People's Republic of the Congo
| People's Republic of the Congo | ||||||||||
| République Populaire du Congo | ||||||||||
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Motto "Travail, Démocratie, Paix" (French) "Work, Democracy, Peace" |
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Anthem Les Trois Glorieuses |
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| Capital | Brazzaville | |||||||||
| Languages | French | |||||||||
| Government | Marxist-Leninist one-party state | |||||||||
| Head of State | ||||||||||
| • | 1970–1977 | Marien Ngouabi | ||||||||
| • | 1977–1979 | Joachim Yhombi-Opango | ||||||||
| • | 1979–1992 | Denis Sassou-Nguesso | ||||||||
| Prime Minister | ||||||||||
| • | 1973–1975 | Henri Lopès (first) | ||||||||
| • | 1991–1992 | André Milongo (last) | ||||||||
| Historical era | Cold War | |||||||||
| • | Established | 31 January 1969 | ||||||||
| • | Disestablished | 1992 | ||||||||
| Currency | CFA franc (XAF) | |||||||||
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The People's Republic of the Congo (French: République populaire du Congo) was a self-declared Marxist–Leninist socialist state that was established in 1969 in the Republic of the Congo. Led by the Congolese Party of Labour (French: Parti congolais du travail, PCT), it existed until 1991, when following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country was renamed and Andre Milongo, a transitional prime minister was named.
The People's Republic of the Congo had 2,153,685 inhabitants in 1988. There were 15 different ethnic groups, although most people were Kongo, Sangha, M'Bochi, or Teke. 8,500 Europeans were present as well, mostly of French extraction. French was the official language, but other recognized languages included Kikongo and Lingala. Most of the population was centered in urban areas such as Brazzaville. Literacy was 80%, but infant mortality was also high.
According to the Third Edition of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia (GSE):
"According to incomplete data for 1967, the birth rate was 41.1 and the death rate 24.4 per 1,000 inhabitants. Infant mortality is very high, 180 per 1,000 live births. The average life expectancy is 37 years. Contagious diseases predominate. Intestinal infections, geohelminthiasis (especially ancylostomiasis) and leprosy are widespread. Malaria occurs everywhere, and the incidence of the disease varies from low (Brazzaville) or medium (Batéké Plateau) to universal (in the rest of the country). The incidence of sleeping sickness has declined sharply since 1968, and wuchereriasis is rare. Smallpox epidemics break out periodically. From 25 percent to 36 percent of the Bakongo people and 10 percent of the Bateke people have hemoglobin S. Cancer of the liver occurs frequently.
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Wikipedia