Ngaliema

Ngaliema is a commune in the Lukunga District of Kinshasa. Covering an area of approximately 224.3 square kilometers, it is one of Kinshasa's largest communes and had an estimated population of 2,025,942 as of 2015, making it the second-most populous commune. Established on 12 October 1957, Ngaliema was officially delineated by Ministerial Decree No. 69-042 of 23 January 1969 and is currently governed under Decree-Laws No. 82-006 and 82-008 of 29 January 1982, which define the administrative and political organization of the country and the status of Kinshasa. The commune is composed of 21 quartiers (neighborhoods) and is bordered by the Republic of the Congo to the north, Mont-Ngafula to the south and southeast, Kintambo and Gombe to the east, and the Congo and Lukunga Rivers to the west. Its name originates from a Brazzaville native, Ngaliema, who settled in the area after defeating a local chief, Lingwala, prior to the arrival of the Welsh-American explorer Henry Morton Stanley.