Mobutu Sese Seko

Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku wa za Banga (or Mobutu Sese Seko Koko Ngbendu Wa Za Banga; October 14, 1930 – September 7, 1997) was the President of Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) for 32 years (1965 – 1997).

Kleptocracy

Initially he nationalized foreign-owned firms and forced European investors out of the country. In many cases he handed the management of these firms to relatives and close associates who stole the companies's assets. This precipitated such an economic slump that Mobutu was forced by 1977 to try to woo foreign investors back. Also in 1977 he needed Belgian aid to help repulse an attack on Katanga by Katangan rebels based in Angola. Despite this, he was re-elected in 1977, but no other candidates stood. He worked hard on little but to increase his personal fortune, which in 1984 was estimated to amount to nearly US $4 billion, most of it in Swiss banks. This was almost equivalent to the country's foreign debt at the time, and by 1989 the government was forced to default on international loans from Belgium. He owned a fleet of Mercedes vehicles that he used to travel between his numerous palaces, while many of his people starved.

Related Topics:
1977 - Katanga - Angola - 1984 - US - Swiss banks - 1989 - Belgium

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Another feature of Mobutu's economic mismanagement, directly linked to the way he and his friends siphoned off so much of the country's wealth, was rampant inflation. The rapid decline in the real value of salaries strongly encouraged a culture of corruption and dishonesty among public servants of all kinds.

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Mobutu's rule earned a reputation as one of the world's foremost examples of kleptocracy and nepotism. However, during the Cold War this did not prevent western countries like the United States or international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund from providing economic support for his regime through multiple loans.

Related Topics:
Kleptocracy - Nepotism - Cold War - Western - United States - International Monetary Fund

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