News (841)
The construction of universities in Kisangani and Mbandaka could require a combined investment of about $105.6 million, according to two provisional award decisions signed by Higher and University Education Minister Marie-Thérèse Sombo and published on Feb. 16, 2026 on the portal of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (ARMP).
The Mbandaka contract was provisionally awarded to the Masiha Services SARL-CCE SARLU consortium for an estimated $54.7 million, while the Kisangani project was provisionally awarded to the ZS Africa Solutions SARL- SOAFRICO SARL consortium for $50.9 million.
Both decisions remain provisional. Congolese public procurement rules allow five business days for unsuccessful bidders to file appeals. If no challenge is lodged, or once appeals are reviewed, the awards can be confirmed and the contracts signed.
If the Kisangani contract is confirmed, ZS Africa Solutions would expand its presence in university infrastructure projects in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The company has been involved in several consortium contracts since 2022.
In March that year, a consortium including Building Blocks SARL, ZS Africa Solutions SARL and Société Probuild SARL secured a contract worth about $22.3 million to build infrastructure at the University of Bunia. The same group also won a $50.6 million contract to build and rehabilitate facilities at the National Pedagogical University (UPN) and the National Institute of Building and Public Works (INBTP) in Kinshasa.
Logistical constraints
Several media investigations have linked the company to other university projects, including in Kananga and Mbuji-Mayi, raising questions about the concentration of multiple university infrastructure contracts among consortiums involving the same firm.
In October 2025, ZS Africa Solutions said construction in Bunia was about 90% complete, while citing delays partly linked to difficulties sourcing cement. Company officials said some cement used on the site came from Kenya, with road transport taking several weeks because of security conditions and poor road infrastructure in the region.
Logistical constraints could also affect the future Kisangani project. Tshopo Province has no local cement production and relies mainly on supplies from Kongo Central via Kinshasa or imports from Uganda.
In June 2025, the Congolese Press Agency reported the expected arrival of 120,000 bags of cement in Kisangani to ease rising prices, with part of the shipment transported by river along the Congo River. The new university projects could increase demand in the local cement market and create opportunities for producers operating in the DRC, particularly those based in Kongo Central, the country's main cement production hub.
Timothée Manoke
Bags & Sacks has expressed interest in securing additional financing from the Fonds de promotion de l'industrie (FPI) to diversify its product range and strengthen working capital. The information was disclosed in a statement issued by the FPI after a site visit on Feb. 24-25, 2026, to Kimpese in Kongo Central province, where a delegation from the institution toured the company's facilities.
Bags & Sacks manufactures woven polypropylene packaging bags and is led by Hussein Ladha. The company operates two industrial plants in the Democratic Republic of Congo: one in Songololo/Kimpese in Kongo Central and another in Lubumbashi in Haut-Katanga province. The FPI said the Lubumbashi plant, inaugurated in June 2023, produces packaging for cement and agricultural products as well as big bags used notably in the mining sector.
Details of the products targeted under the diversification plan have not been disclosed. Current production capacity is better documented. According to the FPI, the Songololo plant produces 40 million bags annually for cement and agricultural products. In Lubumbashi, the company's founder has announced capacity of 2 million big bags per year and 36 million bags for clients in the mining, cement and agricultural sectors.
Prior FPI support
If approved, the new request would not be the FPI’s first support for the company. The fund said it had previously backed Bags & Sacks in earlier investments. For the Kimpese site, the company obtained a $3.5 million loan at the project's launch, according to an earlier statement from the fund. For the Lubumbashi expansion, the FPI said the total investment cost reached $25 million, of which its credit covered 53%.
The regulatory environment may also work in the group’s favor. Starting in April 2025, the Ministry of Foreign Trade banned for 12 months the importation of cement bags, packaging and big bags into the southeastern region of the DRC. The measure was presented as support for the local packaging industry, a market in which Bags & Sacks has established itself as one of the leading industrial players.
