A first wave of 470 Congolese refugees from Burundi arrived on Thursday 23 April 2026 in Uvira, in South Kivu province, marking the launch of a voluntary repatriation operation organized by the authorities and humanitarian partners.

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Burundi, the convoy left the Busuma camp, located in Ruhigi province, early in the morning. The returnees are due to cross the border at the Kavimvira checkpoint before reaching the town of Uvira, where they are expected to arrive between 3.30 pm and 4 pm local time.

This process includes registration, essential medical assistance and referral to support services.

This return is part of a humanitarian process aimed at ensuring the voluntary, dignified and safe repatriation of Congolese refugees living in Burundi.

It comes at a time of increased coordination efforts between the authorities of both countries and international agencies to promote durable solutions to the crisis affecting displaced persons.

The UNHCR representative in Burundi, Brigitte Eno, explained that support mechanisms have been put in place to facilitate the reintegration of returnees once they are on Congolese soil, particularly in terms of social assistance and logistical support.

Further convoys could follow in the coming days as part of this phased operation to return Congolese refugees living in Burundi.

For his part, the Deputy Governor of South Kivu, Jean Jacques Elakano, states that all necessary arrangements have been made to ensure this return takes place peacefully. He assures that security is guaranteed in the areas of return.

Following the occupation of the town of Uvira (South Kivu) by AFC/M23 rebels in early December 2025, between 60,000 and 65,000 Congolese sought refuge in Burundi within a ten-day period, according to UN humanitarian agencies, notably the UNHCR and the IOM.

It should be noted that these families crossed the border into Burundi in December 2025, at the height of the insecurity caused by the advance of M23/AFC rebels in several localities in South Kivu, notably Uvira, Sange, Luvungi and Kamanyola.

Thousands of civilians had then sought refuge in Burundian transit camps, living for several months in difficult humanitarian conditions.

Written by Akilimali Chomachoma

Unidentified armed men attacked traders and motorists on National Road No. 2 in the vicinity of Mabenga, in Rutshuru territory, in the heart of Virunga National Park in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the morning of Friday 24 April 2026.

According to local sources, at least ten motorcycles and a Fuso lorry were targeted by the attackers in an area currently under the control of the AFC/M23 movement. The attack, which reportedly lasted around 30 minutes from 10.20 am to 10.50 am, is said to have taken place without any intervention from the security forces. Several valuable items, including goods, cash and mobile phones, were taken.

“Unidentified armed men systematically attacked and looted business owners and road users. Several items were taken,” Ngav’we Bin Kun warned in a message shared on social media. According to this account, a trader reportedly lost an estimated $150, an Android phone, five boxes of Thomson fish, ten boxes of wine, and five bags containing goods belonging to the Uwaze women’s association in Vitshumbi.

Other corroborating sources indicate that these acts of looting have been on the rise in the region for several months. “Hardly a day goes by without a new incident being reported,” says a local source. This situation is having a particularly severe impact on small traders, especially those operating in the Vitshumbi fishing village.

In the face of this persistent insecurity, Ngav’we Bin Kun is calling for security measures to be stepped up. “The relevant authorities must urgently strengthen security in this area to protect the local population and road users. The people of Vitshumbi, who are mainly fishermen and small traders, are currently living in a state of alarming insecurity,” he laments.

It should be noted that, a few months earlier, an association of vehicle owners had called a strike to protest against this security situation. However, the strike was called off without achieving the desired result.

However, to date, no official statement has yet been issued on this matter. Nevertheless, in a letter addressed to the provincial director of the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN), a copy of which was sent to the head of the Vitshumbi locality, new guidelines regarding the so-called ‘Salongo’ community works were outlined, with a view to strengthening security within the park.

“During the security meeting, it was decided to clear a 10-metre strip on either side of the road in order to neutralize the enemy operating in the area covering Mabenga–Rwindi–Vitshumbi–Kibirizi–Kanyabayonga,” reads the letter from the administrator of the Rutshuru territory of the AFC/M23 movement, dated 20 April.

“We hereby inform you that from this Saturday, 25 May 2026, our men from the relevant units will carry out this community work,” the same document states.

Written by OSL (pseudonym)

“The Congo no longer has the power to decide on its strategic minerals on its own; it must now do so together with the United States.” With this statement, Jean-Marie Kalonji, coordinator of Quatrième Voie movement and a member of the plaintiffs’ collective, set the tone for a press conference held on Monday, April 27, 2026, at the Andrée Blouin Cultural Center.

