Kisangani
Encyclopedia
Kisangani kiːsəŋˈɡɑːni is the capital of Orientale Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
. It is the 3rd largest urbanized city in the country and the largest of the cities that lie in the tropical woodlands of the Congo.
Formerly known as Stanleyville in French
(or Dutch
as ), the city takes its present name from Boyoma
, the seven-arched falls located north of the city, whose name was also initially given to the landscape on which the city is located, Singitini (or Singatini) as rendered in Lingala, (Kisangani is from present Swahili
), each of which share the same meaning “the City on the Island”, in reference to the surrounding tributaries (whose waters separate much of Kisangani from the mainland). It is also known as "Kisangani Boyoma", and the demonym for Kisangani is Boyoman (or Boyomais in French).
The languages most spoken at home by the population in the city are Swahili and Lingala, followed by French. The official language of Kisangani is French
as defined by the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Some 1,300 miles from the mouth of the Congo River
, the city of Kisangani is the farthest navigable point upstream. Kisangani is the nation’s major inland port after Kinshasa
, an important commercial hub point for river and land transportation and a major marketing and distribution centre for the north-eastern part of the country. It has been the commercial capital of the northern Congo since the late 19th century.
Kisangani has been home to influential politicians, including the national hero Patrice Emery Lumumba, the first prime minister of the country.
Henry Morton Stanley
founded Stanley Falls Station in 1883, on the island of Wana Rusari in the Congo River
near the present town of Kisangani. During the mid-19th century the area was inhabited by a native Congolese tribe known as the clans of Enya, who had used Wagenia falls (nicknamed Stanley Falls by Stanley) for fishing. The island is located a few meters from the shore site of the present town on the Lualaba River
its 7 falls spread over 100 km between Kisangani and Ubundu
.
Some 1,300 miles from the mouth of the Congo River
, Stanley founded the area’s first trading post for King Leopold II of Belgium
in December 1883. The city was known first as Falls Station (or "the Post Stanley Falls" or "The Falls" or simply "Boyoma" the African name of Boyoma Falls
) and then with Belgian colonization of the area, it grew into a settlement called Stanleyville (after the explorer Henry Morton Stanley
). A city terminus of steamer navigation on the Congo River
, the town began as a Belgian trading post. It has been the major centre of the northern Congo since the late 19th century.
Stanley left Mr. Binnie, an engineer
and a Scotsman
, in charge to trade with the natives and to represent the Congo Free State
. The name "Kisangani" was apparently used consistently by the natives, in conjunction with the name "Stanleyville" (as the city was referred to in French and respectively Stanleystad in Dutch
). In Swahili
the manual published by the Marist Brothers in the 20s, we find an example of substitution naming "from X to Stanleyville" which is translated "toka X Mpaka Kisangani". The name "Kisangani" is a Swahili
rendering of the native Congolese word Boyoma, meaning “City on the Island”, also rendered in Lingala as Singitini (or Singatini) with the same meaning.
Soon after the establishment of relational ties between the natives and Europe
ans, East African
slavers from Zanzibar
, often erroneously called "Arabs" by Europe
an writers of the time, reached Stanley Falls. Relations between Free State Officials and the slavers were strained and after a fight the Station was abandoned in 1887.
After the Arab-Euro wars in the Congo, in 1888 the Free State obtained (after negotiations in Zanzibar) an agreement to establish a form of power by appointing Mohammed Bin Alfan Mujreb Tippu Tip
, one of the greatest Zanzibar
slavers as first governor of the district of "Stanleyfalls" stretching from eastern Tanganyika
in Ituri
through Maniema
. Ultimately the Europeans gained complete control of the vast area in central Africa
.
On July 15, 1898, Stanleyville began serving as the capital of the relatively prosperous District of the Eastern Province Stanleyfalls. City status was achieved by incorporation Order No. 12/357 on 6 September 1958, which divided Stanleyville into 4 municipalities: Belgian I, Belgian II, Brussels and Stanley.
Towards the end of 1958 the city became the stronghold of Patrice Emery Lumumba, the leader of the political party Mouvement National Congolais
(MNC). His strong ties with the city had been forged during his days as one of 350 clerks at the central post office. After the assassination of Lumumba in 1961, Antoine Gizenga
installed a government that competed with the central government in Leopoldville (now Kinshasa
). Before the country gained independence from Belgium in 1960, Kisangani was reputed to have more Rolls-Royces
per capita
than any other city in the world.
Stanleyville served as the capital and center of the secessionist independent state of the Republic of Congo during the bloody seize of the Orientale and Kivu provinces by Simba rebels in late 1964. During the Congo Crisis
, the Simbas took over 1,600 Belgian and other European hostages and after 111 days of negotiating, Operation Dragon Rouge was launched by the United States, Belgium, and the Congolise Army which include a mercenary force called "L'Ommegang" under the command of Colonel Frederic Vandewalle to free the hostages. 1,000 government troops of the Armie National Congolaise (ANC), ferret armoured cars and 100 vehicles loaded with gasoline and ammo made the final leap to Stanleyville. The airborne assault phase of the hostage rescue operation was referred to as "Dragon Rouge", and "Mad" Mike Hoare
and his mercenary unit also were part of Vandewalle's assault column.
In 1966 and 1967, Kisangani was the site of the Mercenaries' Mutinies, whom were looting and pillaging the city. The Armée National Congolaise, Belgian Armed Forces and United States
troops opposed the Mercenaries forces and took control of the city in 1967 under a strong mandate.
With the assumption of the "Zairianization" program in 1970s by Mobutu Sese Seko
, Stanleyville was official renamed to Kisangani, Stanleyfalls assumed the name Wagenia Falls, and as of October 27, 1977 the municipalities were renamed to their current name: Belgian I (Mangobo and Tshopo ), Belgian II (Lubunga), Brussels (Kabondo) and Stanley (Makiso).
. Laurent-Désiré Kabila
, leader of the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo
invaded the Congo from the eastern region of the country with assistance from Rwanda
, Burundi
and Uganda
military forces. As of 30 October in 1998, there were 15,000 Ugandan and 19,000 Rwandan troops on Congolese soil. Laurent Kabila designated Kisangani as the forward base for the foreign forces as he marched westwards towards Kinshasa
to overthrow Mobutu Sese Seko
.
The alliance of foreign military forces disintegrated when people of Hutu descent were massacred by the thousands in western Zaire as well as looting in the mining areas, in particular Kisangani and the Kivus. The population was completely opposed to the presence of foreign forces because of their behaviour. Laurent-Désiré Kabila
could not continue to support the use of Kisangani as the base for foreign fighters as they launched attacks to massacre the Hutu people - hence he demanded that Rwanda
pull its forces out of the country.
In 1999, the city was the site of the first open fighting between Ugandan and Rwandan forces in the Second Congo War
, when nearly 3,000 people died in the cross fire. This followed the fracturing of the anti-government rebel group Rally for Congolese Democracy
(RCD) into camps based in Kisangani and Goma
. The fighting was also over the gold mines near the town. The local population was caught in the cross fire between Ugandan and Rwandan military forces which led to the destruction of about a quarter of the city. Various buildings were damaged, most notably the roof of the Cathedral Rosaire of Notre-Dame, which was ignited by missiles. Both of the foreign forces were reported to have looted and pillaged the city. Despite the condemnation of Uganda
by the International Court of Justice, establishment of responsibilities, realization of compensation, or arrests are yet to be made.
More clashes between Rwandan and Ugandan led to thousands more deaths and widespread destruction on June 5, 2000.
During the Second Congo War
, on 14 May 2002, 160 people were massacred in Kisangani which is believed to be the work of those under the command of Laurent Nkunda
. By the time a peace agreement was signed in 2002, the town was under the control of the Rwandan-backed Rally for Congolese Democracy - Goma (RCD-Goma).
The three encounters between Uganda
and Rwanda
in Kisangani have been coined the wars of 1 day, 3 days and the deadliest of 6 days in 2000.
,
Tshopo, and Lindi rivers and at the crossroads between eastern and western Congo. Approximately central of the Africa
n continent, it is located in North-eastern République Démocratique du Congo (RDC), central of Tshopo Province
. The location at the northernmost tip of the Congo River
, navigable for large waterborne cargo between Kinshasa
and Kisangani, which feeds into a naturally transportation waterway for much of the Congo Basin
, has helped the city grow in significance as a trading city.
Kisangani is at the centre of the Tshopo
, and is bordered by the city of Banalia to the north, Ubundu and Opala
territories to the south, Isangi to the west and Bafwasende municipalities to the east. The city of Kisangani lies 324 km from Buta
, 572 kilometres (355.4 mi) of Isiro
, 696 kilometres (432.5 mi) from Bunia
and 2912 kilometres (1,809.4 mi) from Kinshasa
.
The Lualaba River
flows through a bend to a confluence with the Congo River
, at the alteration of the waterways lies the city of Kisangani. Much of Kisangani City is built on the location of land defined in between the river stretches of Tshopo river on its north and by the Congo River on its south. Many tributaries and islands are intertwined conducive to moving inland waterways. Tidal straits actually separate L'Île Mbiye from mainland of Kisangani City. The city is locally referred to as Boyoma after the prominent geographical feature on land, Boyoma Falls
. The seven cataracts have a total drop of 61 meters (200 feet). Falls Wagenia where the fishery is installed on the rapids can be seen.
The city's land area is estimated at 1910 square kilometres. The City of Kisangani has a density of 229 inhabitants per km². The city seats in the midst of the vast and isolated Congo Basin
, the second largest tropical woodlands on the planet. It is located at 0º 31' north latitude from the equator (57 km), 25º 11' east longitude from the meridian of Greenwich and 1 404.1 feet (428 meters) above sea level.
L'Île Mbiye is situated on the Congo River
in the Eastern part of Kisangani. It is located upstream of the Wagenia Falls, between latitude 0º31' North and longitude 25º11' East, with 376m of altitude. It adjoins the town of Kisangani, and it is 14 km long and 4 km wide. All around Kisangani, L'Île Mbiye is the only ecosystem that has a dense forest that is relatively well preserved. The Island is part of the Sustainable Forest Management in Africa Symposium project of forest ecosystem conservation conducted by Stellenbosch University
. The Island has an area of 1,400 ha, and it comprises three types of forest: dry land forest, periodically flooded forest and swampy forest.
due to the fact that its driest month (January) sees on average below 60 mm of rain. Kisangani experiences an average relative humidity of 86%.
Typical climate in regions through which the Congo River
flows is that of Kisangani, a town situated on the river’s right and left bank slightly north of the Equator
. Humidity is high throughout the year, and annual rainfall amounts to 64 inches (1,620 mm) and occurs fairly regularly; even in the driest month the rainfall totals more than 2 inches (53 mm). Temperatures are also uniformly high throughout the year, and there is little diurnal variability. The average temperature at Kisangani is in the mid-70s F (mid-20sC). Kisangani is also a beneficiary of a cool breeze that often blows off the Congo River
.
is an important biodiversity hotspot. It is home to okapi
, bonobo monkeys
and the Congo peafowl
, but is also an important source of African teak
, used for building furniture and flooring. An estimated 40 million people depend on these woodlands, surviving on traditional livelihoods. At a global level, Congo's forests act as the planet's second lung, counterpart to the rapidly dwindling Amazon. They are a huge "carbon sink," trapping carbon that could otherwise become carbon dioxide, the main cause of global warming. The Congo Basin
holds roughly 8 percent of the world's forest-based carbon. These jungles also affect rainfall across the North Atlantic. In other words, these distant forests are crucial to the future of climate stability, a bulwark against runaway climate change
.
A moratorium on logging in the Congo forest was agreed with the World Bank
and the République Démocratique du Congo in May 2002. The World Bank
agreed to provide $90 million of development aid to RDC
with the proviso that the government did not issue any new concessions granting logging companies rights to exploit the forest. The deal also prohibited the renewal of existing concessions.
Greenpeace
is calling on the World Bank
to "think outside the box" and use the forest's potential in the battle against climate change. If these woodlands are deforested, the carbon they trap will be released into the atmosphere. It says that 8% of the Earth's forest-based carbon is stored in the RDC's forests. Predictions for future unabated deforestation estimate that by 2050 activities in the DRC
will release roughly the same amount of carbon dioxide as the United Kingdom
has emitted over the last 60 years.
The government has written a new forestry code that requires companies to invest in local development and follow a sustainable, twenty-five-year cycle of rotational logging. When a company is granted a concession from central government to log in Congo, it must sign an agreement with the local chiefs and hereditary land owners, who give permission for it to extract the trees in return for development packages. In theory, the companies must pay government nearly $18m rent a year for these concessions, of which 40% in taxes paid should be returned to provincial governments for investment in social development of the local population in the logged areas.
In its current form, the Kyoto protocol does not reward so-called "avoided deforestation" - initiatives that protect forest from being cut down. But many climate scientists and policymakers hope that negotiations for Kyoto's successor will include such measures. If this were the case, there could be a financial incentive for protecting forests.
L’Île Mbiye in Kisangani is part of the Sustainable Forest Management in Africa Symposium project of forest ecosystem conservation conducted by Stellenbosch University
. République Démocratique du Congo (RDC) is also looking to expand the area of forest under protection, for which it hopes to secure compensation through emerging markets
for forest carbon.
The main Congolese environmental organization working to save the forests is an NGO called OCEAN
, which serves as the link between international outfits like Greenpeace
and local community groups in the concessions.
s, vast and isolated forest, modern multi-storey buildings of brick emerge from the dense walls of jungle greenery. Multiple kinds and scales of houses, townhouses, condominiums, and apartment buildings can be found in Kisangani. The building form most closely associated with Kisangani is of Belgium
influence, whose introduction and widespread adoption in colonial times saw Kisangani’s buildings shift from the thatch African tradition to the low-scale and vertical rise of European business districts.
Kisangani has architecturally significant buildings in a wide range of styles still in their original form. These include the Aumonerie which is distinctive for its facade using visible stone-tone to evoke the building's structure, the impressive 20th century headquarters landmark that is Central Prisons’ with its towering fortress walls, Cathédrale Notre-Dame du Rosaire, an early cathedral revival built with massively scaled stone detailing and the Congo Palace on avenue de l'eglise is an important example of highly influential European style buildings in Kisangani.
