VISIT D.R. CONGO

Zongo Falls

Located 130 kilometers (c. 90 miles) from Kinshasa, an early morning pick-up will take you through spectacular scenery to the Zongo Waterfalls. Zongo Park provides a lovely setting. This goes deep into the Congolese rainforest and into the heart of darkness you've always imagined. Raw and real and wonderful...and relaxing.

Tourism and Travel

The Democratic Republic of Congo offers a wide range of tourist attractions in different provinces that have many different features that can be exploited for the development of several types of tourism (seaside, cultural, leisure, discovery, business, safaris ) it is :

25 million hectares or 11% of the national territory (260,000km2) constituted as protected areas in the DRC;

7 national parks and 57 Reserves and Hunting Areas including 5 listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List (VIRUNGA *, KAHUZI BIEGA *, GARAMBA * SALONGA * and the OKAPIS Wildlife Reserve);

4 endemic species: Mountain gorilla, Okapi, Bonobo (dwarf chimpanzee), Congolese peacock;

A variety of ecosystems covering nearly 145 million hectares, the second largest tropical forest in the world after the Amazon and one of the world's biodiversity reserves;

Natural sites (the Congo River, the Atlantic coastline (37 km), impressive waterfalls, lakes and their contours, the mountainous areas of the East), built (heritage monuments, religious buildings, and cultural (a rich mix cultures and traditions around 450 ethnic groups), art markets, historical sites;

With 70,000,000 inhabitants, the Congolese population is a prime target for tourism promoters, especially youth seeking leisure;

Reception facilities: 284 airport platforms including 5 international airports, 349 travel agencies divided into three categories including those affiliated to IATA and other local; 2,3365 unclassified and classified hotels with a total installed capacity of 27,963 rooms; 4,500 km of waterways;

Several services to support the deployment of tourism activities, which include: transport, travel agencies, accommodation, and catering.

I. Potentialities

Due to its strategic position on Ecuador in the heart of Africa, the DRC is located at the crossroads of the final or initial destinations of tourist circuits in Southern, Central and Eastern Africa.

Different provincial liaison routes make it possible to organize inter-provincial and intra-regional circuits on various tourist routes through the 11 provinces and from the 9 neighboring countries in the DRC.

The sharing of common tourism products with bordering countries as well as the extension of destinations in regional spaces, provide opportunities to expand existing markets and lead to new tourism markets, in the Great Lakes regions, SADC, COMESA and ECCAS, of which the DRC is a part.

The DRC records a growing migratory flow, dominated by the youth (more than 60% of the population and the middle class), the Congolese diaspora as well as international visitors from the world of business and culture

II. Strengths

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has included among the government's priorities, the revival of tourism. This sector, formerly a by-product of the environment, has been set up as a Ministry, which will shortly be equipped with a framework law currently under development.

III. Legal framework

The process of restoring peace in the final phase;

Renovation of the botanical and zoological gardens of Kinshasa through the Public-Private Partnership;

Modernization works of 4 main airports of Kinshasa, Lubumbashi, Goma, and Kisangani;

Accompanying the approval of a hundred tourist investment projects including 85 hotel projects;

Strengthening the reception capacity with the rehabilitation and modernization of some Congolese Heritage Hotels through the Public-Private Partnership including the 3 5-star hotels (Grand Hotel Kinshasa and Congo River Hotel in Kinshasa, Grand Karavia Hotel in Lubumbashi);

Creation of a national airline;

The reduction to four, the number of state services to operate in border posts (Directorate General of Migration, Health Service, Congolese Office of Control and Directorate General of Customs and Excise);

An opening of the country for major events and other international meetings (forums, conferences, sports, conferences, ...);

Rehabilitation and construction of historic sites and creation of public amenity spaces.

IV. Achievements

During 2013, the DRC revised its 15-year master plan with the objectives of eventually reaching 1,146,962 international tourists and revenues of US $ 17,300,000.00 estimated at 10% of GDP value. Congolese in 2012.

To generate these flows, the following areas of intervention are concerned:

Promotion and preservation of flagship animal species: rehabilitation of national parks, the creation of ecological niches, rehabilitation of access roads;

Promotion of Green Tourism: Conservation of the environment; Valorisation of the reserves and natural sites: Creation of the sites of leisure, parks of attraction

Offer in tourist transport (air, road, fluvial and lacustrine);

Creation of accommodation sites: the creation of hotels and tourist reception facilities and animation in the perspective of decentralization, the new provinces will need to create hotels of high standing;