The FPI has not specified the amount of additional financing being sought nor the products the company plans to add. The request submitted during the Kimpese visit nonetheless suggests Bags & Sacks is seeking to consolidate its position in a market where domestic production benefits from both financial and regulatory public support.
Timothée Manoke
Kinshasa's provincial authorities announced a crackdown on the ride-hailing sector on Monday, citing a surge in kidnappings and rising insecurity in the Congolese capital.
In a statement published on March 7, 2026, provincial governor Daniel Bumba Lubaki said he had directed the provincial executive to implement security and technological measures aimed at protecting residents and regulating the urban transport sector.
Provincial Minister of Transport and Urban Mobility Jésus-Noël Sheke said the measures include the mandatory registration of all ride-hailing vehicles, known locally as VTCs, operating in the capital. Each vehicle will be required to display a secure QR code allowing immediate tracking.
Drivers will also be required to hold a professional card to operate. Starting March 23, any driver caught operating without the document will face administrative and criminal penalties, Sheke said.
Real-Time Tracking
Digital ride-hailing platforms will be required to connect with Kinshasa's Provincial Agency for Digital Development, known by its French acronym APDNK. The measure is intended to allow authorities to monitor the real-time geolocation of vehicles operating in the city.
The measures come amid mounting public concern over security in the capital. Several kidnapping cases have been reported in recent weeks. On social media, accounts shared by relatives and witnesses describe the abduction of a journalist who was allegedly held for several days before being released. Those accounts have not been the subject of detailed official statements from authorities.
The provincial government said the new measures are intended to strengthen public safety and restore confidence in urban transport services. Authorities said vehicle tracking and driver identification should help reduce the risk of fraudulent use of ride-hailing platforms.
The ride-hailing sector in Kinshasa has been subject to tighter regulation since July 2025, when an administrative inspection mission led by the province resulted in the suspension of several platforms operating in the capital, leaving Yango as the only company authorized to operate.
Ronsard Luabeya
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has entered a new phase in the management of its infrastructure-for-minerals cooperation program with a group of Chinese companies. The Regulatory Agency for the Monitoring and Coordination of Collaboration Agreements (APCSC) announced on March 5, 2026, the signing of contracts to launch a technical and financial audit of the program.
The audit will examine the implementation of the project from its launch in April 2008 to the signing of its most recent amendment in March 2024. The Chinese consortium involved includes China Railway, Sinohydro and Zhejiang Huayou.
To implement the project, the parties created the Sino-Congolese Mines joint venture, known as Sicomines (SCM). The Chinese consortium holds a 68% stake, while the state-owned mining company Gécamines owns 32%. Sicomines is responsible for developing and mining copper and cobalt at the PE 9681 and PE 9682 permits in Mutshatsha, in Lualaba province, to finance infrastructure projects. Authorities also plan to certify the mineral resources associated with these permits.
The technical and financial audit has been awarded to the ATF-PCSC/Mayer Brown consortium, while SRK Consulting will carry out the certification mission. Little information is available about ATF-PCSC. Mayer Brown is an international law firm advising on infrastructure projects, particularly in the energy and natural resources sectors. SRK Consulting describes itself as an independent international consultancy specializing in mining, geology, water and environmental services.
According to the APCSC, the audit will examine how mobilized resources were used, assess the implementation of contractual commitments, and determine whether the project has been carried out in accordance with the cooperation agreement and its amendments. The review will cover several areas, including mining, finance, technical and infrastructure components, legal and contractual issues, as well as environmental and sustainability aspects. The agency said the findings should provide a detailed assessment of the project's implementation and offer recommendations to improve governance and performance.
$1.5 billion for infrastructure
The Sino-Congolese program has faced criticism on several fronts since its launch in 2008, including concerns over the transparency of loans, mining and infrastructure investments, and the revenues generated by Sicomines. Critics have also pointed to the absence of competitive bidding and the risk of inflated construction costs. The March 2024 amendment provided for a technical and financial audit to clarify these issues.