The character of Kisangani’s urban residential districts is often defined by the elegant villas with tiled roofs of old Belgium influence, brownstone
rowhouses, townhouses, and tenements that were built during a period of rapid expansion from 1908 to 1950. Large swaths of Kisangani's rural residential areas away from the city centre are characterized by continual strings of villages unfolding, each composed of thatched roof tops built from the early 20th century through to the present day. At times the path is filled with a sweet floral fragrance and clouded with white and purple butterflies. Forests give way to patches of grassland
, then clumps of bamboo
and then more forest
.
means on the island ("Kisanga" translates island and "ni" is on) is official given the nickname of "City of Hope" by administrative authorities in opposition to the title of martyred city. Boyomas’ affectionately nicknamed their city "Boyoma Singa Mwambé", that translates has before reaching the most beautiful city the pole must be thrown 8 times (Boyoma means the most beautiful girl, while Singa is the mast and Mwambé is the number 8).
productions, radio
, theatre
, film
, multimedia
and print publishing. Kisangani's many cultural communities have given it a distinct local culture. The city's waterfront allure and nightlife has attracted residents and tourists alike. As a Central African
city, Kisangani shares many cultural characteristics with the rest of the continent. It has a tradition of producing African Jazz
, Nu-Rumba, African Folk, Rumba
and Ndombolo music. The city has also produced much talent in the fields of visual arts
, theatre, music, and dance. Some of its better known popular culture residents include Aberti Masikini, Anne-Sylvie Mouzon, Barly Baruti
, Koffi Olomide
and Moreno (Batamba Wenda Morris). Yet, being at the African confluence of the South and the North and West and East traditions, Kisangani has developed a unique and distinguished cultural face. Another distinctive characteristic of Kisangani culture life is to be found in the animation of its downtown, particularly during summer, prompted by cultural and social events, particularly festivals. The city's largest festival is the Cercle Boyoma Culture festival, which is the largest in the world of its kind. Other popular festivals include the Kisangani Jazz Festival, Kisangani Film Festival, Nuits d'Afrique and the Kisangani Fireworks Festival.
and others used song in narratives that often reflected themes of hope and ambition. Artists of all cultural disciplines in Kisangani such as musicians, stage actors, comedians
, fashion
, cultural operators, draftsmen, folk music
, painters, sculptors, and silkscreen meet annually for the seasonal culture shows. Cercle Boyoma Culture is one of such shows where cultural activities of Kisangani come together synergistically for an exchange and reflection involving different associations of all cultural disciplines. Cercle Boyoma Culture is annually held in Makiso on 14 Fina Avenue from the month of December through to June. The culture show displays a digital audio recording studio, a large stage show, 10 booths that host libraries, internet cafes, sewing stations, interactive gaming machines and cafeterias.
The cultural space in Kisangani provides multitudes of beauty pageants a platform to exchange experiences, provide mentoring consultation and hosting of training seminars. Miss Boyoma is annually held in December, organised by the cities’ authority to determine the most beautiful girl in Kisangani. Elysée of 17 years old is Miss Boyoma 2009.
In the summer, many outdoor concerts are given which present performances of free plays and music in Central Park and free concerts, dance
, and theater events across all six communes in the summer months. The platform creates a framework for discussion and dialogue to promote cultural activities in the city by informing, educating and raising cultural awareness. Through the cultural framework of entertainment development of talented artists, writers and designers is supported by providing the young or obscure individuals with a platform to contribute in Kisangani’s cultural society.
Other live music genres which are part of the city's cultural heritage include Kisangani Blues, Kisangani Soul, African Jazz
, Rumba
and gospel
. The city is the birthplace of Congolese legendary musicians Aberti Masikini and Koffi Olomide
and is the site of an influential Nu-Rumba scene. In the 1950s, the city was a center for African Folk, Rumba Lingala and African Jazz
. This influence continued into the Rumba
of the 1960s. The city has been an epicenter for Ndombolo culture since the 1980s. A flourishing independent folk music culture brought forth Kisangani Blues. The city has also been spawning a critically acclaimed underground Nu-Rumba scene with various bands gaining national attention in the Nu-Rumba world. Annual festivals feature various acts such as the Cercle Boyoma Culture Festival.
, just north of Stade du Marche. The historic City Hall also now houses the city's Visitor Information Center, galleries and exhibit halls. The Alliance Franco-Congolese (AFRACO) building which hosts governmental conference.
The variety of attractions in Kisangani include botanical garden
s, museum
s, factories
, zoo
s, exhibition halls, elevator
s, retail stores, breweries
, warehouse
s, libraries
, mills
, auditorium
s and refineries
which today provide a legacy of historic and architectural interest, especially in the downtown area.
Rosaire of Notre-Dame Cathedral, Central Market and the impressive 19th century headquarters of all major Kisangani banks on 1st Avenue . Kisangani holds a campus of the National University of the Congo, which includes the renowned Medicine Faculty, made infamous by the Polio virus conspiracy. Kisangani also maintains the city’s focal library at University of Kisangani
. The city holds an extensive collection of ancient Congolese and near East African archaeological artifacts, at its regional archaeological and ethnological, the National Museum of Kisangani.
Other landmarks include: L'Hôtel des chutes, Le Voyageur, Hellénique ainsi que Psistaria, l'Hôtel Congo Palace, l'Hôtel Boyoma, l'Hôtel Kisanganian and L'Hôtel Palm Beach. Place de la Femme which was completed in 1934 as a dedication to Boyomaise women, the landmark One of the most revered religious leaders Reverend Father Gabriel Grison was buried at the Mission St. Gabriel in Kisangani and has monument dedicated to him on Monseigneur Grison Avenue. Mobutus'
residential home on route de Lubutu, Place des Martyrs that held the Lumumba Square until 1967, the controversial Central Public Fountain that anchors the downtown park was installed by the distraction of the popular monument of Stanley and its surrounding structures are but a few notable examples of 20th century architecture.
On the right bank of the river Tshopo, the Kisangani Zoo attracts many visitors, as well as the Kisangani Hydroelectric Dam that supplies electricity to the city of Kisangani. At spectacular waterfall of Wagenia Falls, fishing with the old age tradition tools installed on the rapids can be witnessed. Fishing is practiced through a scaffold installed among rocks, with vines attached and serving through the tensioning creels of woven conical vines immersed in the current of the river.
A Major destination include the forest ecosystem of L’Île Mbiye, with is a part of protection conservation forest program called Sustainable Forest Management in Africa as spearheaded by Stellenbosch University
. L’Île Mbiye is an ecosystem with a well preserved dense forest. The Island has an area of 1,400 ha, and it comprises three types of forest: dry land forest, periodically flooded forest and swampy forest. The Island is situated on the Congo River
in the eastern part of Kisangani. It is located upstream of the Wagenia Falls, between latitude 0º31' North and longitude 25º11' East, with 376 m of altitude. It adjoins the town of Kisangani, and it is 14 km long and 4 km wide.
Kisangani’s food culture, influenced by the city's immigrants and large number of dining patrons, is diverse. Eastern Africa and Indian immigrants have made the city famous for their traditional foods. Some of the mobile food vendors licensed by the city have made foods such as husking paddy standbys of contemporary Kisangani street food, although kosa kosa and Kisangani coffee
are still the main street fare. The city is also home to many of the finest prawn cuisine restaurants in the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC).
The Riviera
, La Vanille and Rwenzori constitute some of the city’s principal restaurants.
, Lingala and French language
television stations, newspapers, radio stations, and magazines. There are four over-the-air Swahili
and Lingala-language television stations and they also air multicultural programming. There are also five over-the-air French-language television stations, including: Radio Télévision Nationale Congolaise (RTNC), Télé Boyoma and Radio Télévision Amani (RTA).
Kisangani has four daily newspapers, in Swahili
and Lingala language
Kisangani Gazette and the French-language Mungongo, La Tshopo, Le Thermomètre, Agence de Presse Congolaise and Kisangani. There are also two free French dailies, Nationaliste and Kisanga. Kisangani also has numerous weekly tabloids and community newspapers serving various neighbourhoods and schools. Mungongo is produced by young journalists of Université de Kisangani at the Faculty of Arts, with supervision of the news agency Syfia Great Lakes.
There are 11 AM and 23 FM radio stations in Kisangani. Of these13 broadcast in French, 16 broadcast in multiple languages and three stations are bilingual. The major Kisangani station networks include: Radio-Télévision Numérique Boyoma(RTNB), OPED FM and Radio Okapi
. All three networks broadcast in Lingala, French
and Swahili
.
OPED FM specializes in environmental issues and is headquartered in Kisangani. OPED is acronym for l’Organisation pour la Protection de l'Environnement et le Développement. OPED FM broadcasts can be heard in Germany
through radio Deutsche Welle
.
RTNB has niche prioritizes business coverage of financial markets. The station works in partnership with Radio Télévision Belge Francophone (RTBF) and Radio Africa n°1. Programs of the two stations regularly broadcast in Kisangani.
Kisangani is a filming-friendly location. Since the 1920s, many motion pictures have been filmed in the city, most notably The Nun's Story (film)
.
, Stade du Marche and the Stade of Athenee Royal.
The city is represented in Nationwide Football League Linafoot
by TS Malekesa
, RC Etoile d' and AS NIKA
in the 2009/2010 season. They both play their home games at a soccer-specific stadium called Stade Lumumba
.
Kisangani is also represented in Province Oriental Provincial League by, CS Makiso, Sotexki SC, RC Stella, AS Kisangani, RC Boyoma, Echo Sport, CS Monami, FC Procure, AS Vita Boyoma and AS Pars. They draw packed crowds at the small but picturesque Stade of Athenee Royal for their regular-season games. The current president of the Kisangani Football Association the Entente Urbaine of Football in Kisangani (EUFKIS) is Anaclet Kanangila who succeeded to the post left by Robert Kabemba.
Date Name
and Lubumbashi
). Before the country gained independence from Belgium in 1960,
Kisangani was reputed to have more Rolls-Royces
per capita than any other city in the world. It flourished for the many
Boyoman who prospered during a boom in coffee, cotton and rubber
production late in the colonial era, when commodities like those still
fetched high prices.
Strategically positioned central on
geographical map on the continent of Africa, at the confluence of the
Lualaba River
and Congo River
, Kisangani is the inception and
terminus point of river traffic between east and west of DR Congo,
playing a major economic role in the ‘5 Chantiers’ economic
recovery and redevelopment of the République Démocratique du Congo
(RDC). The city is today an important centre of
commerce
, finance
, industry
, metallurgy
, panning
,
real estate
, hydro industries, agriculture
, breweries,
technology
, culture
, media
, and arts
.
One of Africa’s great trading centres; Kisangani’s strengths in its transportation system have contributed to the development of the city. SOTEXKI, the Textile Society of Kisangani produces fabrics and manufactures clothing, while Bralima
produces beverages, REGIDESO treats and supplies water to the population, SORGERIE (l’Société de Gestion, de Gérance et d'Investissement), produces soaps, vegetable oils and other cosmetic products. Compagnie Forestière de Transformation (CFT) is the firm that process and exports African teak. Pharmaceuticals, printed goods, food processing
, telecommunications, textile
and apparel manufacturing, tobacco
and transportation, also play major roles in the city's economy. The service sector is also strong and includes civil, mechanical and process engineering, finance, higher education, and research and development.
The forest Island of Mbiye; is one of the natural ecosystems in Kisangani that play a leading economic role with regard to the supply of food, medicines and building material, in which is of critical importance to the survival of plant life, wildlife and human populations.
Realising the importance of the biosphere and preservation of the forests biodiversity: "Forty million Congolese depend in one way or another for their survival on the Congo forest" says Stephan Van Praet of Greenpeace, who coordinated the research for the report, entitled Carving up the Congo. "I can assure you they know the value of their forest. If you cut the sapele trees you take away the caterpillars they rely on as a source of protein."
L’Île Mbiye in Kisangani is part of the Sustainable Forest Management in Africa Symposium project of forest ecosystem conservation conducted by Stellenbosch University. République Démocratique du Congo (RDC) is also looking to expand the area of forest under protection, for which it hopes to secure compensation through emerging markets for forest carbon.
The Port of Piroguiers is the largest inland port in the RDC, after the nation’s capital Kinshasa
, handling million tonnes of cargo annually. As one of the most important ports in RDC, it remains a trans-shipment point link Kinshasa to the North-Eastern provinces for grain
, sugar
, petroleum
products, machinery, and consumer goods. For this reason, Kisangani is a railway hub of RDC and has always been an extremely important rail city; it is home to the headquarters of Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer du Congo. Since the resumption of road traffic between Kisangani and its eastern cities, the markets of the city are regularly supplied and export food from and to Beni, Bunia
and Butembo
.
The city's television and film industry is among the largest in the country. Creative industries such as new media
, advertising
, fashion
, design
and architecture
account for a growing share of employment, with Kisangani City possessing a strong competitive advantage in these industries. Other important sectors include medical research and technology
, non-profit institutions, and universities.
Kisangani’s informal sector is highly developed it composed of: handicrafts, local brick manufactures, merchants close to the banks of the river sell a variety of edible products (like Prawns, Kosa Kosa or Caterpillars...), others engage in artisanal quarrying, ceramics, coffee growing, Jeweller dealing, producing cultural artifacts, precious metals goldsmithing or subsistence farming.
Manufacturing
accounts for a large share of employment. Garments, chemicals, metal products, processed foods, and furniture are some of the principal products. Most of the food products derived from rural areas whose main activities are agriculture
and livestock
include Kosa Kosa and prawns, which are exported to all major cities of the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC). The Wagenia, whom mostly fish the rapids of the famous Wagenia Falls on the Congo River
are known for the possession of excellent fishing skills. The food-processing industry is a stable major manufacturing sector in the city. Chocolate is Kisangani’s leading specialty-food export, with imports of cocoa from nearby Kabinda District
.
During the holidays, the young people enjoy the school holidays, by engaging in part-time jobs, learning earlier on how to earn money and gaining family budgetary skills, by adding to the family income. The children are likely to open up small vending businesses, of which the services offered may include selling boiled eggs, cooking oil or operating shoeshine stores, to name a few. Many parents believe that part-time work helps children to become more independent as well as providing them (and sometimes their families) with extra income.
. Within the span of forty years, the city's population grew from slightly under 15,018 to over 121, 765 by 1958. By the close of the 20th century, Kisangani was the third largest city in Zaire
, and the largest of the cities that existed in the Orientale province. Within thirty-three years of Zairieanastion, the population had tripled to over 600,000, and reached its highest ever-recorded population of 672, 739 for the 2003 census.
The population is ethnically diverse and is changing rapidly, especially in large cities such as Kisangani, so it is not always easy to get an exact picture of the ethnic origin of all the population from census statistics. The last census in 2003 counted almost 672 739 inhabitants in the city of Kisangani. Lubunga is the town's most populous but least dense with 115 775 inhabitants while Mangobo with 98 434 inhabitants is the most dense.
Demography has evolved as follows since colonial times:
Kisangani is the most populous city of the Northern provinces in the RDC, with an estimated 2008 population of 1,200,000 (up from 406,249 thousand in 1993).This amounts to about more than half the population of the northern regional population lives in the province of Tshopo. Over the last decade the city's population has been increasing.
In 1909, the European Stanleyville numbered 80 and the native population was estimated at 15,000 people within a radius of 5 kilometers.
At the time the sprawling population in 1918 required the District Commissioner to create a daily food market in Kisangani, near the Hospital Avenue, 1 kilometre from shore. Two more weekly markets were also created on the other side, one near the docks and another at CFL Mission St. Gabriel. The population in the 1920s increased to 4,000 Africans and 200 Europe
ans, with an average of 2000 inhabitants moving around downtown Stanleyville (in the chiefdom Arabized).
