Travel Guide Mbandaka

It was Stanley who, with Lieutenant Coquilaht (Coquilahtville), founded a post in 1883 on the outskirts of today's city center, on the site of the equator line. In 1891, the urban center was moved to its present, more favorable location at the confluence of the Congo and Ruki rivers. Today, the city still comprises two communes (Mbandaka and Wangata), each with around ten districts. The main roads are Avenue Bolenge, where the market is held, Avenue Bonsomi and Avenue Libération, which links the airport to the port. Imposing old buildings bear witness to the town's importance in colonial times. Mbandaka is a peaceful town surrounded by marshes and dense forests. It's the daughter of the river, which gives it all its magic and a little coolness in this humid tropical furnace. And it's still an important river stopover between Kinshasa and Kisangani. But the city's economic cruising speed is very low. The absence of electricity discourages most would-be investors... and contributes to the isolation of the once prosperous town and province. Fishing remains an important artisanal activity, whose processed products (smoked fish) are exported by boat to the markets of Kinshasa. As witnessed by the many fishing villages built on stilts, which give the area around the town a certain charm. And the passage of various boats testifies to the still intense river activity.