Félix Tshisekedi’s state visit to Botswana in May 2023 was an opportunity for the Democratic Republic of Congo to strengthen its ties with this neighboring country and to understand the economic model of the mining industry, mainly that of diamonds. As Botswana is the world’s largest diamond producer by volume and value, the DRC president wanted to build on this success and find ways to improve the Congolese economy.
With this in mind, Felix Tshisekedi stressed the need to build on existing models in countries with economies similar to that of the DRC, in order to optimize Congolese industries and accelerate the country’s economic development. He therefore asked the Minister of State, Minister of the Portfolio, to accelerate the process of transforming the Anhui Mining Investment Company into a public limited company with a Board of Directors.
This transformation should follow the instruction given during the 45th meeting of the Council of Ministers held on August 21, 2020, where a decision was taken to require SACIM to pay revenues to MIBA following the exploitation of its Tshibwe deposit, as part of an equal partnership between the Chinese partner and the Congolese State. This decision is still awaiting implementation, almost three years later.
To accelerate the economic development of the DRC, other projects are envisaged, such as the rehabilitation of the national roads of Lualaba, the search for tourist images to promote the country or the rehabilitation of tourist sites in the DRC.
However, tension also persists in the DRC, with the violent repression of an opposition march in Kinshasa and arrests and political intimidation. Dialogue and the commitment of the entire population remain necessary to strengthen the credibility and social justice of the DRC, while guaranteeing the security of the population.
In sum, Félix Tshisekedi’s state visit to Botswana in May 2023 was an opportunity to strengthen ties with a neighboring country with a thriving mining industry, while seeking ways to optimize the Congolese economy. Nevertheless, to ensure sustainable economic development and security for the population, political and social measures must be taken in parallel.