Matadi

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City in Kongo Central, Democratic Republic of the Congo

title: "Matadi" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["matadi", "populated-places-in-kongo-central", "populated-places-established-in-1879", "library-of-congress-africa-collection-related", "1879-establishments-in-africa", "cities-in-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congo"] description: "City in Kongo Central, Democratic Republic of the Congo" topic_path: "geography" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matadi" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary City in Kongo Central, Democratic Republic of the Congo ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

FieldValue
nameMatadi
official_nameVille de Matadi
settlement_typeProvincial capital and city
nicknameThe Stone City
image_skyline{{multiple image
total_width270
borderinfobox
perrow1/2/2/2
caption_aligncenter
image1Aerial view of Matadi.jpg
caption1View over Matadi
image2Matadi Metropole Hotel (20626322543).jpg
caption2Matadi Metropole Hotel
image3Place Gouvernaurat à Matadi Par Shaloom Yave.jpg
caption3Governorat Building
image4Matadi train station (20624744864).jpg
caption4Central Station
image5Cathédrale de matadi.jpg
caption5Cathedrale of Matadi
image6Fleuves.jpg
caption6Matadi Bridge and the Congo River}}
pushpin_mapDemocratic Republic of the Congo
pushpin_label_positionbottom
pushpin_map_captionLocation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
coordinates
subdivision_typeCountry
subdivision_nameDemocratic Republic of the Congo
subdivision_type1Province
subdivision_name1Kongo Central
established_titleFounded
established_date1879
parts_typeCommunes
parts_stylepara
p1Matadi
p2Mvuzi
p3Nzanza
leader_titleMayor
leader_nameDominique Nkodia
total_typeCity
area_total_km2110
population_as_of2015
population_blank1_titleEthnicities
population_blank1Bakongo
population_footnotes
population_total301644
population_density_km2auto
population_urban_footnotes
population_urban448,000
timezoneWest Africa Time
utc_offset+1
::

| name = Matadi | official_name = Ville de Matadi | settlement_type = Provincial capital and city | nickname = The Stone City | image_skyline = {{multiple image | total_width = 270 | border = infobox | perrow = 1/2/2/2 | caption_align = center | image1 = Aerial view of Matadi.jpg | caption1 = View over Matadi | image2 = Matadi Metropole Hotel (20626322543).jpg | caption2 = Matadi Metropole Hotel | image3 = Place Gouvernaurat à Matadi Par Shaloom Yave.jpg | caption3 = Governorat Building | image4 = Matadi train station (20624744864).jpg | caption4 = Central Station | image5 = Cathédrale de matadi.jpg | caption5 = Cathedrale of Matadi | image6 = Fleuves.jpg | caption6 = Matadi Bridge and the Congo River}} | image_flag = | image_seal = | pushpin_map = Democratic Republic of the Congo | pushpin_label_position = bottom | pushpin_map_caption = Location in the Democratic Republic of the Congo | pushpin_mapsize = | coordinates = | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = Democratic Republic of the Congo | subdivision_type1 = Province | subdivision_name1 = Kongo Central | established_title = Founded | established_date = 1879 | parts_type = Communes | parts_style = para | p1 = Matadi | p2 = Mvuzi | p3 = Nzanza | leader_title = Mayor | leader_name = Dominique Nkodia | total_type = City | area_note = | area_total_km2 = 110 | population_as_of = 2015 | population_metro = | population_blank1_title = Ethnicities | population_blank1 = Bakongo | population_footnotes = | population_total = 301644 | population_density_km2 = auto | population_urban_footnotes = | population_urban = 448,000 | timezone = West Africa Time | utc_offset = +1 | website = | footnotes = Matadi is the chief sea port of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the capital of the Kongo Central province, adjacent to the border with Angola.It had a population of 245,862 (2004). Matadi is situated on the left bank of the Congo River, 148 km from the mouth and 8 km below the last navigable point before the rapids that make the river impassable for a long stretch upriver.

History

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/108_Matadi._-_Le_marche.jpg" caption="The market, 1899"] ::

Matadi was near the site of the state of Vungu, which was first mentioned in 1535 and was said to be destroyed in 1624.

Matadi itself was founded by Sir Henry Morton Stanley in 1879. It was strategically important because it was the last navigable port going upstream on the Congo River; it became the furthest inland port in the Congo Free State. The construction of the Matadi–Kinshasa Railway (built between 1890 and 1898) made it possible to transport goods from deeper within Congo's interior to the port of Matadi, stimulating the city to become an important trading center. Portuguese and French West-African commercial interests influenced the city's architecture and urban design, which borrowed from the neighboring colonies in Angola and the Congo-Brazzaville.History of architecture: city, architecture and colonial space in Matadi and Lubumbashi, Sofie Boonen,

Culture

The word Matadi means stone in the local Kikongo language. The town is built on steep hills. A local saying is that to live in Matadi, one must know the verbs "to go up", "to go down", and "to sweat". Upstream is a series of caves known as the "rock of Diogo Cão", after graffiti carved by the Portuguese explorer in 1485 marking the limit of his travels up the Congo River.

Yelala Rapids lies near the city.

