Tanzania’s plan to extend its National ICT Broadband Backbone (NICTBB) to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was discussed on Oct. 20, 2025, during a meeting at Tanzania Telecommunications Corporation (TTCL) headquarters in Dar es Salaam.

The project will lay a submarine fiber-optic cable across Lake Tanganyika, linking Kigoma in Tanzania and Kalemie in the DRC over roughly 160-186 kilometers.

The Tanzanian delegation was led by Moremi Marwa, TTCL Director General, and Leo Magomba, ICT Infrastructure Director at the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology. The Congolese side was headed by Prosper Ghislain Mpeye, Director General of the Société Congolaise de Fibre Optique (SOCOF).

Few details were disclosed, as the talks are covered by a confidentiality agreement signed in February 2023. The two sides are completing final preparations before construction begins in early 2026, pending environmental approval. Full commissioning is expected by late 2027.

The $15-20 million project is structured as a public-private partnership involving Mauritian firm Bandwidth and Cloud Services Group for technical expertise. The governments of both countries will hold quarterly meetings to track progress and manage financial risks.

Part of the AUDA-NEPAD Priority Action Plan (2021-2030), the interconnection is identified as a key link for digital integration in East and Southern Africa. The NICTBB already connects Zambia, Malawi, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi; adding the DRC would complete an East–West fiber corridor, boosting regional connectivity.

TTCL, the implementing agency, said the project will accelerate the DRC’s digital transformation and spur economic growth. Fiber deployment could cut bandwidth costs by half and benefit sectors from mining to digital finance, education, and healthcare.

The cable will use single-mode G.652D fiber, starting at 100 Gbps, expandable to several terabits. Joint environmental studies with the Société Congolaise des Postes et Télécommunications (SCPT) aim to ensure compliance with international standards, including the Ramsar Convention protecting Lake Tanganyika.

PM, With  Ecofin Agency

The TALO price-control app is scheduled to begin its rollout in November across several cities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The announcement was made on Tuesday, October 7, 2025, by Minister of National Economy Daniel Mukoko Samba during an interview on Kinshasa-based Top Congo FM.

The minister said the first phase will cover seven major cities, with six more to follow by year-end. The goal is to enable real-time tracking of prices for food and other staple consumer goods.

Developed by young Congolese professionals, TALO was unveiled by Minister Mukoko Samba on January 14, 2025. Designed to modernize the economic inspection service, the app helps field agents collect data more efficiently and increases transparency in business practices for consumers.

In Kinshasa, where the application is already in use, TALO has replaced manual price reporting. Agents now record data on their phones at market sites and send it directly to a central database. According to Jocelyne Mayungu Bwanga, head of the Kinshasa-East office at the Ministry of National Economy, the switch to digital data collection has significantly reduced processing times.

The ministry posts monthly reports on its official website summarizing the data. The latest report, for July, showed that weekly price tracking in Kinshasa covered 39 staple consumer products, 183 brands, and 62 types of traders across 16 markets, including Central, Gambela, Zigida, and Liberté.

Price differences of up to 40% were sometimes observed for the same product between different outlets. To identify the underlying causes, the ministry has commissioned a Congolese consulting firm to conduct a study. One preliminary finding points to two main supply routes: goods entering through the Lufu border with Angola tend to be cheaper than those coming via Matadi port.

By expanding TALO to the provinces, the Ministry of National Economy aims to strengthen its nationwide price-monitoring and regulatory capacity. The ultimate goal is to curb market speculation and protect consumers’ purchasing power.

Timothée Manoke

• The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) plans to invest $1 billion in public funds and secure an additional $500 million from international partners to implement its new five-year digital strategy.
• The plan aims to transform the DRC into a regional digital hub by 2030, with a focus on AI, connectivity, and digital inclusion.
• The country’s first national artificial intelligence (AI) strategy will include the creation of a Congolese AI academy to train young talent and foster innovation.

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has launched the drafting process for its National Digital Plan 2026–2030 (PNN2) and its first National Artificial Intelligence Strategy, the Ministry of Digital Economy said on Wednesday.

Minister Augustin Kibassa Maliba announced the initiative, which aims to position the DRC as a regional digital hub by 2030.

“This is about capturing the dividends of digital transformation and positioning our country — rich in critical minerals essential to the digital and energy transitions — as both an investment catalyst and a provider of solutions to global challenges,” Kibassa said.

