Kivu is the name for a large region in the eastern

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

that borders Lake Kivu. It was a ''Région'' (read 'province') of the country under the rule of Mobutu Sese Seko from 1966 to 1988. As an official ''Région'' in 1986 it was divided into the three "Sub-Regions" (''Sous-Régions'' in French) of: Nord-Kivu, Sud-Kivu and

Maniema Maniema Province (''Jimbo la Maniema'', in Swahili) is one of 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Kindu. The 2020 population was estimated to be 2,856,300. Toponymy Henry Morton Stanley explored the area ...

, Those three became the current provinces in the reorganization of 1988. The capital of the Kivu Region was in Bukavu, and the capitals of the three Sub-Regions were in

Goma Goma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the North Kivu, North Kivu Province; it is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu and shares borders with the Bukumu Chiefdo ...

, Uvira and Kindu.

History

Kivu has been repeatedly subjected to major conflicts since the early 20th century. Under Belgian colonial rule, it was the site of several religious revolts such as the 1944 Kivu uprising. Following independence, it was a battleground of the Simba rebellion, First Congo War, and Second Congo War, and has been the site of an ongoing military conflict since the early 2000s. In 2025 substantial parts of the area came under the control of the March 23 Movement. From August 2018 to June 2020, an Ebola epidemic affected the region.

Geography

Kivu is also the name for the entire region surrounding Lake Kivu, including the portions in

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

which contain the vast majority of the lake area's population (the contiguous towns of

in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Gisenyi in

, with a combined population approaching 1,000,000, form the largest urbanised area in the Lake Kivu area). The area is characterized by lush vegetation and an extended growing season due in part to its high elevation (1500 m or 4900 ft at the lakeshore) and the volcanic nature of its soil. The Kivu region represents the high point of the East African Rift Valley. The lake itself contains a massive amount of

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalent bond, covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in a gas state at room temperature and at norma ...

in its depths, and there is some concern that tectonic activity ( rifting) and/or volcanic activity might cause a limnic eruption, a sudden release of this captured carbon dioxide. If this were to happen it would devastate the population around the lake; however, the likelihood of this occurring is in dispute.

Approximate correspondence between historical and current provinces

References

{{Authority control Geography of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Former subdivisions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo