Congo
Last updated in June 2006
Political relations
Since September 2004, diplomatic relations with the Republic of the Congo have been looked after from Kinshasa by the German ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire), who is co-accredited to the Republic of Congo. The embassy in Brazzaville was closed in 1997 after it was looted along with the GTZ’s premises following the outbreak of the civil war that forced President Lissouba to leave the country.
Foreign Minister Adada paid a diplomatic visit to Berlin in December 2003. He spoke with State Minister Kerstin Müller in the Federal Foreign Office and with the Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Uschi Eid. In April 2006, State Minister Gernot Erler in the Federal Foreign Office travelled to Brazzaville for talks with Foreign Minister Adada.
Economic relations
Economic relations between Germany and the Republic of Congo are not particularly well developed. There are only a few German investors active in the Republic of Congo, probably owing in no small part to the difficult investment climate there. Germany imports crude oil and timber from the Republic of the Congo and exports machinery, motor vehicles, ironware, household goods and chemical products.
Major agreements governing economic relations include the economic agreement (1962), the protocol on navigation and aviation (1962) and investment promotion and protection agreements (both in force since 1967).
In 2005, Germany agreed to a comprehensive bilateral debt rescheduling process worth some EUR 127 million, thus carrying through on its December 2004 Paris Club pledge. Through the implementation of the Paris Club resolutions, the Republic of Congo was, in March 2006, able to reach the decision point for debt relief under the HIPC Debt Initiative adopted in Cologne in 1999.
Following the unrest caused by the civil war in 1997, Germany discontinued its bilateral development cooperation with the Republic of Congo. A public-private partnership project was, however, conducted in 2004 with a forestry company to help draw up an ecologically compatible forest management plan. Support is provided through the European Development Fund (EDF) to stabilize the country’s macroeconomy, promote road construction and establish a constitutional state based on the rule of law.
Cultural relations
Since the embassy’s closure in 1997 in response to the civil war, there has been little scope for cultural exchange. Limited follow-up support is provided for former scholarship-holders and advisory services for Congolese students wishing to study in Germany. Since the looting during the civil war turmoil, the Hanns Seidel Foundation has no longer been represented in the country.
