Mbanza-Ngungu, formerly known as Thysville or Thysstad, named after Albert Thys

Albert Thys

Albert Thys was a Belgian businessman who was active in the Congo Free State. He gave his name of Thysville to the station of Sona Qongo, currently Mbanza-Ngungu in Bas-Congo....

, is a city in Bas-Congo

Bas-Congo

Bas-Congo is one of the eleven provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the only province with a coastline and it borders Bandundu province to the east and Kinshasa to the northeast...

 Province in the western part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, lying on a short branch off the Matadi-Kinshasa Railway

Matadi-Kinshasa Railway

The Matadi-Kinshasa Railway is a railway line in Bas-Congo Province between the port of Matadi and Kinshasa, the capital of Democratic Republic of the Congo.The Matadi-Kinshasa Railway was built from 1890 to 1898...

. It has a population of nearly 100,000 people.

Formerly known as a resort

Resort

A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company....

 town, it is home to the Thysville Caves

Thysville Caves

The Thysville Caves are a cave complex in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, located near the town of Mbanza-Ngungu . The cave complex is fed by tributaries of the Lower Congo River, and extends across an area of 750 square kilometers....

, known for their blind, colourless fish

Fish

Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...

. It is home to a major FARDC garrison

Garrison

Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....

: the 1st Armoured Brigade was based here during the early '90s period. The 1st Armoured Brigade was first listed in the IISS Military Balance in 1982-83 edition, implying that the brigade may have been created during that period. The city's other main industry is railway engineering.

The city is currently the main site of Kongo University

Kongo University

Kongo University is a university in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its name is abbreviated to UK, after its French name. The main offices of the university are located in Mbanza-Ngungu. UK currently operates two linked campuses, at Mbanza-Ngungu and at Kisantu...

.