Natural resources are a huge liability to Congo. Why is that?
One of the worst things a country can have is a vast bounty of natural resources, and Congo is a victim of that bounty rather than a beneficiary of it. Experts call this the “natural resources curse,” and there’s a well-known inverse relationship between a country’s dependence on resources and its long-term rate of economic growth. One reason is that resource-dependent countries tend to have over-valued exchange rates, which harms other sectors of the economy such as manufacturing. Another reason is that rebel groups have a financial reason to fight and can monetize the territory that they control. Research into insurgencies suggests that the crucial factor in the rise of a rebel movement isn’t grievance but rather the ability to exploit resources to pay for weapons and to make rebels rich. DRC has been called “Hell on Earth.” In addition to the killing, what is going on in Congo that, in your opinion, is most deserving of this epithet? Rape is a problem in conflicts all over the world
