DRC Mining Week 2026: Jean-Marie Kanda Calls for an “Accelerator” of Congolese Mining Development
Lubumbashi has been hosting the 21st edition of DRC Mining Week since June 17, a major gathering for the African extractive industry. On this occasion, Jean-Marie Kanda, Senior Advisor to the Head of State in charge of Mines, Energy and Hydrocarbons, presented the vision of the Congolese authorities to strengthen the country’s attractiveness and accelerate its economic transformation.
A Vision Based on Governance
Speaking during a panel on improving the business climate, organized by the National Agency for Investment Promotion (ANAPI), Jean-Marie Kanda emphasized that the mineral wealth of the Democratic Republic of Congo alone is not enough to guarantee development.
To illustrate his point, he used a simple but evocative image. According to him, if the mining sector is the engine of the Congolese economy, it must be accompanied by a real accelerator in order to fully produce its effects on growth and the well-being of the population.
This accelerator is based above all on effective governance, capable of creating an environment favorable to investment and value creation.
Transparency and Predictability to Attract Investors
The Advisor to the President of the Republic identified several priorities intended to strengthen the competitiveness of the DRC. These include improving public governance, strengthening transparency and providing greater clarity in the fiscal framework.
These reforms aim to offer economic operators greater predictability and to consolidate the confidence of national and international investors. In this perspective, the authorities are also placing emphasis on permanent dialogue with the private sector in order to better respond to the concerns of economic actors.
Jean-Marie Kanda recalled that the Presidency of the Republic has established a regular framework for exchanges with operators, thereby contributing to the improvement of the business climate and the strengthening of investment stability.
Toward Local Processing of Resources
Beyond the attractiveness of the sector, the DRC aims to take a new step in its industrial development. The objective is to gradually move from an economy mainly based on extraction to an economy that creates added value through the local processing of mineral resources.
In this dynamic, several institutional reforms are being considered in order to improve the monitoring of public policies and the effectiveness of governance in the sector. They should allow better coordination of the actions undertaken to support the country’s industrialization.
Through the exchanges at DRC Mining Week 2026, the DRC is therefore reaffirming its determination to make its mineral resources a real lever for economic diversification, job creation and sustainable development, for the benefit of the entire Congolese population.
Héritier Maila
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