J.B. Russell Images

From the slave trade to King Leopold I of Belgium, through the kleptocratic dictatorship of Mabutu Sese Seke and the civil war that has become known as Africa's World War, few places have a history of suffering as long as that of the DRC. A vast country the size of Western Europe, the DR Congo has enormous natural resources and potential yet the country is in ruins and the majority of the population subsist in dire poverty. Over 1200 people die everyday as a result of the conflict and lack of services, primarily from preventable causes such as malaria, tuberculosis and malnutrition.