Demographics of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Demographic features of the population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo include ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

Demographics of Democratic Republic of the Congo
Population pyramid of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2020
Population	95,894,118 (2021 est.)
Growth rate	3.24% (2022 est.)
Birth rate	40.08 births/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Death rate	7.94 deaths/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Life expectancy	61.83 years
• male	60.03 years
• female	63.69 years
Fertility rate	6.16 children born/woman (2022 est.)
Infant mortality rate	60.85 deaths/1,000 live births
Net migration rate	-0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Age structure
0–14 years	46.38%
65 and over	2.47%
Sex ratio
Total	1 male(s)/female (2022 est.)
At birth	1.03 male(s)/female
Under 15	1.01 male(s)/female
65 and over	0.6 male(s)/female
Nationality
Nationality	Congolese
Language
Official	French

Democratic Republic of the Congos population between 1960 and 2017.

As many as 250 ethnic groups have been distinguished and named.^[1] The most numerous people are the Luba, Mongo, and Kongo.

Although 700 local languages and dialects are spoken, the linguistic variety is bridged both by the use of French, and the intermediary languages Kikongo ya leta, Tshiluba, Swahili, and Lingala.

Population

Historical population of the DR Congo

The CIA World Factbook estimated the population to be over 105 million as of 2022 (the exact number being 108,407,721), now exceeding that of Vietnam (with 98,721,275 inhabitants as of 2020) and ascending the country to the rank of 14th most populous in the world.^[2] The proportion of children below the age of 15 in 2020 was 46.38%, 51.15% of the population was between 15 and 65 years of age, while 2.47% was 65 years or older.^[2][3]

	Total population[2]	Population aged 0–14 (%)	Population aged 15–64 (%)	Population aged 65+ (%)
1950	12 184 000	43.7	52.5	3.8
1955	13 580 000	43.8	53.1	3.1
1960	15 368 000	43.8	53.3	2.9
1965	17 543 000	43.9	53.2	2.8
1970	20 267 000	44.4	52.8	2.8
1975	23 317 000	44.9	52.3	2.8
1980	27 019 000	45.4	51.8	2.8
1985	31 044 000	46.1	51.1	2.8
1990	36 406 000	47.0	50.2	2.8
1995	44 067 000	47.9	49.4	2.7
2000	49 626 000	48.0	49.4	2.7
2005	57 421 000	47.5	49.9	2.7
2010	65 966 000	46.3	51.1	2.7
2020	101 780 263	46.4	51.2	2.5

Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.VII.2020) (Post-censal estimates.) (Provisional.):^[4]

Age Group	Male	Female	Total	%
Total	50 286 000	51 472 000	101 758 000	100
0–4	9 956 000	9 780 000	19 736 000	19.40
5–9	8 046 000	7 978 000	16 024 000	15.75
10–14	6 638 000	6 588 000	13 226 000	13.00
15–19	5 280 000	5 250 000	10 530 000	10.35
20–24	4 224 000	4 272 000	8 496 000	8.35
25–29	3 621 000	3 603 000	7 224 000	7.10
30–34	3 017 000	3 037 000	6 054 000	5.95
35–39	2 565 000	2 728 000	5 293 000	5.20
40–44	2 011 000	2 059 000	4 070 000	4.00
45–49	1 307 000	1 493 000	2 800 000	2.75
50–54	1 056 000	1 287 000	2 343 000	2.30
55–59	704 000	926 000	1 630 000	1.60
60–64	704 000	926 000	1 630 000	1.60
65–69	553 000	721 000	1 274 000	1.25
70–74	302 000	412 000	714 000	0.70
75+	302 000	412 000	714 000	0.70
Age group	Male	Female	Total	Percent
0–14	24 640 000	24 346 000	48 986 000	48.14
15–64	24 489 000	25 581 000	50 070 000	49.20
65+	1 157 000	1 545 000	2 702 000	2.66

View source data.

View source data.

View source data.

