Goma
Goma Location in the Congo
Coordinates: 1°41′S 29°14′E / -1.683, 29.233
Province	Nord-Kivu
Government
- Mayor	Polydor Windi Kwawmrwha
Area
- Total	75. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (République démocratique du Congo often referred to as DR Congo, DRC or RDC, and formerly known or referred to See also Subdivisions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Article 2 of the 2005 Congolese Constitution which came into effect in February 2006 specifies twenty-five new provinces Nord-Kivu (also Kivu-Nord, North Kivu) is a province bordering Lake Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. A mayor (from the Latin māior, meaning "greater" is a modern title used in many countries for the highest ranking officer in a municipal government Area is a Quantity expressing the two- Dimensional size of a defined part of a Surface, typically a region bounded by a closed Curve. 72 km² (29. To help compare sizes of different geographic regions we list here Areas between 10 km² (1000 Hectares and 100 km² (10000 hectares 2 sq mi)
- Land	75. The square mile is an imperial and US unit of Area equal the area of a square of one statute mile. 72 km² (29. 2 sq mi)
Population (2004)
- Total	249,862
Time zone	DRC2 (UTC+2)

Goma is a city of 460,000 people in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. UTC+2 corresponds to the following Time zones Eastern European Time Egypt Standard Time Central Africa Time A city is an Urban area with a large Population and a particular Administrative, Legal, or Historical status The Democratic Republic of the Congo (République démocratique du Congo often referred to as DR Congo, DRC or RDC, and formerly known or referred to Lake Kivu is one of the Great Lakes of Africa. It lies on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, and is in the Albertine The Republic of Rwanda (ruːˈændə or /rəˈwɑːndə/ in English ɾwanda or in Kinyarwanda is a small Landlocked country in the Gisenyi is a city in Rubavu district in the West Province of Rwanda. The lake and the two cities are in the western branch of the Great Rift Valley, and Goma lies only 13 to 18 km (8-11 mi) due south of the crater of the active Nyiragongo Volcano. The Great Rift Valley is a name given in the late 19th century by English explorer John Walter Gregory to the continuous geographic trough approximately in length that runs Mount Nyiragongo is a Stratovolcano in the Virunga Mountains associated with the Great Rift Valley. The recent history of Goma has been dominated by the volcano and the Rwandan Genocide of 1994, which in turn fuelled the First and Second Congo Wars. The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass killing of hundreds of thousands of Rwanda 's minority Tutsis and the moderates of its Hutu majority The First Congo War (November 1996 to May 1997 ended when Zairean President Mobutu Sésé Seko was overthrown by rebel forces backed by foreign powers such as The Second Congo War, also known as Africa's World War and the Great War of Africa, began in August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly The aftermath of these events was still having effects on the city and its surroundings in 2007.

Goma is capital of North Kivu province, ethnically and geographically similar to South Kivu (capital Bukavu); the two provinces are known as "the Kivus". Nord-Kivu (also Kivu-Nord, North Kivu) is a province bordering Lake Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Sud-Kivu ( Kivu-Sud, South Kivu) is a province of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Bukavu is a city in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC lying at the extreme south-eastern extent of Lake Kivu, west of Cyangugu in

Effects of the Rwandan Genocide

Goma at the centre of the refugee crisis

The Rwandan Genocide of 1994 was perpetrated by the Hutu-dominated provisional Rwandan government on the Tutsi population. The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass killing of hundreds of thousands of Rwanda 's minority Tutsis and the moderates of its Hutu majority The Tutsi are one of three native Peoples of the nations of Rwanda and Burundi in central Africa, the other two being the Twa In response the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) formed by Tutsi refugees in Uganda invaded Rwanda, forcing the Hutu provisional government to Gisenyi. The Rwandan Patriotic Front (also translated as Rwandese Patriotic Front; or referred to as Patriotic Front of Rwanda) abbreviated as RPF (also often As the RPF won the upper hand, Hutus fled to Gisenyi then, from July 13 to July 14, 1994, 10,000–12,000 refugees per hour crossed the border into Goma as the Great Lakes refugee crisis took shape. Events 1174 - William I of Scotland, a key rebel in the Revolt of 1173-1174, is captured at Alnwick by forces loyal to Events 1223 - Louis VIII becomes King of France upon the death of his father Philip II of France. Year 1994 ( MCMXCIV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1994 Gregorian calendar) The Great Lakes refugee crisis is the common name for the situation beginning with the exodus in April 1994 of over two million Rwandans to neighboring countries of the Great The massive influx created a severe humanitarian crisis, as there was an acute lack of shelter, food and water. Shortly after the arrival of nearly one million refugees, a deadly cholera outbreak claimed thousands of lives in the Hutu refugee camps around Goma. According to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, a refugee is a person who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race Cholera, sometimes known as Asiatic cholera or epidemic cholera, is an infectious Gastroenteritis caused by the Bacterium

