54 AFRICAN COUNTRIES

Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is a nation which is endowed with enormous potential of wealth and is slowly recovering from the two long decades of decline. The conflict which began in year 1998 has dramatically reduced national output and government revenue, increased external debt and resulted in the deaths of more than 5 million people fom violence, famine and disease. The GDP for the year 2008 was $ 20.64 billion which showed a growth of 5.9% from the previous year.

The FDI inflow increased immensely in 2007 to $ 720 Billion from -$ 116 Billion in the year 2006.

FDI  Values in Million Inflow 1999 11.2 2000 23.4 2001 82 2002 117 2003 158 2004 9.9 2005 -76 2006 -116 2007 720 2008 1000

Agriculture Sector :

Placed on both sides of the equator and spanning two tropical zones, DRC has a climate which favors the cultivation of a wide range of tropical and even Mediterranean crops. It is considered that around half of the DRC's land is arable and suitable for farming. Although the records show that an estimated 1 - 2 percent only of the country's farmable land has so far been put under cultivation. The coffee beans, potatoes and leeks have a perfect environment in the high plains of the east and south for plantation. Cool temperatures and fertile soil in the region of Eastern Highlands favor the cultivation of tomatoes, sweet potatoes, yam, and pumpkins and even Mediterranean vegetables such as artichokes and asparagus. There is a high agricultural yield which is not uncommon. When the rainy season is very long it is possible to replant immediately after harvest and get a second crop during the same season.

The subsistence farming in dominates the agriculture sector in DRC. Food crops in tropical areas principally comprising of corn, millet, cassava and rice. The commercial crops such as coffee, cocoa, rubber, tea, palm oil and sugar cane are mostly grown in plantations, with the production of tobacco and cotton largely in the hands of private small-hold farmers. Another promising source of food could be fish but this is another under-exploited sector with huge potential. The lakes in eastern and southern regions of DRC are a massive reserve of a variety of freshwater species. The Congo River is another important source with major fishing ports in Kisangani and Mbandaka supplying the 6 million people living in Kinshasa. Encouragement of private sector investment is a main government objective. It aims to foster the professionalization of agriculture through training and the importation of foreign skills. The land for food crop production will be made available to foreign farmers by the government, while the rehabilitation of cash crop production will be on a joint-venture basis. Rehabilitation of livestock farming in the short term is a priority. 

Mining Sector :

The Department Mining and Hydrocarbons brought out the Mining Code which simplifies many issues, with particular focus on common law, transparency as regards mining and exploration licenses, and clarification of the dumps and tailings position. The present estimates of mineral reserves are 70Mt copper, 4.5Mt cobalt, 7Mt zinc, 10Mt iron ore, 240Mct diamonds, 30Mt niobium, 600t gold, 450Mt cassiterite, 7Mt manganese, 130Mt bauxite and 220Mt phosphates. The other resources include cadmium, silver, tin, germanium, uranium, radium and lithium. There is a potential in the mining projects which include niobium and tantalite deposits at Luebo (capital requirement US$650 000), a 220Mt phosphate deposit at 14% to 32% P2O5 (capital requirement US$52 million), a riverbed diamond prospect in Kasai (capital requirement $1m) and six oil exploration blocks.

Energy Sector :

The main features of this sector in DRC is that of a national electrification rate of just 6% (urban 30%, rural 1%), the energy demand in excess of capacity, poor management, obsolete equipment, a lack of resources, revenue collection of below 30%, an excessive industrial tariff and an installed capacity of 100 000MW but availability of only 2500MW. There is a peak demand of 950MW and the export demand lies at 360MW.

The initial development objectives brought about should be grid improvement, rural electrification with the aim of supplying each village with 80kW for household and 100kW for industrial use. Emphasis lies in the local power generation by the micro power plants and large-scale electricity generation for export to Nigeria, Egypt and South Africa. The specific projects include the rehabilitation of the Inga Dam and power station, electricity transfer from Inga, electricity supply to large towns, commercialization of supply, utilization of Tshimbulu’s energy for Kasai Province and the development of renewable energy sources.

Telecommunications Sector :

The Telecom sector reform majorly includes the new Telecommunications Act before the year-end and the establishment and maintenance of regulatory independence. There are opportunities present  in the rehabilitation of the cable network for the OCPT, restoration of the telecom system, interconnections, spectrum management and planning, satellite and fiber-optic installations for international communications, rural telecommunications, capacity building, introduction of new technologies and applications, and postal services re-engineering.

Water Sector :

The main objective is to increase the access to running water by rebuilding the existing water network and constructing new ones. The specific projects in the water sector include the completion of the water processing plant in Lukaya, improvement of the water supply network and supply of water inputs (water treatment).

Education & Health Sector :

There is an opportunity for private sector to help in the growth of secondary and higher technical education. There is also a requirement for private sector to enter into building private clinics and improve the health facilities of the country.

For Further Reference

 National Customs

 National Agency for Promotion and Investment

 Doing Business With DRC (Source: The World Bank Group)