The Lukenie River (

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

: ''Rivière Lukenie'') is a

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

in the central

Congo Basin The Congo Basin () is the sedimentary basin of the Congo River. The Congo Basin is located in Central Africa, in a region known as west equatorial Africa. The Congo Basin region is sometimes known simply as the Congo. It contains some of the larg ...

of the

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 ...

(DRC). River

barges A barge is typically a flat-bottomed vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. Original use was on inland waterways, while modern use is on both inland and marine water environments. The first modern barges were pull ...

from

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

journey up the Congo, Kwah ( Kasai), and

Fimi The Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana (FIMI) or the Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy. It was established in 1992, when ...

Rivers to the Lukenie as far as the landing at

Kole Kole Weathers is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. She is a short-lived member of the Teen Titans who possesses the ability to generate crystals. Kole was introduced and killed during the events of ' ...

, a journey of 6 to 12 weeks. This is not done during the low water season (June–August), however, for fear of stranding for long periods. The Lukenie is not navigable by barges above Kole. During the early Belgian colonial era, the river was sometimes used to transport rubber from posts such as

and

Lodja Lodja is a remote town in the Sankuru (formerly Kasaï-Oriental) province in central Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is serviced by the Lodja Airport which is about from town. Lodja is a hub for both rice production in the province and di ...

down to Lake Leopold II. However, most supplies were brought overland from Bene Dibele, to the south on the right bank of the

Sankuru River The Sankuru River () is a major river in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its approximate length of 1,200 km"Sankuru River" in '' The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 10, p. ...

just below the point where it is joined by the Lubefu River, a more reliable route. Some of the main logging concession areas of Sodefor are on both sides of the Lukenie River, centered on

Oshwe Oshwe is a community in Mai-Ndombe province, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It is the headquarters of Oshwe territory. The town lies on the Lukenie River. The estimated population as of 2012 was 22,576. The town is served by Oshwe Airpor ...

. In September 2010 hundreds of people in

, a community in

Mai-Ndombe Province Mai-Ndombe is one of the 21 newest provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning when the former Bandundu province was split-up into the new provinces of Mai-Ndombe, Kwango, and Kwilu. Mai-Ndombe was for ...

, demonstrated against SODEFOR. They were demanding a halt to industrial logging in the region, which degrades the rainforest on which the community depends without bringing benefits to the impoverished community.

References

Rivers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo {{DRCongo-river-stub