At the heart of the discussions was an agreement described as opaque and deeply unbalanced, concluded between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the United States over strategic minerals such as cobalt, coltan, and lithium—key resources for the global energy transition and the technology industry. For civil society actors present, this agreement reflects a long-standing pattern of extractivism, whereby raw materials leave the country with little added value, benefiting foreign industrial powers, particularly the United States.

From a legal standpoint, the challenge is unequivocal. On January 21, 2026, a collective of lawyers filed a petition before the Constitutional Court seeking to have the agreement declared unconstitutional, arguing that it commits national sovereignty without genuine democratic debate or effective parliamentary oversight. Yet, three months after the filing, no ruling has been issued.

Despite a follow-up request submitted on April 17, 2026, calling for the scheduling of a hearing, the high court remains silent. The plaintiffs interpret this silence as a denial of justice and a sign of the fragility of the rule of law in the face of prevailing geostrategic and economic interests.

“We intend to refer the matter to the International Council for Human Rights as well as other international bodies, as domestic remedies have now been exhausted,” said attorney Valentin Ketshi. This move reflects a growing loss of confidence in national mechanisms for regulation and rights protection.

Beyond the legal dimension, the broader question of the Congolese economic model is being raised. With over 70% of the world’s cobalt reserves, the DRC holds a central position in global supply chains. Yet, the economic benefits for the population remain minimal: limited local industrialization, dependence on raw exports, and rent capture by a small group of actors.

For the initiators of the legal action, this agreement risks deepening these structural imbalances. “This is not merely a legal text, but a political choice that will shape the future of several generations,” they stressed. They are calling for national reappropriation of natural resources through policies promoting local processing, transparency, and accountability.

In this context, their struggle aims to ensure that “the law is upheld in favor of the Congolese people,” whom they believe are once again being sidelined in a decision-making process removed from their fundamental interests.

Written by Pascal Muteba

The National Assembly rejected the motion of no confidence targeting the Deputy Prime Minister in charge of the Interior, Security, Decentralization and Customary Affairs, Jacquemain Shabani Lukoo, following a procedural motion. A procedural motion tabled by MP Gary Sakata prevented the motion of no confidence against the Deputy Prime Minister for the Interior from being considered.

During the debate on the admissibility of the motion of no confidence in the National Assembly, MP Gary Sakata strongly criticized the procedural form, calling for the outright rejection of the motion. His stance was part of a strategy aimed at undermining the motion even before its formal consideration. 

A procedural motion tabled by MP Gary Sakata and approved by the plenary session has led to the suspension of the debate on the motion of no confidence against the Deputy Prime Minister for the Interior and Security. He is challenging the admissibility of the motion of no confidence targeting Deputy Prime Minister for the Interior Jacquemin Shabani Lukoo. According to the MP, at least six of the names listed among the signatories are problematic. He cited the inclusion of individuals who do not hold the status of national MP, as well as spelling errors that could call into question the authenticity of the document. These factors, he argued, undermine the motion’s credibility and justify its inadmissibility.

If confirmed, these irregularities prevent the majority from proceeding with the motion without first holding a plenary vote.

“By this vote, the incidental motion raised by the Honorable Sakata is adopted. The approval of this incidental motion thus brings the consideration of the motion of no confidence to an end. It is therefore not appropriate to proceed with either a debate or a vote on it,” declared Aimé Boji, Speaker of the lower house of Parliament.

Tabled by MP Laddy Yangotikala, the motion of no confidence targeted Jacquemain Shabani over his handling of the growing insecurity in the DRC’s major cities and his interventions in provincial affairs, which were deemed unlawful. Although the Assembly’s bureau had initially validated the motion, its rejection via an incidental motion was interpreted by some observers as a form of political protection within the Union Sacrée majority.

This episode could well mark a turning point in parliamentary strategies, where form sometimes takes precedence over substance, redefining the rules of the political game in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This episode once again illustrates the persistent tensions within the Congolese political scene, where procedural battles become decisive weapons. Thanks to this rejection, Jacquemain Shabani retains his post within the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Written by Akilimali Chomachoma

Former Congolese president Joseph Kabila, who was in power from 2001 to 2019, is now on the US blacklist. The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has announced economic sanctions against him, accusing him of playing a role in the ongoing instability in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

This decision marks a significant hardening of the US stance towards those suspected of fueling security instability. Joseph Kabila’s assets within US jurisdiction have been frozen.

