The Congolese Order of Merit (French: Order of Mérite Congolais) was founded after the independence of Belgium-Congo in 1960. The order consists of the usual five degrees.
The small red is a red enameled eight-star star that resembles the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George. Congo broke unlike the surrounding French ex-colonies with the example of the European Colonial Knight Order, in this case the Belgian Order of the Lion, the Order of Leopold II and the Order of the African Star. The ribbon is in three equal stripes red-dark blue-red.
In the first years of independence, the highest degree, the great ribbon, was also granted to visiting heads of state, as well as to Marshal Tito, which was distinguished on 10 September 1975.
wiki
