Kinshasa, October 22nd of 2020

In October of 2020, the Congolese President had met with his economy minister and had debated the expansion of new ports in the DRC. The President has recognized that the infrastructure of the nation is less than satisfactory, and it seems like he wants to push forward new developments that will bolster the infrastructure while emboldening international investors during the pandemic, hopefully as a move to stimulate the national economy. This move, however, comes not without precedent, as evidenced by the expansion of the infrastructure made in 2018, of the Kasumbalesa Dry Port; some would argue that this move, while bigger and better than Kabila’s, is still an effective move made by Tshisekedi to emulate his predecessor.

After the move was announced to the media through an inside source, the President decided to do an address to the nation regarding this economic maneuver and how it would affect the lives of the average Congolese. Alongside it, President Félix has requested that the Ministry of Economy draft up the plans for this expansion and report it to the IMF and other international economic organizations.

The Congolese Port Authority

The most important part of the reforms set by Tshisedeki is the Congolese Port Authority; this authority will be created, effective immediately, and be gradually invested in with US$600 million over the next five years. Its role, as of most port authorities, will be to run and expand the ports along the Atlantic Ocean.

The Congolese Port Authority will be run by a board appointed by the Minister of Foreign Commerce, and it will report directly to the National Assembly of the DRC. It will also be responsible for setting fees and levying taxes from the ports, and will own a small share of the land where it operates.

The Port Expansions

Alongside with creating the Congolese Port Authority, certainly one of the best moves of Tshisedeki to revitalize the economy and increase the infrastructure for good supply chains, the government of the DRC will be pushing towards the expansion of a few ports in the DRC.

The first port to be expanded will be the Matadi port, known as the chief sea port of the DRC. It currently has a maximum draft of 8.2m and our Navy possesses an operational command there; alongside it, there is also an important newspaper, La Cité Africaine de Matadi, which we will use to convey our thoughts on the port expansion and how it will affect the lives of the Congolese there.

The plan is to expand the Matadi port into a bigger container port, but the size is, as of this moment, unspecified. Meanwhile, we are going to expand the Boma port into the same size as the Matadi port; we are also going to the creating a large port in the city of Muanda. All of this will come from the funding of the Port Authority, who will be responsible for these developments. Finally, near the small seaport of Banana, the government of the DRC will use the dredged soil from the other ports to fill in an island near the city of Banana, called the Banana Island. This will be funded with US$10 million,

The expected timetable for all of these developments will be around five years, with some variations, such as some ports being done faster than others. The plan is that both Boma and Muanda finish faster than Matadi.

Tshisedeki’s Address

“Good evening. This is President Tshisekedi. For the past 2 years, I've been forced to put together a government that could provide you with the basic services guaranteed to you by the Constitution. In doing so, the sad state of affairs that is our infrastructure has become incredibly apparent to me.

Our future cannot be written until we prepare for it today. That is why today, I am announcing the creation of the Congolese Port Authority Inc. $600 million will be invested into this new company over the next 5 years and will focus on running and expanding our ports along the Atlantic Ocean. The port of Matadi will see an increase to a larger container port. The port of Boma will see itself increased to the size of Matadi now. A large port will be created at Muanda as well. $10 million of the total will go into the creation of Banana Island near Banana using the dredged soil from the other ports projects to fill it in. The project is expected to take roughly 5 years to complete all 3 ports but some will be done sooner than others. Over 20,000 jobs are expected to be created by this expansion. Upon completion, a plan will be put in place to allow privatization upon return of state funds by the ports. The increased capacity of all 3 ports should allow us to export at full efficiency as our economy catches up.”

Summary

The DRC is passing a few economic measures for two reasons, to economically develop its nation and increase the efficiency of its logistics, and to revitalize the economy during the COVID pandemic. These measures include:

• The creation of a Congolese Port Authority, under the administration of the Ministry of Foreign Commerce
• The expansion of three ports, the Matadi, Boma and Muanda ports.
• The creation of Banana Island near the city of Banana.
• All of this to be funded with US$600 million over five years; with US$10 million set for Banana Island.