“Modern plunderers”: Lobito Corridor plans raise fear and hesitation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo | Mining News

Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo – From the port of Lobito in Angola, along Africa’s Atlantic coast, a 1,300-kilometre (800-mile) railway runs through neighboring Zambia and the resource-rich Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Lobito Corridor connects the mining provinces of Tanganyika, Haute Lomami, Lualaba and Haut Katanga – and is home to some of the world’s largest deposits of critical minerals such as cobalt and copper, earning it a fair share of international attention in recent years. .

In early December, on the sidelines of A Visit to AngolaUS President Joe Biden has held talks with some of his African counterparts on the Lobito Infrastructure Project – a multi-country agreement aimed at developing connectivity between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans and providing faster access to Africa’s minerals for US and European markets.

But in the Congolese towns and cities along the areas that will be linked by the railway project, there are mixed feelings and fears running high.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has the world’s largest cobalt reserves and the seventh largest copper reserves.

While some Congolese believe the Lobito project will be a useful trading hub between African countries, others fear it will be merely a gateway to facilitate more trade. looting of natural resources in the region.

Claude Panza lives in the town of Kolwezi in Lualaba, one of the main points along the trail route, which is home to huge mines Rights groups They called for human rights violations.

“We live a miserable life, and we have no jobs,” Panza told Al Jazeera.

“This Lobito project is a lifesaver for us,” he said, expressing his hope that the infrastructure developments will help bring more opportunities and hope to local communities.

He added: “As the president said that many job opportunities will be created, we hope that we will have the necessary means to face life’s challenges.”

Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi said in Angola last month that the project will see the creation of about 30,000 direct and indirect jobs and will help reduce poverty in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

He was speaking in the city of Benguela, near the port of Lobito, alongside Biden, Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema, Angolan President Joao Lourenco, and Tanzanian Vice President Philip Mpango. The proposed expansion of the corridor eastward from Zambia to Dar es Salaam would allow the project to continue all the way to the Indian Ocean.

Tshisekedi said at the time that the development of the corridor is “a project full of hope for our countries and our region,” describing it as “a unique opportunity for regional integration, economic transformation, and improving the living conditions of our colleagues.” Citizens.”

However, many in the Democratic Republic of the Congo disagree with this view.

“It’s neo-colonial”

Dadi Saleh, a Congolese economic analyst, told Al Jazeera that the project is “Pharaonic.”

Although he recognized its overall economic potential, he lamented that the countries where this infrastructure project would be implemented would only benefit from “crumbs” – a reference to the potential risks ahead for the Democratic Republic of the Congo specifically.

Saleh said: “This project is an organized sale of the region’s natural resources under a capitalist system.” “Especially in the case of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Congolese will be like commission agents. We have opened our economic market to modern-day thieves.”

Many others on the front lines of the mining economy feel similarly.

Sovereign Kabika lives in Haute-Katanga, another Congolese region connected by railway to the city of Lobito. He works as a copper processor on trucks that transport ore to the port of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania and towards the Indian Ocean.

But now, as the project grows, he fears the little work he has been doing will dry up, as truck traffic along nearby roads will be greatly depleted in favor of rail.

“This project is likely to threaten even the small activities we used to do. At one point, I was loading trucks to transport goods to Matadi. I fear this corridor will leave me jobless.

Analyst Saleh said that the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the country most on the table in this giant project and feels that the government should open its eyes before signing on the dotted line with the countries that will benefit most from this arrangement.

“The Democratic Republic of the Congo should not sign this contract and [should] “It must be renegotiated because it is neo-colonial,” Saleh said, considering that the actions of some African leaders risk returning their countries to “the good old days, when railways were built to facilitate the transportation of our raw materials by the colonialists.”

He encourages the Congolese government to make efforts to develop a “complete industrial system,” also criticizing the fact that the United States invests much more in Angola than in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Civil society groups in Lualaba province, considered the cobalt capital of the world, also oppose the project.

Lambert Minda, regional coordinator of the New Civil Society of Congo, a network of organizations, laments the fact that for several decades the natural resources of the Democratic Republic of the Congo have benefited more from foreigners than from Congolese.

He demands that the local communities be at the heart of this project, which aims to export the country’s minerals through the corridor.