The amendment states that, at the time it was signed, $1.5 billion had already been borrowed for infrastructure, including principal and interest. This figure includes $300 million that had previously remained undisbursed before being made available after the amendment, as well as “all costs or expenses accepted by the parties.” According to a progress report presented in September 2025 by the Congolese Agency for Great Works (ACGT), only $1.277 billion is actually expected to be allocated to infrastructure projects.
However, the amount and purpose of other costs or expenses remain unclear. In a report published in January 2026, the U.S. research center AidData revealed that Sicomines granted loans totaling $82 million to Gécamines, though the interest rates were not specified. The cost of debt contracted from Eximbank China is known to fluctuate, as the interest rate is indexed to international market rates plus 1%. The debt is to be repaid over 25 years, including a 10-year grace period.
Information on completed infrastructure projects and their costs remains limited. In its July 2024 report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that only $888 million in infrastructure loans had been disbursed by 2022, but data on project execution were scarce. IMF staff said they did not know how projects were selected or whether their implementation aligned with initial cost projections.
$9 billion in debt
While the agreement originally planned for a $3.2 billion loan to finance mining investments, AidData reports that Sicomines contracted $7.61 billion in debt between 2008 and 2020 to develop the mine. The first Eximbank China loan, granted in 2008 for $2.13 billion, carries a fixed interest rate of 6.1%, a 25-year maturity and a six-year grace period. The second loan, granted in 2013 for $2.61 billion, has a floating interest rate indexed to international market rates plus 3%, with a 25-year maturity and a 10-year grace period.
The first shareholder loan from the Chinese consortium in 2008 amounted to $1.07 billion and is interest-free. The second, valued at $1.77 billion, carries a floating interest rate indexed to international market rates plus 2.7%.
Over the period covered by the audit, the Sicomines joint venture reportedly contracted nearly $9 billion in total debt to finance infrastructure and develop its copper-cobalt mine. Under the cooperation agreement signed between the DRC and the Chinese companies, mining revenues must first be used to repay these loans, with the remaining funds then distributed as dividends.
The Sicomines mine began production in 2015 and reached full capacity in 2024, exporting 246,000 tonnes of copper. However, AidData reports defaults on loans used to develop the mine, although it did not provide a comprehensive assessment. Regarding the debt allocated to infrastructure, which must be repaid first, the research center said Sicomines had repaid $441.1 million by the end of 2020. As of December 31, 2021, the remaining balance on that loan stood at $658.78 million.
The audit results are expected to clarify the project's actual debt level and the share of revenues already used for repayment. These elements directly affect key provisions of the 2024 amendment, including the distribution of Sicomines’ capital and the payment of royalties and dividends. The amendment stipulates that the shareholding structure will remain unchanged and that royalties paid to Gécamines will be capped at 1.2% of turnover until all loans linked to the cooperation project, including principal and interest, are fully repaid.
The amendment also makes any new decisions regarding the project’s development conditional on the results of the technical and financial audit, the full certification of mineral resources, and the approval of an updated feasibility study.
Pierre Mukoko & Boaz Kabeya
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is among six African countries selected for pilot projects aimed at developing affordable 4G smartphones. The initiative is led by the GSMA, the global association representing mobile network operators and industry players, and organizer of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona.
Announced during MWC 2026, the project also involves Ethiopia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. These countries will serve as test markets for entry-level smartphones priced between $30 and $40, with the aim of reducing one of the main barriers to digital adoption in Africa: the cost of devices.
The initiative was discussed during a roundtable held on March 2 at MWC 2026. The Congolese Minister of Digital Economy, Augustin Kibassa Maliba, said he attended the meeting. According to a statement from the ministry, the GSMA is advocating for a coalition of governments, telecom operators and manufacturers to lower smartphone prices.
