Democratic Republic of the Congo

Described by some as Africa’s first World War, the conflict in the DRC (formerly known as Zaire) has involved seven nations.

There have been a number of complex reasons, including conflicts over basic resources such as water, access and control over rich minerals and other resources as well as various political agendas. This has been fueled and supported by various national and international corporations and other regimes which have an interest in the outcome of the conflict.
Since the outbreak of fighting in August 1998,
- Some 5.4 million people have died
- It has been the world’s deadliest conflict since World War II
- The vast majority have actually died from non-violent causes such as malaria, diarrhea, pneumonia and malnutrition—all typically preventable in normal circumstances, but have come about because of the conflict
- Although 19% of the population, children account for 47% of the deaths
- Although many have returned home as violence has slightly decreased, there are still some 1.5 million internally displaced or refugees
- Some 45,000 continue to die each month
These shocking figures would usually be more than enough to get media attention the world over, especially if it were to threaten influential nations in some way. Yet, perhaps as a cruel irony, influential nations in the world benefit from the vast resources coming from the DRC for which people are dying over.

Includes links to the following Documents:

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION COUNTRY ASSISTANCE STRATEGY FOR THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO FOR THE PERIOD FYOS-FY11 VOLUME 1 NOVEMBER 16,2007 The Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) is the most important World Bank country document. It is tailored to the needs and circumstances of each country and lays down the Bank Group's development priorities, as well as the level and type of assistance the Bank will provide for a period of three years.