28 August 2006
Bidoc dossier on DRC

The ninth BIDOC dossier present some background and perspectives on the DRC around the elections and gives an overview of articles, documents and reports on the DRC which NiZA-BIDOC has collected the past few years.

The problems of the Democratic Republic of Congo are particularly complex. The political, social and economic crisis is not easy to explain. Because of it’s natural wealth and geographical position on the continent, Congo plays a critical role for the development of Africa. On the 30th of July this year, the first round of the elections took place. The hope is that the elections will to a more legitimate government. The new government must then, supported by foreign donors and investments, work for the (re-)construction of a social, economic and administrative infrastructure, after decades of neglect, theft and violent conflict.

The dossier opens with an introductory article by Christian Kuijstermans, staffmember of the NiZA-mediaprogramme, about his experiences in the DRC in the first months of 2006. His contribution is followed by and short list and presentation of some websites with information on the DRC. The next part of the dossier contains a selection of articles and documents from the first half of 2006 that gives an introduction to the different aspects of the Congo – its political and socio-economic conditions, the international involvement and the (problematic) prospects. The last part contains a list of sources from the NiZA-BIDOC database with articles, documents, books and video's on the DRC published in the year 2005. On request also similar lists of sources on the DRC from more recent times or previous years can be obtained.

Online edition DRC dossier

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