Census

The first and so far only census conducted in DR Congo dates from 1984.^[5] A census is supposed to be conducted decennially, but this has been obstructed by periods of instability such as the political reorganization in 1991 and the civil war in 1996.^[6]

In January 2015, the parliament passed a law requiring that a census be completed before the next election. Opponents said this was intended to keep Joseph Kabila in power by delaying the next election, leading to protests that caused several deaths. The parliament repealed the law and the census did not take place.^[7]

The second general census of population and housing is underway as of 2024.^[8] President Félix Tshisekedi called for a census to improve demographic policies and to enable the creation of national identity cards.^[9][6] The National Office for Population Identification (ONIP), founded in 2011, was tasked with leading the census, settling a dispute between bids by the Ministries of Interior, Planning, and Digital Technology.^[6] Preliminary mapping was conducted in 2018 under Minister of State Modeste Bahati Lukwebo.^[10] Data collection began on 2 March 2020 and was scheduled to end on 10 June, but implementation was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[11] Data collection was arranged by the Ministries of Planning, Budget, and Finance, and the electoral commission sent materials to the ONIP and the National Statistics Institute [fr].^[9] In 2022, Prime Minister Sama Lukonde issued a decree about the operations of the census.^[6] The government allocated the census 250 million dollars of its 2022 budget.^[12] The census is planned to be completed in 2025 with an expected budget of US$153,700,453.^[8]

Vital statistics

Registration of vital events in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is incomplete. The Population Department of the United Nations prepared the following estimates. ^[13]

