DRC-Washington agreement: recommendation to secure the mineral supply chain

Kinshasa, December 8^th, 2025 (CPA) – The economic agreement between the Democratic Republic of Congo and the United States is part of a global effort to secure the supply chain for critical minerals within a framework of long-term cooperation aimed at strengthening the governance and traceability of our resources, according to the President of the Republic speaking before Congress. ‘The Washington agreement is part of the global drive to secure the supply chain for critical minerals, stimulate local processing and support structural projects capable of linking wealth to industrialisation and job creation,’ has declared Felix Tshisekedi, Head of State, in his State of the Nation address to both houses of parliament meeting in Congress. According to him, this agreement provides, in particular, for support for the modernisation of the Sakania-Lobito corridor, the development of Grand Inga and the establishment of mechanisms promoting a secure, credible, visible and competitive investment environment for American companies. This memorandum of understanding on security strengthens cooperation in the protection of critical infrastructure, the improvement of our defence and intelligence capabilities, and the fight against cross-border trafficking, particularly which linked to the illegal exploitation of minerals, he has indicated. ‘Through these instruments, we are affirming our ambition to convert our strategic resources into development power and to make our international partnerships accelerators of sovereignty, stability and shared prosperity,’ he has concluded.