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Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Kinshasa

Head of State

President Félix Tshisekedi

Head of Government

Prime Minister Judith Suminwa

Rail projects have been a long-standing area of cooperation between China and a number of countries in Africa. Photo: Xinhua

China-Africa relations

Chinese workers return to Africa as lucrative job opportunities beckon

Large-scale, China-backed projects entice contract workers to take up posts in some African nations, while political instability keeps others away.

21 Dec 2025 - 8:00PMvideocam

Africa

Rwanda-backed rebels enter key DR Congo town, as Trump peace deal crumbles

11 Dec 2025 - 2:29PM

Africa

‘Miracle’ Africa peace deal, signed at Trump’s urging, already unravelling

9 Dec 2025 - 3:40PM

US-China relations

Why China may be better placed than US in tussle for rare earths

While Beijing has long engaged with resource-rich nations, Trump’s Washington is seen as more ‘aggressive’ and reactive.

6 Dec 2025 - 6:51AMvideocam

Africa

Trump praises African leaders, who sign his deal as fighting continues

‘Historic’ agreement aims to end conflict in eastern DR Congo and unlock access to the region’s critical mineral reserves for the US.

5 Dec 2025 - 4:44PM

United States

US Institute of Peace renamed after ‘greatest dealmaker’ Trump

‘Donald J. Trump’ emblazes Washington headquarters of the US Institute of Peace in time for a peace deal signing.

4 Dec 2025 - 1:25PM

United States

Congo and Rwanda presidents to meet in US to sign peace deal

The Congolese government says its signing is conditional on Rwanda’s withdrawal of support for the M23 rebels fighting in eastern Congo.

29 Nov 2025 - 11:39AM

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with the foreign ministers of Congo and Rwanda in the Oval Office of the White House in June to end the conflict between the two African countries. Photo: EPA

Switzerland

Red Cross to cut 2,900 jobs, slash budget as donors shift focus towards defence

Failure to prevent conflict and provide humanitarian relief risks ‘a world of ever more and greater suffering’, president warns.

21 Nov 2025 - 9:05PM

United States

Opinion | Don’t blame China for America’s authoritarian turn

America’s authoritarian turn didn’t start with Donald Trump and has been decades in the making.

19 Nov 2025 - 9:30AM

Europe’s refugee crisis

UK toughens asylum policy as anti-immigration sentiment rises

Policy overhaul seeks greater control over who can remain in Britain as tens of thousands of people claim asylum.

18 Nov 2025 - 1:34PM

Migrants in Gravelines, northern France, walk in the water to board a small boat in an attempt to reach Britain. Photo: AP

Africa

At least 32 killed in DR Congo after bridge at mine collapsed

Authorities say overcrowding and panic - allegedly sparked by soldiers’ gunfire - caused the bridge to fall at the copper and cobalt mine.

17 Nov 2025 - 1:05PM

A Congolese artisanal miner digs in an open-pit mine in Mangaredjipa near Beni, North Kivu Province of Democratic Republic of Congo in August. Photo: Reuters

Climate change

The world has a decade to save the biggest tropical carbon sink

Report warns that further damage to Africa’s vast tropical forests risks undermining the world’s fight against climate change.

10 Nov 2025 - 2:59PMvideocam

Science

Science drives China’s westward expansion in Africa

Discoveries of large untapped mineral deposits in West Africa are behind Beijing’s push to invest heavily in exploration and mining.

26 Oct 2025 - 4:05PMvideocam

Africa

DR Congo military court sentences ex-president to death for treason

Joseph Kabila, who ruled from 2001 to 2019, was convicted in absentia of crimes including collaborating with M23 anti-government rebels.

1 Oct 2025 - 1:19PM

Former Democratic Republic of Congo president Joseph Kabila. File photo: AP

US-China relations

US invests in Zambia project in bid to loosen China’s grip on critical minerals

USTDA will provide US$1.4 million grant to Metalex Africa to fund feasibility study on expanding the copper and cobalt mine.

19 Sep 2025 - 6:00PMvideocam

The US is interested in critical minerals from Zambia and DR Congo, both key producers of copper and cobalt. Photo: AFP

Africa

DR Congo-Rwanda peace deal outlines US role in minerals sector

Among regulatory initiatives and reforms, the deal calls for third-party inspections of mine sites and working with private sector partners.

