On the eve of the official start of President Félix Tshisekedi’s state visit to China, the Congolese authorities are waiting to rebuild the partnership with Beijing, undermined by the gigantic contract dubbed “mines against infrastructure” signed in 2008.
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Signed under the presidency of Joseph Kabila, the contract between Kinshasa and Beijing provided for more than 6 billion dollars of Chinese investment in exchange for access to cobalt and copper mines. Fifteen years later, the expected results have not been there. The Congolese authorities therefore want to renegotiate.
According to a document consulted by RFI and following the revelations of Reuters, the Congolese delegation in Beijing wants to rebalance the shares of Sicomines (Sino-conglaise des mines), this joint venture set up with the Congolese public company Gécamines and the Groupement d Chinese enterprises (GEC). Kinshasa wants to go from 32% of shares currently held by Gécamines to 60% plus 10% “ not dilutable » of shares for the Congolese State, ie 70% for the Congolese party. The share of the GEC would become a minority.
Governance guarantees
Kinshasa also wants guarantees on future governance: “ put an end to the role of extras of the agents of Gécamines “, to carry out a technical and financial audit of Sicomines, to set up control mechanisms on the production sites, but also to settle the financing of the infrastructure works for 1.5 billion dollars by a line of credit “managed by the Congolese part” and that Sicomines also ensures the construction of infrastructures to the tune of 667 million dollars.
The Congolese side also writes that 40% of the envelope linked to infrastructure must go to its companies. A renegotiation for Chinese contracts deemed “ totally inappropriate and dangerous a few months before the general elections, according to members of civil society contacted by RFI.
Read also : DRC: justice looks into the controversial giant Sicomines contract