Climate

Matadi has a relatively dry tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) with a lengthy dry season from June to September due to the northerly extension of the cold, foggy Benguela Current. |location = Matadi |single line = Yes |metric first = Yes |temperature colour = pastel |Jan high F = 91 |Feb high F = 92 |Mar high F = 94 |Apr high F = 93 |May high F = 91 |Jun high F = 86 |Jul high F = 83 |Aug high F =84 |Sep high F = 86 |Oct high F = 90 |Nov high F =91 |Dec high F = 90 |year high F = 89 |Jan low F = 76 |Feb low F = 76 |Mar low F = 76 |Apr low F = 76 |May low F = 75 |Jun low F = 71 |Jul low F = 68 |Aug low F = 69 |Sep low F = 72 |Oct low F = 75 |Nov low F = 75 |Dec low F = 75 |year low F = 74 |Jan rain inch = 5 |Feb rain inch =4.3 |Mar rain inch = 6.6 |Apr rain inch = 7.4 |May rain inch = 2.4 |Jun rain inch = 0.1 |Jul rain inch = 0.1 |Aug rain inch = 0.1 |Sep rain inch = 0.3 |Oct rain inch = 1.1 |Nov rain inch = 6.7 |Dec rain inch = 5.8 |rain colour = green |source 1 = Weatherbase |url =http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather.php3?s=70246&refer=wikipedia |title =Weatherbase: Historical Weather for Matadi, Democratic Republic of the Congo |publisher=Weatherbase |year=2011 Retrieved on November 24, 2011. |date=November 2011

Infrastructure

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Ancien_Bâtiment_du_barrage_Mpozo_à_Matadi.jpg" caption="Former building of M'pozo dam in Matadi"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/Matadi_train_station_(21236934082).jpg" caption="Matadi train station, September 2015"] ::

The port of Matadi serves as a major import and export point for the whole nation. Chief exports are coffee and timber. The state fishing company "Pemarza" uses the port to supply fish to Kinshasa. Tshimpi Airport is nearby.

Matadi Bridge, a suspension bridge 722 m- long with a main span of 520 m, built in 1983, crosses the river just south of Matadi, carrying the main road linking Kinshasa to the coast. It is the only bridge over the main stem of the Congo River. After passing through Matadi and over the bridge, it continues to Boma, Muanda and Banana. Although built as a mixed rail and road bridge, no rail line is now operating over the bridge. Matadi is the port railhead for the 366 km long Matadi-Kinshasa Railway, constructed to bypass the rapids on the river upstream. A monument to the builders of the railway stands on a nearby hill.

A power station on the M'pozo River supplies power to Matadi.

Port

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Album_Congo_-_Cover_of_trading_cards_from_the_Congo.jpg" caption="Port of Matadi, on the cover of trading cards from the Congo"] ::

The maximum draft of the port is 8.2m. The Navy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo maintains one operational command at the port.

Currently, larger ships are required to transfer cargo to smaller vessels in the Republic of Congo's Pointe-Noire port. For this reason, the development of a deep-sea port at Port Banana was begun in 2022.

Communes

The city of Matadi is administratively divided into three communes: Matadi, Mvuzi and Nzanza.

Media

La Cité africaine de Matadi is a newspaper published in French in Matadi.

In Belgium, a small garden city in the Heverlee suburb of Leuven, was named after Matadi in the 1920s.

Gallery

File:106 Matadi.jpg|Matadi, 1899 File:109 Le marché de Matadi.jpg|The market, 1899 File:110 Un coin de marché à Matadi.jpg|A corner market in Matadi, 1899 File:111 Les élégantes au marché. - Matadi.jpg|Women at the market in Matadi, 1899 File:112 Au marché de Matadi.jpg|The market, 1899 File:113 Les hauteurs de Matadi.jpg|The houses of Matadi, 1899 File:114 Aux environs de Matadi.jpg|The surroundings of Matadi, 1899 File:Matadi port.jpg|Matadi port, circa 1942 Image:Matadi.jpg|Full Congo River at Matadi and the first rapids Image:Matadi05.jpg|Arrival at Matadi station Image:Vivi-matadi.jpg|Map of Matadi and Vivi around 1890 File:Matadi in 1930s.JPG|Matadi in 1930s

References

References

  1. (6 January 2023). "Kongo Central : le nouveau maire s'engage à matérialiser la vision du Chef de l'État".
  2. "caid.cd/index.php/donnees-par-villes/ville-de-matadi/?domaine=fiche".
  3. "Matadi, Democratic Republic of the Congo Population (2024)".
  4. Afonso I to the Pope Paulo III, 21 February 1535 in Antonio Brasio, ed. ''Monumenta Missionaria Africana'' (15 vols, Lisbon 1952-88) 2: 38.
  5. "E-ships.net".
  6. "Construction of Banana Port begins in Congo". Ships & Ports.
  7. [https://www.dyntra.org/en/poi/matadi-commune/ Dyntra.org: Matadi commune]
  8. [https://web.archive.org/web/20180920234927/https://www.ceni.cd/assets/bundles/documents/cadre-legal/cadre-legal_1531157427.pdf#page=25 CENI.cd: Annexes à la Loi No....... (18-005) du ....... (8 May 2018) portant Adoption de la Répartition des Sièges par Circonscription Électorale pour les Élections Législatives, Provinciales, Municipales et Locales, p. 30 (archive.org)] and [https://www.droitcongolais.info/files/111.05.18-Loi-du-8-mai-2018_Adoption_repartition-sieges-electoraux.pdf here]
  9. "Africa: Countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo: News". Stanford University Libraries & Academic Information Resources.
  10. (15 April 2021). "Matadi Leuven: historische tuinwijk met bruisende gemeenschap – 21bis". 21bis.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

matadipopulated-places-in-kongo-centralpopulated-places-established-in-1879library-of-congress-africa-collection-related1879-establishments-in-africacities-in-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congo