In a significant development for the artisanal gold sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC Gold Trading SA, a state-owned enterprise specializing in the purchase, marketing, and export of artisanal gold, announced on March 25, 2025, that it had successfully channeled over 280 kilograms of artisanal gold into Maniema province through its Kindu branch. This volume was achieved just two months after the branch's inauguration.

The company reported injecting more than US$27 million into the provincial economy, a feat largely attributed to its strategic partnership with Rawbank. This collaboration aligns with DRC Gold Trading SA's broader objective of integrating artisanal gold production into the formal economic circuit.

Cyprien Birhingingwa, Deputy Managing Director of DRC Gold Trading SA, added that the firm’s Kindu branch collected nearly 50kg of artisanal gold in its first week of operation–a notable achievement given that Maniema was excluded from the Cellule technique de coordination et de planification minière (CTCPM) annual gold production statistics for 2024. The province's governor, Moïse Mussa Kabuankubi, labeled the performance  "a great feat."

According to recent estimates, the Kindu facility could partially offset production losses experienced in South Kivu. The facility only opened last March, the same month DRC Gold Trading SA stopped buying artisanal gold in South Kivu on March 11, 2025, following the advance of M23 rebels into the province.

Timothée Manoke (intern)