Ordinance no.70/295 of 9 November 1970 fixed the organization of the Coast, River, and Lake Guard, after it had been created by ordonnance-loi 70/060 of the same day. A coast guard was headquartered at Banana, the River Guard at Kinshasa and the Lake Guard at Kalemie. Some five years later, however, the organization became the Force Navale Zairoise.[1]
Before the downfall of Mobutu Sese Seko, Zaire operated a small navy on the Congo river with a few facilities on the Atlantic coast. It consisted of 1,300 personnel, including 600 marines. One of its installations was at the village of N'dangi near the presidential residence in Gbadolite. The port at N'dangi was the base for several patrol boats, helicopters and the presidential yacht.[2][3]
The 2002 edition of Jane's Sentinel described the Navy as being "in a state of near total disarray" and stated that it did not conduct any training or have operating procedures.[4] The Congolese navy shares the same discipline problems as the other services. It was initially placed under command of the MLC when the transition began: the current situation is uncertain.
A FARDC sailor (left) with MONUSCO peacekeepers training on Lake Tanganyika. The former is wearing the insignia of a chief petty officer.
In September 2017 the Congolese navy supported army operations against a Mai-Mai militia and sunk a rebel boat in Lake Tanganyika.[7]
On 5 July 2018, the Congolese navy fought a skirmish against the Ugandan navy in Lake Edward after Ugandan vessels attacked Congolese fishing boats. Several people were killed in the clashes. The naval forces in the area on the Congolese side are commanded by Major Jean Tsongo. The Congolese navy in the area is also tasked with keeping rebels from Uganda from entering the DRC.[8][9][10]
The IISS, in its 2007 edition of the Military Balance, confirms the bases listed in Jane's and adds a fifth base at Boma, a coastal city near Matadi.
In 2018 it was reported that the Chinese assisted the DRC with creating a naval base at the seaport town of Banana.[12]
Various sources also refer to numbered Naval Regions. Operations of the 1st Naval Region have been reported in Kalemie,[13] the 4th near the northern city of Mbandaka,[14] and the 5th at Goma.[15]
The IISS lists the Navy at 1,000 personnel and a total of eight patrol craft, of which only one is operational, a Shanghai II Type 062 class gunboat designated "102". There are five other 062s as well as two Swiftships which are not currently operational, though some may be restored to service in the future. According to Jane's, the Navy also operates barges and small craft armed with machine guns.[16] It was reported that China had been providing military assistance to the DRC since 2008, and that included providing repairs and maintenance on the Shanghai gunboats in the FARDC navy.[12]
^Human Rights Division / MONUC, Monthly Human Rights Assessment: April 2007, 17 May 2007. The HR report stated a Goma student was shot by a soldier of the 5th Naval Region for refusing to hand over a cellphone.
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