At the time of its independence in 1960, the Democratic Republic of the Congo was the second most industrialized country in Africa after South Africa. It had a thriving mining sector and its agriculture sector was relatively productive. Since then, decades of corruption, war, and political instability have been a severe detriment to further growth, today leaving DRC with a GDP per capita and a HDI rating that rank among the world's lowest and make the DRC one of the most fragile and, according to the United Nations, least developed countries in the world.
At the time of its independence in 1960, the Democratic Republic of the Congo was the second most industrialized country in Africa after South Africa. It had a thriving mining sector and its agriculture sector was relatively productive. Since then, decades of corruption, war, and political instability have been a severe detriment to further growth today leaving DRC with a GDP per capita and a HDI rating that rank among the world's lowest and make the DRC one of the most fragile and, according to the United Nations, least developed countries in the world