The ministry also mentioned a proposal to reduce taxes on entry-level smartphones, potentially shifting part of the tax burden toward higher-end devices.
Bridging the digital gap
According to the Regulatory Authority of the Post and Telecommunications of Congo (ARPTC), mobile penetration in the DRC reached about 65% at the end of September 2025, while mobile internet penetration stood at just over 32%. The gap suggests that network coverage is expanding faster than smartphone adoption, largely due to low purchasing power.
The Minister of Digital Economy said lower device prices could expand the user base, boost data consumption and ultimately increase revenue from digital services.
ARPTC data show that mobile internet is gaining weight in the telecom sector. In the third quarter of 2025, the segment generated more than $335 million and accounted for nearly 55% of total mobile market revenue.
However, the initiative’s impact remains uncertain. Its success will depend on several factors, including the level of taxes applied to devices, manufacturers’ ability to meet price targets amid rising component costs, and the speed of commercial rollout in pilot countries.
Augustin Kibassa Maliba said the government plans to work with relevant ministries and telecom operators to develop a balanced fiscal framework aimed at expanding digital access without reducing government revenue.
For the DRC, the challenge will now be to translate its inclusion in the African pilot program into concrete measures on pricing, distribution and effective access to mobile internet.
Timothée Manoke
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda plan to accelerate the modernization of their cross-border road corridor. According to a statement issued by the Congolese Ministry of Infrastructure and Public Works on March 5, 2026, Congolese Minister John Banza Lunda and his Ugandan counterpart Katumba Wamala agreed to begin paving the first 15 kilometers of the 80-km Kasindi–Beni road.
The statement said both sides decided to remove administrative and technical bottlenecks that had slowed the project. The Congolese and Ugandan governments, together with contractor Dott Services Ltd, committed to accelerating construction.
The announcement follows the timeline presented in July 2025, which projected paving works on the Kasindi-Beni (80 km) and Beni-Butembo (54 km) roads in the first quarter of 2026.
The Congolese minister of infrastructure had previously acknowledged several challenges delaying the project while reaffirming the commitment of stakeholders to overcome them and meet the agreed timetable. In December 2025, John Banza Lunda visited the Beni-Kasindi section to assess progress. During the visit, he noted the installation and commissioning of several crushing units intended to supply construction materials for the works.
Preparatory work has also widened and secured the existing road, reducing travel time between Beni and Kasindi to about one and a half hours, according to project information.
The project is part of a broader cross-border road program officially launched in June 2021 by the presidents of the DRC and Uganda. It covers three sections: Kasindi-Beni (80 km), Beni-Butembo (54 km), and Bunagana-Rutshuru-Goma (89 km), for a total of 223 kilometers.
The total cost is estimated at $551.6 million. Under the financing structure, Dott Services Ltd covers 60% of the funding, while the Congolese and Ugandan governments each contribute 20%.
Investments will be repaid through a toll system, with reduced rates due to the participation of the two governments. According to previously published project information, the concession is expected to last at least 15 years, while the initial construction phase was planned over three years. The project has both economic and security implications. It aims to improve connectivity between the DRC and Uganda, facilitate trade flows, and support stabilization efforts in eastern Congo.
Ronsard Luabeya
The industrial transformation of the Rubaya coltan mine in Masisi territory, North Kivu, would require an investment of between $50 million and $150 million. Reuters reported that this estimate appears in an initial list of 25 assets offered to American investors as part of a strategic critical minerals partnership signed between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the United States on Dec. 4.
The document says the investments would accelerate commercial-scale production. A rapid return on investment is expected due to strong global demand for tantalum, a strategic metal extracted from coltan.
Congolese authorities say the Rubaya mine is of particular interest to Washington, reflecting U.S. efforts to secure Western supply chains for critical materials used in electronics, energy and defense industries. The site is widely described as one of the world’s most important coltan deposits.
