[4]: 102 Administratively divided into 18 neighborhoods,[4]: 103–105  Selembao's urban development is largely unplanned, with most areas lacking basic infrastructure such as transportation networks, electricity, water systems, and adequate drainage.

[5] The degradation of key infrastructure and the formation of erosional ravines have led to significant challenges, including the silting of rivers, damage to homes, and loss of lives, with approximately 150 fatalities reported between 1970 and 2010 due to these issues.

[6] Selembao has undergone substantial demographic expansion, with an average annual growth rate of 5% between 1984 and 2004, exerting immense pressure on housing availability.

[7] Erosion poses a significant environmental challenge in Selembao, manifesting in the collapse of streets into ravines, destabilization of building foundations, and exposure of previously buried infrastructure, including REGIDESO water pipes and electric poles elevated nearly two meters above the ground.

[8] Notable species include Syzygium macrocarpum, Hymenocardia acida, Annona carysophyllas, and Strychnos pungens, along with grasses like Hyparrhenia, Sporobolus, Rhynchelytrum, and Digitaria.

In the 19th century, he left his family and village to settle on the banks of the Nzadi River—now the Congo River—near the site of the present-day Centre Congolais du Commerce International (C.C.I.C.)

[4]: 103–105  Persistent outbreaks forced further relocations; Lingwala Ngambo moved north to an area now part of Bandalungwa, while Selembao resettled his Nkulu village farther south.

[4]: 103–105 Initially classified as an annexed administrative zone under the jurisdiction of Kimwenza, part of the Bas-Congo Province, Selembao gained autonomous status in 1968.

[4]: 103–105 Selembao faces significant environmental issues, including rampant deforestation, improper waste management, soil degradation, and pollution, all of which have contributed to the formation of ravines—arguably the most severe ecological challenge within the commune.

[9] Streets, often traversing steep gradients, are regularly subjected to erosion, which causes the destabilization of structures and the unearthing of subterranean infrastructure, such as REGIDESO water pipes and electric poles elevated by nearly two meters.

[10] The inadequate maintenance of these basins precipitated overflows, which eroded the underlying soil, allowing water to carve channels through streets and transform them into ravines.