Goma in the First Congo War

Hutu militias and members of the Hutu provisional government were among the refugees, and they set up operations from the camps around Goma attacking ethnic Tutsis in the Kivus and Rwandan government forces at the border. For political reasons the Kinshasa government of the then Zaire led by Joseph Mobutu did not prevent the attacks, and so the Rwandan government and its Ugandan allies threw their support behind the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Zaire, a rebel movement led by Laurent Kabila against Mobutu. Kinshasa (formerly French: Léopoldville, formerly Dutch: Leopoldstad, German: Leopoldstadt) is the Capital The Republic of Zaire (pronunciation; République du Zaïre was the name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo between October 27, 1971 Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga ( October 14, 1930 September 7, 1997) known commonly as Mobutu, or Mobutu The Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo-Zaire ( AFDL or ADFLC) was a coalition of Congolese dissidents disgruntled minority groups Laurent-Désiré Kabila ( November 27, 1939 – January 16, 2001) was President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Rwandan forces stormed the camps at Goma, resulting in thousands of additional deaths, and with their help and that of Uganda, Kabila went on to overthrow Mobutu's regime in the First Congo War, ending in 1997. The First Congo War (November 1996 to May 1997 ended when Zairean President Mobutu Sésé Seko was overthrown by rebel forces backed by foreign powers such as

Goma in the Second Congo War

Within a year Kabila had quarrelled with his former allies, and in 1998 the Rwandan government backed a Goma-based rebel movement against Kabila, the Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD, sometimes called RCD-Goma) made of Banyamulenge people, related to the Tutsis. The Congolese Rally for Democracy, sometimes Rally for Congolese Democracy, was a rebel group operating in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The Banyamulenge are a group of mainly Tutsi Kinyarwanda speakers living in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC They captured Bukavu and other towns, and the Second Congo War began. The Second Congo War, also known as Africa's World War and the Great War of Africa, began in August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly The Goma refugee camps, in which the Hutu had created a militia called the FDLR (Democratic Force for the Liberation of Rwanda), were again attacked by Rwandan government forces and the RCD.

The Second Congo War was unprecedented in Africa for the loss of civilian life in massacres and atrocities. By 2003 the Banyamulenge had become tired of the war and friction emerged between them and Rwanda. In 2002 and 2003 a fragile negotiated peace emerged between the many sides involved in the war.

Conflict since the end of the war

There have been numerous outbreaks of violence since 2003. The Hutu FDLR remains in the forests and mountains north and west of Goma, carrying out attacks on the Rwandan border and on the Banyamulenge. The Congolese defence forces are unable or unwilling to stop them, and as a consequence Rwanda continues to support Banymulenge rebels such as the RCD and General Nkunda, and to carry out incursions into North Kivu in pursuit of the FDLR. Laurent Nkunda alias Laurent Nkundabatware or Laurent Nkunda Batware (born February 2, 1967) is a former ^[1]

2007

In September 2007 large-scale fighting threatened to break out again as the 8,000-strong militia of General Nkunda, based around Rutshuru, broke away from integration with the Congolese army and began attacking them in the town of Masisi north-west of Goma. Rutshuru, sometimes called Rushuru, is a town in the North Kivu province of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and is headquarters of an Masisi is a town and administrative district (territory in the Nord-Kivu Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The United Nations began airlifting Congolese troops into Goma and transferring them by helicopter from Goma International Airport to Masisi. The Mission of the United Nations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC abbreviated MONUC (a French Acronym for M ission ^[1]

Volcanic activity around Goma

The Great Rift Valley is being pulled apart, leading to earthquakes and the formation of volcanoes in the area.