It accounts for roughly 15% of global coltan production, with tantalum grades ranging between 20% and 40%.
Under the agreement between Kinshasa and Washington, American companies have a right of first offer on the selected assets. Even before the agreement was signed, Western groups had already expressed interest in the site.
Bloomberg reported that Swiss trader Mercuria Energy Group and investment firm TechMet are considering plans to develop and modernize the tantalum deposit near Rubaya. TechMet is backed by the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC).
The Financial Times has also reported interest from Texan businessman Gentry Beach through his company America First Global. Beach is described as being close to Donald Trump.
Zone under occupation
Despite its strategic importance, mining at the site remains largely artisanal and informal. These conditions frequently lead to deadly accidents.
In a statement published on March 4, 2026, the Congolese Ministry of Mines reported that a landslide occurred on March 3 at the Rubaya mining sites following heavy rains. Authorities said the provisional death toll exceeded 200 people, including around 70 children. Many injured were evacuated to health facilities in Goma.
Similar casualty figures had already been reported after landslides at the mine in late January.
In this context, industrializing the site is seen as a way to improve safety and reduce human risks by gradually replacing artisanal mining with more regulated operations. However, the project depends on improvements in the security situation.
Since April 2024, the Rubaya area has been under the control of the AFC/M23 rebel movement, which is supported by Rwanda. United Nations experts say some minerals extracted in the region are smuggled into Rwanda. The armed group reportedly earns around $800,000 per month by taxing mining activities.
“The development of sites located in occupied zones depends on the withdrawal of Rwandan troops, as provided for in the DRC-Rwanda peace agreement concluded in June 2025,” Daniel Mukoko Samba told Jeune Afrique in February.
Mukoko Samba is the Congolese vice-prime minister in charge of the economy and a signatory to the strategic agreement with the United States.
Aware of the situation, Washington has increased pressure on Kigali. The U.S. Treasury announced a new series of sanctions on March 2, 2026 targeting the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) and four senior military officials.
In 2025, the United States had already sanctioned the armed group PARECO-FF, the Cooperative of Mining Artisans of Congo (CDMC), and the Chinese companies East Rise Corporation and Star Dragon Corporation for alleged involvement in the illegal trade of minerals from the Rubaya sites.
Dispute over the permit
“We are not the perpetrators, but the primary victims,” the CDMC said in response. The company also accused certain Congolese officials of leading a coordinated effort to undermine its ownership of the Rubaya mining permit with support from opaque diplomatic and financial channels.
Congolese mining registries indicate that the state-owned company Société Aurifère du Kivu et du Maniema (SAKIMA) holds the permit covering the Rubaya area. However, these rights are contested by the CDMC.
The company argues that the concession belongs to its subsidiary Congo Fair Mining (CFM), a joint venture formed with SAKIMA in which the state firm holds a 30% stake.
This claim is supported by rulings issued on April 30 and September 4, 2025 by the Council of State, the country’s highest administrative court.
The joint venture creating CFM was signed in 2020 between SAKIMA and the CDMC. It provided for the transfer of the Rubaya exploitation permit from the public enterprise to CFM. The transfer agreement was reportedly signed on March 11, 2021, leading to the registration of the permit transfer in the Mining Registry on May 20, 2022.
Mining Minister Louis Watum Kabamba told Bloomberg in October 2025 that he planned to bring the parties together to discuss the dispute. It remains unclear whether the meeting has taken place.
However, Kinshasa has already included the Rubaya coltan deposit among the strategic mining assets offered to American investors. The government now faces two key challenges: securing the site and resolving legal disputes to enable industrial development.
Pierre Mukoko & Timothée Manoke
Traffic on the Mweha-Mukwija section of National Road 2 (RN2), which links North and South Kivu through Kalehe territory, has been severely disrupted.
According to Actualité.cd, several muddy stretches have formed along the road, making parts of it impassable for vehicles and motorcycles. Drivers and motorcyclists face a high risk of accidents and long delays, even though the road remains a key corridor for the movement of people and goods.
