Democratic Republic of Congo

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is the largest country in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The DRC is endowed with exceptional natural resources, including minerals such as cobalt and copper, hydroelectric potential, significant arable land, immense biodiversity, and the world's second-largest rainforest.

Most people, however, have not benefited from this wealth. A long history of conflict, political upheaval, and instability has led to a serious and ongoing humanitarian crisis, exacerbated since November 2021 by the resurgence of M23 rebel activity in eastern DRC. This situation has led to millions of displaced people and widespread gender-based violence.

Following the Washington Agreement (June 2025) and the Doha Declaration of Principles (July 2025), a significant milestone was reached in November 2025 with the signature of a new economic agreement aimed at stabilizing cross-border trade and resource management.

On the ground, the security situation remains deeply polarized. While the M23 recently withdrew from several localities, most notably the strategic city of Uvira—allowing for the reopening of the border with Burundi—this progress is offset by a persistent status quo regarding broader security arrangements. Key territories remain under rebel influence, and the expected integration or disarmament processes have yet to materialize. Furthermore, negotiations in Doha have stalled, as parties struggle to move beyond preliminary statements toward a binding peace treaty.

The situation in Ituri province also remains volatile, marked by inter-community violence and competition for mineral resources. The government continues to reinforce state authority and pursue structural reforms to restore stability, attract investment, and generate employment.

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Real GDP growth remained resilient, estimated at 5.5% in 2025, driven by the extractive sector, though momentum moderated due to policy measures and security challenges. Mining output moderated slightly to 10.1% (from 11.9% in 2024), supported by strong copper production and exports despite the temporary cobalt export ban (February–October 2025). Non-mining sectors grew by 3.1%, driven predominantly by construction and services. Stronger export revenues and increased external financing contributed to rebuilding foreign reserves and strengthening the Congolese franc, which appreciated by 5% on an annual average. Inflation decelerated sharply to 7.5% in 2025, down from 17.7% in 2024, supported by a combination of tight monetary policy, a stable exchange rate, and lower global food and fuel prices. However, the intensification of conflict in the East increased security spending and tightened fiscal space.

Looking ahead, GDP growth is projected to average 5.1% in 2026-2028, reflecting a gradual slowdown in mining output growth, as major projects reach maturity. Services and construction are projected to play a key role in sustaining the non-mining sector of the economy. A stable external position combined with the absence of Central Bank of Congo (BCC) budget financing is expected to support exchange rate stability and keep inflation near the 7% medium‑term target.  Risks remain tilted to the downside, as the ongoing conflict in the East, the protracted conflict in the Middle East, heightened global uncertainty and volatile commodity prices could strain public finances and weigh on medium-term growth.

Despite positive trends, poverty remains high at 81.1% (at $3/day PPP) in 2025, with limited job creation in the mining sector and structural weaknesses constraining inclusive growth. Sustained reforms and investment in non-mining sectors are essential for broader development outcomes.

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Despite its immense potential, the DRC remains among the five poorest nations in the world. According to the 2024 household survey by the National Institute of Statistics (INS), an estimated 69% of the population lives below the national poverty line. The country's inequality index stands at 38.1, aligning with the Sub-Saharan African average.

DRC ranks 164 out of 174 countries on the 2020 Human Capital Index, reflecting decades of conflict and fragility. Its rate, 0.37, below the SSA average of 0.4, meaning that a Congolese child born today can expect to achieve only 37% of their potential compared to what would have been possible with full, quality schooling and optimal health conditions. The main contributors to this low score are high child mortality rates under age five, widespread stunting, and poor education quality.

DRC has one of the highest stunting rates in SSA (42% of children under age five), and malnutrition underlies almost half of all deaths of children under five. Unlike in most other African countries, the prevalence of stunting in the DRC has not decreased over the past 20 years. Due to the country's very high fertility rate, the absolute number of stunted children has in fact increased by 1.5 million.

