Geographical data

The territory of Sandoa is a decentralized entity of Lualaba province. The territory of Sandoa was first implanted in Katola, current site of the chief town of the Tshibamba Chiefdom. It is located in the south-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, just a little in the centre of the new province of Lualaba.
It is bounded on the north by Kapanga territory; to the south by the territory of Dilolo, a natural boundary on the Lushiji River and imaginary line; to the east by the territory of Kamina and Kaniama, natural limit on the Lubilaji river and imaginary line. To the west, it is limited by the Republic of Angola, natural limit on the river
Geographic coordinates :
• Longitude: 22 ° East and 24 ° West
• Latitude: 9 ° North and 10 ° South,
• The average altitude is 870 meters located at 23 ° Greenwich Meridian.
Climate: It is found in the territory of Sandoa a tropical climate with two seasons namely: the rainy season from the Month of October to mid-April and the dry covering the period from May to October.

Hydrography: The territory of Sandoa is drained by several rivers including The Lulua River, Lubilaji, Kajilieji, Lushiji (which separates Sandoa from the neighbouring territory of Dilolo), Kamafika, Zombo, Rova, Randu, Lueu, Luizo, and Kasai (who separates from Angola).

Vegetation: The vegetation is made of a wooded savanna, dotted with termite mounds. The forests of which more and more rare on the expanse of the territory except in Kafakumba where there are some spaces of forests.

Particularities and riches of the territory

The territory does not have a singular peculiarity in terms of underground wealth. Nevertheless, within the territory there is great agricultural potential and a very favourable environment for livestock farming. However, there may be some gold, especially in rivers and sometimes on the mainland. A company named SOMISA (Mining Company of Sandoa) is in project since August 2014 for the exploitation of the gold but which, to the great surprise, did not begin the activities until these days.

Cultural data

Two large ethnic groups exist. These are the Tshokwe and Lunda tribe Tshokwe is the majority in the eight chiefdoms that make up the territory. However, we meet the Kaudi (Lunda) in the Tshipao chieftaincy and the Pimino (Lunda) in the Kayembe-Mukulu chieftaincy.
Languages spoken in this territory
1. Swahili (85%)
2. Tshokwe (65%)
3. Lunda (35%)
4. Lingala (5%)
Swahili is the language commonly spoken by the local population. Lunda and Tshokwe are the two vernacular languages spoken here in Sandoa. In the neighbouring northern territory (Kapanga), Lunda is more spoken as a local language. Further south (In the territory of Dilolo), the Tshokwe and other languages dominate as local languages. The territory of Sandoa is therefore like a crossroads of local languages spoken in the two neighbouring territories. It should be noted that the populations of these territories are from the former Lunda Empire. It should be noted that Swahili is spoken by almost all layers of the population. The Tshokwe is much more spoken because it is the language of a large part of the population. Note that both languages (Lunda and Tshokwe) coexist very often together because many people speak both languages at the same time.

Main activities

1. Agriculture and livestock (large and small livestock, poultry) (85%);
2. Trade (15%) ;
3. The fishing craft on the river Lulua, Kajileji, Kasai Lubilaji, Lushiji, Kafka, Zombo, Rova, Randu, Lueu, Luizo (15%) ;
It should be noted that agriculture in the territory is largely of the food type, subsistence farming in a fairly large proportion. Apart from medium-sized family farms very often, there are large farms: the Randu Farm of the Salvatorian Fathers (still active, and the largest of the territory besides), the farm Mwinijamba and the farm Kabelenge (In situation d for some time), farm ONDE or National Office of Livestock (Untapped also), Subira -comfort (Untapped).