The RN2 plays a key role in the regional economy, allowing agricultural produce from rural areas of Kalehe to reach the cities of Bukavu and Goma.
Local officials warn that the road’s deterioration is already affecting trade. Farmers are struggling to get their produce to urban markets, causing significant financial losses and potentially pushing prices higher. The most affected areas include Mweha, Makengere, Chez les Français and Lukera in Mukwija. The heavily damaged Mweha and Lukera bridges are further complicating traffic.
BK
Construction of Provincial Road 231 linking Batshamba to Kakobola via Gungu was launched on March 3 in Kwilu province by Infrastructure and Public Works Minister John Banza Lunda.
The 69-kilometre road connects the towns of Batshamba, Gungu and Kakobola, all located in Gungu territory.
Chinese company CISC-SA is carrying out the works under the Sino-Congolese cooperation programme for infrastructure development. The Congolese Agency for Major Works (ACGT) is overseeing the project.
According to ACGT Director General Nico Nzau Nzau, the works include clearing the road corridor, laying the different pavement layers, building drainage structures and reinforcing existing crossings. Road signage and safety equipment will also be installed along the route.
The project will be implemented in two phases. The first phase will reopen the road along its entire length to restore traffic between the three towns. The second phase will involve paving the road to transform the current dirt track into a developed road.
The poor condition of the road currently hampers the movement of people and the transport of agricultural products to markets. Modernising the Batshamba-Gungu-Kakobola section should therefore improve mobility in this part of Kwilu province and strengthen connections between rural areas and the region’s main transport corridors.
Boaz Kabeya
Democratic Republic of Congo's state water utility, Regideso, plans to launch a bottled water production plant in Kinshasa.
Speaking on Top Congo radio on March 4, 2026, Director General David Tshilumba Mutombo said the company is preparing a tender for the project.
According to him, construction of the plant could begin within three to four months. The project will include a bottle recycling system designed to collect used packaging across the city of Kinshasa. In the longer term, Regideso plans to replicate the model in several cities across the country.
The public utility also plans to develop payment service provider (PSP) technology. Tshilumba said the activity could become an additional revenue stream for the company. Regideso has also created a subsidiary dedicated to electricity production, RégiEnergies.
These initiatives form part of a diversification strategy aimed at reducing the company's financial dependence on payments from the State, which Tshilumba described as a "bad payer."
"When the State does not pay, it disrupts our business plan, our annual budget and our performance," he said, noting that government payments can sometimes be delayed by 10 to 12 months.
To better manage water consumption by public institutions, Regideso also plans to install smart meters, mostly prepaid. The company is awaiting the delivery of 80,000 to 90,000 units within three to four months.
These meters will be installed mainly in government offices and at certain institutional clients. The system will operate on a prepaid basis, meaning access to water will depend on the credit available on the meter.
"As with a telephone: if there are no units, the meter does not work. No units, no water," Tshilumba said.
Ronsard Luabeya
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An audit of the teacher payroll system aimed at eliminating ghost workers saved the public treasury 11 billion Congolese francs (CDF) in 2025, according to the annual activity report of the Ministry of National Education and New Citizenship.
The report says the amount concerns only the city of Kinshasa, where the first campaign to verify and clean up payroll records was carried out.
The operation involved the biometric identification of employees, allowing the administration to remove ineligible individuals from the payroll. Following the initial results, the ministry said the payroll clean-up operation has been extended to all provinces to strengthen long-term workforce management and prevent the reappearance of ghost workers.
The initiative comes as part of broader reforms aimed at improving control of the size of the public workforce and the wage bill. In a report published in 2026, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) noted that the public wage bill more than doubled in nominal terms between 2021 and 2025 and rose by 46% in real terms, now exceeding 50% of tax revenue.