US authorities accuse Joseph Kabila of links to the Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC) and the M23, both implicated in recurring armed violence.

“Kabila has provided financial support to the AFC in order to influence the political situation in eastern DRC. Kabila has encouraged Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) troops to defect and join AFC forces in eastern DRC in order to generate additional support for the AFC,” states the Treasury Department’s press release.

They also prohibit any person or entity based in the United States from conducting financial or commercial transactions with him, thereby reinforcing his isolation on the international stage.

Furthermore, Washington says it is “firmly committed to ensuring that all parties honor their commitments under the peace agreements between the DRC and Rwanda” signed under its mediation, as well as the Doha Framework Agreement.

“This decision, which follows the sanctions imposed on 2 March 2026 against the RDF and senior Rwandan officers, constitutes another significant step in the fight against impunity, the respect for sovereignty and the accountability of all actors involved in the ongoing destabilization of the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” states the Congolese government, whose courts have sentenced him to death.

On 30 September 2025, the Congolese courts sentenced Joseph Kabila to death in absentia for ‘complicity’ with the M23.

Joseph Kabila and members of his entourage have not yet commented on this US decision.

Written by Akilimali Chomachoma

For nearly two weeks, the electricity supply provided by Virunga Énergies has been severely disrupted in the city of Goma. Residents are facing unexpected and repeated power cuts, without warning, breaking with the relative stability seen previously. This situation is causing concern and frustration among the population.

“We’re experiencing power cuts at any time. We’re worried about the safety of our appliances. Before, we were informed in advance of scheduled outages, but now everything happens unpredictably,” says Israël Kasereka, owner of a café located at the Trois Lampes entrance in the Mabanga-Nord district.

Once seen as a company providing a relatively stable service, Virunga Énergies is now facing growing criticism. Power cuts occur at various times of the day – in the morning, afternoon or evening – and last anywhere from a few minutes to around thirty minutes, causing considerable disruption to economic activity in the city.

Businesses are calling for a swift return to normality. “Virunga is our main source of energy. The current situation worries us greatly. We depend entirely on electricity to work. Solutions must be found urgently,” emphasizes Trésor Kazi, owner of a secretarial agency on the Mutinga–Afia Bora road. He also states that on some days there can be up to three successive power cuts.

To date, no official statement has been issued by the management of Virunga Énergies, an organization spun off from the Virunga Foundation, an initiative linked to Virunga National Park. This lack of explanation is fueling further speculation among users as to the causes of these repeated disruptions.

Written by Victoire Katembo Mbuto

The official launch took place at the Les Loupiots School Complex, in the Ngaliema district of Kinshasa. The Minister for National Education, Raïssa Malu, launched the essay exam on Monday in Kinshasa, which counts towards the 2026 State Examination sitting. This marks the start of the certification exams for over a million final-year students across the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The ceremony featured the symbolic opening of the trunk containing the exam papers, followed by the distribution of the papers to the candidates.

Held across the entire country, this exam paves the way for the other assessments scheduled as part of the supplementary session, notably the oral and practical exams. This stage marks the start of the certification assessments for over a million final-year students across the country.

Candidates began the exams with the essay, the first stage in a series of tests comprising technical tests, the French oral exam and the practical assessment. According to the official timetable, the essay takes place on 4 May, the technical tests on 5 May, the French oral exam from 6 to 9 May, whilst the practical assessment is scheduled for 11 to 18 May. The regular session of the State Examination will take place from 22 to 25 June 2026.

Regarded as a significant stage in pupils’ educational journey, this examination enables them to demonstrate their ability to think critically, their intellectual creativity and their sense of responsibility, within an atmosphere of discipline and integrity. In a context where discipline and integrity are strongly emphasized, pupils are invited to demonstrate the maturity they have acquired throughout their school career.

For the 2026 session, there are exactly 1,079,675 candidates registered for the long-form essay exam. Of these, 482,557 are girls, accounting for 44.7 per cent, and 597,118 are boys, representing 55.3 per cent of the candidates.

“For this 59th edition, candidates are spread across 3,268 examination centers, an average of 330 candidates per center,” the Minister stated at the official launch.

This essay marks the first stage of the certification exams, ahead of the regular session scheduled for next June. Those who pass both sessions will have the opportunity to pursue further education at higher and university level.

