President warns that heavy-handed revenue enforcement is a danger to the Congo mining industry
Cabinet minutes show that Congolese president Felix Tshisekedi ordered the state revenue agencies to refrain heavy-handed enforcement operations against mining firms, warning 'that excessive measures could dent investors confidence.
Tshisekedi’s order reflects Democratic Republic of Congo’s efforts to generate more revenue for the state from its vast mineral resources without scaring investors in the copper-cobalt sector, a pillar of country’s economy.
In recent years, Congo, which is the world's largest cobalt supplier and second-largest source of copper, has increased scrutiny on mining companies.
The state auditor claimed that in 2025 several'major miners', including China’s CMOC, and commodities giant Glencore underreported their revenue by billions of dollars, reducing the mandatory?contributions they must make to the government development fund. These companies denied the allegations.
As part of a tax dispute, the Congolese tax authorities closed down Glencore’s local offices last week.
Glencore said on Monday it was working with authorities and disputing "any wrongdoing".
DIALOGUE AND CONCILIATION
Tshisekedi said to a cabinet meeting held on Friday, that the repeated freezing of assets, bank account seizures and other fiscal charges, which are unpredictable, undermine the competitiveness of the mining sector and increase operating costs, according the minutes.
Minutes show that he instructed the ministries of finance, economy and mines, as well as revenue agencies to ensure that enforcement actions are?legally justified and only used in exceptional cases.
The president stated that the authorities should prioritise the dialogue, notification, and conciliation mechanisms under the law.
It was not immediately apparent if Tshisekedi’s directive had anything to do with the dispute between Glencore and Tshisekedi. The presidency did not respond immediately to a comment request.
"Our ambition is to create a transparent, competitive mining sector which generates sustainable value. Tshisekedi said that a stable legal climate, predictable administrative decisions, and a permanent dialogue between the state and economic actors are necessary to achieve this.
In another directive, he ordered that all soldiers and police officers who were illegally on mining sites be removed immediately. He said such practices fueled fraud, smuggling, and insecurity, while damaging the image of the country among investors.
The presence of security forces at mines is often necessary to curb illegal mining and protect the operations. (Reporting and writing by Ange Adihe Kaongo, Maxwell Akalaare Adombila, Editing by Clara Denina & Helen Popper).
(source: Reuters)
