Everything's in the red. The seven countries warring in Congo and myriad rebel groups have attacked civilians, destroyed property and displaced uncounted thousands of people there. The International Rescue Committee, a New York-based relief agency, estimates that more than 1.7 million Congolese died between 1998 and 2000. The war has fueled existing ethnic tensions, further fracturing Africa's third-largest country. The war exacerbates the economic problems by sucking up hard currency and vital resources like fuel.
Fighting makes it hard to farm in many areas, leaving thousands of people hungry.
And insecurity along the majestic Congo River, which, in the near-complete absence of roads acts as the country's main highway, has cut off central Congo from the rest of the country. The economy is completely dysfunctional and subject to continual extortion. People survive as best they can. The mathematics teacher, for instance, spends many of his weekends at his farm tilling the soil himself. And much of the huge difference between his official salary and what he spends is due to the exchange rate.