Exploitation of Natural Resources under Belgian Rule

=Ivory exploitation pre-1884=

From 1878 to 1884, King Leopold II of Belgium used newly established organizations such as the 'Association Nationale Africaine' (AIA) to establish influence and eventually Belgian sovereignty in the Congo basin. His primary objective was to exploit the lucrative ivory market in Central Africa by establishing a secure trade route between the Upper and Lower Congo. However, the region was also reported to be rich in other commodities, such as mineral resources.

=Rubber in the Congo Free State 1884-1908=

The Conference of Berlin in 1884, King Leopold was awarded the Congo Free State (CFS), over which he enjoyed nearly complete control.

Just as the growth in worldwide demand for consumer electronics in the 21st Century has led to a leap in demand for tantalite ore, during the 1880s and 1890s the world needed rubber supplies for the emerging bicycle and car industries, and the CFS had the world's largest supply of wild rubber.

Rubber exports began as early as 1890, and by the mid-1980s rubber extraction would become the colony's most profitable industry. In 1903, 47.3 million Franks worth of rubber were exported by the state, which made up around 90% of the State's entire exports. The CFS declared all uncultivated lands state property and a rubber tax was imposed on the native population, who were obliged to deliver a certain quantity of rubber to the state each month.

Leopold capitalized on the vast wealth extracted in ivory and rubber during his 'reign of terror' in the CFS and spent some of his wealth constructing grand palaces and monuments in Belgium. However in 1908 the Belgian parliament yielded to international pressure over atrocities committed in the Free State and annexed it as the Belgian Congo, effectively removing Leopold from power.

=Belgian Congo 1908-1960=

The importance of rubber in the local economy declined dramatically during the first quarter of the century; in 1901 it represented 87% of the Congo's exports, by 1928 the proportion was as low as 1%. Meanwhile Katanga, in the south-east, had begun to produce immense mineral wealth.

In 1906, the 'Union Miniere de Haut Kanga' was formed in order to exploit these new opportunities and began to extract copper in 1911. By 1928 it was producing 7% of the world's total copper. Diamonds also began to contribute to the status of the Congo as one of Africa's most mineral rich regions from 1907 onwards, when it was first mined. By 1927 the Congo's diamond output was second only to South Africa.

Given the Congo's dependence on raw material exports, the country suffered greatly during the slump of the 1930s. However, Congo's minerals went on to make a major contribution to the allied war effort during WWII.

=Congolese Independence and Katangan Secession=

The southern province of Katanga had always been a special case, only coming into line administratively with the rest of the provinces under Belgian control in 1933. Upon independence in 1960, new Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba set about creating a strong central government, a move resented by leaders of mineral-rich Katanga. Weeks after independence, Moise Tshombe declared the secession of Katanga, beginning a secession which was not put down until 1963.

Katanga was particularly significant as a province in 1960 as it was producing not only copper, but 60% of the world's uranium and 80% of the world's industrial diamonds.

=References=