2002 Eruption of Nyiragongo

Computer image of Nyiragongo volcano generated from satellite photographs, showing the Goma-Gisenyi conurbation on the lake shore in the foreground. In the background, left, is the Nyamuragira volcano. Mount Nyamuragira is an active Volcano in the Virunga Mountains of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, situated about 25 km north of Lake

In January 2002, Nyiragongo erupted, sending a stream of lava 200 metres (219 yd) to one kilometre (1,100 yd) wide and up to two metres (6½ ft) deep through the center of the city as far as the lake shore. Lava is molten rock expelled by a Volcano during an eruption When first expelled from a volcanic vent it is a Liquid at Temperatures Agencies monitoring the volcano were able to give a warning and most of the population of Goma evacuated to Gisenyi. The lava destroyed 40% of the city (more than 4,500 houses and buildings). There were some fatalities caused by the lava and by emissions of carbon dioxide, which causes asphyxiation. Carbon dioxide ( Chemical formula:) is a Chemical compound composed of two Oxygen Atoms covalently bonded to a single The lava also covered over the northern 1 km of the 3-kilometre (10,000 ft) runway of Goma International Airport, isolating the terminal and apron which were at that end. A runway ( RWY) is a strip of land on an Airport, on which Aircraft can take off and land. Goma International Airport is an airport serving Goma, a city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. ^[2] The lava can easily be seen in satellite photographs,^[3] and aircraft can be seen using the 2-km (6,500-ft) southern section of the runway which is clear of lava.

In 2005, volcanic activity again threatened the city.

The threat posed by Lake Kivu

Main article: Limnic eruption

Lake Kivu is one of three lakes in African identified as having huge quantities of dissolved gas held at pressure in its depths. A limnic eruption, also referred to as a lake overturn, is a rare type of Natural disaster in which Carbon dioxide (CO2 suddenly erupts from Lake Kivu is one of the Great Lakes of Africa. It lies on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, and is in the Albertine One of the others, Lake Nyos, experienced a limnic eruption or 'lake overturn', a catastrophic release of suffocating carbon dioxide probably triggered by landslides, which killed nearly two thousand people in the area around the lake. Lake Nyos is a Crater lake in the Northwest Province of Cameroon. A limnic eruption, also referred to as a lake overturn, is a rare type of Natural disaster in which Carbon dioxide (CO2 suddenly erupts from Kivu is 2,000 times bigger and also contains dissolved methane as an additional hazard. Nearly two million people including the population of Goma live in the vicinity of Lake Kivu and could be in danger from a limnic eruption triggered by one of the nearby volcanoes and the earthquakes associated with them. ^[4]

Other features of Goma

• The city centre is only 1 km (0. 6 mi) from the Rwandan border and 3. 5 km (2. 2 mi) from the centre of Gisenyi.
• After being closed to international travel since the 2002 eruption of the volcano, the Goma International Airport now accepts commercial charter flights and also a passenger line travels from Nairobi to Goma. Goma International Airport is an airport serving Goma, a city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
• Goma has four or five lakeside wharves totaling about 130 metres (430 ft), the longest being about 80 metres (260 ft).
• Virunga National Park, home to mountain gorillas lies north of the city. The Virunga National Park (formerly Albert National Park) lies from the Virunga Mountains, to the Rwenzori Mountains, in the eastern Democratic The Mountain Gorilla ( Gorilla beringei beringei Adult males have more pronounced bony crests on the top and back of their skulls giving their heads a more conical shape
• National Road No. 2 connected Goma to Bukavu and Kisangani but at August 2007 had not been reopened after the damage caused by the wars and lack of maintenance. National Road No 2 is a 863-km road in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Bukavu is a city in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC lying at the extreme south-eastern extent of Lake Kivu, west of Cyangugu in Kisangani, formerly Stanleyville or Stanleystad, (population 500000 is a City in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Central Africa
• Goma was known for its nightlife but because of conflict in the area the nightlife is very limited now. NightLife with Tony Delroy is a popular late night talkback show across ABC Local Radio, Broadcasting from the 702 ABC Sydney studios in Ultimo

See also

• Lake Kivu
• Bukavu
• North Kivu
• South Kivu

References

External links

• Tom Casadevall of the United States Geological Survey; "The 1994 Rwandan Refugee Crisis: Cultural Awareness in Managing Natural Disasters" (1h28m streaming video). The United States Geological Survey ( USGS) is a scientific agency of the United States government. Lecture given at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on vulcanology around Goma

Nord-Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Cities
Goma (capital) || Communes : Goma, Karisimbi Beni || Communes : Beni, Bungulu, Ruwenzori, Muhekera Butembo || Communes : Bulengera, Kimemi, Mususa, Vutamba
Territorial districts
Province not divided into districts Territories : Beni, Lubero, Masisi, Nyiragongo, Rutshuru, Walikale