The population of Stanleyville, in the early 1950s stood at 40,000 and by the late 1950s the population reached 70,000.
and Lubumbashi
. In Kisangani no single community or region of origin dominates.
Some of the many African ethnic groups in Kisangani are: Bamanga, Popoi, Boa
, Lokele, Turumbu, Mbole, Kumu, Wagenia, Rega, Topoke
, Lokele, Turumbu
, Basoko, Lendu, Budu
, Bangetu, Logo
, Alur
, Hema
, Nande and Yira ethnic group also have a notable presence.
Non-African ethnic groups include many Flemish
of Belgian origin. There are also small groups of Greeks
, Chinese
, Walloons
, Indians
and, lately, Arab
Lebanese
.
The city has a heterogeneous population of over 250 ethnic African majorities of which Wagenia and Kumu compose the native population:
, Methodists, Greek Orthodox
and Baptists churches, are found throughout the area along with adherents of Judaism
, Islam
, Kimbanguism
, Hinduism
, Traditional Religions and others.
Historically Kisangani has been a centre of Catholicism
in Central Africa with its numerous seminaries and churches, including the Cathédrale Notre-Dame du Rosaire. Most of the total population is Christian
, largely Roman Catholic primarily due to Roman Catholic mission which commenced on 21 September 1897 in Kisangani. The Northern Provinces of the République Démocratique du Congo is overwhelmingly Roman Catholic; Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kisangani (Latin: Kisanganien(sis)) is the Metropolitan See for the Ecclesiastical province
of Kisangani in the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC) . Kisangani Suffragan Sees include the areas of Bondo, Bunia
, Buta
, Doruma
– Dungu
, Isangi, Isiro
– Niangara
, Mahagi – Nioka and Wamba. Marcel Utembi Tapa is the current Archbishop
of Kisangani, since 28 November 2008.
Due to the percentile of non-European cultures, there is a diversity of non-Christian religions. Islam maybe the largest non-Christian group, There are small communities of Jews
and Hindus who work in commercial urban areas.
, the Church of Kisangani became Vicariate Apostolic of Stanley Falls has of March 12, 1908. It then became the Archdiocese of Stanleyville on November 10, 1959 and was later renamed to the Archdiocese of Kisangani on 30 May 1966.
One of the most revered religious leaders is Reverend Father Gabriel Grison, Bishop Grison is buried at the Mission St. Gabriel in Kisangani and a monument dedicated to him on Monseigneur Grison Avenue.
The territory of Archdiocese of Kisangani has been divided several times: August 11, 1913, by selling Irumu the Apostolic Vicariate of Lake Albert, 9 April 1934 by the detachment of the Mission now the Diocese of Butembo
-Beni, March 10, 1949 by the detachment of the Apostolic Vicariate of Wamba, April 23, 1956 through the sale of several missions to the Vicariate Apostolic of Kindu.
The Archdiocese in the Eastern Province, Kisangani also includes a part of the territories of Bafwasende
, Banalia, Basoko
, Opala, Ubundu
and Tshopo; in the region of North Kivu and parts of the territory of Lubutu.
The Archdiocese of Kisangani commands an area of 150.123 Km2, of a population numbering 988,854, in which 552.526 are Catholics and 18.000 Catechumens.
, Jean-Luc Ernst , Koffi Olomide
, Moreno (Batamba Wenda Morris), Reverend Father Gabriel Grison
.
Since its devolution in 2006, Kisangani has been the Capital of Tshopo with a "strong" mayor-council form of government. Decentralisation of central government power was enabled to give provincial governments more control of matters that directly affect them. The government of Kisangani is more centralized than that of most other RDC cities. As a constitutional democracy, Kisangani is governed by a wide range of institutions: the judiciary
, the police
, the civil service
and the institutions of local government. In Kisangani, the central government is responsible for public education
, correctional institutions, libraries, public safety
, recreational facilities, sanitation
, water supply
and welfare services.
The People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy
(PPRD) holds the majority of public offices. As of November 2006, most of registered voters in the city are PPRD. The present governor of all the north-eastern provinces, formally collectively known as Orientale is Medard Autsai Asenga. Kisangani is the capital of Orientale Province, (an area of the size comparable to that of Spain
) and the city will also be the headquarters of the Tshopo Province
, when the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC)’s provinces begin to operate under their proposed jurisdictions. Kisangani was given the official nickname "City of Hope" by its government. Kisangani, a city home to some 1,200,000 civilians, is administratively divided into six urban communes: Makiso, Tshopo, Mangobo, Kabondo, Kisangani, and Lubunga and the communities of Lubuya and Bera are also parts of Kisangani City. Each commune is home to dozens of smaller
neighborhoods (known in French as quartiers).
The head of the city government in Kisangani is the mayor, who is first among equals in the City Council. The mayor in the period of 2008-2009 was Guy Shilton Baendo. The city council is a democratically elected institution and is the final decision-making authority in the city, although much power is centralized in the executive committee. The Council has jurisdiction over many matters, including public security, agreements with other governments, subsidy programs, the environment, urban planning, and a three-year capital expenditure program. The City Council is also required to supervise, standardize or approve certain decisions made by the commune councils.
Reporting directly to the City Council, the executive committee exercises decision-making powers similar to that of the cabinet in a parliamentary system and is responsible for preparing various documents including budgets and by-laws, submitted to the City Council
for approval. The decision-making powers of the executive committee cover, in particular, the awarding of contracts or grants, the management of human and financial resources, supplies and buildings. It may also be assigned further powers by the City Council.
. During 1964 Kisangani was under the siege of Simbas a group of powerful radical tradition with large and highly organized socialist, anarchist and labor organizations.
Indeed, a decree of Governor General dated September 6, 1958 and entered into force on 1 January 1959 established the city of Stanleyville. The city was divided into communes; each headed by a Mayor, the chief head of all of Stanleyville City was the city’s’ 1st Mayor.
The first consultation was held in commune of Stanleyville on Sunday, December 14, 1958. By Order No. 12/35 of September 6, 1958, the territory of Stanleyville took the status of a city. Stanleyville was divided into 4 municipalities: Belgian I, Belgian II, Brussels and Stanley.
Stanleyville’s City Council assisted each mayor in running the whole city, whilst each of the municipalities was assisted by Municipal Councils. The mayors of municipalities and municipal council members were elected. The city council included members of law, the mayors of municipalities, members appointed has company representatives, middle class representative and members representing the municipal councils.
has however attacked this corporate-centred model because it undermines the state's responsibility to create a functioning system of social services.
The law states that the schooling age is from 5 to 19 years old, of which comprises 39% of Kisangani’s population. The working age begins at 20 years and retirement age is set at 69 years old of which is 41.42% of the City’s demography.
In 2007, there were 381 academic and research staff, most of them (215) active in the humanities and social sciences – but the recent history of the institution overshadows its current realities.
Currently, the university’s income is derived from student fees (49 percent) and government subsidies (51 percent), but university management reports that the current income level is insufficient for effective operation. In addition, there is a serious need for infrastructure rehabilitation and additions, as well as for the acquisition of research literature. Although the university does not have a strategic plan to develop additional income sources, it is taking steps to increase academic fees to improve the daily operation of the institution.
The main challenges facing the university include serious weaknesses in the university’s information and communication technology (ICT) capabilities; and then the lack of qualified staff, of financial means, of premises and equipment, and of literature and laboratories. Clearly, the university’s physical infrastructure has not been rebuilt since the troubles. This is one reason why only 20% of the institutional focus of the Université de Kisangani is reckoned for research.
Kisangani is the seat of the Université de Kisangani (1963) and other institutions of Higher Technical Education (such as Technical Institute Maikazo and the Kisangani Hellenic
Center). The Kisangani Public Library, which has the largest collection of any public library system in the Kisangani, serves Makiso, Tshopo, Mangobo, Kabondo, Kisangani, Lubunga, Lubuya and Bera. The city's public school system is managed by the Kisangani Department of Education. The primary and secondary schools are public and privately run by secular and religious groups in the city.
wars of Euro-Arab in 1880s the city became the Belgium military and political base of operations in Northern Congo. In the mid-20th century, the city was transformed by immigration and development. A visionary development proposal expanded the city street grid to encompass all of Boyoma, and the 1819 opening of a railroad built to bypass the cataracts on the Congo River
, opened shipping routes further into the Congo jungle. Kisangani became the most populous urbanized area and the undisputed economic and cultural centre of Northern Congo.
, through a portage railway line over Boyoma Falls
.
Unlike many major cities, Kisangani does not have a problem with vehicular traffic congestion. Kisangani’s high rate of public transit use, daily Toleka users and many pedestrian commuters makes it the most energy-efficient major city in the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC). Walk and tolek modes of travel account for high percentage of all modes for trips in the city. The Tolek is a cycling taxi ("Toleka" means "Time" in Lingala), that emerged as the primary means of transportation around Kisangani during the mid 1990s.
As the city lies between stretches of the Tshopo River and Congo River
, many tributaries and islands are intertwined conducive to moving inland waterways for the population of Kisangani and the transportation of goods by ships, boats or canoe (paddle or motorized), from one bank to another and from one neighbourhood to the another is made possible. Waterway systems connect Kisangani to various locales within and outside the city (including Isangi
and Lomami). Kisangani is the highest navigable point on the River Congo and the terminus of river traffic from Kinshasa and all ports operated by ONATRA.
A considerable amount of automobile taxis and buses are also employed to supporting public transit throughout the city. The building of new gas stations and rehabilitation efforts for redevelopment of urban roads and the opening of the No. 4 National Highway Road are among the main factors behind this resumption of automobiles. The redevelopment of the National Highway Road No.4 has meant an increase in scrambling shuttles of traffic between Kisangani, Bafwasende
, Komanda, Nurse, Mambasa
, Beni and Butembo
. Kisangani provides connections to Ubundu
and Opala, along the southern corridors of Ubundu
and Opala road respectively as well as long-distance road networks to cities such as Lubutu, Walikale
, Goma
and Kigali
(in Rwanda
) by way of the National Highway Road No. 2. Kisangani is part of the Trans-African Highway network
8 (TAH 8), at a length of 6259 km, the Trans-African Highway between Lagos
(Nigeria) - Mombasa
(Kenya) is longest transcontinental route between East-west of Africa
. Kisangani also has access to the Indian Ocean
coast by way of a highway corridor connecting the city to Dar-es-Salaam
(Tanzania)
Kisangani is served by Bangoka International Airport
on the far east side and the older Simi-Simi Airport
on the west side. Bangoka is for commercial passenger flights and cargo only, whereas Simi-Simi mainly serves military purposes, though it also hosts some private and humanitarian flights.
Following the mandate of “5 Chantiers” the city of Kisangani road network undergoing redevelopment to make the city more integrated with towns and cities of other provinces, especially the eastern provinces that made up Orientale Province. Boulevards in and around downtown Kisangani are part of the project.
The transcontinental road projects in Africa, Trans-African Highway network encompass Kisangani through the Lagos-Mombasa Highway
.
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
. It is the 3rd largest urbanized city in the country and the largest of the cities that lie in the tropical woodlands of the Congo.
Formerly known as Stanleyville in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
(or Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
as ), the city takes its present name from Boyoma
Boyoma Falls
Boyoma Falls, formerly known as Stanley Falls, consists of seven cataracts, each no more than 15' high, extending over more than along a curve of the Lualaba River between the river port towns of Ubundu and Kisangani/Boyoma in the Orientale region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.At the...
, the seven-arched falls located north of the city, whose name was also initially given to the landscape on which the city is located, Singitini (or Singatini) as rendered in Lingala, (Kisangani is from present Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
), each of which share the same meaning “the City on the Island”, in reference to the surrounding tributaries (whose waters separate much of Kisangani from the mainland). It is also known as "Kisangani Boyoma", and the demonym for Kisangani is Boyoman (or Boyomais in French).
The languages most spoken at home by the population in the city are Swahili and Lingala, followed by French. The official language of Kisangani is French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
as defined by the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Some 1,300 miles from the mouth of the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
, the city of Kisangani is the farthest navigable point upstream. Kisangani is the nation’s major inland port after Kinshasa
Kinshasa
Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
, an important commercial hub point for river and land transportation and a major marketing and distribution centre for the north-eastern part of the country. It has been the commercial capital of the northern Congo since the late 19th century.
Kisangani has been home to influential politicians, including the national hero Patrice Emery Lumumba, the first prime minister of the country.
History
Henry Morton Stanley
Sir Henry Morton Stanley, GCB, born John Rowlands , was a Welsh journalist and explorer famous for his exploration of Africa and his search for David Livingstone. Upon finding Livingstone, Stanley allegedly uttered the now-famous greeting, "Dr...
founded Stanley Falls Station in 1883, on the island of Wana Rusari in the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
near the present town of Kisangani. During the mid-19th century the area was inhabited by a native Congolese tribe known as the clans of Enya, who had used Wagenia falls (nicknamed Stanley Falls by Stanley) for fishing. The island is located a few meters from the shore site of the present town on the Lualaba River
Lualaba River
The Lualaba River is the greatest headstream of the Congo River by volume of water. However, by length the Chambeshi River is the farthest headstream. The Lualaba is 1800 km long, running from near Musofi in the vicinity of Lubumbashi in Katanga Province. The whole of its length lies within the...
its 7 falls spread over 100 km between Kisangani and Ubundu
Ubundu
Ubundu, formerly known as Ponthierville or Ponthierstad, is a city located in Tshopo District in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is on the Congo River, just above the Boyoma Falls...
.
Some 1,300 miles from the mouth of the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
, Stanley founded the area’s first trading post for King Leopold II of Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
in December 1883. The city was known first as Falls Station (or "the Post Stanley Falls" or "The Falls" or simply "Boyoma" the African name of Boyoma Falls
Boyoma Falls
Boyoma Falls, formerly known as Stanley Falls, consists of seven cataracts, each no more than 15' high, extending over more than along a curve of the Lualaba River between the river port towns of Ubundu and Kisangani/Boyoma in the Orientale region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.At the...
) and then with Belgian colonization of the area, it grew into a settlement called Stanleyville (after the explorer Henry Morton Stanley
Henry Morton Stanley
Sir Henry Morton Stanley, GCB, born John Rowlands , was a Welsh journalist and explorer famous for his exploration of Africa and his search for David Livingstone. Upon finding Livingstone, Stanley allegedly uttered the now-famous greeting, "Dr...
). A city terminus of steamer navigation on the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
, the town began as a Belgian trading post. It has been the major centre of the northern Congo since the late 19th century.
Stanley left Mr. Binnie, an engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
and a Scotsman
Scotsman
Scotsman may mean:* a man from Scotland, in common parlance - see also Scottish people.* No true Scotsman, a common logical fallacy.*The Scotsman, a national newspaper based in Edinburgh, Scotland....
, in charge to trade with the natives and to represent the Congo Free State
Congo Free State
The Congo Free State was a large area in Central Africa which was privately controlled by Leopold II, King of the Belgians. Its origins lay in Leopold's attracting scientific, and humanitarian backing for a non-governmental organization, the Association internationale africaine...