Written by Akilimali Chomachoma

April 17th, 2026

Climate change is often talked about in terms of rising temperatures, melting glaciers, wildfires, disappearing forests, but rarely in terms of who suffers the most. Yet at its core, climate change is not just an environmental issue, it’s a deeply social one, with women bearing a disproportionate burden.

Gender justice, which seeks to end inequalities between men and women, is inseparable from climate justice, because the impacts of climate change are not felt equally. As Geraldine Terry, a gender and development researcher, argued in her 2009 article, there is no climate justice without gender justice.

DRC is home to around 60% of the Congo basin, the second-largest rainforest on the planet with the world largest tropical peatland, the cuvette centrale. And together these ecosystems play a role in regulating global climate, with the Congo basin acting as a major carbon sink that absorbs more carbon than it releases. The Congo basin sequester six times more carbon than the amazon rainforest

Yet despite this ecological wealth, the vast majority of the DRC’s greenhouse gas emissions come from land-use change. Activities such as agriculture and charcoal production continue to fuel deforestation.

Now with all of these facts, one would think that a country like this might be doing well climate change wise, but with weak environmental regulations , and infrastructures making them more and more vulnerable to pollution and climate disasters this assumption quickly falls apart. In reality, the DRC remains one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change, facing floods, landslides, and rising temperatures.

While the DRC contributes relatively little to global emissions, its population bears a disproportionate burden of climate change impacts, especially women.

These impacts are intensified by socially defined roles such as fetching water, gathering food, and managing day to day household activities placing them at the frontline of environmental change and increasing their exposure while limiting their access to resources, decision-making power and protection.

Understanding this imbalance requires looking beyond the environment alone. Decades of political instability, economic mismanagement, corruption and conflict have shaped the country’s development path , weakening its ability to respond effectively to climate challenges. In this context, climate change is not just an environmental issue, it is a question of justice, deeply intertwined with gender, power and inequality.

Across the DRC, climate change isn’t experienced the same way by everyone and for many women, it is felt first and hardest. In rural communities, women are at the centre of daily survival. They fetch water, grow food, manage household supplies, and make sure their families eat. But as the climate turns more unpredictable with heavier rains and rising temperatures, harvests suffer and water sources become a distant struggle. What used to be manageable is now exhausting. Women are forced to work long hours for less, all while trying to hold the household together.

As floods wipe away infrastructures, contaminate nearby rivers and water sources, the responsibility of water gets harder. Women and girls walk longer distances, sometimes multiple times a day. And that extra time comes at a cost: missed school for girls, lost income opportunities for women and less space to take part in decision-making talks.

But this isn’t just a rural issue. In a city like Kinshasa, climate change shows up differently but just as brutally. In April 2025, heavy rains triggered floods and landslides that displaced more than 7000 people and affected over 60 000 others. Homes were swept away, roads cut off, infrastructures destroyed and entire communities left struggling to recover. And this is not the only case Kinshasa has registered extreme climate events like floods. When disasters like this hit, it’s often women who are left to navigate overcrowded shelters, care for children.

In the same month, severe flooding in Tanganyika province displaced thousands of people, the Rugumba River burst its banks, flooding areas such as Kalemie and Nyunzu territories.

Homes, schools and agricultural land were destroyed leaving thousands without shelter.

Heavy rains leading to floods put especially pregnant women in danger because of their nutritious needs and medical check-ups. And when healthcare systems are destroyed, food insecurity worsened ,their condition becomes more critical.

On the other side, during periods of warmer temperatures, diseases like malaria spread more rapidly, putting pregnant women at greater risk. At the same time, floods and water shortages increase outbreaks of diseases like cholera. For many women, especially in underserved areas, accessing healthcare services is already difficult. Climate change only makes it worse.

And when disaster strikes, the response often comes too late. There’s still far more focus on reacting after floods or displacement than on preparing communities before they happen. In that gap, women end up carrying the heaviest burden. To make matters worse, the lack of gender-specific data shows a clear structural invisibility. Policies that promise inclusion exist but in reality, they don’t always reach the women who need them most.

Call to Action

Several organizations such as Green Congo, Climate Change Africa Opportunities (CCAO), Oxfam play a role in strengthening communities' resilience against climate change through sustainable livelihoods, encouraging reforestation efforts and climate adaptation projects but it is not enough on its own.

Addressing climate change events and inequalities in the DRC requires more than emergency responses, it is all about inclusion of those communities most affected by climate change impacts. Women must be placed at the centre of climate action, not only as victims but as key agents of change. This means investing in community-based adaptation programs, improving access to education and healthcare, promoting financial literacy and ensuring they have a voice in decision-making processes at all levels.

