Kinshasa, May 3rd, 2026 (CPA). – The need to make local processing of Congolese minerals a prerequisite for the approval of mining companies in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was suggested on Saturday in Kinshasa (capital of the country) during a training session organized by the Congolese Scientific Engineering Incubator (IGSC) under the Ministry of Higher and University Education, Scientific Research and Innovation (ESURSI). “For investment in the mining sector, local processing of Congolese minerals must be made a condition for granting approval to mining companies, and strict compliance with this provision must be ensured, given that the war in the eastern part of the DRC is fuelled by artisanal exploitation,” said Professor Mathias Buabua wa Kayembe, speaking at the IGSC training held under the theme “Societal needs, their coverage through local resources and investment opportunities.” He also recommended that the DRC should establish a monitoring and control plan to curb such exploitation, reportedly driven by foreign actors, with a view to easing congestion at customs offices such as Kasumbalesa, increasing the number of import and export declaration processing offices, regularly rotating customs staff to prevent collusion, and enforcing severe sanctions in cases of proven customs fraud. “Minerals are distributed across almost all of the 26 provinces that make up the DRC. However, they are exploited in certain provinces offering the best conditions in terms of electricity, water and infrastructure. It should be noted that there has recently been renewed interest in critical and strategic minerals, of which the DRC is among the leading producers, particularly those linked to the energy transition. These include copper, cobalt, coltan, lithium, nickel, diamond, manganese, uranium, methane gas, limestone, lead, iron, tin, among others,” he explained, stressing that these resources represent significant investment opportunities.
Investments in the forestry sector
Professor Buabua further indicated that in the forestry sector, the DRC holds 45% of Africa’s equatorial forest as well as a significant share of the world’s tropical forest reserves. Forest coverage by province in the DRC includes Equateur (99.7%), Province Orientale (73.5%), North Kivu, South Kivu and Maniema (70.1%), Bandundu (40%), Kasai Oriental (59.4%), Kasai Central (25.5%), Kongo Central (18.6%) and Katanga (2.0%). As part of the strategy, Professor Buabua wa Kayembe, a former minister on several occasions and former Director General of the National Agency for Investment Promotion (ANAPI), proposed that “forest operators should be required to process their production locally before any export. Part of the harvested timber can be used locally for housing construction and the manufacture of furniture and artworks. Operators must also be required to reforest; each tree cut should be followed by reforestation. Finally, the relevant ministry should be obliged to publish a study on forest exploitation in the DRC.” According to him, exploitable timber species offering investment opportunities in this sector include Kambala, Ebony, Tiama, Sapelli, Mahogany, Wenge, Afromosia, Limba, Sipo, Bomanga, Limbali, among others. ACP/