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Article: DR Congo's $24 trillion fortune.(Mining in Africa)(Democratic Republic of Congo )
- Article from:
- African Business
- Article date:
- February 1, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 IC Publications Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The total mineral wealth of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is estimated to be some $24 trillion--equivalent to the GDP of Europe and the US combined, but this vast region, larger than the whole of western Europe, remains staggeringly poor and underdeveloped. The country's mineral wealth is also the principal cause of the world's worst conflict since World War II. A peaceful DR Congo could transform Africa almost overnight, but is there a way out? M J Morgan reports.
The conflict in Eastern Congo remains as misunderstood, ignored and all but as forgotten as ever. The worst, in terms of loss of life, as well as the longest war of the 20th century, it has ...