. The name "Kisangani" was apparently used consistently by the natives, in conjunction with the name "Stanleyville" (as the city was referred to in French and respectively Stanleystad in Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
). In Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
the manual published by the Marist Brothers in the 20s, we find an example of substitution naming "from X to Stanleyville" which is translated "toka X Mpaka Kisangani". The name "Kisangani" is a Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
rendering of the native Congolese word Boyoma, meaning “City on the Island”, also rendered in Lingala as Singitini (or Singatini) with the same meaning.
Soon after the establishment of relational ties between the natives and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
ans, East African
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
slavers from Zanzibar
Zanzibar
Zanzibar ,Persian: زنگبار, from suffix bār: "coast" and Zangi: "bruin" ; is a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania, in East Africa. It comprises the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of numerous small islands and two large ones: Unguja , and Pemba...
, often erroneously called "Arabs" by Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an writers of the time, reached Stanley Falls. Relations between Free State Officials and the slavers were strained and after a fight the Station was abandoned in 1887.
After the Arab-Euro wars in the Congo, in 1888 the Free State obtained (after negotiations in Zanzibar) an agreement to establish a form of power by appointing Mohammed Bin Alfan Mujreb Tippu Tip
Tippu Tip
Tippu Tip or Tib , real name Hamad bin Muḥammad bin Jumah bin Rajab bin Muḥammad bin Sa‘īd al-Murghabī, , was a Swahili-Zanzibari trader. He was famously known as Tippu Tib after an eye disease which made him blind...
, one of the greatest Zanzibar
Zanzibar
Zanzibar ,Persian: زنگبار, from suffix bār: "coast" and Zangi: "bruin" ; is a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania, in East Africa. It comprises the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of numerous small islands and two large ones: Unguja , and Pemba...
slavers as first governor of the district of "Stanleyfalls" stretching from eastern Tanganyika
Tanganyika
Tanganyika , later formally the Republic of Tanganyika, was a sovereign state in East Africa from 1961 to 1964. It was situated between the Indian Ocean and the African Great Lakes of Lake Victoria, Lake Malawi and Lake Tanganyika...
in Ituri
Ituri Interim Administration
The Ituri Interim Administration is an interim body that administers the Ituri region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It was established in 2003 by the Ituri Pacification Commission and supported by the UN mission in the DRC.-History:...
through Maniema
Maniema
Maniema is a province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Kindu.Following the 2005 Constitution , 25 new provinces were to be created from the 10 current provinces within 36 months . As of October 2010, this had not taken place...
. Ultimately the Europeans gained complete control of the vast area in central Africa
Central Africa
Central Africa is a core region of the African continent which includes Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda....
.
On July 15, 1898, Stanleyville began serving as the capital of the relatively prosperous District of the Eastern Province Stanleyfalls. City status was achieved by incorporation Order No. 12/357 on 6 September 1958, which divided Stanleyville into 4 municipalities: Belgian I, Belgian II, Brussels and Stanley.
Towards the end of 1958 the city became the stronghold of Patrice Emery Lumumba, the leader of the political party Mouvement National Congolais
Mouvement National Congolais
The Mouvement National Congolais is a political party in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.-History:The party was founded in 1958 as a nationalist, pro-independence group in the Belgian Congo...
(MNC). His strong ties with the city had been forged during his days as one of 350 clerks at the central post office. After the assassination of Lumumba in 1961, Antoine Gizenga
Antoine Gizenga
Antoine Gizenga is a Congolese politician who was Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from December 30, 2006 to 10 October 2008...
installed a government that competed with the central government in Leopoldville (now Kinshasa
Kinshasa
Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
). Before the country gained independence from Belgium in 1960, Kisangani was reputed to have more Rolls-Royces
Rolls-Royce (car)
This a list of Rolls-Royce motor cars and includes vehicles produced by:*Rolls-Royce Limited *Rolls-Royce Motors , which was owned by Vickers between 1980 and 1998, and after that by Volkswagen...
per capita
Per capita
Per capita is a Latin prepositional phrase: per and capita . The phrase thus means "by heads" or "for each head", i.e. per individual or per person...
than any other city in the world.
Stanleyville served as the capital and center of the secessionist independent state of the Republic of Congo during the bloody seize of the Orientale and Kivu provinces by Simba rebels in late 1964. During the Congo Crisis
Congo Crisis
The Congo Crisis was a period of turmoil in the First Republic of the Congo that began with national independence from Belgium and ended with the seizing of power by Joseph Mobutu...
, the Simbas took over 1,600 Belgian and other European hostages and after 111 days of negotiating, Operation Dragon Rouge was launched by the United States, Belgium, and the Congolise Army which include a mercenary force called "L'Ommegang" under the command of Colonel Frederic Vandewalle to free the hostages. 1,000 government troops of the Armie National Congolaise (ANC), ferret armoured cars and 100 vehicles loaded with gasoline and ammo made the final leap to Stanleyville. The airborne assault phase of the hostage rescue operation was referred to as "Dragon Rouge", and "Mad" Mike Hoare
Mike Hoare
Thomas Michael Hoare is an Irish mercenary leader known for military activities in Africa and his failed attempt to conduct a coup d'état in the Seychelles.-Early life and military career:...
and his mercenary unit also were part of Vandewalle's assault column.
In 1966 and 1967, Kisangani was the site of the Mercenaries' Mutinies, whom were looting and pillaging the city. The Armée National Congolaise, Belgian Armed Forces and United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
troops opposed the Mercenaries forces and took control of the city in 1967 under a strong mandate.
With the assumption of the "Zairianization" program in 1970s by Mobutu Sese Seko
Mobutu Sese Seko
Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga , commonly known as Mobutu or Mobutu Sese Seko , born Joseph-Désiré Mobutu, was the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1965 to 1997...
, Stanleyville was official renamed to Kisangani, Stanleyfalls assumed the name Wagenia Falls, and as of October 27, 1977 the municipalities were renamed to their current name: Belgian I (Mangobo and Tshopo ), Belgian II (Lubunga), Brussels (Kabondo) and Stanley (Makiso).
Africa's World War
In the 1990s, the area emerged as the theatre for a series of major battles known as the fight of Kisangani during the First Congo WarFirst Congo War
The First Congo War was a revolution in Zaire that replaced President Mobutu Sésé Seko, a decades-long dictator, with rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila. Destabilization in eastern Zaire that resulted from the Rwandan genocide was the final factor that caused numerous internal and external actors...
. Laurent-Désiré Kabila
Laurent-Désiré Kabila
Laurent-Désiré Kabila was President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from May 17, 1997, when he overthrew Mobutu Sese Seko, until his assassination by his bodyguards on January 18, 2001...
, leader of the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo
Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo
The Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo-Zaire was a coalition of Congolese dissidents, disgruntled minority groups and nations that toppled President Mobutu Sese Seko and brought Laurent Kabila to power in the First Congo War...
invaded the Congo from the eastern region of the country with assistance from Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
, Burundi
Burundi
Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...
and Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
military forces. As of 30 October in 1998, there were 15,000 Ugandan and 19,000 Rwandan troops on Congolese soil. Laurent Kabila designated Kisangani as the forward base for the foreign forces as he marched westwards towards Kinshasa
Kinshasa
Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
to overthrow Mobutu Sese Seko
Mobutu Sese Seko
Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga , commonly known as Mobutu or Mobutu Sese Seko , born Joseph-Désiré Mobutu, was the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1965 to 1997...
.
The alliance of foreign military forces disintegrated when people of Hutu descent were massacred by the thousands in western Zaire as well as looting in the mining areas, in particular Kisangani and the Kivus. The population was completely opposed to the presence of foreign forces because of their behaviour. Laurent-Désiré Kabila
Laurent-Désiré Kabila
Laurent-Désiré Kabila was President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from May 17, 1997, when he overthrew Mobutu Sese Seko, until his assassination by his bodyguards on January 18, 2001...
could not continue to support the use of Kisangani as the base for foreign fighters as they launched attacks to massacre the Hutu people - hence he demanded that Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
pull its forces out of the country.
In 1999, the city was the site of the first open fighting between Ugandan and Rwandan forces in the Second Congo War
Second Congo War
The Second Congo War, also known as Coltan War and the Great War of Africa, began in August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo , and officially ended in July 2003 when the Transitional Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo took power; however, hostilities continue to this...
, when nearly 3,000 people died in the cross fire. This followed the fracturing of the anti-government rebel group Rally for Congolese Democracy
Rally for Congolese Democracy
The Congolese Rally for Democracy, sometimes Rally for Congolese Democracy, was a rebel group operating in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo . Assisted by the government of Rwanda, it was a major factor in the Second Congo War . It became a political party in 2003...
(RCD) into camps based in Kisangani and Goma
Goma
Goma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. The lake and the two cities are in the western branch of the Great Rift Valley, and Goma lies only 13 to 18 km due south of the crater of the active...
. The fighting was also over the gold mines near the town. The local population was caught in the cross fire between Ugandan and Rwandan military forces which led to the destruction of about a quarter of the city. Various buildings were damaged, most notably the roof of the Cathedral Rosaire of Notre-Dame, which was ignited by missiles. Both of the foreign forces were reported to have looted and pillaged the city. Despite the condemnation of Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
by the International Court of Justice, establishment of responsibilities, realization of compensation, or arrests are yet to be made.
More clashes between Rwandan and Ugandan led to thousands more deaths and widespread destruction on June 5, 2000.
During the Second Congo War
Second Congo War
The Second Congo War, also known as Coltan War and the Great War of Africa, began in August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo , and officially ended in July 2003 when the Transitional Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo took power; however, hostilities continue to this...
, on 14 May 2002, 160 people were massacred in Kisangani which is believed to be the work of those under the command of Laurent Nkunda
Laurent Nkunda
Laurent Nkunda or Laurent Nkundabatware, or Laurent Nkunda Batware, or as he prefers to be called The Chairman — is a former General in the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo and is the former warlord operating in the province of Nord-Kivu, sympathetic to Congolese Tutsis and the...
. By the time a peace agreement was signed in 2002, the town was under the control of the Rwandan-backed Rally for Congolese Democracy - Goma (RCD-Goma).
The three encounters between Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
and Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
in Kisangani have been coined the wars of 1 day, 3 days and the deadliest of 6 days in 2000.
Geography
Kisangani is strategically placed at the junction of the CongoCongo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
,
Tshopo, and Lindi rivers and at the crossroads between eastern and western Congo. Approximately central of the Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n continent, it is located in North-eastern République Démocratique du Congo (RDC), central of Tshopo Province
Tshopo Province
Tshopo is one of 25 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo specified in the country's 2005 Constitution . It was to be created from the country's existing 10 provinces within 36 months . As of October 2010, this had not taken place...
. The location at the northernmost tip of the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
, navigable for large waterborne cargo between Kinshasa
Kinshasa
Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
and Kisangani, which feeds into a naturally transportation waterway for much of the Congo Basin
Congo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...
, has helped the city grow in significance as a trading city.
Kisangani is at the centre of the Tshopo
Tshopo Province
Tshopo is one of 25 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo specified in the country's 2005 Constitution . It was to be created from the country's existing 10 provinces within 36 months . As of October 2010, this had not taken place...
, and is bordered by the city of Banalia to the north, Ubundu and Opala
Opala Territory
Opala is a territory in the Tshopo District of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.The administrative center is the town of Opala. Other communities are Yatolema, Lokilo and Mayoko.The territory is divided into Sectors and Chiefdoms:*Balinga-Lindja Sector...
territories to the south, Isangi to the west and Bafwasende municipalities to the east. The city of Kisangani lies 324 km from Buta
Buta
Buta is a town and seat of Buta Territory in the northern Democratic Republic of Congo, lying on the Rubi River, a tributary of the Itimbiri River. It is headquarters of the Bas-Uele District, Orientale Province...
, 572 kilometres (355.4 mi) of Isiro
Isiro
Isiro is the capital of Haut-Uele District in the northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It lies between the equatorial forest and the savannah and its main resource is coffee. Isiro's population is estimated at approximately 150,000...
, 696 kilometres (432.5 mi) from Bunia
Bunia
Bunia is a city in Democratic Republic of the Congo and is the headquarters of Ituri Interim Administration in the Ituri region of Orientale Province....
and 2912 kilometres (1,809.4 mi) from Kinshasa
Kinshasa
Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
.
Lualaba River
The Lualaba River is the greatest headstream of the Congo River by volume of water. However, by length the Chambeshi River is the farthest headstream. The Lualaba is 1800 km long, running from near Musofi in the vicinity of Lubumbashi in Katanga Province. The whole of its length lies within the...
flows through a bend to a confluence with the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
, at the alteration of the waterways lies the city of Kisangani. Much of Kisangani City is built on the location of land defined in between the river stretches of Tshopo river on its north and by the Congo River on its south. Many tributaries and islands are intertwined conducive to moving inland waterways. Tidal straits actually separate L'Île Mbiye from mainland of Kisangani City. The city is locally referred to as Boyoma after the prominent geographical feature on land, Boyoma Falls
Boyoma Falls
Boyoma Falls, formerly known as Stanley Falls, consists of seven cataracts, each no more than 15' high, extending over more than along a curve of the Lualaba River between the river port towns of Ubundu and Kisangani/Boyoma in the Orientale region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.At the...
. The seven cataracts have a total drop of 61 meters (200 feet). Falls Wagenia where the fishery is installed on the rapids can be seen.
The city's land area is estimated at 1910 square kilometres. The City of Kisangani has a density of 229 inhabitants per km². The city seats in the midst of the vast and isolated Congo Basin
Congo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...
, the second largest tropical woodlands on the planet. It is located at 0º 31' north latitude from the equator (57 km), 25º 11' east longitude from the meridian of Greenwich and 1 404.1 feet (428 meters) above sea level.
L'Île Mbiye is situated on the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
in the Eastern part of Kisangani. It is located upstream of the Wagenia Falls, between latitude 0º31' North and longitude 25º11' East, with 376m of altitude. It adjoins the town of Kisangani, and it is 14 km long and 4 km wide. All around Kisangani, L'Île Mbiye is the only ecosystem that has a dense forest that is relatively well preserved. The Island is part of the Sustainable Forest Management in Africa Symposium project of forest ecosystem conservation conducted by Stellenbosch University
Stellenbosch University
Stellenbosch University is a public research university situated in the town of Stellenbosch, South Africa. Other nearby universities are the University of Cape Town and University of the Western Cape....
. The Island has an area of 1,400 ha, and it comprises three types of forest: dry land forest, periodically flooded forest and swampy forest.
Climate
Despite being adjacent to the equator, the city has a tropical monsoon climateTropical monsoon climate
Tropical monsoon climate, occasionally also known as a tropical wet climate or tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate in climate classification, is a relatively rare type of climate that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category "Am."Tropical monsoon climates have monthly...
due to the fact that its driest month (January) sees on average below 60 mm of rain. Kisangani experiences an average relative humidity of 86%.
Typical climate in regions through which the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
flows is that of Kisangani, a town situated on the river’s right and left bank slightly north of the Equator
Equator
An equator is the intersection of a sphere's surface with the plane perpendicular to the sphere's axis of rotation and containing the sphere's center of mass....
