The Congo Basin is located in Central Africa and is the basin for the Congo River. It begins in the East African Rift and ends where the Congo River ends in the Gulf of Guinea at the Atlantic Ocean. It has a total area of 3.7 million square kilometers and is home to man tropical rainforests and wetlands with important biodiversity, hosting okapi, bonobo, and gorillas. The area was originally populated by pygmy peoples and later Bantu peoples. Belgium, France, and Portugal colonized the region.