DRC: DRC Finance Minister Looks at Mines, Oil and Beer for Cash

Oct 5, 2021 | Michael J Kavanagh, Bloomberg
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The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) aims to revisit mining contracts, rescinding and reselling unused oil permits and boosting taxes on beer to fund its development plans, says Nicolas Kazadi, the country’s finance minister.  A country the size of Western Europe with 80-million inhabitants, the DRC had a budget of just $4bn last year and poverty is rampant, despite its vast riches of copper, cobalt and other natural resources. The government needs more money to meet President Felix Tshisekedi’s pledges to provide free education and expand access to healthcare and the task of raising it has fallen to Kazadi, 55, an economist who previously served in the central bank and finance ministry.