. Humidity is high throughout the year, and annual rainfall amounts to 64 inches (1,620 mm) and occurs fairly regularly; even in the driest month the rainfall totals more than 2 inches (53 mm). Temperatures are also uniformly high throughout the year, and there is little diurnal variability. The average temperature at Kisangani is in the mid-70s F (mid-20sC). Kisangani is also a beneficiary of a cool breeze that often blows off the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
.
Environment
The Congo forestCongo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...
is an important biodiversity hotspot. It is home to okapi
Okapi
The okapi , Okapia johnstoni, is a giraffid artiodactyl mammal native to the Ituri Rainforest, located in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in Central Africa...
, bonobo monkeys
Bonobo
The bonobo , Pan paniscus, previously called the pygmy chimpanzee and less often, the dwarf or gracile chimpanzee, is a great ape and one of the two species making up the genus Pan. The other species in genus Pan is Pan troglodytes, or the common chimpanzee...
and the Congo peafowl
Congo Peafowl
The Congo Peafowl is a species of peafowl. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Afropavo.The male is a large bird of up to in length. Its feathers are deep blue with a metallic green and violet tinge. It has bare red neck skin, grey feet, and a black tail with fourteen feathers...
, but is also an important source of African teak
Teak
Teak is the common name for the tropical hardwood tree species Tectona grandis and its wood products. Tectona grandis is native to south and southeast Asia, mainly India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Burma, but is naturalized and cultivated in many countries, including those in Africa and the...
, used for building furniture and flooring. An estimated 40 million people depend on these woodlands, surviving on traditional livelihoods. At a global level, Congo's forests act as the planet's second lung, counterpart to the rapidly dwindling Amazon. They are a huge "carbon sink," trapping carbon that could otherwise become carbon dioxide, the main cause of global warming. The Congo Basin
Congo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...
holds roughly 8 percent of the world's forest-based carbon. These jungles also affect rainfall across the North Atlantic. In other words, these distant forests are crucial to the future of climate stability, a bulwark against runaway climate change
Runaway climate change
Runaway climate change describes a theoretical scenario in which the climate system passes a threshold or tipping point, after which internal positive feedback effects cause the climate to continue changing without further external forcings...
.
A moratorium on logging in the Congo forest was agreed with the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
and the République Démocratique du Congo in May 2002. The World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
agreed to provide $90 million of development aid to RDC
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
with the proviso that the government did not issue any new concessions granting logging companies rights to exploit the forest. The deal also prohibited the renewal of existing concessions.
Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
is calling on the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
to "think outside the box" and use the forest's potential in the battle against climate change. If these woodlands are deforested, the carbon they trap will be released into the atmosphere. It says that 8% of the Earth's forest-based carbon is stored in the RDC's forests. Predictions for future unabated deforestation estimate that by 2050 activities in the DRC
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
will release roughly the same amount of carbon dioxide as the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
has emitted over the last 60 years.
The government has written a new forestry code that requires companies to invest in local development and follow a sustainable, twenty-five-year cycle of rotational logging. When a company is granted a concession from central government to log in Congo, it must sign an agreement with the local chiefs and hereditary land owners, who give permission for it to extract the trees in return for development packages. In theory, the companies must pay government nearly $18m rent a year for these concessions, of which 40% in taxes paid should be returned to provincial governments for investment in social development of the local population in the logged areas.
In its current form, the Kyoto protocol does not reward so-called "avoided deforestation" - initiatives that protect forest from being cut down. But many climate scientists and policymakers hope that negotiations for Kyoto's successor will include such measures. If this were the case, there could be a financial incentive for protecting forests.
L’Île Mbiye in Kisangani is part of the Sustainable Forest Management in Africa Symposium project of forest ecosystem conservation conducted by Stellenbosch University
Stellenbosch University
Stellenbosch University is a public research university situated in the town of Stellenbosch, South Africa. Other nearby universities are the University of Cape Town and University of the Western Cape....
. République Démocratique du Congo (RDC) is also looking to expand the area of forest under protection, for which it hopes to secure compensation through emerging markets
Emerging markets
Emerging markets are nations with social or business activity in the process of rapid growth and industrialization. Based on data from 2006, there are around 28 emerging markets in the world . The economies of China and India are considered to be the largest...
for forest carbon.
The main Congolese environmental organization working to save the forests is an NGO called OCEAN
Ocean
An ocean is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the hydrosphere. Approximately 71% of the Earth's surface is covered by ocean, a continuous body of water that is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller seas.More than half of this area is over 3,000...
, which serves as the link between international outfits like Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
and local community groups in the concessions.
Architecture
A highly noticeable feature of Kisangani architecture is in the midst of Congo BasinCongo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...
s, vast and isolated forest, modern multi-storey buildings of brick emerge from the dense walls of jungle greenery. Multiple kinds and scales of houses, townhouses, condominiums, and apartment buildings can be found in Kisangani. The building form most closely associated with Kisangani is of Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
influence, whose introduction and widespread adoption in colonial times saw Kisangani’s buildings shift from the thatch African tradition to the low-scale and vertical rise of European business districts.
Kisangani has architecturally significant buildings in a wide range of styles still in their original form. These include the Aumonerie which is distinctive for its facade using visible stone-tone to evoke the building's structure, the impressive 20th century headquarters landmark that is Central Prisons’ with its towering fortress walls, Cathédrale Notre-Dame du Rosaire, an early cathedral revival built with massively scaled stone detailing and the Congo Palace on avenue de l'eglise is an important example of highly influential European style buildings in Kisangani.
The character of Kisangani’s urban residential districts is often defined by the elegant villas with tiled roofs of old Belgium influence, brownstone
Brownstone
Brownstone is a brown Triassic or Jurassic sandstone which was once a popular building material. The term is also used in the United States to refer to a terraced house clad in this material.-Types:-Apostle Island brownstone:...
rowhouses, townhouses, and tenements that were built during a period of rapid expansion from 1908 to 1950. Large swaths of Kisangani's rural residential areas away from the city centre are characterized by continual strings of villages unfolding, each composed of thatched roof tops built from the early 20th century through to the present day. At times the path is filled with a sweet floral fragrance and clouded with white and purple butterflies. Forests give way to patches of grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
, then clumps of bamboo
Bamboo
Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....
and then more forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
.
Communes
The city of Kisangani is composed of 6 large communes of which are further subdivided into smaller neighbourhoods. The partitioned communes are Lubunga, Makiso, Kisangani, Tshopo, Kabondo and Mangobo. Throughout the boroughs there are hundreds of distinct neighbourhoods, many with a definable history and character to call their own. All municipalities in the city have a nickname denoting how Boyoma perceive their cities. Therefore Kisangani, which in SwahiliSwahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
means on the island ("Kisanga" translates island and "ni" is on) is official given the nickname of "City of Hope" by administrative authorities in opposition to the title of martyred city. Boyomas’ affectionately nicknamed their city "Boyoma Singa Mwambé", that translates has before reaching the most beautiful city the pole must be thrown 8 times (Boyoma means the most beautiful girl, while Singa is the mast and Mwambé is the number 8).
- Kisangani commune is commonly referred to as "Tolimo" in Kigenyi, mainly due to the craft of scaffolds installed on Wagenia Falls.
- Mangobo is the city's most populous commune and is known as "Mathématique" because of the difficulty in locating particular street addresse names that are simply manuscript numbered rather than word labelled. The commune is home to the political youth movement the "Bana Etats-Unis" (Children of the United States)
- Tshopo is Kisangani City's northernmost commune, it features a long beachfront. Its home to an hydroelectric plant and the site of Tshopo River.
- Makiso is the most densely populated borough and home to many of the city's commercial and financial institutions. The commune contains the headquarters of many major corporations, NGOs, International organisations, the United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, as well as a number of important administrative structures of governorship, and many cultural attractions. Its the site of a continuous supply of electricity with some of the most beautiful houses and of the widest boulevardsBoulevardsBoulevards is a network of city guides on the Internet established in 1994 by Boulevards New Media Inc., an early digital media pioneer. It preceded other city guide networks such as Citysearch and Microsoft's now-defunct Sidewalk.com product, which launched under a similarly metaphorical brand and...
. Makiso is as known as "Miroir". - Lubunga is the most suburban communeCommuneCommune may refer to:In society:* Commune, a human community in which resources are shared* Commune , a township or municipality* One of the Communes of France* An Italian Comune...
in character of the Six communes. Ascribed the nickname of "Pays" it supplies Kisangani with most of its agricultural crops. - Kabondo is the communeCommuneCommune may refer to:In society:* Commune, a human community in which resources are shared* Commune , a township or municipality* One of the Communes of France* An Italian Comune...
that usually takes lead in annually hosting some of the citys largest parades and public events mainly due to its cultural and social and ethnic diversity, an independent art scene, distinct neighbourhoods and unique architectural heritage. As a result Kabondo is known as "Pilote".
Culture and contemporary life
The city is a centre for televisionTelevision
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
productions, radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
, theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
, film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, multimedia
Multimedia
Multimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...
and print publishing. Kisangani's many cultural communities have given it a distinct local culture. The city's waterfront allure and nightlife has attracted residents and tourists alike. As a Central African
Central Africa
Central Africa is a core region of the African continent which includes Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda....
city, Kisangani shares many cultural characteristics with the rest of the continent. It has a tradition of producing African Jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, Nu-Rumba, African Folk, Rumba
Rumba
Rumba is a family of percussive rhythms, song and dance that originated in Cuba as a combination of the musical traditions of Africans brought to Cuba as slaves and Spanish colonizers. The name derives from the Cuban Spanish word rumbo which means "party" or "spree". It is secular, with no...
and Ndombolo music. The city has also produced much talent in the fields of visual arts
Visual arts
The visual arts are art forms that create works which are primarily visual in nature, such as ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts, and often modern visual arts and architecture...
, theatre, music, and dance. Some of its better known popular culture residents include Aberti Masikini, Anne-Sylvie Mouzon, Barly Baruti
Barly Baruti
Baruti Kandolo Lilela, better known by his pen name Barly Baruti , is a Congolese comics writer and artist...
, Koffi Olomide
Koffi Olomide
Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba, also known as Koffi Olomide , is a DR Congolese soukous singer, dancer, producer, and composer. He is also known by a multitude of other names and aliases.-Background:...
and Moreno (Batamba Wenda Morris). Yet, being at the African confluence of the South and the North and West and East traditions, Kisangani has developed a unique and distinguished cultural face. Another distinctive characteristic of Kisangani culture life is to be found in the animation of its downtown, particularly during summer, prompted by cultural and social events, particularly festivals. The city's largest festival is the Cercle Boyoma Culture festival, which is the largest in the world of its kind. Other popular festivals include the Kisangani Jazz Festival, Kisangani Film Festival, Nuits d'Afrique and the Kisangani Fireworks Festival.
Entertainment and performing arts
Strongly influenced by the city's immigrants, productions such as those of Barly BarutiBarly Baruti
Baruti Kandolo Lilela, better known by his pen name Barly Baruti , is a Congolese comics writer and artist...
and others used song in narratives that often reflected themes of hope and ambition. Artists of all cultural disciplines in Kisangani such as musicians, stage actors, comedians
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, fashion
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
, cultural operators, draftsmen, folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, painters, sculptors, and silkscreen meet annually for the seasonal culture shows. Cercle Boyoma Culture is one of such shows where cultural activities of Kisangani come together synergistically for an exchange and reflection involving different associations of all cultural disciplines. Cercle Boyoma Culture is annually held in Makiso on 14 Fina Avenue from the month of December through to June. The culture show displays a digital audio recording studio, a large stage show, 10 booths that host libraries, internet cafes, sewing stations, interactive gaming machines and cafeterias.
The cultural space in Kisangani provides multitudes of beauty pageants a platform to exchange experiences, provide mentoring consultation and hosting of training seminars. Miss Boyoma is annually held in December, organised by the cities’ authority to determine the most beautiful girl in Kisangani. Elysée of 17 years old is Miss Boyoma 2009.
In the summer, many outdoor concerts are given which present performances of free plays and music in Central Park and free concerts, dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
, and theater events across all six communes in the summer months. The platform creates a framework for discussion and dialogue to promote cultural activities in the city by informing, educating and raising cultural awareness. Through the cultural framework of entertainment development of talented artists, writers and designers is supported by providing the young or obscure individuals with a platform to contribute in Kisangani’s cultural society.
Other live music genres which are part of the city's cultural heritage include Kisangani Blues, Kisangani Soul, African Jazz
South African jazz
South African jazz is the jazz music of South Africa, also often mistakenly called "African jazz".-History:As in the United States, South African jazz was strongly influenced by the music styles of the black population. That said influences from the US led to its formation...
, Rumba
Rumba
Rumba is a family of percussive rhythms, song and dance that originated in Cuba as a combination of the musical traditions of Africans brought to Cuba as slaves and Spanish colonizers. The name derives from the Cuban Spanish word rumbo which means "party" or "spree". It is secular, with no...
and gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
. The city is the birthplace of Congolese legendary musicians Aberti Masikini and Koffi Olomide
Koffi Olomide
Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba, also known as Koffi Olomide , is a DR Congolese soukous singer, dancer, producer, and composer. He is also known by a multitude of other names and aliases.-Background:...
and is the site of an influential Nu-Rumba scene. In the 1950s, the city was a center for African Folk, Rumba Lingala and African Jazz
South African jazz
South African jazz is the jazz music of South Africa, also often mistakenly called "African jazz".-History:As in the United States, South African jazz was strongly influenced by the music styles of the black population. That said influences from the US led to its formation...
. This influence continued into the Rumba
Rumba
Rumba is a family of percussive rhythms, song and dance that originated in Cuba as a combination of the musical traditions of Africans brought to Cuba as slaves and Spanish colonizers. The name derives from the Cuban Spanish word rumbo which means "party" or "spree". It is secular, with no...
of the 1960s. The city has been an epicenter for Ndombolo culture since the 1980s. A flourishing independent folk music culture brought forth Kisangani Blues. The city has also been spawning a critically acclaimed underground Nu-Rumba scene with various bands gaining national attention in the Nu-Rumba world. Annual festivals feature various acts such as the Cercle Boyoma Culture Festival.
Tourism
Shopping along the avenue de l'Eglise, its many restaurants, as well as Kisangani’s eminent architecture, continue to draw tourists. The city is the RDC’s third-largest convention destination. Most conventions are held at Stade LumumbaStade Lumumba
Stade Lumumba is a stadium located in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo. It has a seating capacity of 10,000 spectators. It serves as the home of AS Nika and TS Malekesa of the Linafoot.-External links:*...
, just north of Stade du Marche. The historic City Hall also now houses the city's Visitor Information Center, galleries and exhibit halls. The Alliance Franco-Congolese (AFRACO) building which hosts governmental conference.
