Congo’s New Mining Code Opens the Door to Litigation and More Corruption

Congo’s New Mining Code Opens the Door to Litigation and More Corruption
A Congolese miner digs for cassiterite, the major ore of tin, at Nyabibwe mine, Democratic Republic of Congo, Aug. 17, 2012 (AP photo by Marc Hofer).

After more than five years of negotiations, Joseph Kabila, president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, signed into law a new mining code earlier this month. The code faced strong opposition from mining companies, which now face higher royalties and taxes. The government has said it may be willing to negotiate terms on a case-by-case basis. Congo has extensive mineral wealth and is the top source of cobalt globally and the top source of copper in Africa. In an email interview, Thomas Lassourd, a senior economic analyst at the Natural Resource Governance Institute, or NRGI, discusses why the government decided to push forward with the new code, how it affects transparency and accountability, and the obstacles to its implementation.

WPR: What was the Congolese government’s motivation for adopting the new mining code, and what are its strengths and weaknesses?

Thomas Lassourd: In 2012, the government started working on a revision of its 2002 mining code, which was passed during a period of civil war in Congo. There were several legitimate reasons to review the previous law, including the need for it to conform to the 2006 constitution, the lack of strong provisions on environmental protection and local development, and a desire to readjust the relatively generous incentives for investors.

Keep reading for free!

Get instant access to the rest of this article by submitting your email address below. You'll also get access to three articles of your choice each month and our free newsletter:

Or, Subscribe now to get full access.

Already a subscriber? Log in here .

What you’ll get with an All-Access subscription to World Politics Review:

A WPR subscription is like no other resource — it’s like having a personal curator and expert analyst of global affairs news. Subscribe now, and you’ll get:

  • Immediate and instant access to WPR’s fully searchable library of 16,000+ articles
  • Daily articles with original analysis, written by leading topic experts, delivered to you every weekday
  • Weekly in-depth reports on important issues and countries
  • Daily links to must-read news and analysis from top sources around the globe, curated by our keen-eyed team of editors
  • The Weekly Wrap-Up email, with highlights of the week’s most important coverage, and what’s to come.
  • Completely ad-free reading.

And all of this is available to you when you subscribe today.

More World Politics Review