Period	Population (in thousands)	Live births per year	Deaths per year	Natural change per year	CBR*	CDR*	NC*	TFR*	IMR*	Life expectancy
1950	12,174	566,000	326,000	239,000	46.0	26.6	19.5	5.97	179.9	38.31
1951	12,415	579,000	328,000	251,000	46.1	26.2	20.0	5.97	178.5	38.44
1952	12,671	592,000	327,000	264,000	46.2	25.6	20.6	5.97	175.8	38.85
1953	12,937	607,000	329,000	278,000	46.4	25.1	21.2	5.98	173.3	39.14
1954	13,202	619,000	330,000	289,000	46.3	24.7	21.6	5.98	171.0	39.47
1955	13,484	632,000	333,000	299,000	46.3	24.4	21.9	5.98	168.8	39.72
1956	13,777	646,000	336,000	311,000	46.4	24.1	22.3	5.99	166.7	39.98
1957	14,084	663,000	338,000	325,000	46.5	23.7	22.8	6.01	164.7	40.32
1958	14,402	681,000	343,000	338,000	46.7	23.5	23.2	6.04	162.9	40.50
1959	14,714	698,000	348,000	349,000	46.8	23.4	23.4	6.07	161.2	40.64
1960	15,069	716,000	354,000	362,000	46.9	23.2	23.7	6.08	159.8	40.86
1961	15,460	738,000	370,000	368,000	47.1	23.6	23.5	6.11	159.6	40.24
1962	15,864	761,000	378,000	383,000	47.4	23.5	23.8	6.13	158.1	40.34
1963	16,287	785,000	385,000	400,000	47.5	23.3	24.2	6.16	156.5	40.60
1964	16,728	808,000	403,000	406,000	47.7	23.8	24.0	6.18	155.7	40.05
1965	17,183	833,000	404,000	429,000	47.9	23.2	24.7	6.21	153.1	40.70
1966	17,673	859,000	397,000	462,000	47.9	22.1	25.8	6.24	149.5	42.05
1967	18,191	885,000	405,000	480,000	48.0	21.9	26.0	6.27	147.3	42.31
1968	18,735	910,000	411,000	500,000	47.9	21.6	26.3	6.30	145.1	42.71
1969	19,290	935,000	418,000	517,000	47.8	21.4	26.4	6.32	142.7	42.98
1970	19,851	959,000	425,000	534,000	47.6	21.1	26.5	6.34	140.5	43.28
1971	20,424	985,000	431,000	554,000	47.5	20.8	26.8	6.38	138.3	43.66
1972	20,967	1,006,000	437,000	569,000	47.3	20.5	26.8	6.40	136.4	43.93
1973	21,535	1,026,000	445,000	582,000	47.0	20.4	26.6	6.41	134.7	44.10
1974	22,121	1,047,000	451,000	597,000	46.7	20.1	26.6	6.42	133.3	44.41
1975	22,717	1,070,000	460,000	610,000	46.4	20.0	26.4	6.42	132.1	44.47
1976	23,325	1,091,000	468,000	623,000	46.1	19.8	26.3	6.43	130.9	44.66
1977	23,923	1,111,000	476,000	634,000	45.8	19.6	26.1	6.43	129.8	44.76
1978	24,535	1,134,000	491,000	643,000	45.6	19.7	25.8	6.44	129.1	44.54
1979	25,450	1,184,000	496,000	688,000	45.9	19.2	26.7	6.46	126.9	45.21
1980	26,323	1,227,000	507,000	720,000	46.0	19.0	27.0	6.47	125.1	45.47
1981	27,099	1,260,000	517,000	744,000	45.9	18.8	27.1	6.49	123.5	45.72
1982	27,902	1,293,000	526,000	766,000	45.8	18.6	27.2	6.50	121.9	45.92
1983	28,774	1,333,000	535,000	798,000	45.9	18.5	27.5	6.55	120.3	46.18
1984	29,728	1,377,000	545,000	832,000	46.2	18.3	27.9	6.60	118.7	46.45
1985	30,763	1,433,000	559,000	873,000	46.5	18.2	28.4	6.65	117.4	46.62
1986	31,767	1,480,000	571,000	910,000	46.7	18.0	28.7	6.69	116.1	46.91
1987	32,763	1,529,000	579,000	950,000	46.8	17.7	29.1	6.74	114.9	47.34
1988	33,834	1,568,000	588,000	980,000	46.5	17.4	29.1	6.73	113.7	47.77
1989	34,931	1,610,000	596,000	1,014,000	46.3	17.1	29.1	6.74	112.6	48.17
1990	36,043	1,652,000	604,000	1,047,000	46.0	16.8	29.2	6.70	111.3	48.60
1991	37,325	1,713,000	617,000	1,097,000	46.1	16.6	29.5	6.69	110.1	48.95
1992	38,526	1,761,000	629,000	1,132,000	45.9	16.4	29.5	6.67	108.9	49.24
1993	39,932	1,804,000	638,000	1,165,000	45.7	16.2	29.5	6.64	108.1	49.55
1994	41,381	1,878,000	653,000	1,225,000	45.9	16.0	29.9	6.67	107.0	49.88
1995	43,873	2,046,000	682,000	1,364,000	47.1	15.7	31.4	6.71	105.7	50.41
1996	44,995	2,083,000	730,000	1,353,000	46.8	16.4	30.4	6.72	106.4	49.31
1997	45,598	2,067,000	707,000	1,360,000	45.8	15.7	30.2	6.73	103.7	50.40
1998	46,462	2,071,000	729,000	1,342,000	45.1	15.9	29.2	6.73	101.5	49.70
1999	48,133	2,128,000	739,000	1,389,000	45.0	15.6	29.4	6.72	99.5	49.95
2000	49,693	2,189,000	712,000	1,477,000	45.0	14.6	30.4	6.72	97.3	51.78
2001	51,322	2,245,000	721,000	1,525,000	44.8	14.4	30.4	6.70	95.0	52.12
2002	52,943	2,310,000	733,000	1,577,000	44.7	14.2	30.5	6.67	92.6	52.33
2003	54,558	2,372,000	738,000	1,634,000	44.5	13.9	30.7	6.64	89.9	52.83
2004	56,130	2,426,000	738,000	1,688,000	44.3	13.5	30.8	6.62	87.2	53.43
2005	57,865	2,499,000	743,000	1,757,000	44.2	13.1	31.1	6.60	84.6	53.93
2006	59,686	2,592,000	746,000	1,846,000	44.4	12.8	31.6	6.59	82.0	54.53
2007	61,546	2,675,000	756,000	1,920,000	44.4	12.5	31.8	6.58	79.4	54.92
2008	63,410	2,767,000	764,000	2,003,000	44.4	12.3	32.2	6.58	77.0	55.34
2009	65,372	2,867,000	771,000	2,096,000	44.6	12.0	32.6	6.59	74.5	55.84
2010	67,453	2,957,000	774,000	2,183,000	44.5	11.7	32.9	6.59	72.2	56.42
2011	69,674	3,069,000	776,000	2,293,000	44.7	11.3	33.4	6.58	70.0	57.07
2012	72,025	3,171,000	793,000	2,378,000	44.6	11.2	33.5	6.56	68.0	57.25
2013	74,484	3,247,000	797,000	2,450,000	44.2	10.9	33.4	6.53	65.9	57.76
2014	77,095	3,345,000	802,000	2,543,000	44.0	10.6	33.4	6.48	64.0	58.30
2015	79,712	3,433,000	818,000	2,615,000	43.6	10.4	33.2	6.44	62.2	58.49
2016	82,359	3,532,000	820,000	2,712,000	43.4	10.1	33.3	6.39	60.4	59.07
2017	85,554	3,647,000	832,000	2,815,000	43.3	9.9	33.4	6.35	58.6	59.41
2018	88,613	3,748,000	835,000	2,913,000	43.0	9.6	33.4	6.30	56.9	59.94
2019	91,482	3,839,000	844,000	2,995,000	42.7	9.4	33.3	6.25	55.5	60.28
2020	94,413	3,930,000	886,000	3,044,000	42.3	9.5	32.8	6.21	53.9	59.74
2021	97,567	4,158,000	930,000	3,163,000	41.9	9.4	31.9	6.16	52.0	60.0
2022	100,731	4,262,000	914,000	3,333,000	41.6	8.9	32.6	6.11	50.5	61.0
2023	104,063	4,370,000	902,000	3,453,000	41.3	8.5	32.6	6.05	49.3	61.9
*CBR = crude birth rate (per 1000 people); CDR = crude death rate (per 1000 people); NC = natural change (per 1000 people), also equals CBR minus CDR; IMR = infant mortality rate per 1000 births; TFR = total fertility rate (number of children per woman)