The variety of attractions in Kisangani include botanical garden
Botanical garden
A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
s, museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
s, factories
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
, zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
s, exhibition halls, elevator
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...
s, retail stores, breweries
Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
, warehouse
Warehouse
A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They usually have loading docks to load and unload...
s, libraries
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
, mills
Mill (grinding)
A grinding mill is a unit operation designed to break a solid material into smaller pieces. There are many different types of grinding mills and many types of materials processed in them. Historically mills were powered by hand , working animal , wind or water...
, auditorium
Auditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances at venues such as theatres. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens.- Etymology :...
s and refineries
Refinery
A refinery is a production facility composed of a group of chemical engineering unit processes and unit operations refining certain materials or converting raw material into products of value.-Types of refineries:Different types of refineries are as follows:...
which today provide a legacy of historic and architectural interest, especially in the downtown area.
Rosaire of Notre-Dame Cathedral, Central Market and the impressive 19th century headquarters of all major Kisangani banks on 1st Avenue . Kisangani holds a campus of the National University of the Congo, which includes the renowned Medicine Faculty, made infamous by the Polio virus conspiracy. Kisangani also maintains the city’s focal library at University of Kisangani
University of Kisangani
The University of Kisangani is located in the city of Kisangani in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was founded in 1963 by Protestant missionaries as the Free University of Congo; it was transformed into part of the National University of Zaire in 1971, and in 1981 was separated from that...
. The city holds an extensive collection of ancient Congolese and near East African archaeological artifacts, at its regional archaeological and ethnological, the National Museum of Kisangani.
Other landmarks include: L'Hôtel des chutes, Le Voyageur, Hellénique ainsi que Psistaria, l'Hôtel Congo Palace, l'Hôtel Boyoma, l'Hôtel Kisanganian and L'Hôtel Palm Beach. Place de la Femme which was completed in 1934 as a dedication to Boyomaise women, the landmark One of the most revered religious leaders Reverend Father Gabriel Grison was buried at the Mission St. Gabriel in Kisangani and has monument dedicated to him on Monseigneur Grison Avenue. Mobutus'
Mobutu Sese Seko
Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga , commonly known as Mobutu or Mobutu Sese Seko , born Joseph-Désiré Mobutu, was the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1965 to 1997...
residential home on route de Lubutu, Place des Martyrs that held the Lumumba Square until 1967, the controversial Central Public Fountain that anchors the downtown park was installed by the distraction of the popular monument of Stanley and its surrounding structures are but a few notable examples of 20th century architecture.
On the right bank of the river Tshopo, the Kisangani Zoo attracts many visitors, as well as the Kisangani Hydroelectric Dam that supplies electricity to the city of Kisangani. At spectacular waterfall of Wagenia Falls, fishing with the old age tradition tools installed on the rapids can be witnessed. Fishing is practiced through a scaffold installed among rocks, with vines attached and serving through the tensioning creels of woven conical vines immersed in the current of the river.
A Major destination include the forest ecosystem of L’Île Mbiye, with is a part of protection conservation forest program called Sustainable Forest Management in Africa as spearheaded by Stellenbosch University
Stellenbosch University
Stellenbosch University is a public research university situated in the town of Stellenbosch, South Africa. Other nearby universities are the University of Cape Town and University of the Western Cape....
. L’Île Mbiye is an ecosystem with a well preserved dense forest. The Island has an area of 1,400 ha, and it comprises three types of forest: dry land forest, periodically flooded forest and swampy forest. The Island is situated on the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
in the eastern part of Kisangani. It is located upstream of the Wagenia Falls, between latitude 0º31' North and longitude 25º11' East, with 376 m of altitude. It adjoins the town of Kisangani, and it is 14 km long and 4 km wide.
Cuisine
Kisangani lays claim to a large number of regional specialties, all of which reflect the city's ethnic and working class roots. Included among these is its nationally renowned deep-dish Manioc.Kisangani’s food culture, influenced by the city's immigrants and large number of dining patrons, is diverse. Eastern Africa and Indian immigrants have made the city famous for their traditional foods. Some of the mobile food vendors licensed by the city have made foods such as husking paddy standbys of contemporary Kisangani street food, although kosa kosa and Kisangani coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
are still the main street fare. The city is also home to many of the finest prawn cuisine restaurants in the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC).
The Riviera
The Riviera
The Riviera is an historic site at 270 Huntington Avenue in Boston, Massachusetts.The building was constructed in 1923 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1995....
, La Vanille and Rwenzori constitute some of the city’s principal restaurants.
Media
Kisangani is well served by a variety of media outlets, including several SwahiliSwahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
, Lingala and French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
television stations, newspapers, radio stations, and magazines. There are four over-the-air Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
and Lingala-language television stations and they also air multicultural programming. There are also five over-the-air French-language television stations, including: Radio Télévision Nationale Congolaise (RTNC), Télé Boyoma and Radio Télévision Amani (RTA).
Kisangani has four daily newspapers, in Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
and Lingala language
Lingala language
Lingala, or Ngala, is a Bantu language spoken throughout the northwestern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a large part of the Republic of the Congo , as well as to some degree in Angola and the Central African Republic. It has over 10 million speakers...
Kisangani Gazette and the French-language Mungongo, La Tshopo, Le Thermomètre, Agence de Presse Congolaise and Kisangani. There are also two free French dailies, Nationaliste and Kisanga. Kisangani also has numerous weekly tabloids and community newspapers serving various neighbourhoods and schools. Mungongo is produced by young journalists of Université de Kisangani at the Faculty of Arts, with supervision of the news agency Syfia Great Lakes.
There are 11 AM and 23 FM radio stations in Kisangani. Of these13 broadcast in French, 16 broadcast in multiple languages and three stations are bilingual. The major Kisangani station networks include: Radio-Télévision Numérique Boyoma(RTNB), OPED FM and Radio Okapi
Radio Okapi
Radio Okapi is a radio network that operates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. On an annual budget of US$4.5 million, a staff of 200 provide news and information to the entire urban population of the DRC.-History:...
. All three networks broadcast in Lingala, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
.
OPED FM specializes in environmental issues and is headquartered in Kisangani. OPED is acronym for l’Organisation pour la Protection de l'Environnement et le Développement. OPED FM broadcasts can be heard in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
through radio Deutsche Welle
Deutsche Welle
Deutsche Welle or DW, is Germany's international broadcaster. The service is aimed at the overseas market. It broadcasts news and information on shortwave, Internet and satellite radio on 98.7 DZFE in 30 languages . It has a satellite television service , that is available in four languages, and...
.
RTNB has niche prioritizes business coverage of financial markets. The station works in partnership with Radio Télévision Belge Francophone (RTBF) and Radio Africa n°1. Programs of the two stations regularly broadcast in Kisangani.
Kisangani is a filming-friendly location. Since the 1920s, many motion pictures have been filmed in the city, most notably The Nun's Story (film)
The Nun's Story (film)
The Nun's Story is a 1959 Warner Brothers film directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Audrey Hepburn. Based upon the 1956 novel of the same title by Kathryn Hulme, the story tells of the life of Sister Luke , a young Belgian woman who decides to enter a convent and make the many sacrifices...
.
Sports
Sports of all kinds play an important part in many Boyomai’s lives. The city of Kisangani is home to several stadiums with the 3 main stadiums being Stade LumumbaStade Lumumba
Stade Lumumba is a stadium located in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo. It has a seating capacity of 10,000 spectators. It serves as the home of AS Nika and TS Malekesa of the Linafoot.-External links:*...
, Stade du Marche and the Stade of Athenee Royal.
The city is represented in Nationwide Football League Linafoot
Linafoot
The Linafoot is the top division of the Fédération Congolaise de Football-Association, the governing body of football in the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
by TS Malekesa
TS Malekesa
TS Malekesa is a football club in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo. They play in the Linafoot, the top level of professional football in DR Congo, and the Stade Lumumba with a capacity of 10,000. -Achievements:...
, RC Etoile d' and AS NIKA
AS Nika
AS Nika is a football club in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo. In the 2006/2007 season they played in the Linafoot, the top level of professional football in DR Congo. They play their home games in Stade Lumumba.-Achievements:...
in the 2009/2010 season. They both play their home games at a soccer-specific stadium called Stade Lumumba
Stade Lumumba
Stade Lumumba is a stadium located in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo. It has a seating capacity of 10,000 spectators. It serves as the home of AS Nika and TS Malekesa of the Linafoot.-External links:*...
.
Kisangani is also represented in Province Oriental Provincial League by, CS Makiso, Sotexki SC, RC Stella, AS Kisangani, RC Boyoma, Echo Sport, CS Monami, FC Procure, AS Vita Boyoma and AS Pars. They draw packed crowds at the small but picturesque Stade of Athenee Royal for their regular-season games. The current president of the Kisangani Football Association the Entente Urbaine of Football in Kisangani (EUFKIS) is Anaclet Kanangila who succeeded to the post left by Robert Kabemba.
Notable dates
Key dates of the Kisangani calendar include:Date Name
- 4 January - Martyrs' Day of Independence
- 16 January - Anniversary of the assassination of President Laurent-Désiré KabilaLaurent-Désiré KabilaLaurent-Désiré Kabila was President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from May 17, 1997, when he overthrew Mobutu Sese Seko, until his assassination by his bodyguards on January 18, 2001...
- 17 January - Anniversary of the assassination of Prime Minister Patrice Emery Lumumba father of national independence
- 5 June - commemorates the victims of the military clash between Uganda and Rwanda in 2000. The ASBL Solidarity Fund for Victims of Eastern Province Wars chairs the commemorative events. The secretary for the organisation is Aziza Sydol Baele
- 24 June - National day of fishermen
- 1 May - International Workers' Day
- 17 May - Day of the seizure of power by the ADFL (Liberation Mobutism)
- 30 June - Anniversary of independence
- 1 August - Feast of parents / alumni
Economy
Kisangani's economy is the one largest of cities in Congo Basin and is the largest in of the North-Eastern Provinces (formally Orientale). It’s an intricate hub of business and commerce and is one of three "command centers" for the Congolese economy (along with KinshasaKinshasa
Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
and Lubumbashi
Lubumbashi
Lubumbashi is the second largest city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, second only to the nation's capital Kinshasa, and the hub of the southeastern part of the country. The copper-mining city serves as the capital of the relatively prosperous Katanga Province, lying near the Zambian border...
). Before the country gained independence from Belgium in 1960,
Kisangani was reputed to have more Rolls-Royces
Rolls-Royce (car)
This a list of Rolls-Royce motor cars and includes vehicles produced by:*Rolls-Royce Limited *Rolls-Royce Motors , which was owned by Vickers between 1980 and 1998, and after that by Volkswagen...
per capita than any other city in the world. It flourished for the many
Boyoman who prospered during a boom in coffee, cotton and rubber
production late in the colonial era, when commodities like those still
fetched high prices.
Strategically positioned central on
geographical map on the continent of Africa, at the confluence of the
Lualaba River
Lualaba River
The Lualaba River is the greatest headstream of the Congo River by volume of water. However, by length the Chambeshi River is the farthest headstream. The Lualaba is 1800 km long, running from near Musofi in the vicinity of Lubumbashi in Katanga Province. The whole of its length lies within the...
and Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
, Kisangani is the inception and
terminus point of river traffic between east and west of DR Congo,
playing a major economic role in the ‘5 Chantiers’ economic
recovery and redevelopment of the République Démocratique du Congo
(RDC). The city is today an important centre of
commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
, finance
Finance
"Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created...
, industry
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
, metallurgy
Metallurgy
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are called alloys. It is also the technology of metals: the way in which science is applied to their practical use...
, panning
Gold panning
Gold panning, or simply panning, is a form of placer mining that extracts gold from a placer deposit using a pan. The process is one of the simplest ways to extract gold, and is popular with geology enthusiasts because of its cheap cost and the relatively simple and easy process involved. It is the...
,
real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
, hydro industries, agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, breweries,
technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
, culture
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
, media
Media (communication)
In communications, media are the storage and transmission channels or tools used to store and deliver information or data...
, and arts
ARts
aRts, which stands for analog Real time synthesizer, is an audio framework that is no longer under development. It is best known for previously being used in KDE to simulate an analog synthesizer....
.
One of Africa’s great trading centres; Kisangani’s strengths in its transportation system have contributed to the development of the city. SOTEXKI, the Textile Society of Kisangani produces fabrics and manufactures clothing, while Bralima
Bralima
Bralima is a brewing company of the Democratic Republic of the Congo with 5 breweries, founded in 1923. The brewery is owned by Heineken International.-Brief details:...
produces beverages, REGIDESO treats and supplies water to the population, SORGERIE (l’Société de Gestion, de Gérance et d'Investissement), produces soaps, vegetable oils and other cosmetic products. Compagnie Forestière de Transformation (CFT) is the firm that process and exports African teak. Pharmaceuticals, printed goods, food processing
Food processing
Food processing is the set of methods and techniques used to transform raw ingredients into food or to transform food into other forms for consumption by humans or animals either in the home or by the food processing industry...
, telecommunications, textile
Textile
A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...
and apparel manufacturing, tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
and transportation, also play major roles in the city's economy. The service sector is also strong and includes civil, mechanical and process engineering, finance, higher education, and research and development.
The forest Island of Mbiye; is one of the natural ecosystems in Kisangani that play a leading economic role with regard to the supply of food, medicines and building material, in which is of critical importance to the survival of plant life, wildlife and human populations.
Realising the importance of the biosphere and preservation of the forests biodiversity: "Forty million Congolese depend in one way or another for their survival on the Congo forest" says Stephan Van Praet of Greenpeace, who coordinated the research for the report, entitled Carving up the Congo. "I can assure you they know the value of their forest. If you cut the sapele trees you take away the caterpillars they rely on as a source of protein."
L’Île Mbiye in Kisangani is part of the Sustainable Forest Management in Africa Symposium project of forest ecosystem conservation conducted by Stellenbosch University. République Démocratique du Congo (RDC) is also looking to expand the area of forest under protection, for which it hopes to secure compensation through emerging markets for forest carbon.
The Port of Piroguiers is the largest inland port in the RDC, after the nation’s capital Kinshasa
Kinshasa
Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
, handling million tonnes of cargo annually. As one of the most important ports in RDC, it remains a trans-shipment point link Kinshasa to the North-Eastern provinces for grain
GRAIN
GRAIN is a small international non-profit organisation that works to support small farmers and social movements in their struggles for community-controlled and biodiversity-based food systems. Our support takes the form of independent research and analysis, networking at local, regional and...
, sugar
Sugar
Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
, petroleum
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
products, machinery, and consumer goods. For this reason, Kisangani is a railway hub of RDC and has always been an extremely important rail city; it is home to the headquarters of Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer du Congo. Since the resumption of road traffic between Kisangani and its eastern cities, the markets of the city are regularly supplied and export food from and to Beni, Bunia
Bunia
Bunia is a city in Democratic Republic of the Congo and is the headquarters of Ituri Interim Administration in the Ituri region of Orientale Province....
and Butembo
Butembo
Butembo is a city in North Kivu, in the north eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, lying west of the Virunga National Park. Until the Congo Civil War, it was an important commercial centre with a large market, a cathedral, a small hospital, and an airport, lying in an area known for tea and...
.