The new plan will rest on four main pillars: infrastructure and connectivity development, creation of digital public platforms and services, human capital enhancement and digital inclusion, and strengthening of cybersecurity and digital trust.

It will also integrate five cross-cutting axes — digital entrepreneurship, innovation, technological sovereignty, artificial intelligence, and strategic partnerships — to ensure coherence across policy areas.

To support this roadmap, the government plans to invest $1 billion in public funds over five years, complemented by $500 million in external financing already secured from international partners.

As part of the AI strategy, authorities will establish a Congolese Artificial Intelligence Academy to train young professionals, promote applied research, and stimulate local innovation.

This initiative follows the National Digital Plan “Horizon 2025”, launched in 2019, which achieved about 60% of its objectives. The first plan laid the groundwork for the digital economy through improvements in fiber-optic connectivity, regional integration projects such as CAB5, and the introduction of e-government tools like online tax portals and customs modernization via a single window system.

Ongoing projects include the digitization of civil registration and the establishment of a national digital ID system.

With PNN2, Kinshasa seeks to consolidate these achievements and accelerate its digital transformation. A GSMA report presented last month estimated that digital technologies could contribute 9.8 trillion Congolese francs (about $3.6 billion) to the economy by 2029, provided that fiscal and regulatory reforms advance.

The same report suggested that digital adoption could unlock 8.6 trillion FC in additional economic value across mining, agriculture, and public services.

Through this new strategy, the DRC aims to strengthen its technology ecosystem, create thousands of skilled jobs, and attract more investment in high-growth digital sectors.

This article was initially published in French by Samira Njoya, Agence Ecofin

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum

• GSMA estimates telecom reforms could generate 9,800 billion Congolese francs ($3.7 billion) in GDP by 2029.
• Mobile operators in DRC face a tax burden of 91% of profits, among the heaviest compared to mining (71%) and banking (34%).
• The sector could connect 9.7 million new mobile internet users and unlock $3.2 billion in value across mining, agriculture, and public services.

The first Digital Africa Summit in Kinshasa on Sept. 18 became a platform for mobile operators to advocate tax and regulatory reforms in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The push relied on a report by the GSMA, the global mobile industry association, titled “Driving Economic Growth through Digital Transformation in the DRC.”

Angela Wamelo, GSMA’s Africa director, said the reforms could add 9,800 billion Congolese francs ($3.7 billion) to GDP and connect 9.7 million additional mobile internet users by 2029. The report projected that mobile adoption could release more than 8,600 billion Congolese francs ($3.2 billion) in value across mining, agriculture, and public services.

“The Democratic Republic of Congo has the opportunity to leapfrog into a digital-driven economy,” Wamelo said. “But to realize this potential, reforms in taxation, spectrum management, and energy infrastructure must be a priority. We aim to regulate this sector in DRC to make it more transparent and attract investors,” she added.

A separate GSMA report from June, “Mobile Sector Taxation: Comparative Tax Burden in DRC,” highlighted the heavy fiscal environment operators face. It said mobile operators pay on average 91% of their profits in taxes, compared with 71% for mining companies and 34% for retail banks. The report blamed multiple sector-specific levies, often calculated on revenues, for deterring investment and limiting service expansion.

The GSMA urged simplification and harmonization of taxes. It recommended modernizing fiscal frameworks through rationalization of sectoral taxes to lower consumer prices and encourage investment. It also called for a collaborative national framework, coordination of energy and digital policies, expanded spectrum access, license reform, skills development through public-private partnerships, and integration of mobile platforms into education, health, and government services.

The government, facing major financing needs, has argued that telecom operators must pay their “fair share” of taxes. Some officials questioned the fiscal contribution of multinational operators, noting that some had not declared taxable profits in nearly two decades, raising suspicions of tax avoidance.

Despite these concerns, Digital Economy Minister Augustin Kibassa Maliba welcomed the GSMA report. He described it as a “clear diagnostic” of the sector’s progress and challenges. “We have the responsibility to transform the recommendations of this report into concrete actions, because it is through them that we will build a true digital economy,” he said.

According to GSMA, the mobile sector contributed an estimated $63–64 billion to DRC’s GDP in 2022 and $66 billion in 2023.

This article was initially published in French by Ronsard Luabeya

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum