Relationship dossier
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Sweden
Relationship assessment
Swedish development cooperation is a central feature of ties with the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Democratic Republic of the Congo toward Sweden
+10Congolese authorities have engaged with Swedish-supported development programming, providing a basis for practical cooperation. The breadth of direct bilateral government initiatives is unclear.
Sweden toward Democratic Republic of the Congo
+35Sweden has provided sustained development cooperation and humanitarian support in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including programming related to governance, human rights and peacebuilding.
Overall relationship
+25Sustained Swedish development cooperation and humanitarian support form the principal cooperative feature of the relationship. The scale of direct government-to-government engagement and the Congolese authorities’ role in individual programs are less clear.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
The relationship includes sustained Swedish development cooperation and humanitarian support in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including programs addressing governance, human rights and peacebuilding. Congolese authorities have engaged with Swedish-supported development programming. The scope of direct government-to-government cooperation and its implementation is less clear than Sweden’s assistance to the country.
Key developments
Sweden maintained a development cooperation strategy for the Democratic Republic of the Congo for 2021–2025, supporting programs in areas including governance, human rights and peacebuilding.
Major uncertainties
- The scope of direct cooperation between Congolese and Swedish government institutions is unclear.
- The extent of Congolese government participation in Swedish-supported programs varies by program and is not clear.