The education sector faces persistent challenges in access, equity, and quality—particularly for girls and children from poor and marginalized households. While gender inequalities in pre-primary and primary education have declined over time, girls remain less likely than boys to attend and complete secondary education. The rapid expansion of the sector has taken place in an environment characterized by internal inefficiencies and low learning outcomes, generating a learning crisis at foundational levels that extends into secondary education. This situation, coupled with a young but under-skilled workforce, poses significant risks to the future productivity of the Congolese economy.

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The DRC Country Partnership Framework (CPF) 2022-2026 promotes the stabilization and development of DRC, supporting strategic priorities and critical reforms to improve governance and deepen stabilization efforts in eastern DRC. The CPF places a strong emphasis on human development, with a commitment to help DRC improve access to and quality of basic services such as education, health, and social protection.

The CPF also has a strong emphasis on addressing drivers of fragility, conflict, and violence, and building resilience to shocks and climate change. Investment operations focus on two densely populated corridors that are conflict hotspots where many poor people live. This work includes critical infrastructure (roads, energy, connectivity), which aims to bring in the private sector, along with agriculture, and forestry.

Protecting DRC’s rainforest, the second largest in the world, is also at the forefront of the CPF. About 67% of the country is covered by forests (145 million hectares of rainforest), storing the equivalent of 85 billion tons of CO2. However, population growth, exploitation of natural resources, infrastructure development, and agriculture puts significant pressure on the forest with losses having adverse impact on rainfall patterns, water quality, and food security in DRC and the wider Congo Basin.

As of March 15, 2026, the World Bank's active engagement in the DRC totals US$7.6 billion. This comprises 22 national projects and one regional operation, making it one of the largest and most diversified portfolios among our country engagements. Engagements span economic management, governance, and private sector development; human capital (health, education, social protection); sustainable development (infrastructure and connectivity, agriculture and food security, access to electricity and water, urban development); women’s empowerment, and prevention and response to gender-based violence); and digital transformation.

Partners

The World Bank is a member of the Donor Coordination Group that aims to harmonize development partner activities in the field. It is working closely with the United Nations, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the German Agency for International Development (GIZ/KFW), and the Belgian Cooperation Agency. In some areas, the World Bank collaborates with the African Development Bank.

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The SME Development and Growth Project helped found 6,012 new businesses, generated 14,926 new full-time jobs, and raised revenues of supported enterprises by 53%. It also provided training to 7,717 women entrepreneurs and women-led small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), offering financing to 5,307 of their businesses. Three SME Hubs launched and attracted $17 million in private sector investment.

Education investments have resulted in 4.4 million additional students enrolled in public primary schools in 2023-2024. 183,000 teaching personnel signed the revised Codes of Conduct (addressing violence), and a grievance mechanism was established to resolve conflicts/complaints and foster accountability.

Health System Strengthening for Better Maternal and Child Health Results supported 3,051 health facilities in 12 provinces, provided primary health services to 27% of the population, achieved 80% increase in women receiving four antenatal care visits, and benefits 7.5 million people annually. REDISSE IV trained 70,000 health workers and improved WASH infrastructure, constructed boreholes, and upgraded laboratories.

The Kin Elenda project brought the Ozone Water Treatment Complex at Binza to its full capacity of 330,000 cubic meters per day in March 2026, capable of serving an additional 5 to 6 million Kinois, while rehabilitating distribution networks and installing over 50,000 new household connections across central Kinshasa.

Improved Forested Landscape Management brought 368,000 hectares under sustainable land management, direct livelihood benefits to more than 248,000 people, created 2,600 permanent jobs, especially in agroforestry, clean cooking, and community-based forest management.

Mai-Ndombe Emission Reductions Program delivered the first jurisdictional results-based carbon payment in the Congo Basin in 2025, rewarding the reduction of 3.89 million tons of CO₂ and unlocking nearly $20 million for community benefit sharing.

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