KINSHASA, April 16 (Reuters) - Failure to reform Democratic Republic of Congo's large and ill-disciplined army has kept much of the civilian population in poverty and insecurity despite billions of dollars of foreign aid, international and Congolese NGOs said on Monday.

Nearly a decade after the official end of Congo's war, the armed forces, known as FARDC, have failed to stamp out rebel groups and militias in the east of the country, and troops are regularly accused of abuses, including killings and mass rape.

Many of the 150,000 soldiers the central African country has in its army are former rebels who lack basic training and target civilians because they are not properly paid or housed.