4.3.3

Environmental Factors Affecting the DRC

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Environmental Factors Affecting Development in the DRC

The DRC's landlocked position, flooding, and dry seasons are challenges for the DRC.

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Resource exploitation and geography

  • The Congo has bad roads, little coastline and is covered in rainforest.
  • This makes it very hard to logistically get anything in or out of the country.
  • The Congo River is currently being used to generate power through a Hydroelectric Power plant.
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Food production

  • Flooding can destroy crops in the floodplains near the River Congo.
  • In the south of the DRC, droughts are common in the dry season, making it hard to grow crops.
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Flood damage

  • The DRC has 52% of all the surface water in Africa. The River Congo is prone to flooding and this can destroy harvests (crops) and people's homes.
  • Despite the common flooding, in 2018, 33 million people didn't have access to clean water in the DRC.
  • There are often landslides after floods in the Congo.
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Landlocked

  • If a country is landlocked, then it doesn't have access to the sea.
  • Most of world trade happens by sea in container ships. If a country cannot physically export its good because it is landlocked, then it is likely to develop more slowly.
  • The DRC only has a 25 mile coastline.

Jump to other topics

1Geography Skills

2Geology of the UK

3Geography of the World

4Development

5Weather & Climate

6The World of Work

7Natural Resources

8Rivers

9Coasts

10Glaciers

11Tectonics

12Climate Change

13Global Population & Inequality

14Urbanisation

15Ecosystems

16Life in an Emerging Country

17Analysis of Africa

18Analysis of India

19Analysis of the Middle East

20Analysis of Bangladesh

21Analysis of Russia

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