Territories of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the context of "Masisi Territory"

North Kivu (Swahili: Jimbo la Kivu Kaskazini) is a province bordering Lake Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The capital city is Goma. Spanning approximately 59,483 square kilometers with a population estimate of 8,985,711 as of 2020, it is bordered by Ituri Province to the north, Tshopo Province to the northwest, Maniema Province to the southwest, and South Kivu Province to the south, as well as Uganda and Rwanda to the east.

North Kivu's administrative history traces back to the colonial era when it was initially part of the Stanley Falls District within the Congo Free State. Following a series of territorial reorganizations, North Kivu became incorporated into Orientale Province, with Stanleyville (modern-day Kisangani) as the provincial capital. The area gained provincial status in 1962 but was demoted to a district under Mobutu Sese Seko's regime in 1965. It was formally reinstated in 1988 under Ordinance-Law No. 88/1976 and Ordinance-Law No. 88-031, which redefined the previous Kivu Province into tripartite separate provinces: North Kivu, South Kivu, and Maniema. Presently, North Kivu comprises three cities—Goma, Butembo, and Beni—and six territories: Beni, Lubero, Masisi, Rutshuru, Nyiragongo, and Walikale. A 2013 decree also proposed city status for Kasindi, Oicha, and Luholu. The province's eastern border is home to the Rwenzori Mountains, part of the Albertine Rift, which serves as a key freshwater source and supports a diverse ecosystem. North Kivu also hosts Virunga National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site home to endangered mountain gorillas.

Beni Territory, also known as Oicha Territory, is a territory of North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo. It's administrative center is the town of Oicha.

It has been the site of fighting during the Allied Democratic Forces insurgency between government troops and the ADF militia, which also crosses the border into the territory from Uganda. It was there that the Kirindera massacre, perpetrated by the ADF, happened.

Lubero Territory is a territory in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Rutshuru Territory is a territory in the North Kivu province of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, with headquarters in the town of Rutshuru.

The territory is mountainous, including a large portion of the Virunga National Park, famous for its mountain gorillas.

Nyiragongo Territory is a territory in North Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Covering an area of 333 square kilometers, it had a population of 338,966 as of 2022. The territory is bordered to the north by the Bwisha Chiefdom in Rutshuru Territory, to the south by Karisimbi commune in the city of Goma, to the east by Rwanda, and to the west by the Virunga National Park, which separates it from the Bahunde Chiefdom in Masisi Territory.

Established by presidential ordinance on 20 August 1998, with administrative foundations dating back to District Commissioner's Order No. 58 of 22 June 1929, Nyiragongo Territory is composed solely of Bukumu Chiefdom. This chiefdom is further divided into seven groupements, which are subdivided into 58 villages. The territory is historically governed by the Kumu people, but its population is ethnically diverse, including the native Shi, Nande, Hunde and the Congolese Banyarwanda as well as other ethnic groups.

Walikale Territory is a territory situated in North Kivu Province, within the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo). Its administrative headquarters are located in the town of Walikale, which lies along Democratic Republic of the Congo National Road No. 3 between Bukavu and Lubutu (Maniema Province). The territory occupies the Lowa River valley and is positioned approximately 135 km west of Goma.

Walikale is renowned for its cassiterite deposits, a mineral refined into tin. As of 2008, control over these resources was heavily contested due to the Kivu conflict, with warlords and armed factions dominating extraction activities. The Bisie mine, one of the territory’s largest cassiterite sources, was under the authority of the renegade 85th Brigade of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC), commanded by Colonel Samy Matumo, until early 2009. That year, the mine transitioned to oversight by FARDC units undergoing "accelerated integration," a government-led initiative to absorb former rebel forces into the national army.