There is also an urgent need to move from reacting to disasters to preventing them through resilient infrastructure, supporting sustainable practices and implementing early warning systems.

Climate change in the DRC is not just about rising waters or failing crops. It is also about inequalities when it comes to environmental destruction. And until that inequality is addressed, the burden will continue to fall on those least responsible but most affected.

Written by Vanessa Mukanire

Although initially spared, the African mining sector is now also feeling the effects of the war in Iran. This is due to disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly 20% of the world’s hydrocarbon production passes, which are jeopardizing the supply of certain chemical inputs such as sulfuric acid and sulfur, essential to the copper processing industry.

According to an analysis by investment bank Goldman Sachs, cited by Jeune Afrique, the DRC “could be forced to reduce its production by around 125,000 tons in 2026 if the logistical disruptions persist”.

"Around 20% of the global copper supply depends on a process that uses sulfuric acid to leach copper from oxidized ores. With around 50% of the global supply of sulfur transported by sea cut off, particularly in the Strait of Hormuz, the sulfur and sulfuric acid markets are becoming extremely tight,” said Robert Friedland, executive co-chairman of Ivanhoe Mines, a Canadian mining company that mines copper at the Kamoa-Kakula site, in a statement last April.¹

However, China, which accounts for 45% of global sulfuric acid production and is the world’s largest consumer, suspended its exports at the beginning of May until further notice. Beijing is now prioritizing domestic demand as the conflict in the Middle East intensifies.

Sulfuric acid is produced from sulfur. However, the price of this product has already risen by 50% on the Chinese market since the outbreak of war in Iran at the end of February.

Sulfuric acid: essential for copper

To understand what is at stake, one must grasp the central role that sulfuric acid plays in copper extraction. Around 20% of global production of the red metal relies on a hydrometallurgical process known as leaching, in which the acid is poured over oxidized ores to extract the copper. No acid, therefore, means no copper – at least for this category of deposits, which accounts for a significant share of Congolese production. 

A solution on Congolese soil, but insufficient:

This situation could be put to good use by the new Kamoa-Kakula smelter, a copper production mining complex based in Lualaba. Having only come on stream at the end of December 2025, it has been producing high-strength sulfuric acid at an average rate of 1,350 tons per day since the start of 2026, as announced in a press release on 13 April by Ivanhoe Mines, a Canadian company specializing in copper production. This volume of sulfuric acid produced represents the equivalent of 480,000 tons on an annual basis.

At full capacity, its sulfuric acid production is expected to be higher, between 600,000 and 700,000 tones.

However significant these volumes may be, they cannot bridge the looming shortfall, as the DRC’s requirement is 2 million tons for the mining sector alone. Due to this scarcity, the DRC will also have to review its revenue from taxes and duties related to sulfuric acid imports, including excise duties at a rate of 20%.²

Despite everything, the DRC, the world’s second-largest copper producer, remains a key player in supply chains linked to low-carbon technologies. However, developments observed at the start of this year already point to a shift. Exports fell by 14.6% in the first quarter, standing at around 955,000 tones, compared with nearly 1.09 million tons a year earlier, according to data reported by Reuters.

As the second-best electrical conductor after silver, copper is central to the manufacture of cables, electric motors, vehicles and electronic components. Furthermore, it is widely used in renewable energy technologies and electric vehicles.

Written by Akilimali Chomachoma

References:

1. https://www.ivanhoemines.com/news-stories/news-release/ivanhoe-mines-reports-71417-tonnes-of-copper-in-anode-produced-by-kamoa-kakula-in-q1-2026-recovery-efforts-advancing/
2. https://fec-rdc.com/lualaba-la-direction-provinciale-de-la-dgda-eclaire-sur-les-droits-daccises-sur-lacide-sulfurique-oleum/

At a press conference held on Wednesday 6 May, the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo acknowledged that, in the past, he had made certain statements based on incorrect information provided by the army. In a statement marked by a sense of remorse, he offered his apologies.

Reflecting on the tensions observed in the run-up to the 2023 elections, the Head of State explained that several statements that had provoked strong reactions were in fact based on inaccurate information. The remark “at the slightest skirmish” had thus been made on the basis of erroneous reports circulated within the army, which did not always reflect the actual situation on the ground.

Written by Victoire Katembo Mbuto