Within this context, authorities are seeking to strengthen payroll control mechanisms and transparency. In August 2025, the Ministry of Public Service announced plans for a biometric identification exercise targeting employees paid through the central government’s auxiliary budget. The objective is to interconnect the cleaned records with payroll databases in order to eliminate duplicates and ineligible employees.
Timothée Manoke
Rawbank said on March 4, 2026 it has secured $265 million in financing to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) led the deal, with participation from Proparco, British International Investment (BII), the eco.business Fund and the OPEC Fund for International Development.
The financing aims to expand access to credit for SMEs, support private sector growth and create jobs in the country, Rawbank said. The IFC added that the program could provide financing to at least 1,500 additional SMEs over the next four years, particularly in sectors such as telecommunications and fast-moving consumer goods.
“This operation represents a strategic allocation of international capital to a local financial intermediary able to channel these resources into productive financing,” said Mustafa Rawji, chief executive of Rawbank. “Our goal is to finance more Congolese SMEs, strengthen local production and support sustainable job creation across the country.”
A two-part financing structure
The deal has two components. The first is a $165 million senior credit facility arranged by the IFC, including $50 million provided directly by the institution. The remaining $115 million was mobilized from financial partners: Proparco ($50 million), eco.business Fund ($20 million), the OPEC Fund ($20 million) and British International Investment ($25 million).
The second component is a $100 million risk-sharing agreement between the IFC and Rawbank. Under this arrangement, the IFC covers 50% of the exposure, equivalent to $50 million, allowing Rawbank to extend credit to a larger number of SMEs. The mechanism is supported by the European Commission and the International Development Association (IDA) through the Small Loan Guarantee Program.
In addition to financing, the IFC will provide advisory services to strengthen Rawbank’s capacity in several areas, including climate finance, agricultural financing and support for women entrepreneurs.
Additional support for SME financing
According to Rawbank, the deal is “the largest transaction ever arranged by the IFC for a financial institution in the DRC.”
The financing forms part of the bank’s broader strategy to expand access to credit for Congolese SMEs. Rawbank participates in the “20,000 SMEs” program, a $200 million initiative designed to help integrate local companies into the value chains of large firms operating in the DRC.
Under this program, Rawbank works with the Regulatory Authority for Subcontracting in the Private Sector (ARSP) and the Guarantee Fund for Entrepreneurship in Congo (FOGEC) to expand access to financing for local businesses.
Ronsard Luabeya
Protests by health workers in Gbadolite over unpaid wages and bonuses have drawn attention to the worsening financial situation at Afriland First Bank DRC, which has been under provisional administration since June 20, 2022.
Data from the Central Bank of the Congo (BCC) for December 2025 shows a sharp deterioration in the bank’s financial position. Afriland reported a negative net banking income (NBI) of $4.68 million, while the country’s banking sector generated $2.241 billion in positive NBI.
NBI reflects the core revenue generated by banking activity and is equivalent to turnover. It includes interest margins on loans, commissions and trading income.
“When it turns negative, it means the bank’s core activity no longer generates income,” a banker said.
In practice, the bank’s financial costs, mainly interest expenses on deposits, now exceed the revenue generated from lending and financial services.
At the end of 2025, Afriland held $124.9 million in customer deposits and $175 million in gross loans. However, a large share of these loans no longer produces income. Loans to private companies account for 70% of the portfolio, but performing loans total only $37.8 million, or 21.6% of outstanding credit.
As a result, the bank has set aside $131.9 million in provisions for non-performing loans.
Rising recapitalization needs
Afriland is also losing market share in payments to public sector employees, reducing commission income and further weakening NBI.
In 2025, the bank was accused of delays and irregularities in public salary payments. It subsequently lost the contract for paying teachers and school operating expenses in five regions to other financial institutions. The lost portfolio covered 29,513 employees, 2,039 schools and a monthly payment volume of about 12 billion Congolese francs.
