Finance Minister Doudou Fwamba launched the steering committee for the implementation of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) in the Democratic Republic of Congo on July 24, 2025. This reform, part of a three-year program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), aims to centralize all central government resources into a single account held at the Central Bank of Congo (BCC), according to the ministry.

The committee, made up of representatives from the BCC, the Directorate General of the Treasury and Public Accounting (DGTCP), the Ministry of Finance, and the Steering Committee for Public Finance Reform (COREF), will be responsible for technical coordination and monitoring of the reform. In practical terms, the reform will involve migrating central government funds from commercial banks to the TSA, as explained by René Tapsoba, IMF Resident Representative in the DRC, in an early July interview with Bankable.

By the end of June, authorities had completed a census of public sector accounts held in the banking system, though the report has not yet been released. According to BCC data, in 2023, the central administration and state-owned enterprises held 1,299.9 billion and 3,607.6 billion Congolese francs, respectively in commercial banks. This totaled 4,907.5 billion CDF, about $1.9 billion at the then-average exchange rate of 2,600 CDF to the U.S. dollar. This volume represented 15.2% of total bank deposits.

Timeline

The withdrawal of such a large volume from bank balance sheets could negatively impact the banking system. Aware of this risk, authorities, in collaboration with the IMF, plan to conduct a stress test of the banking system in light of the scheduled migration. The findings will be used to establish a gradual withdrawal timeline to avoid any liquidity crisis.

Everything is expected to unfold in the coming months. The reform roadmap calls for the TSA to be deployed by the end of 2025, with the implementation duration depending on the gradual pace of fund transfers.

The success of the reform will hinge on the support of banks, government agencies, and state-owned enterprises. A strong communication strategy will therefore be necessary. To address some concerns, René Tapsoba has clarified that the planned setup will not be a single account in the strictest sense, but a structure consisting of one main account and several sub-accounts. This model allows for the specific needs of certain entities while consolidating overall control of public resources under the Treasury.

The implementation of the TSA is intended to boost transparency, improve the efficiency of public cash management, and reduce the cost of government borrowing. By providing a comprehensive view of public resources, the TSA will prevent the government from borrowing its own funds from banks to finance the budget. It will also help better control spending compliance and reduce payment delays through optimized cash flow.

Pierre Mukoko and Boaz Kabeya