Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Democratic Republic of Congo

Democratic Republic of Congo: Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days was 78.1% in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
78.1%
Change on year
down 0.4%
World rank
4th
of 187 countries
All-time high
84.3%
in 2004
All-time low
78.1%
in 2020
Years of data
21
2000–2020

Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Democratic Republic of Congo, 2000–2020

0204060802000201020202000: 84 %2001: 84.1 %2002: 84.2 %2003: 84.1 %2004: 84.3 %2005: 81.2 %2006: 81.3 %2007: 81.2 %2008: 81.6 %2009: 81.9 %2010: 78.8 %2011: 79.2 %2012: 79.4 %2013: 79.8 %2014: 79.8 %2015: 79 %2016: 79 %2017: 78.8 %2018: 78.5 %2019: 78.4 %2020: 78.1 %

Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Democratic Republic of Congo is 78.1%, measured in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 21 years on record.

That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and down 1.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 84.3% in 2004 and was at its lowest, 78.1%, in 2020.

That places Democratic Republic of Congo 4th out of 187 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 21 years of available data.

Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year

Annual values for Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Democratic Republic of Congo, 2000 to 2020.
Year % Change
2000 84.0%
2001 84.1% +0.1%
2002 84.2% +0.1%
2003 84.1% -0.0%
2004 84.3% +0.2%
2005 81.2% -3.7%
2006 81.3% +0.1%
2007 81.2% -0.1%
2008 81.6% +0.5%
2009 81.9% +0.3%
2010 78.8% -3.7%
2011 79.2% +0.5%
2012 79.4% +0.2%
2013 79.8% +0.5%
2014 79.8% +0.0%
2015 79.0% -1.0%
2016 79.0% -0.1%
2017 78.8% -0.2%
2018 78.5% -0.3%
2019 78.4% -0.2%
2020 78.1% -0.4%

Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries

  • Democratic Republic of Congo's 78.1% is above the median for low income countries, which is 43.7%, 1.8× the median. (24 countries reporting)
  • Democratic Republic of Congo's 78.1% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 47.9%, 1.6× the median. (47 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 82.8% 81.2% 84.3% 10
2010s 79.1% 78.4% 79.8% 10
2020s 78.1% 78.1% 78.1% 1

Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo

  1. 1 Angola 84.4% compare
  2. 2 Congo 83.3% compare
  3. 3 Equatorial Guinea 78.8% compare
  4. 5 Gabon 75.2% compare
  5. 6 Central African Republic 71.8% compare
  6. 7 Cape Verde 68.7% compare

See the full ranking of 187 places →

More reference data data for Democratic Republic of Congo

All data for Democratic Republic of Congo →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Democratic Republic of Congo?
Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Democratic Republic of Congo was 78.1% in 2020, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
The highest recorded value was 84.3% in 2004.
What is the lowest share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
The lowest recorded value was 78.1% in 2020.
How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days?
Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 4th out of 187 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
Over the last ten years it is down 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
The figures come from World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days in Democratic Republic of Congo. Statizoid, drawing on World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/drinkers-had-a-heavy-session-in-past-30-days/congo-dem-rep/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of drinkers who have had a heavy drinking session in past 30 days
Unit
%
Source
World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
187 places, 3,927 data points, 2000–2020
Last refreshed

Heavy episodic drinking (drinkers only) is defined as the proportion of adult drinkers (15+ years) who have had at least 60 grams or more of pure alcohol on at least one occasion in the past 30 days. A consumption of 60 grams of pure alcohol corresponds approximately to 6 standard alcoholic drinks.