Grace Nkuanga Bilolo, governor of Kongo-Central province in the Democratic Republic of Congo, launched a road rehabilitation project on Oct. 25, 2025, aimed at improving the transport of farm goods to markets.

The project, which began in Kinzau Nvuete in Seke-Banza territory, covers 550 kilometers of rural feeder roads. The work will be carried out in stages, with the first phase focusing on 230 kilometers of priority routes over nine months.

The first phase, financed by the Agency for the Management of Toll and Weighing Rights (AGDP), will cost 3.85 billion Congolese francs (about $1.6 million), or roughly $7,000 per kilometer.

The launch phase includes the Kinzau-Mvuete, Seke-Banza, Mbatassiala, and Lombo-Fuese-Kilukweta sections, located in the Kasangulu and Mbanza-Ngungu territories. The Kongo-Central Public Works Agency will carry out the work.

Governor Bilolo unveiled new civil engineering equipment purchased with provincial funds to support the project. He said the initiative is part of a provincial program to better connect rural areas, aiming to ease the sale of farm produce and improve living standards in local communities.

The governor’s announcement follows a statement by former Rural Development Minister Muhindo Nzangi Butondo in October 2024, outlining a government plan to build and rehabilitate 11,000 kilometers of agricultural feeder roads across the DRC. It was not immediately clear whether the Kongo-Central project is part of that national initiative.

Ronsard Luabeya