The 18th edition of DRC Mining Week, which was held from June 14 to 16 at the Grand Karavia Hotel in Lubumbashi, was an opportunity for local and international mining actors from more than 45 countries to meet and discuss the vast investment opportunities in the mining sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
This annual forum, the largest in the country, brought together 950 mining and industrial delegates, 250 mining, industrial and technological suppliers, as well as 80 products and equipment on display. Young entrepreneurs were also present.
On the program, several activities including a sold-out conference, a larger exhibition with a new marquee capable of accommodating more than 1,200 participants, free technical workshops and sold-out and sponsored exhibitions. The business dinner organized on the sidelines of DRC Mining Week by the Regulatory Authority for Subcontracting in the Private Sector (ARSP) was an opportunity to discuss the difficulty of accessing the multiple subcontracting markets -contracting in the Congolese mining industry. The objective of the ARSP is to emphasize the popularization of the law on subcontracting as well as its intervention in various sectors of the national economy in general and in the mining sector in particular.
The Congolese officials present also took the floor to recall the major issues in the country’s mining sector. Jacques Kyabula, governor of the province of Haut-Katanga, thus presented the results of the recommendations of the previous edition, while the representative of the Minister of Mines, Antoinette N’Samba, should speak at the closing of the forum. .
Despite the enormous opportunities represented by the mining sector in the DRC, local subcontracting continues to arouse strong controversy. Tensions are also reported in some parts of the country, such as Kamako, where dangerous communal conflict is mounting.
In short, beyond investment opportunities, the Congolese mining sector still faces many challenges to guarantee a stable and prosperous future for the DRC.