Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of Congo is considered as one of the influential countries in Africa, which has the second largest surface area with the population exceeding 67 million. Thus, its steady growth affects not only the country, but also the development of sub-region. Since the signature of the Pretoria Accord in 2002, the DRC has slowly regained its stability from more than a decade of regional conflicts. As a result of long period of conflict, the economy had stagnated and its standard of living is classed lowest in the world as indicated by GNI per capita which was $220 in 2012 (World Development Indicator) and by the Human Development Index ranked as the last country of the list in 2012 (HDR 2013). However, the economy shows steady growth in recent years with increased foreign direct investment because of improved security and rich mineral resources, and the government prioritizes the reform of the security sector, the development of infrastructure, employment, education, water/electricity, and health. JICA's support to the DRC is primarily focused on 1) Consolidation of the peace, 2) economic development, 3) Improvement of access to social services, and 4) protection of the environment.