Congo: Economic Outline

Economic Indicators

After having suffered a recession in 2007, the Congolese economy showed a more sustained growth in 2008, due to the increase in oil prices. Although forestry and wood-processing industries have been greatly hit by the global economic crisis, the latter did not prevent the Congolese economy from reaching a high level of growth (10.6%) in 2011, driven by exports and investment. The drop in oil prices nevertheless exposes the country's economy to dangers in the coming years.

The IMF approved a new FRPC program (website in French), for the 2008-2011 period, the objective of which is to fight poverty, improve competitiveness abroad and accelerate population growth by reinforcing the diversification of its economy. Despite the global crisis, the implementation of the program by the government was judged to be very satisfactory by the IMF. The attention is now turned toward key areas such as fiscal reform, improvement of the efficiency of government spending and strenghtening the management of oil reserves.

The conflicts that the Republic of Congo has suffered have left the country in a worrisome social situation. Poverty affects more than half of the population, the healthcare system is inadequate and the psychological traumas caused by the war are significant.

Main Indicators	2009	2010	2011	2012 (e)	2013 (e)
GDP (billions USD)	9.62e	12.03	15.08e	15.87	16.49
GDP (Constant Prices, Annual % Change)	7.5e	8.8	5.0	7.0	6.4
GDP per Capita (USD)	2,561	3,113	3,792	3,878	3,916
General Government Gross Debt (in % of GDP)	57.2	23.8e	22.0	22.2	20.6
Inflation Rate (%)	4.3	5.0	5.9e	5.2	3.5
Current Account (billions USD)	-0.71	0.61	1.12e	1.54	1.37
Current Account (in % of GDP)	-7.4e	5.1e	7.4e	8.3	-

Source: IMF - World Economic Outlook Database - Last Available Data.

Note: (e) Estimated Data

Monetary Indicators	2008	2009	2010
Foreign Debt (million USD)	5,931	5,041	-
CFA Franc BEAC (XAF) - Average Annual Exchange Rate For 1 USD	447.81	472.19	495.28

Source: World Bank - Last Available Data.

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Main Sectors of Industry

Breakdown of Economic Activity By Sector	Agriculture	Industry	Services
Employment By Sector (in % of Total Employment)	35.4	20.6	42.2
Value Added (in % of GDP)	3.9	80.2	15.9
Value Added (Annual % Change)	-	-	-