The city's television and film industry is among the largest in the country. Creative industries such as new media
Media (communication)
In communications, media are the storage and transmission channels or tools used to store and deliver information or data...
, advertising
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
, fashion
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
, design
Design
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
and architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
account for a growing share of employment, with Kisangani City possessing a strong competitive advantage in these industries. Other important sectors include medical research and technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
, non-profit institutions, and universities.
Kisangani’s informal sector is highly developed it composed of: handicrafts, local brick manufactures, merchants close to the banks of the river sell a variety of edible products (like Prawns, Kosa Kosa or Caterpillars...), others engage in artisanal quarrying, ceramics, coffee growing, Jeweller dealing, producing cultural artifacts, precious metals goldsmithing or subsistence farming.
Manufacturing
Manufacturing
Manufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
accounts for a large share of employment. Garments, chemicals, metal products, processed foods, and furniture are some of the principal products. Most of the food products derived from rural areas whose main activities are agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
include Kosa Kosa and prawns, which are exported to all major cities of the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC). The Wagenia, whom mostly fish the rapids of the famous Wagenia Falls on the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
are known for the possession of excellent fishing skills. The food-processing industry is a stable major manufacturing sector in the city. Chocolate is Kisangani’s leading specialty-food export, with imports of cocoa from nearby Kabinda District
Kabinda District
Kabinda District is a district located in the Kasai-Oriental province, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo....
.
During the holidays, the young people enjoy the school holidays, by engaging in part-time jobs, learning earlier on how to earn money and gaining family budgetary skills, by adding to the family income. The children are likely to open up small vending businesses, of which the services offered may include selling boiled eggs, cooking oil or operating shoeshine stores, to name a few. Many parents believe that part-time work helps children to become more independent as well as providing them (and sometimes their families) with extra income.
Demographics
During its first century, Kisangani grew at a rate that ranked among the fastest growing in the Belgian CongoBelgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...
. Within the span of forty years, the city's population grew from slightly under 15,018 to over 121, 765 by 1958. By the close of the 20th century, Kisangani was the third largest city in Zaire
Zaire
The Republic of Zaire was the name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo between 27 October 1971 and 17 May 1997. The name of Zaire derives from the , itself an adaptation of the Kongo word nzere or nzadi, or "the river that swallows all rivers".-Self-proclaimed Father of the Nation:In...
, and the largest of the cities that existed in the Orientale province. Within thirty-three years of Zairieanastion, the population had tripled to over 600,000, and reached its highest ever-recorded population of 672, 739 for the 2003 census.
The population is ethnically diverse and is changing rapidly, especially in large cities such as Kisangani, so it is not always easy to get an exact picture of the ethnic origin of all the population from census statistics. The last census in 2003 counted almost 672 739 inhabitants in the city of Kisangani. Lubunga is the town's most populous but least dense with 115 775 inhabitants while Mangobo with 98 434 inhabitants is the most dense.
Demography has evolved as follows since colonial times:
Kisangani is the most populous city of the Northern provinces in the RDC, with an estimated 2008 population of 1,200,000 (up from 406,249 thousand in 1993).This amounts to about more than half the population of the northern regional population lives in the province of Tshopo. Over the last decade the city's population has been increasing.
Historical populations
In 1905, there were a total of eleven stations and stations of the state in the area of Stanley Falls and Stanleyville. The total number of state officials increased to 40.In 1909, the European Stanleyville numbered 80 and the native population was estimated at 15,000 people within a radius of 5 kilometers.
At the time the sprawling population in 1918 required the District Commissioner to create a daily food market in Kisangani, near the Hospital Avenue, 1 kilometre from shore. Two more weekly markets were also created on the other side, one near the docks and another at CFL Mission St. Gabriel. The population in the 1920s increased to 4,000 Africans and 200 Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
ans, with an average of 2000 inhabitants moving around downtown Stanleyville (in the chiefdom Arabized).
The population of Stanleyville, in the early 1950s stood at 40,000 and by the late 1950s the population reached 70,000.
Ethnicities
Kisangani is exceptionally diverse. Throughout its history the city has been a major melting pot of entry for immigrants. Today, some of the city's population has foreign ancestry and among Congolese cities, this proportion is exceeded only by KinshasaKinshasa
Kinshasa is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is located on the Congo River....
and Lubumbashi
Lubumbashi
Lubumbashi is the second largest city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, second only to the nation's capital Kinshasa, and the hub of the southeastern part of the country. The copper-mining city serves as the capital of the relatively prosperous Katanga Province, lying near the Zambian border...
. In Kisangani no single community or region of origin dominates.
Some of the many African ethnic groups in Kisangani are: Bamanga, Popoi, Boa
Boa people
The Baboa people are an ethnic group in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.They speak the Bwa language....
, Lokele, Turumbu, Mbole, Kumu, Wagenia, Rega, Topoke
Topoke people
The Topoke people are an ethnic group that live in the Isangi Territory south of the Congo River, downstream from Kisangani in Tshopo District of the Democratic Republic of the Congo....
, Lokele, Turumbu
Turumbu people
The Turumbu people live in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, mostly in the Isangi Territory of the Tshopo District on both sides of the Congo River. They speak the Lombo language...
, Basoko, Lendu, Budu
Budu people
The Budu people are a Bantu people living in the Wamba Territory in the Orientale Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They speak the Budu language.-Location:...
, Bangetu, Logo
Logo people
Logo is an ethnic group of Sudan and Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Logo language is a Nilo-Saharan language spoken by more than 200,000 people in Democratic Republic of the Congo....
, Alur
Alur people
Alur are an ethnic group who live mainly in the Nebbi, Zombo, and Arua districts in northwestern Uganda, but also in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, north of Lake Albert. They are part of the larger Luo group, and their language is closely related to Acholi...
, Hema
Hema people
The Hema, or Hima, are an ethnic group with about 160,000 members located in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, in particular the Ituri region and Orientale province, as well as parts of Uganda and Rwanda...
, Nande and Yira ethnic group also have a notable presence.
Non-African ethnic groups include many Flemish
Flemish people
The Flemings or Flemish are the Dutch-speaking inhabitants of Belgium, where they are mostly found in the northern region of Flanders. They are one of two principal cultural-linguistic groups in Belgium, the other being the French-speaking Walloons...
of Belgian origin. There are also small groups of Greeks
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
, Chinese
Chinese people
The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
, Walloons
Walloons
Walloons are a French-speaking people who live in Belgium, principally in Wallonia. Walloons are a distinctive community within Belgium, important historical and anthropological criteria bind Walloons to the French people. More generally, the term also refers to the inhabitants of the Walloon...
, Indians
Non-resident Indian and Person of Indian Origin
A Non-Resident Indian is an Indian citizen who has migrated to another country, a person of Indian origin who is born outside India, or a person of Indian origin who resides permanently outside India. Other terms with the same meaning are overseas Indian and expatriate Indian...
and, lately, Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
Lebanese
Lebanese people
The Lebanese people are a nation and ethnic group of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state....
.
The city has a heterogeneous population of over 250 ethnic African majorities of which Wagenia and Kumu compose the native population:
- In the north of the city of the Tshopo Commune, reside the Bamanga, Popoi, BoaBoa peopleThe Baboa people are an ethnic group in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.They speak the Bwa language....
that emigrated all the way from ButaButaButa is a town and seat of Buta Territory in the northern Democratic Republic of Congo, lying on the Rubi River, a tributary of the Itimbiri River. It is headquarters of the Bas-Uele District, Orientale Province...
. - To the south of the city live the Arabized population groups of the Lokele, Turumbu, Mbole, Kumu, Wagenia and Rega, in the Lubunga Commune. Some arrived from the province of ManiemaManiemaManiema is a province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Kindu.Following the 2005 Constitution , 25 new provinces were to be created from the 10 current provinces within 36 months . As of October 2010, this had not taken place...
by the way of UbunduUbunduUbundu, formerly known as Ponthierville or Ponthierstad, is a city located in Tshopo District in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is on the Congo River, just above the Boyoma Falls...
road and rail, as well as the Opala road and the river toward the neighbouring territory of Isangi. - Towards the west in the Commune of Mangobo, lie the Topoke, Lokele, Turumbu and Basoko, whom emigrated through the Congo RiverCongo RiverThe Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
and Tshopo River, which divides the city into two banks of Tshopo. - To the east of the city in the commune of Kabondo, is home to the Lendu, Budu, Bangetu, Logo, AlurAlur peopleAlur are an ethnic group who live mainly in the Nebbi, Zombo, and Arua districts in northwestern Uganda, but also in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, north of Lake Albert. They are part of the larger Luo group, and their language is closely related to Acholi...
, Hema, Nande, Yira, whom arrived Kisangani the Ituri road in BuniaBuniaBunia is a city in Democratic Republic of the Congo and is the headquarters of Ituri Interim Administration in the Ituri region of Orientale Province....
.
Language
Among the hundreds of ethnic languages spoken by the various ethnic groups, the main languages used in Kisangani are Lingala and Swahili. French is also widely spoken, for it is the official language of the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC).Religion
Kisangani's large multi-ethnic population as resulted in a wide variety of faiths are practiced. Various Christian denominations, such as diverse Orthodox, CatholicCatholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
, Methodists, Greek Orthodox
Greek Orthodox Church
The Greek Orthodox Church is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity sharing a common cultural tradition whose liturgy is also traditionally conducted in Koine Greek, the original language of the New Testament...
and Baptists churches, are found throughout the area along with adherents of Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
, Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
, Kimbanguism
Kimbanguism
Kimbanguism is a branch of Christianity founded by Simon Kimbangu in what was then the Belgian Congo . The church's name is the Kimbanguist Church , and is a large, independent African Initiated...
, Hinduism
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
, Traditional Religions and others.
Historically Kisangani has been a centre of Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
in Central Africa with its numerous seminaries and churches, including the Cathédrale Notre-Dame du Rosaire. Most of the total population is Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
, largely Roman Catholic primarily due to Roman Catholic mission which commenced on 21 September 1897 in Kisangani. The Northern Provinces of the République Démocratique du Congo is overwhelmingly Roman Catholic; Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kisangani (Latin: Kisanganien(sis)) is the Metropolitan See for the Ecclesiastical province
Ecclesiastical Province
An ecclesiastical province is a large jurisdiction of religious government, so named by analogy with a secular province, existing in certain hierarchical Christian churches, especially in the Catholic Church and Orthodox Churches and in the Anglican Communion...
of Kisangani in the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC) . Kisangani Suffragan Sees include the areas of Bondo, Bunia
Bunia
Bunia is a city in Democratic Republic of the Congo and is the headquarters of Ituri Interim Administration in the Ituri region of Orientale Province....
, Buta
Buta
Buta is a town and seat of Buta Territory in the northern Democratic Republic of Congo, lying on the Rubi River, a tributary of the Itimbiri River. It is headquarters of the Bas-Uele District, Orientale Province...
, Doruma
Doruma
Doruma is a city in the northeastern regions of the Haut-Uele District, Orientale Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.It is near the border with South Sudan.- History :...
– Dungu
Dungu, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Dungu is a town in Haut-Uele District located at the confluence of the Dungu and Kibali Rivers where they join to form the Uele River, south of the Garamba National Park. Dungu's terrain is wooded savannah, and its climate is tropical....
, Isangi, Isiro
Isiro
Isiro is the capital of Haut-Uele District in the northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It lies between the equatorial forest and the savannah and its main resource is coffee. Isiro's population is estimated at approximately 150,000...
– Niangara
Niangara
Niangara Territory is a town in the Haut-Uele District of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, lying on both sides of the Uele River. It is the headquarters of the Niangara Territory.The town has a hospital operated by Médecins sans Frontières....
, Mahagi – Nioka and Wamba. Marcel Utembi Tapa is the current Archbishop
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
of Kisangani, since 28 November 2008.
Due to the percentile of non-European cultures, there is a diversity of non-Christian religions. Islam maybe the largest non-Christian group, There are small communities of Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
and Hindus who work in commercial urban areas.
Religious History
The Roman Catholic mission commenced on 21 September 1897. Prefecture Apostolic was established on August 3, 1904. By the division of the Vicariate Apostolic of the CongoVicariate Apostolic of the Congo
The Roman Catholic Vicariate Apostolic of the Congo, the administrative region covering Catholic mission activity in the Congo area of Central Africa, was by the end of the nineteenth century already fragmented....
, the Church of Kisangani became Vicariate Apostolic of Stanley Falls has of March 12, 1908. It then became the Archdiocese of Stanleyville on November 10, 1959 and was later renamed to the Archdiocese of Kisangani on 30 May 1966.
One of the most revered religious leaders is Reverend Father Gabriel Grison, Bishop Grison is buried at the Mission St. Gabriel in Kisangani and a monument dedicated to him on Monseigneur Grison Avenue.
The territory of Archdiocese of Kisangani has been divided several times: August 11, 1913, by selling Irumu the Apostolic Vicariate of Lake Albert, 9 April 1934 by the detachment of the Mission now the Diocese of Butembo
Butembo
Butembo is a city in North Kivu, in the north eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, lying west of the Virunga National Park. Until the Congo Civil War, it was an important commercial centre with a large market, a cathedral, a small hospital, and an airport, lying in an area known for tea and...
-Beni, March 10, 1949 by the detachment of the Apostolic Vicariate of Wamba, April 23, 1956 through the sale of several missions to the Vicariate Apostolic of Kindu.
The Archdiocese in the Eastern Province, Kisangani also includes a part of the territories of Bafwasende
Bafwasende
Bafwasende is a town in Tshopo District in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It lies on the Lindi River.-External links:**...
, Banalia, Basoko
Basoko
Basoko is a town on the Congo River in Tshopo District of northern Democratic Republic of the Congo. As of 2009 it had an estimated population of 47,970....
, Opala, Ubundu
Ubundu
Ubundu, formerly known as Ponthierville or Ponthierstad, is a city located in Tshopo District in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is on the Congo River, just above the Boyoma Falls...
and Tshopo; in the region of North Kivu and parts of the territory of Lubutu.
The Archdiocese of Kisangani commands an area of 150.123 Km2, of a population numbering 988,854, in which 552.526 are Catholics and 18.000 Catechumens.
Notable Boyoma Kisanganien(sis)
Aberti Masikini, Anne-Sylvie Mouzon, Barly BarutiBarly Baruti
Baruti Kandolo Lilela, better known by his pen name Barly Baruti , is a Congolese comics writer and artist...
, Jean-Luc Ernst , Koffi Olomide
Koffi Olomide
Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba, also known as Koffi Olomide , is a DR Congolese soukous singer, dancer, producer, and composer. He is also known by a multitude of other names and aliases.-Background:...
, Moreno (Batamba Wenda Morris), Reverend Father Gabriel Grison
Government
During independence of the République Démocratique du Congo, the city was the political central base of the Movement National Congolais (MNC). Patrice Lumumbas’ strong ties with the city had been forged during his days as one of 350 clerks at the central post office. Kisangani is now home to influential political youth groups such as Bana Etats-Unis and VendomeVendôme
Vendôme is a commune in the Centre region of France.-Administration:Vendôme is the capital of the arrondissement of Vendôme in the Loir-et-Cher department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. It has a tribunal of first instance.-Geography:...
