Popokabaka is a city in the

Kwango Province Kwango is a province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is one of the 21 provinces created in the 2015 repartitioning. Kwango, Kwilu, and Mai-Ndombe provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the former Bandundu province. K ...

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 ...

. It is the administrative center of

Popokabaka Territory Popokabaka Territory is a territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is located in the Kwango province. The territory is divided into three sectors: Yonso, Popokabaka and Lufuna. The Kwango River runs through the territory. The admini ...

. Popokabaka lies on the right bank of the river

Kwango River The Cuango or Kwango (; ; ) is a transboundary river of Angola and Democratic Republic of Congo. It is the largest left bank tributary of the Kasai River in the Congo River basin. It flows through Malanje in Angola. The Kwango River basin ha ...

Francis Dhanis Baron Francis Ernest Joseph Marie Dhanis (11 March 1861 – 13 November 1909) was a Belgian colonial civil servant and soldier noted for his service for the Congo Free State during the Congo Arab War and Batetela Rebellion. Early life and ...

, an agent of the

Congo Free State The Congo Free State, also known as the Independent State of the Congo (), was a large Sovereign state, state and absolute monarchy in Central Africa from 1885 to 1908. It was privately owned by Leopold II of Belgium, King Leopold II, the const ...

, established a station here around 1890. The territory of Popokabaka borders with

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

in the southwest. For a long time Popokabaka was the commercial center for trade with Portuguese traders who were selling essential items and buying local products. The military post at Popokabaka was used to control the flow of rubber into Portuguese Congo. The city is the seat of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Popokabaka The Roman Catholic Diocese of Popokabaka (Latin: ''Romano-Catholicae Dioecesis Popokabaka'', French: ''Diocèse catholique romain de Popokabaka'') is a diocese located in the city of Popokabaka in the ecclesiastical province of Kinshasa in the ...

. It is served by

Popokabaka Airport Popokabaka Airport is an airstrip serving the city of Popokabaka in Kwango, Kwango Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. The runway parallels road R228 approximately south of the city. See also * Transport in the Democratic Republic of th ...

, a grass

airstrip An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes in ...

References

Populated places in Kwango {{DRCongo-geo-stub