Population estimates by INS

The Institute of National Statistics of the DRC has provided population estimates from 1984 and 2000-2019:^[14][15]

• 1984: 30,631,000
• 2000: 52,099,000
• 2001: 53,870,000
• 2002: 55,702,000
• 2003: 57,596,000
• 2004: 59,554,000
• 2005: 61,579,000
• 2006: 63,673,000
• 2007: 65,837,000
• 2008: 68,076,000
• 2009: 70,391,000
• 2010: 72,784,000
• 2011: 75,259,000
• 2012: 77,817,000
• 2013: 80,462,000
• 2014: 83,197,000
• 2015: 86,024,000
• 2016: 88,957,000
• 2017: 91,994,000
• 2018: 94,921,000
• 2019: 98,370,000

Demographic and Health Surveys

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR) for urban and rural areas:^[16]

The Wanted Fertility Rate is an estimate of what the fertility rate would be if all unwanted births were avoided.^[17]

Year	CBR (Total)	TFR (Total)	CBR (Urban)	TFR (Urban)	CBR (Rural)	TFR (Rural)
2007	44.1	6.3 (5.6)	40.4	5.4 (4.8)	46.8	7.0 (6.2)
2013–14	44.1	6.6 (5.7)	40.5	5.4 (4.6)	45.9	7.3 (6.5)
2023–24	35.7	5.5 (4.8)	30.4	4.2 (3.5)	38.6	6.4 (5.7)

Fertility data per province, as of 2014:^[18]

Province	Total fertility rate	Percentage of women age 15-49 currently pregnant	Mean number of children ever born to women age 40–49
Kinshasa	4.2	5.7	4.8
Bas-Congo	6.0	12.6	6.5
Bandundu	6.3	12.1	6.1
Équateur	7.0	14.3	6.5
Orientale	5.9	11.6	5.3
Nord-Kivu	6.5	9.7	6.7
Sud-Kivu	7.7	12.5	7.4
Maniema	6.9	14.8	7.0
Katanga	7.8	12.8	7.3
Kasaï Oriental	7.3	12.4	7.5
Kasaï Occidental	8.2	14.2	7.5

Life expectancy

Life expectancy in DR Congo since 1950

Life expectancy in DR Congo since 1960 by gender

Period	Life expectancy in Years[19]
1950–1955	39.06
1955–1960	40.55
1960–1965	41.63
1965–1970	42.99
1970–1975	44.77
1975–1980	45.63
1980–1985	47.13
1985–1990	48.25
1990–1995	49.59
1995–2000	48.89
2000–2005	51.84
2005–2010	55.48
2010–2015	58.10

Ethnic groups

See also: Category:Ethnic groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Over 250 ethnic groups and 450 tribes (ethnic subgroups) populate the Democratic Republic of Congo. These ethnic groups are from the Bantu, Sudanic, Nilotic, Ubangian and Pygmy linguistic groups. There is no dominant ethnic group in Congo; the following ethnic groups account for 51.5% of the population:^{[20][failed verification]}

Breakdown of the largest ethnic groups in DRC

• Shi people
• Luba-Kasaï
• Kongo
• Mongo
• Lubakat
• Lulua
• Tetela
• Nande
• Ngbandi
• Ngombe
• Yaka
• Ngbaka