Afriland ended 2025 with losses of $50.4 million and negative equity of $116.9 million. This situation significantly increases recapitalization needs. Banks operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo have been required to maintain a minimum capital of $50 million since January 2025.
As early as March 2022, the BCC estimated Afriland’s recapitalization needs at $90 million. The estimate was challenged by the majority shareholder, Afriland First Group (AFG), controlled by Cameroonian businessman Paul Kammogne Fokam. The group, which said it held 95.6% of the bank’s capital, argued the assessment was conducted while the bank was already under reinforced BCC supervision.
The central bank deployed a close monitoring team in August 2021 after a governance crisis triggered by the board chairman’s suspension of the chief executive. Before the crisis, the bank’s equity was $48.05 million.
AFG conditioned any recapitalization on a contradictory audit, a request the BCC reportedly rejected before placing Afriland First Bank RDC under provisional administration in June 2022. A seven-member team led by Mudiay Mpinga was appointed to manage the bank. Its mandate was to coordinate with stakeholders, resolve the crisis and prepare a recovery plan within 180 days.
Risk of AFG losing its stake
On Dec. 27, 2022, one week after the end of the first mandate, a new law governing credit institutions was enacted. On Jan. 20, 2023, the same team was reappointed with a new mandate, placing Afriland under a resolution regime.
Under Congolese law, resolution is the final stage of banking supervision. It applies when a bank’s financial condition threatens its solvency and the interests of depositors and creditors.
The mechanism allows authorities to restructure failing institutions quickly. However, by the end of 2025, the two key objectives, restoring profitability and solvency, had still not been achieved. Financial indicators suggest the bank’s situation has deteriorated since the crisis began in July 2021.
The law grants broad powers to the resolution commissioner, who can replace corporate bodies such as the general assembly, the board of directors and executive management. The commissioner may also decide on capital restructuring or asset sales.
Given the bank’s financial position, the risk that the historical majority shareholder could lose its stake appears high.
AFG has acknowledged the severity of the situation. In a statement issued on Feb. 12, 2026, following the protests by health workers in Gbadolite, the holding company said it had been “ousted” from the capital of Afriland First Bank RDC by the Congolese state and its central bank.
According to the group, arbitration proceedings have been filed with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) to challenge what it described as an “expropriation” and seek compensation.
Pierre Mukoko
Micropolis Robotics, a United Arab Emirates-based company specializing in autonomous ground platforms, said on Tuesday it had signed a development and multi-year distribution agreement with AfricAI to expand the deployment of its unmanned ground vehicles across Africa, with a particular focus on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
According to the statement, the program involves a total investment of $9.3 million over an estimated 18-month period. The funding will support the development of three models designed for specific applications: police and public security, agricultural operations, and border surveillance and control.
The platforms will be adapted to operational constraints common across several African environments, including mobility over difficult terrain, operation in high-heat conditions, and the need for long-range communications and AI-assisted surveillance capabilities.
The distribution agreement spans three years. Micropolis said AfricAI would manage the purchase, marketing and distribution of the vehicles through its subsidiary, AfricaAI Technology FZ LLC. The markets listed include the DRC, South Africa, Tanzania and member states of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
The statement also said real-world pilot tests must be conducted at sites in Africa before any large-scale commercial deployment.
A separate communication released in late January 2026, attributed to AfricAI, also referred to a partnership aimed at deploying Micropolis robotic platforms across the African continent. As the two announcements appear to be distinct, the scope of exclusivity, whether continental or limited to specific markets, would depend on the contractual terms defined in each agreement.
At this stage, the published statements do not detail the financial conditions of the distribution agreement, such as purchase prices, volumes, delivery schedules or performance clauses. The specific sites selected for the African pilot projects were also not disclosed. In addition, the exact legal identity of the entity "AfricAI Limited" was not clarified in the March 3 announcement beyond the reference to its subsidiary, AfricaAI Technology FZ LLC.
Ronsard Luabeya