Kivu Province was a province in the Belgian Congo, originally called Costermansville Province, that was formed in 1933 from part of the old Orientale Province. The Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville) became independent in 1960, and between 1962 and 1966 the province was temporarily broken into the provinces of Maniema, North Kivu and South Kivu. In 1988 it was again broken into these provinces.