Ethnic groups include:

• Bantu peoples: Ambala, Ambuun, Angba, Babindi, Baboma, Baholo, Bangala, Bango, Bapindi, Batsamba, Bazombe, Bemba, Bembe, Bira, Bowa, Dikidiki, Dzing, Fuliru, Havu, Hema, Hima, Hunde, Iboko, Kanioka, Kaonde, Kongo, Kuba, Kumu, Kwango, Lengola, Lokele, Luba, Lunda, Lupu, Lwalwa, Mbala, Mbole, Mbuza (Budja), Mongo, Nande, Ngoli, Bangoli, Ngombe, Nkumu, Nyanga, Pende, Popoi, Poto, Sango, Shi, Nyindu, Songo, Sukus, Tabwa, Chokwe, Téké, Tembo, Tetela, Topoke, Ungana, Vira, Wakuti, Yaka, Yakoma, Yanzi, Yéké, Yela, etc.
• Central Sudanic: Manvu, Mbunja, Moru-Mangbetu, Lugbara
• Nilotic peoples: Alur, Bari, Kakwa, Logo
• Ubangian: Azande, Banda, Ngbandi, Ngbaka
• Pygmy peoples: Mbuti, Twa, Baka, Babinga

People of European descent (white) and Asian groups makeup a significant part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s migrant population. Most Europeans and Asians went to the country for temporary employment.^[21]

Languages

French			79%
Lingala			59%
Swahili			40%
Kikongo			17%
Tshiluba			17%
English			7%
Percentage of the DRC population who speak each of the five national languages, plus English.[22]

Main article: Languages of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The five major languages in the DRC are French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca, or trade language), Swahili (more specifically Congo Swahili such as the Kingwana dialect), Kikongo ya leta or Kituba (a Kikongo-based creole language), and Tshiluba or Luba-Kasai. In total, there are over 200 languages spoken in the DRC.

French, the official language, is generally the language of instruction in schools. However, English is taught as a compulsory foreign language in secondary schools around the country. It is a required subject in the Faculty of Economics at major universities around the country, and there are numerous language schools in the country that teach it. Many Congolese, such as former president Joseph Kabila, are fluent in both English and French.

Religions

Christian church in Kisangani

A survey conducted by the Demographic and Health Surveys program in 2013–2014 indicated that Christians constituted 93.7% of the population (Catholics 29.7%, Protestants 26.8%, and other Christians 37.2%). An indigenous religion, Kimbanguism, was practiced by 2.8% of the population, while Muslims make up 1.2%.^[23]

Another estimate (by the Pew Research Center in 2010) found Christianity was followed by 95.8% of the population.^[24]

The CIA The World Factbook gives the following percentages: Roman Catholic 29.9%, Protestant 26.7%, Kimbanguist 2.8%, Other Christian 36.5%, Islam 1.3%, Other (includes Syncretic Sects and Indigenous beliefs) 2.7%.^[25]

Population, fertility rate and net reproduction rate, United Nations estimates

Congolese diaspora

The table below shows DRC born people who have emigrated abroad in selected Western countries (although it excludes their descendants).^[26]

Rank	Country	Region	Year	DRC born population
1	France	Europe	2010	59,641
2	Belgium	Europe	2015	44,715
3	Canada	North America	2021	39,475[27]
4	United States	North America	2011–13	20,410
5	Great Britain	Europe	2011	19,193
6	Germany	Europe	2011 (foreign citizens)	9,299
7	Switzerland	Europe	2011	6,724
8	Italy	Europe	2015	6,010
9	Netherlands	Europe	2015	4,973
10	Sweden	Europe	2015	3,092
11	Brazil	South America	2024	2,740
12	Australia	Oceania	2011	2,576
13	Norway	Europe	2015	2,210
14	Spain	Europe	2013	1,494
15	Finland	Europe	2015	1,523
16	Denmark	Europe	2015	1,264
17	Austria	Europe	2015	1,258

These are only estimates and do not account for Congolese migrants residing illegally in these and other countries. Among African countries, Congo's diaspora is second only to Nigeria in size.^{[citation needed]}

See also

Congolese ethnic groups:

• Alur
• Azande
• Chokwe
• Hema
• Kakwa
• Lendu
• Luba
• Mangbetu
• Twa
• Yaka
• Lunda

Other articles

• Health in the Democratic Republic of the Congo