Pygmies of Congo

The pygmy community has largely been left to itself by majority society and is seeking improvement in its situation with the help of the few Bantous who appreciate the misery of exculsion to which this sector of Congo ’s population is victim.

Who are the pygmies and indigenous people of Congo ?

The pygmies are a minority in the Republic of Congo . They identify themselves with a way of life different from that of the majority Bantous. They make due with any sturdy materials available to construct their capped huts inside which there are neither rooms nor the familiar houseold linens; rain and sunlight filters through holes in the roofs.

Traditionally nomads and lacking any other means of obtaining necessitites, the pygmies are now experiencing difficulties supporting themselves by their traditional hunting, fishing, and honey collection. This difficulty pursuing traditional activities deepens the pygmies’ dependence on the Bantoues populations for food.

Called Bambenga in the North of the country with several other names: Baaka, Bakola, Mbendzele in the Likouala region; Bangombé, Mikaya, Mbendzele in Sangha ; Batsoua in the plateau region and Babi in Pool ; Babongo in the rest of the Departments in the South, les pygmées font partie de ceux que l’on désigne au niveau mondial par les minorités telles que : les Indiens (Amérique), les Boshimans et Hottentots (Afrique Australe), les Maorais (Océanie), les tsiganes (Europe)…

Masters of the forest, the pygmies have allowed very little Western influence into their lives despite small-scale attempts to the contrary during the colonial period.

In Congo , pygmies are present in almost all of the Departments : Likouala, Sangha, Cuvette-Ouest in Mbomo, Central Cuvette in the Mossaka-Loukolela zone, Pool in Kindamba, Vindza, Mayama, Lekoumou, Bouenza, Niari and Kouilou. They are also increasingly moving into the major population centers : Brazzaville , Pointe-Noire, Dolisie and the surrounding Districts.

For updated information on Congo’s pygmies visit this web-site: www.azurdev.org/en/indigenouspeople_apac.htm

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