 1, ATVA 1, AV 1, CDER 1, CFC 1, MSL 1, independent 26; composition- men 84, women 16, percentage women 15.8% National Assembly - percent of vote by party- NA; seats by party - PPRD 62, UDPS 41, PPPD 29, MSR 27, MLC 22, PALU 19, UNC 17, ARC 16, AFDC 15, ECT 11, RRC 11, other 214 (includes numerous political parties that won 10 or fewer seats and 2 constituencies where voting was halted), independent 16; composition - men 415, women 62, percent of women 13%; total Parliament percentage women 13.5% |
Judicial branch | |
Highest court(s) | Court of Cassation or Cour de Cassation (consists of 26 justices and organized into legislative and judiciary sections); Constitutional Court (consists of 9 judges) |
Judge selection and term of office | Court of Cassation judges nominated by the Judicial Service Council, an independent body of public prosecutors and selected judges of the lower courts; judge tenure NA; Constitutional Court judges - 3 nominated by the president, 3 by the Judicial Service Council, and 3 by the legislature; judges appointed by the president to serve 9-year non-renewable terms with one-third of the membership renewed every 3 years |
Subordinate courts | State Security Court; Court of Appeals (organized into administrative and judiciary sections); Tribunal de Grande; magistrates' courts; customary courts |
Diplomatic representation in the US | |
Chief of mission | Ambassador (vacant); Chargé d'Affaires Michael SHAKU YUMI (since 1 August 2024) |
Chancery | 1100 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 725, Washington DC 20036 |
Telephone | [1] (202) 234-7690 |
FAX | [1] (202) 234-2609 |
Email address and website | [email protected] https://www.ambardcusa.org/ |
Representative office | New York |
Diplomatic representation from the US | |
Chief of mission | Ambassador Lucy TAMLYN (since 6 February 2023) |
Embassy | 310 Avenue des Aviateurs, Kinshasa, Gombe |
Mailing address | 2220 Kinshasa Place, Washington DC 20521-2220 |
Telephone | [243] 081 556-0151 |
FAX | [243] 81 556-0175 |
Email address and website | [email protected] https://cd.usembassy.gov/ |
National heritage | |
Total World Heritage Sites | 5 (all natural) |
Selected World Heritage Site locales | Garamba National Park; Kahuzi-Biega National Park; Okapi Wildlife Reserve; Salonga National Park; Virunga National Park |
Want to know more about DR Congo? Check all different factbooks for DR Congo below.