.
Since its devolution in 2006, Kisangani has been the Capital of Tshopo with a "strong" mayor-council form of government. Decentralisation of central government power was enabled to give provincial governments more control of matters that directly affect them. The government of Kisangani is more centralized than that of most other RDC cities. As a constitutional democracy, Kisangani is governed by a wide range of institutions: the judiciary
Judiciary
The judiciary is the system of courts that interprets and applies the law in the name of the state. The judiciary also provides a mechanism for the resolution of disputes...
, the police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
, the civil service
Civil service
The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
and the institutions of local government. In Kisangani, the central government is responsible for public education
Public education
State schools, also known in the United States and Canada as public schools,In much of the Commonwealth, including Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom, the terms 'public education', 'public school' and 'independent school' are used for private schools, that is, schools...
, correctional institutions, libraries, public safety
Public Safety
Public safety involves the prevention of and protection from events that could endanger the safety of the general public from significant danger, injury/harm, or damage, such as crimes or disasters .-See also:* By nation...
, recreational facilities, sanitation
Sanitation
Sanitation is the hygienic means of promoting health through prevention of human contact with the hazards of wastes. Hazards can be either physical, microbiological, biological or chemical agents of disease. Wastes that can cause health problems are human and animal feces, solid wastes, domestic...
, water supply
Water supply
Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavours or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes...
and welfare services.
The People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy
People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy
The People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy is a center-left political party of the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
(PPRD) holds the majority of public offices. As of November 2006, most of registered voters in the city are PPRD. The present governor of all the north-eastern provinces, formally collectively known as Orientale is Medard Autsai Asenga. Kisangani is the capital of Orientale Province, (an area of the size comparable to that of Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) and the city will also be the headquarters of the Tshopo Province
Tshopo Province
Tshopo is one of 25 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo specified in the country's 2005 Constitution . It was to be created from the country's existing 10 provinces within 36 months . As of October 2010, this had not taken place...
, when the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC)’s provinces begin to operate under their proposed jurisdictions. Kisangani was given the official nickname "City of Hope" by its government. Kisangani, a city home to some 1,200,000 civilians, is administratively divided into six urban communes: Makiso, Tshopo, Mangobo, Kabondo, Kisangani, and Lubunga and the communities of Lubuya and Bera are also parts of Kisangani City. Each commune is home to dozens of smaller
neighborhoods (known in French as quartiers).
The head of the city government in Kisangani is the mayor, who is first among equals in the City Council. The mayor in the period of 2008-2009 was Guy Shilton Baendo. The city council is a democratically elected institution and is the final decision-making authority in the city, although much power is centralized in the executive committee. The Council has jurisdiction over many matters, including public security, agreements with other governments, subsidy programs, the environment, urban planning, and a three-year capital expenditure program. The City Council is also required to supervise, standardize or approve certain decisions made by the commune councils.
Reporting directly to the City Council, the executive committee exercises decision-making powers similar to that of the cabinet in a parliamentary system and is responsible for preparing various documents including budgets and by-laws, submitted to the City Council
City council
A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...
for approval. The decision-making powers of the executive committee cover, in particular, the awarding of contracts or grants, the management of human and financial resources, supplies and buildings. It may also be assigned further powers by the City Council.
Administration History
During much of the last half of the 20th century, Kisangani's politics were dominated by a growing Movement National Congolais (MNC) organization dominated by the charismatic Patrice LumumbaPatrice Lumumba
Patrice Émery Lumumba was a Congolese independence leader and the first legally elected Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo after he helped win its independence from Belgium in June 1960. Only ten weeks later, Lumumba's government was deposed in a coup during the Congo Crisis...
. During 1964 Kisangani was under the siege of Simbas a group of powerful radical tradition with large and highly organized socialist, anarchist and labor organizations.
Indeed, a decree of Governor General dated September 6, 1958 and entered into force on 1 January 1959 established the city of Stanleyville. The city was divided into communes; each headed by a Mayor, the chief head of all of Stanleyville City was the city’s’ 1st Mayor.
The first consultation was held in commune of Stanleyville on Sunday, December 14, 1958. By Order No. 12/35 of September 6, 1958, the territory of Stanleyville took the status of a city. Stanleyville was divided into 4 municipalities: Belgian I, Belgian II, Brussels and Stanley.
Stanleyville’s City Council assisted each mayor in running the whole city, whilst each of the municipalities was assisted by Municipal Councils. The mayors of municipalities and municipal council members were elected. The city council included members of law, the mayors of municipalities, members appointed has company representatives, middle class representative and members representing the municipal councils.
Laws
Kisangani and its administrative representatives were some of the prominent groups in drafting the Congolese Forest Code. The new forestry code according to section 89 requires logging companies, to draw up social responsibility contracts with their concessions, which may include building schools; house and clinics while they carry out logging operations. Essentially the law demands firms to set up company towns. GreenpeaceGreenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
has however attacked this corporate-centred model because it undermines the state's responsibility to create a functioning system of social services.
The law states that the schooling age is from 5 to 19 years old, of which comprises 39% of Kisangani’s population. The working age begins at 20 years and retirement age is set at 69 years old of which is 41.42% of the City’s demography.
Education
Since the 1950s, Kisangani has been a Congolese center of higher education and research with several universities that are in the city proper or in the immediate environs. Kisangani has the third largest campus of the National University of Congo. Much of the scientific research in the city is done in medicine and the life sciences. The Medicine Faculty at the Université de Kisangani was made infamous by Polio Vaccine conspiracy theorists.In 2007, there were 381 academic and research staff, most of them (215) active in the humanities and social sciences – but the recent history of the institution overshadows its current realities.
Currently, the university’s income is derived from student fees (49 percent) and government subsidies (51 percent), but university management reports that the current income level is insufficient for effective operation. In addition, there is a serious need for infrastructure rehabilitation and additions, as well as for the acquisition of research literature. Although the university does not have a strategic plan to develop additional income sources, it is taking steps to increase academic fees to improve the daily operation of the institution.
The main challenges facing the university include serious weaknesses in the university’s information and communication technology (ICT) capabilities; and then the lack of qualified staff, of financial means, of premises and equipment, and of literature and laboratories. Clearly, the university’s physical infrastructure has not been rebuilt since the troubles. This is one reason why only 20% of the institutional focus of the Université de Kisangani is reckoned for research.
Kisangani is the seat of the Université de Kisangani (1963) and other institutions of Higher Technical Education (such as Technical Institute Maikazo and the Kisangani Hellenic
Hellenic
Hellenic is a synonym for Greek and may refer to:* Hellenic languages* Hellenic Airlines* Hellenic College, a liberal arts college in Brookline, Massachusetts* Hellenic College of London* Hellenic FC, a football club in South Africa...
Center). The Kisangani Public Library, which has the largest collection of any public library system in the Kisangani, serves Makiso, Tshopo, Mangobo, Kabondo, Kisangani, Lubunga, Lubuya and Bera. The city's public school system is managed by the Kisangani Department of Education. The primary and secondary schools are public and privately run by secular and religious groups in the city.
Infrastructure
Kisangani grew in importance as a trading port while under Belgium rule. After the upper Congo basinCongo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...
wars of Euro-Arab in 1880s the city became the Belgium military and political base of operations in Northern Congo. In the mid-20th century, the city was transformed by immigration and development. A visionary development proposal expanded the city street grid to encompass all of Boyoma, and the 1819 opening of a railroad built to bypass the cataracts on the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
, opened shipping routes further into the Congo jungle. Kisangani became the most populous urbanized area and the undisputed economic and cultural centre of Northern Congo.
Transport
The transportation system in Kisangani is extensive and complex. It includes the longest suspension bridge in Northern Congo. Public local transport is served by a network of buses, commuter trains and waterways that extend across and off the island. Kisangani is served by Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer du Congo, which uses Kisangani Station. Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer du Congo provides connections to UbunduUbundu
Ubundu, formerly known as Ponthierville or Ponthierstad, is a city located in Tshopo District in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is on the Congo River, just above the Boyoma Falls...
, through a portage railway line over Boyoma Falls
Boyoma Falls
Boyoma Falls, formerly known as Stanley Falls, consists of seven cataracts, each no more than 15' high, extending over more than along a curve of the Lualaba River between the river port towns of Ubundu and Kisangani/Boyoma in the Orientale region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.At the...
.
Unlike many major cities, Kisangani does not have a problem with vehicular traffic congestion. Kisangani’s high rate of public transit use, daily Toleka users and many pedestrian commuters makes it the most energy-efficient major city in the République Démocratique du Congo (RDC). Walk and tolek modes of travel account for high percentage of all modes for trips in the city. The Tolek is a cycling taxi ("Toleka" means "Time" in Lingala), that emerged as the primary means of transportation around Kisangani during the mid 1990s.
As the city lies between stretches of the Tshopo River and Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
, many tributaries and islands are intertwined conducive to moving inland waterways for the population of Kisangani and the transportation of goods by ships, boats or canoe (paddle or motorized), from one bank to another and from one neighbourhood to the another is made possible. Waterway systems connect Kisangani to various locales within and outside the city (including Isangi
Isangi
Isangi is a territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is located in the Tshopo District to the west of Kisangani, and mostly to the south of the Congo River.The largest community is Yangambi...
and Lomami). Kisangani is the highest navigable point on the River Congo and the terminus of river traffic from Kinshasa and all ports operated by ONATRA.
A considerable amount of automobile taxis and buses are also employed to supporting public transit throughout the city. The building of new gas stations and rehabilitation efforts for redevelopment of urban roads and the opening of the No. 4 National Highway Road are among the main factors behind this resumption of automobiles. The redevelopment of the National Highway Road No.4 has meant an increase in scrambling shuttles of traffic between Kisangani, Bafwasende
Bafwasende
Bafwasende is a town in Tshopo District in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It lies on the Lindi River.-External links:**...
, Komanda, Nurse, Mambasa
Mambasa
Mambasa is a town in the Ituri Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the headquarters of the Mambasa Territory....
, Beni and Butembo
Butembo
Butembo is a city in North Kivu, in the north eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, lying west of the Virunga National Park. Until the Congo Civil War, it was an important commercial centre with a large market, a cathedral, a small hospital, and an airport, lying in an area known for tea and...
. Kisangani provides connections to Ubundu
Ubundu
Ubundu, formerly known as Ponthierville or Ponthierstad, is a city located in Tshopo District in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is on the Congo River, just above the Boyoma Falls...
and Opala, along the southern corridors of Ubundu
Ubundu
Ubundu, formerly known as Ponthierville or Ponthierstad, is a city located in Tshopo District in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is on the Congo River, just above the Boyoma Falls...
and Opala road respectively as well as long-distance road networks to cities such as Lubutu, Walikale
Walikale
Walikale Territory is a territory located within the Congolese province of North Kivu, in the eastern regions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The locality is situated between Bukavu and Lubutu on DR Congo National Road No. 2 in the valley of the river Lowa, 135 km to the west of...
, Goma
Goma
Goma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. The lake and the two cities are in the western branch of the Great Rift Valley, and Goma lies only 13 to 18 km due south of the crater of the active...
and Kigali
Kigali
Kigali, population 965,398 , is the capital and largest city of Rwanda. It is situated near the geographic centre of the nation, and has been the economic, cultural, and transport hub of Rwanda since it became capital at independence in 1962. The main residence and offices of the President of...
(in Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
) by way of the National Highway Road No. 2. Kisangani is part of the Trans-African Highway network
Trans-African Highway network
The Trans-African Highway network comprises transcontinental road projects in Africa being developed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa , the African Development Bank , and the African Union in conjunction with regional international communities...
8 (TAH 8), at a length of 6259 km, the Trans-African Highway between Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
(Nigeria) - Mombasa
Mombasa
Mombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya. Lying next to the Indian Ocean, it has a major port and an international airport. The city also serves as the centre of the coastal tourism industry....
(Kenya) is longest transcontinental route between East-west of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. Kisangani also has access to the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
coast by way of a highway corridor connecting the city to Dar-es-Salaam
Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam , formerly Mzizima, is the largest city in Tanzania. It is also the country's richest city and a regionally important economic centre. Dar es Salaam is actually an administrative province within Tanzania, and consists of three local government areas or administrative districts: ...
(Tanzania)
Kisangani is served by Bangoka International Airport
Bangoka International Airport
Bangoka International Airport is an airport in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo.From November 2009 until June 2011 Kenya Airways connected Bangoka International Airport to Nairobi three times a week...
on the far east side and the older Simi-Simi Airport
Simi-Simi Airport
Simi-Simi is the original airport of the city of Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly called Stanleyville. In the turbulent times of Congo's independence and the subsequent struggles, it was the city's only airport, and thus was the scene of severe fighting during the Simba...
on the west side. Bangoka is for commercial passenger flights and cargo only, whereas Simi-Simi mainly serves military purposes, though it also hosts some private and humanitarian flights.
Future and proposed projects
In October 2007 a railway was proposed to connect Kisangani to Kasese in western Uganda.Following the mandate of “5 Chantiers” the city of Kisangani road network undergoing redevelopment to make the city more integrated with towns and cities of other provinces, especially the eastern provinces that made up Orientale Province. Boulevards in and around downtown Kisangani are part of the project.
The transcontinental road projects in Africa, Trans-African Highway network encompass Kisangani through the Lagos-Mombasa Highway
Lagos-Mombasa Highway
The Lagos-Mombasa Highway is Trans-African Highway 8 and is principal road route between West and East Africa...
.
Further reading
- V.S. Naipaul: A Bend in the RiverA Bend in the RiverA Bend in the River is a 1979 novel by Nobel laureate V. S. Naipaul.In 1998, the Modern Library ranked A Bend in the River #83 on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century...
, 1979. ISBN 978-0-679-72202-1 - Michela WrongMichela WrongMichela Wrong is a British journalist and author who spent six years as a foreign correspondent covering events across the African continent for Reuters, the BBC, and the Financial Times. Her debut book, In the Footsteps of Mr...
: In the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz,2002. ISBN 978-0-06-093443-9 - Joseph ConradJoseph ConradJoseph Conrad was a Polish-born English novelist.Conrad is regarded as one of the great novelists in English, although he did not speak the language fluently until he was in his twenties...
: Heart Of DarknessHeart of DarknessHeart of Darkness is a novella written by Joseph Conrad. Before its 1903 publication, it appeared as a three-part series in Blackwood's Magazine. It was classified by the Modern Library website editors as one of the "100 best novels" and part of the Western canon.The story centres on Charles...
, 1899
External links
- Kisanganiboyoma.com is the official website of Kisangani.
- Stanleyville.be is City of Kisangani Website.
- Cinqchantiers-rdc.com is the official website of 5 Chantiers.
- Kisangani.be Kisangani Agroforestry Cultivation and Conservation
- Cboc.e-monsite.com is the Official Cercle Boyoma Culture.
- Kisangani.org is the official website of Governorate and Assembly of Kisangani.