Africa > Congo, Republic of the > Economy

View full size

Agriculture > products cassava, sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products
Budget > Revenues	$3,295,000,000.00		[106th of 166]
Consumer price index	112.83 %		[109th of 165]
Current account balance	-$1,491,000,000.00		[134th of 181]
Debt > External	$5,000,000,000.00		[7th of 136]
Economy > Overview The economy is a mixture of subsistence agriculture, an industrial sector based largely on oil, and support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings through oil-backed loans that have contributed to a growing debt burden and chronic revenue shortfalls. Economic reform efforts have been undertaken with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. However, the reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. Economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. The current administration presides over an uneasy internal peace and faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. Recovery of oil prices has boosted the economy's GDP and near-term prospects. In March 2006, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) treatment for Congo.
Exchange rates Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000)
Exports	$5,800,000,000.00		[94th of 189]
GDP	$7,385,169,000.00		[110th of 203]
GDP (purchasing power parity)	$12,860,000,000.00		[133rd of 187]
GDP > PPP	$3,820,000,000.00		[145th of 163]
GDP > Real growth rate	-1.6%		[184th of 198]
GDP growth > annual %	9.2 annual %		[15th of 187]
GDP per capita, PPP > current international $	1,262.21 PPP $		[139th of 169]
Gross national income > constant LCU	213155400000
Human Development Index	0.512		[144th of 178]
Imports of goods, services and income > BoP, current US$	4,054,273,000 BoP $		[98th of 156]
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.7%		[134th of 192]
Total reserves minus gold > current US$	731,829,800 $		[112nd of 178]
Tourist arrivals by region of origin > Europe	8,752		[164th of 195]

Related links:

• Forum discussion > Economy
• Looking for Information on the U.S. Economy? Check out StateMaster
• Stay updated with current stat feeds! Subscribe to the Economy RSS / Atom feeds
•  Subscribe to our popular Economy factoids RSS / Atom feeds
• Save this page on  del.icio.us / furl / your bookmarks

More facts and figures on Congo, Republic of the