Kinshasa, April 21st, 2025 (CPA). – The local processing of mining resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo to capture more added value is a major lever for the country’s economic and social development, has declared the Minister in charge of Mines on Friday in Lubumbashi, in Haut-Katanga (south-west of the country), during the 9th edition of the “Expo-Béton” forum, CPA learns on Saturday from an official source.
« DRC must no longer export minerals in their raw state. We must encourage local processing of our mining resources and capture more of the added value. This valorization of local mining resources is a major lever for economic and social development’, has indicated Kizito Pakabomba, Minister in charge of Mines, during his participation in a panel on the southern corridors of DRC and their strategic role in economic development. Kizito Pakabomba has emphasised on the need for DRC to stop exporting minerals in their raw state, and to encourage local processing by strengthening the local content framework and setting up special economic zones such as Kolwezi, in order to attract investment in the manufacture of battery components. ‘If we stay in the mining sector, the priority is to strengthen all the local content regulatory frameworks to encourage local processing and avoid exporting copper and cobalt in their raw state’, he has added. He has also emphasised that the corridors should help to open up the regions, stimulate agriculture and create local employment, in line with the vision of the Head of State, who has made the local development of natural resources a central plank of his mandate. « The Lobito Corridor is a promise of the future for our entrepreneurs, our farmers and our young people. It will provide them with opportunities for innovation and growth », he has supported. The Minister in charge of Mines has, in this regard, specified that these corridors promote not only the fluid circulation of goods and people, but above all the local transformation of our agricultural, mining and industrial products, as well as their routing to destinations such as the ports of the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean.
They attract investment, stimulate job creation and pave the way for modern governance, for the well-being of our people.