According to the DRC’s Disaster & Risk Profile from Prevention Web (2020), the most frequent natural extreme events in the country are floods, storms and landslides. The government has stated its commitment to DRR implementation (UNISDR, 2019).
In what concerns Climate Change, the country is in the process of implementing the United Nations Framework Agreement on Climate change.
It has undertaken studies on the country’s vulnerability and adaptation strategy in priority areas such as water resources, agriculture and coastline; and has endorsed several international agreements, such as the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Convention to Combat Desertification (CCD), the Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol. It has also signed the Paris Agreement on climate change in April 2016.
Despite the vastness and natural richness of the country, there is an enormous legacy of conflict in the country due to the Second Congo War (1998 to 2003). Insecurity persists in the east of the country and continues to cause the loss of human life and limit development efforts.
UNISDR (2019). Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction - Speeches and Statements. Retrieved from:
https://www.unisdr.org/conference/2019/globalplatform/programme/offic…
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), a huge country in central Africa, there are two kinds of climate:
- equatorial, hot and humid all year round with no dry season, in the central area crossed by the Equator and occupied by a vast rain forest (the second in the world after the Amazon);
- tropical, hot all year round but with a dry season, usually of short duration, in both the areas to the north and south of the Equator. The dry season occurs in opposite periods, from December to February (i.e. the boreal winter) north of the Equator and from June to September (i.e. the austral winter) south of the Equator.
The rains occur in the form of downpours or thunderstorms (actually, Congo is the country that receives the greatest number of lightning strikes in the world), usually in the afternoon, all year round in the equatorial zone, and in the long rainy season in the two tropical areas.
The amount of sunshine in much of the Democratic Republic of Congo is not very high because the strong solar radiation often causes cloudiness during the day, most likely by noon and in the afternoon. On the other hand, because of moisture evaporating from the ground, mists often occur in the early morning, while on the coast, fog and low clouds often form because of a cool sea current. The situation is different in the southernmost part (see Lubumbashi), where the dry season is more pronounced, and during the austral winter (May to September), the sky is often clear.
The country is largely occupied by the huge basin of the Congo River and its tributaries. Most of the country is located at an altitude between 300 and 800 meters, which are often sufficient to temper a bit the climate; in some areas, such as the southeast, the altitude is between 800 and 1,300 meters, while in the easternmost part, near the lakes of the Rift Valley, there are also high mountain ranges.
Regional Platform / DRR Contact Point
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Government of the Democratic Republic of CongoOrganization type:Location
Risk reduction Policies, Plans & Strategies
Policies, plans and official statements on disaster risk, climate adaptation and resilience.
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National Contingency Plan for Forescating Volcanic Eruptions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2016-2020)
This National Contingency Plan covers the period from 2016-2020 and is specific for the responsible management of a possible volcanic eruption in North Kivu Province whose lives of more than one million (1,000,000) people and the entire ecosystem in Goma and its surroundings are between active vo |
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Instruction no. 25 /CAB/VPM/MININTERSE/BOP/1494/2019
Official information stating the law project on National DRR Platform has been submitted and is under appreciation. |
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Speech at the 6th World Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction | Geneva, May 13-17, 2019
Speech by his Excellency the Minister of Solidarity and Humanitarian Actions to the Sixth Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction 2019 (Geneva, Switzerland; 13-17 May, 2019). |
Documents & Publications
Disaster risk reduction and resilience publications, reports, research papers and case studies.
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Disaster Risk Reduction/SADC
DR Congo presentation in the Strengthening Disaster Risk Reduction, Coordination, Planning and Policy Advisory Capacity of SADC Project Inception Workshop, held in Johannesburg, South Africa, 20-24 January 2020. |
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Suffering in Silence - The 10 most under-reported humanitarian crises of 2018
This is the third consecutive year that CARE publishes its report “Suffering In Silence”. It serves as a call for the global community to speak up for people in crises who are otherwise forgotten and to help them overcome hardship. |
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RIASCO Humanitarian Outlook for Southern Africa | November 2017-April 2018
This report analyses some of the southern african countries readiness to humanitarian impacts related to their macro-economic conditions, the regional seasonal rainfall forecast, the food, livelihood and nutrition security and the conflict in Democratic Republic of Congo. |
Disaster Data & Statistics
Reports on disaster statistics, country profiles and additional resources on collecting disaster loss data.
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Climate Change Profile: Democratic Republic of the Congo (East)
Climate change is expected to increase current vulnerabilities within the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). |
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INFORM Country Risk Profile - DR Congo
Index for Risk Management. |
