Democratic Republic of the Congo vs. Tanzania
Geography
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | Tanzania | |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Central Africa, northeast of Angola | Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, between Kenya and Mozambique |
| Geographic coordinates | 0 00 N, 25 00 E | 6 00 S, 35 00 E |
| Map references | Africa | Africa |
| Area | total: 2,344,858 sq km land: 2,267,048 sq km water: 77,810 sq km | total: 947,300 sq km land: 885,800 sq km water: 61,500 sq km note: includes the islands of Mafia, Pemba, and Zanzibar |
| Area - comparative | slightly less than one-fourth the size of the US | more than six times the size of Georgia; slightly larger than twice the size of California |
| Land boundaries | total: 11,027 km border countries (9): Angola 2646 km (of which 225 km is the boundary of Angola's discontiguous Cabinda Province), Burundi 236 km, Central African Republic 1747 km, Republic of the Congo 1775 km, Rwanda 221 km, South Sudan 714 km, Tanzania 479 km, Uganda 877 km, Zambia 2332 km | total: 4,161 km border countries (8): Burundi 589 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 479 km, Kenya 775 km, Malawi 512 km, Mozambique 840 km, Rwanda 222 km, Uganda 391 km, Zambia 353 km |
| Coastline | 37 km | 1,424 km |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: since 2011, the DRC has had a Common Interest Zone agreement with Angola for the mutual development of off-shore resources | territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
| Climate | tropical; hot and humid in equatorial river basin; cooler and drier in southern highlands; cooler and wetter in eastern highlands; north of Equator - wet season (April to October), dry season (December to February); south of Equator - wet season (November to March), dry season (April to October) | varies from tropical along coast to temperate in highlands |
| Terrain | vast central basin is a low-lying plateau; mountains in east | plains along coast; central plateau; highlands in north, south |
| Elevation extremes | highest point: Pic Marguerite on Mont Ngaliema (Mount Stanley) 5,110 m lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m mean elevation: 726 m | highest point: Kilimanjaro (highest point in Africa) 5,895 m lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m mean elevation: 1,018 m |
| Natural resources | cobalt, copper, niobium, tantalum, petroleum, industrial and gem diamonds, gold, silver, zinc, manganese, tin, uranium, coal, hydropower, timber | hydropower, tin, phosphates, iron ore, coal, diamonds, gemstones (including tanzanite, found only in Tanzania), gold, natural gas, nickel |
| Land use | agricultural land: 11.4% (2018 est.) arable land: 3.1% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 0.3% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 8% (2018 est.) forest: 67.9% (2018 est.) other: 20.7% (2018 est.) | agricultural land: 43.7% (2018 est.) arable land: 14.3% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 2.3% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 27.1% (2018 est.) forest: 37.3% (2018 est.) other: 19% (2018 est.) |
| Irrigated land | 110 sq km (2012) | 1,840 sq km (2012) |
| Natural hazards | periodic droughts in south; Congo River floods (seasonal); active volcanoes in the east along the Great Rift Valley volcanism: Nyiragongo (3,470 m), which erupted in 2002 and is experiencing ongoing activity, poses a major threat to the city of Goma, home to a quarter million people; the volcano produces unusually fast-moving lava, known to travel up to 100 km /hr; Nyiragongo has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; its neighbor, Nyamuragira, which erupted in 2010, is Africa's most active volcano; Visoke is the only other historically active volcano | flooding on the central plateau during the rainy season; drought volcanism: limited volcanic activity; Ol Doinyo Lengai (2,962 m) has emitted lava in recent years; other historically active volcanoes include Kieyo and Meru |
| Environment - current issues | poaching threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; deforestation (forests endangered by fires set to clean the land for agricultural purposes; forests also used as a source of fuel); soil erosion; mining (diamonds, gold, coltan - a mineral used in creating capacitors for electronic devices) causing environmental damage | water polution; improper management of liquid waste; indoor air pollution caused by the burning of fuel wood or charcoal for cooking and heating is a large environmental health issue; soil degradation; deforestation; desertification; destruction of coral reefs threatens marine habitats; wildlife threatened by illegal hunting and trade, especially for ivory; loss of biodiversity; solid waste disposal |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Geography - note | note 1: second largest country in Africa (after Algeria) and largest country in Sub-Saharan Africa; straddles the equator; dense tropical rain forest in central river basin and eastern highlands; the narrow strip of land that controls the lower Congo River is the DRC's only outlet to the South Atlantic Ocean note 2: because of its speed, cataracts, rapids, and turbulence the Congo River, most of which flows through the DRC, has never been accurately measured along much of its length; nonetheless, it is conceded to be the deepest river in the world; estimates of its greatest depth vary between 220 and 250 meters | Kilimanjaro is the highest point in Africa and one of only three mountain ranges on the continent that has glaciers (the others are Mount Kenya [in Kenya] and the Ruwenzori Mountains [on the Uganda-Democratic Republic of the Congo border]); Tanzania is bordered by three of the largest lakes on the continent: Lake Victoria (the world's second-largest freshwater lake) in the north, Lake Tanganyika (the world's second deepest) in the west, and Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) in the southwest |
| Total renewable water resources | 1.283 trillion cubic meters (2017 est.) | 96.27 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) |
| Population distribution | urban clusters are spread throughout the country, particularly in the northeast along the boarder with Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi; the largest city is the capital, Kinshasha, located in the west along the Congo River; the south is least densely populated as shown in this population distribution map | the largest and most populous East African country; population distribution is extremely uneven, but greater population clusters occur in the northern half of country and along the east coast as shown in this population distribution map |
Source: CIA Factbook
