DRC: Incumbent President inaugurates new financial centre amidst elections

The new Kinshasa financial centre, a product of Turkish-Congolese cooperation, was inaugurated by Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi ahead of the presidential elections, with construction commencing in November 2022.

The project, totalling $290 million, features four 21-storey towers, a convention centre, and 90,000 m² of land, aiming to streamline operations for the Ministry of Budget and the Ministry of Finance in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Nicolas Kazadi, Minister of Finance, Democratic Republic of Congo. “It’s going to make it easier for us to welcome and serve our users and taxpayers, because they’ll be able to have a good concentration of services in the same place. That’s the main interest, and for us as public players, we’ll have the opportunity to collaborate better, because we’ll be on the same site, we’ll have more interaction. And we’ll be able to make more decisions. We have the right infrastructure here in terms of meeting rooms, in terms of internet connectivity that will allow us to be more productive.”

In recent months, the government had accelerated reforms and focused on macroeconomic performance, responsible management of public finances and a stable financial system, three factors to establish the country’s credibility, particularly in the eyes of private investors.

“It will be a financial center, but also a governmental center for the DRC, in the heart of the country,” explains Turhan Mildon, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Turkish company Milvest, owned by Miller Holding.

As I often say, the building we’re standing in, the Kinshasa financial centre and the Kinshasa congress centre, is a clear and solid illustration of what two nations, Turkey and the DRC, can achieve together.

The construction of this project we needed nearly 6,000 people, of whom 2,500 came from Turkey and 3,500 from the DRC…so the transfer of technology from the Turks to the Congolese has fully satisfied us as a company…and as for the projects that will continue, we will continue to add value and create an even stronger relationship between the two countries.

The centre will also house a number of financial institutions, including a development bank in the making.

It will also house the Central Coordination Office (BCeCO), an investment fund and a luxury hotel.

The project offers nearly 10,000 offices.

In terms of employment, the construction work will have mobilized 3,500 jobs, more than half of which will be filled by local workers.

Turkish company Milvest has also entered into another partnership with the Congolese government.

This involves the construction of the Ndjili international airport, for an investment of 1.2 billion US dollars.

Africanews/Hauwa M.