14 Sep 2025 - 4:38PM

Africa

Dozens slaughtered in gun and machete attack at DR Congo funeral

Allied Democratic Forces rebels blamed for a deadly attack on residents at a village mourning ceremony.

10 Sep 2025 - 5:40PM

Africa

In DR Congo, cash shortage forces rebel-held city to use damaged banknotes

Residents in Bukavu are using older, perforated banknotes put back into circulation, but some shopkeepers refuse to accept them.

9 Sep 2025 - 12:14AM

Perforated notes are seen in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo, on August 29. Photo: AP

Israel-Gaza war

UN human rights chief slams Israel’s ‘mass killing’ of Palestinians in Gaza

Volker Turk expresses horror at the ‘genocidal rhetoric’ and ‘disgraceful dehumanisation’ of Palestinians by senior Israeli officials.

8 Sep 2025 - 7:47PM

China-Africa relations

China, US, Japan race to control African rail routes in critical minerals fight

Infrastructure is no longer just about moving ore, it is about shaping global supply lines, one analyst notes.

6 Sep 2025 - 2:00PMvideocam

Africa

New Ebola outbreak in DR Congo kills 15, prompting WHO response

The World Health Organization said case numbers were likely to increase as transmission was ongoing.

5 Sep 2025 - 1:32PM

A health worker puts on Ebola protection gear in 2019. DR Congo has recorded 15 outbreaks since the disease was first identified in 1976. File photo: AP

Middle East

Qatar joins Gulf neighbours in African funding game with US$103 billion pledge

Al-Mansour Holdings is looking to tap into six resource-rich sub-Saharan countries for minerals, oil and gas.

4 Sep 2025 - 3:17PMvideocam

A labourer carries a sack of ore at the Rubaya coltan mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo on March 24. Photo: Reuters

China-Africa relations

Angola rail project not aimed at countering China, CEO says

The US has framed it as key to de-risking from China, but Nicholas Fournier says Lobito Atlantic Railway is ‘a purely commercial entity’.

23 Aug 2025 - 8:39PM

China-Africa relations

‘Extremely daring’: Chinese miners putting gold over their own lives in Africa

Gold miners from China are also more vulnerable to the wave of killings and kidnappings than their Western counterparts, observers say.

11 Aug 2025 - 5:26PMvideocam

Africa

Rwanda-backed rebels kill 80 in DR Congo as Qatar aims for peace

Fighting has continued amid allegations from Congolese authorities that the rebels are ‘engaged in the forced recruitment of young people’.

9 Aug 2025 - 7:34PM

An M23 soldier watches over a group of around one hundred Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), Wazalendo and Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) fighters, at the Stade de l’Unité, in Goma, DR Congo, on May 10. Photo: AFP

United States

Opinion | Trump’s many victories will prove pyrrhic

The US president’s arrogance and bullying have given him short-term wins but also embedded long-term resentment and opposition.

31 Jul 2025 - 5:42PMvideocam

US President Donald Trump points towards reporters as he arrives at the White House on July 13. Photo: Zuma Press Wire/dpa

China-Africa relations

China faces off against US for domination of DR Congo’s critical minerals

China’s pushback includes envoy to Congo underlining Beijing’s commitment to supporting the central African country address its crises.

28 Jul 2025 - 6:16PM

War and conflict

34 killed in attack on DR Congo church by Islamic State-backed rebels

Dieudonne Duranthabo, a civil society coordinator in Komanda, said volunteers are preparing to bury the victims in a mass grave.

28 Jul 2025 - 11:01AM

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Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

Chinese workers return to Africa as lucrative job opportunities beckon

Large-scale, China-backed projects entice contract workers to take up posts in some African nations, while political instability keeps others away.

Rwanda-backed rebels enter key DR Congo town, as Trump peace deal crumbles

‘Miracle’ Africa peace deal, signed at Trump’s urging, already unravelling

Why China may be better placed than US in tussle for rare earths

While Beijing has long engaged with resource-rich nations, Trump’s Washington is seen as more ‘aggressive’ and reactive.

Trump praises African leaders, who sign his deal as fighting continues

‘Historic’ agreement aims to end conflict in eastern DR Congo and unlock access to the region’s critical mineral reserves for the US.

