Facebook Bankable LinkedIn Bankable
Twitter Bankable WhatsApp Bankable
Bankable
Bankable

MOST READ

African Economies

DRC: Kinshasa to Welcome Major Social Housing Project in the Next Four Years

DRC: Kinshasa to Welcome Major Social Housing Project in the Next Four Years

The Nsele municipality, located 9km from Kinshasa’s Ndjili airport, should house a major housing project in the next four years. Acacia Bandubola, the Land Affairs Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), announced the project on March 7, 2025, in an exclusive interview.  

According to sources close to the matter, the project, known as Cité-Jardin, will comprise 5,800 homes and span 33 hectares. The same sources added that construction works began two weeks ago. However, the first stone is yet to be laid. 

The project will be developed via a public-private partnership with Modern Construction, a subsidiary of the HJ Group of Companies, which has been involved in several notable projects in the DRC, including the Galerie La Fontaine and the Hilton Hotel.

While further details have not been disclosed, yet, various sources in the government and Modern Construction indicated that the government provides the land, and Modern Construction takes care of building and marketing the project. 

Affordable, or not ?

On the related reservation platform, two- and three-bedroom units are priced at $59,900 and $79,900, respectively. Buyers can opt for financing through a bank or direct payment to Modern Construction, with a 20% initial deposit and the balance spread over five years. 

Though the Land Affairs Minister claims that the houses aim to be “accessible to all Congolese”, these prices are out of reach for many Congolese. According to the World Bank, 73.5% of the population lived on less than $2.15 a day in 2024. Meanwhile, the country had a housing deficit of 4 million units in 2023, according to UN-Habitat. Kinshasa alone accounted for 54.4% of the demand. To meet this need, the government aims to build 143,092 housing units annually in the capital and 265,000 nationwide. 

Cité-Jardin is presented as a pilot project to be replicated nationwide, to gradually reduce the DRC’s housing deficit. While lauding the project, concerned stakeholders recommend tackling various issues that impede real estate investments in the country. These issues, according to Malick Fall, Resident Representative of the International Finance Corporation, include land tenure problems, difficulties in establishing property titles, and an underdeveloped mortgage market.

If completed, the Cité-Jardin project will be a significant step forward in addressing the country's housing shortage, which has been largely unaddressed since the construction of Cité Mama Mobutu in the 1980s.

This article was initially published in French by Timothée Manoke (intern)

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho

 

Subscribe to our newsletter (free)

Receive daily news and analyses from the Bankable editorial team.

 
 
biotech-this-congolese-native-stuck-a-major-deal-with-astrazeneca
AstraZeneca, one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical brands, bought his company two weeks ago. Jean-Pierre Latere is his name, and his startup,...
sofibanque-appoints-new-deputy-managing-director
Bobo Makunda Sefekese is the new Deputy Managing Director of Sofibanque, a leading bank in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The lender announced...
eastern-drc-conflict-over-2-500-schools-close-schoolap-ready-to-step-up
In the North and South Kivu provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC),  2,594 schools have closed due to the escalating conflict with the...
banking-finance-isabelle-lessedjina-an-inspiring-leader
Isabelle Lessedjina has garnered recognition from Forbes Afrique, being named one of the 50 "most inspiring women of the moment" in the magazine's March...

African Economies

MOST READ

Please publish modules in offcanvas position.