II.

Course of the Congo

Formed by the junction of the Lualaba and Luvua rivers in the south of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, it flows generally north as far as Stanley Falls, just south of the equator. From this point the course resembles a huge irregular arc, looping north-east, west, and south to an outlet on the South Atlantic Ocean, where the volume of discharge approximates 34 million litres (7.5 million gallons) per second at high water. More than 4,000 islands, including approximately 50 more than 16 km (10 mi) long, are situated in the river. South of its junction with the Ubangi River, the chief northern tributary, to a point below Pool Malebol (Stanley Pool), the River Congo is part of the boundary between the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

With its numerous tributaries, which also include the Aruwimi, Kasai, and Lomami rivers, the Congo drains the central African equatorial basin, an area of more than 4.1 million sq km (more than 1.6 million sq mi) and provides the main artery of transport in central Africa. This drainage basin includes most of the two republics previously named, northern Angola, western Zambia and Tanzania, and southern Central African Republic. The region is densely covered, particularly in the river valleys, with tropical vegetation.

In the descent from the western region, the lower Congo courses through a series of cataracts, known collectively as Livingstone Falls, the southernmost of which is a short distance north of Matadi, the leading port of the river estuary. This section of the river, about 400 km (250 mi) long, is unnavigable. Below Matadi, where the Congo estuary begins, the river is navigable to the sea, a distance of about 134 km (83 mi). The only impediment to navigation on the upper Congo is the series of cataracts at Stanley Falls near Kisangani. Between this point and Kinshasa (formerly Léopoldville), the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which is at the northern terminus of the cataracts, the river is navigable to all types of river craft. Many of them are operated on regular schedules on this route, which is about 1,600 km (1,000 mi) long, as well as on most of the Congo tributaries.