US Institute of Peace renamed after ‘greatest dealmaker’ Trump

‘Donald J. Trump’ emblazes Washington headquarters of the US Institute of Peace in time for a peace deal signing.

Congo and Rwanda presidents to meet in US to sign peace deal

The Congolese government says its signing is conditional on Rwanda’s withdrawal of support for the M23 rebels fighting in eastern Congo.

Red Cross to cut 2,900 jobs, slash budget as donors shift focus towards defence

Failure to prevent conflict and provide humanitarian relief risks ‘a world of ever more and greater suffering’, president warns.

.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}Opinion | Don’t blame China for America’s authoritarian turn

America’s authoritarian turn didn’t start with Donald Trump and has been decades in the making.

UK toughens asylum policy as anti-immigration sentiment rises

Policy overhaul seeks greater control over who can remain in Britain as tens of thousands of people claim asylum.

At least 32 killed in DR Congo after bridge at mine collapsed

Authorities say overcrowding and panic - allegedly sparked by soldiers’ gunfire - caused the bridge to fall at the copper and cobalt mine.

The world has a decade to save the biggest tropical carbon sink

Report warns that further damage to Africa’s vast tropical forests risks undermining the world’s fight against climate change.

Science drives China’s westward expansion in Africa

Discoveries of large untapped mineral deposits in West Africa are behind Beijing’s push to invest heavily in exploration and mining.

DR Congo military court sentences ex-president to death for treason

Joseph Kabila, who ruled from 2001 to 2019, was convicted in absentia of crimes including collaborating with M23 anti-government rebels.

US invests in Zambia project in bid to loosen China’s grip on critical minerals

USTDA will provide US$1.4 million grant to Metalex Africa to fund feasibility study on expanding the copper and cobalt mine.

DR Congo-Rwanda peace deal outlines US role in minerals sector

Among regulatory initiatives and reforms, the deal calls for third-party inspections of mine sites and working with private sector partners.

Dozens slaughtered in gun and machete attack at DR Congo funeral

Allied Democratic Forces rebels blamed for a deadly attack on residents at a village mourning ceremony.

In DR Congo, cash shortage forces rebel-held city to use damaged banknotes

Residents in Bukavu are using older, perforated banknotes put back into circulation, but some shopkeepers refuse to accept them.

UN human rights chief slams Israel’s ‘mass killing’ of Palestinians in Gaza

Volker Turk expresses horror at the ‘genocidal rhetoric’ and ‘disgraceful dehumanisation’ of Palestinians by senior Israeli officials.

China, US, Japan race to control African rail routes in critical minerals fight

Infrastructure is no longer just about moving ore, it is about shaping global supply lines, one analyst notes.

New Ebola outbreak in DR Congo kills 15, prompting WHO response

The World Health Organization said case numbers were likely to increase as transmission was ongoing.

Qatar joins Gulf neighbours in African funding game with US$103 billion pledge

Al-Mansour Holdings is looking to tap into six resource-rich sub-Saharan countries for minerals, oil and gas.

Angola rail project not aimed at countering China, CEO says

The US has framed it as key to de-risking from China, but Nicholas Fournier says Lobito Atlantic Railway is ‘a purely commercial entity’.

‘Extremely daring’: Chinese miners putting gold over their own lives in Africa

Gold miners from China are also more vulnerable to the wave of killings and kidnappings than their Western counterparts, observers say.

Rwanda-backed rebels kill 80 in DR Congo as Qatar aims for peace

Fighting has continued amid allegations from Congolese authorities that the rebels are ‘engaged in the forced recruitment of young people’.

Opinion | Trump’s many victories will prove pyrrhic

The US president’s arrogance and bullying have given him short-term wins but also embedded long-term resentment and opposition.

China faces off against US for domination of DR Congo’s critical minerals

China’s pushback includes envoy to Congo underlining Beijing’s commitment to supporting the central African country address its crises.

34 killed in attack on DR Congo church by Islamic State-backed rebels

Dieudonne Duranthabo, a civil society coordinator in Komanda, said volunteers are preparing to bury the victims in a mass grave.

Opinion | Don’t blame China for America’s authoritarian turn