“We want to see wealth in our communities. We don’t want to export minerals anymore, because the importer will earn more than we do,” Minda said. “We want to see hospitals, schools and roads to make life easier for local people.”

“Change the rules of the game”

Raw materials from various southern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo are already being transported from Kolwezi to the ports of Durban in South Africa or Dar es Salaam in Tanzania to reach the mineral market in London.

Analysts say it takes a long time and requires a lot of logistical resources.

Sergis Isuzu, an economic analyst based in Kolwezi, believes the Lobito corridor will only reduce transportation costs.

“With the Lobito corridor, raw material tankers will be able to cover a distance of more or less 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) from Kolwezi in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Lobito in the Republic of Angola. And all this will be done in eight days, which is good.”

Speaking in Angola last month, Biden pointed to gains already being made, saying that a copper shipment from Africa to the United States, which previously took more than a month, now arrives within days. “It changes the rules of the game,” the US President said.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo will be connected by the corridor through provinces that are famous for their raw materials, making them important in the global energy transition.

These provinces – Tanganyika, Haute Lomami, Lualaba and Haute Katanga – owe much of their income to the thriving mining activities taking place there. However, the gains are not visible in the daily lives of local people.

Analysts familiar with these areas said that even if some progress is reported in terms of local development, much more needs to be done for “people’s lives to be significantly affected.”

According to recent World Bank estimates, about 73 percent of Congolese live on less than $2.15 a day, making the Democratic Republic of the Congo one of the poorest countries in the world.

Despite the country’s huge stock of essential minerals and minerals, the population of the DRC’s mining provinces is still far from prosperous. Human rights groups noted that most of them are struggling to make ends meet, living in a desperate and precarious situation as the vast wealth around them is stripped away.

United Nations policy document October 2024 (PDF) on the regional impact of the Lobito Corridor, also listed potential future challenges, including environmental impact, conflicts over land and local communities, as well as risks related to health, gender and human rights.

It also urged the three governments and other stakeholders to put in place processes “to address negative human rights impacts and violations, including any human rights harms associated with cross-border businesses resulting from the Lobito Corridor.”

“Wrong way”?

Despite the challenges and hesitation among many local residents, Congolese President Tshisekedi remains optimistic about the future of the Lobito project.

“For the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Corridor represents a strategic opportunity to enhance the value of our natural resources, especially copper and cobalt, which account for 70 percent of global demand as part of the energy transition,” he said alongside Biden and other DRC leaders. Angola.

Fadel Kaboub, an associate professor of economics at Denison University in the US, told Al Jazeera that he believes some countries rich in strategic mineral resources, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, will be the main beneficiaries of the energy transition if the right policies are set.

According to the climate finance specialist, these countries will be able to negotiate with foreign powers to obtain their minerals, which will be in great demand in the market by 2035 as part of the energy transition.

However, Congolese analyst Salih believes that by the United States and its partners concluding “Leonine” contracts in Africa — where he says all the costs are borne by one party while the other party gets all the benefits — they are “mortgaging” the hope of many. Congolese imagine.

“We are about to bury this hope with the Lobito project,” he said. “We are proud of the strategic minerals that have already been sold by the Chinese, Canadians and others. For example, we were told that this corridor would create 30,000 jobs, which is very few. A project like this should create more than a million decent jobs.”

Saleh encourages governments such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo to adopt a “new trading” system, so that Africans can enjoy their natural resources to the fullest.

“Countries like the United States of America, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have benefited from their natural wealth today. On the other hand, we are not even in a position to change them at home, and this is unfortunate.”

Minda, of the New Civil Society, stressed that the Lobito project is not suitable for the Congolese nation. “We want to process our ores locally here in Lualaba, because transporting our ores to the intermediate country via the railway to Lobito will benefit Angola, the country through which our ores will pass, and the importing countries – not us, the local Congolese communities.” He said.

Besides the local economic losses, Saleh also fears the security risks posed by the Lobito project.

According to his analysis, the DRC has taken a “wrong path,” and through the Lobito project, the security of the southern region of the country will be “controlled” by Angola and the United States, linking this to the volatile security situation in the eastern DRC. , as Congolese authorities struggle to restore peace after mineral looting and armed rebellion.

He said: “The Lobito project has harmful security implications for our country.” “The Americans did not give us any gifts; They can do anything to control our minerals, while the DRC is at risk of insecurity.