Closing his visit to the DRC last week, African Development Bank (AfDB) newly-elected Administrator for Central Africa region Obam Nlong reiterated the financial institution’s resolve to fund the Inga hydropower project.
Nlong said “if we mean business about developing Africa, this will need to start from the DRC. There is no development without energy and the DRC has that energy through the Inga project”. He underscored AfDB’s core mission to develop Africa which “cannot be achieved without energy”.
During his visit, Nlong held meetings with Congolese government authorities, representatives of the Congolese Chamber of Commerce (FEC) and members of the civil society.
Speaking about economic resilience, Nlong said “the DRC’s economy cannot depend solely on the mining sector. It needs to be diversified and this will required increased involvement of the private sector”.
Elected during the last annual meeting of the AfDB, Nlong said he decided to conduct his first visit in the job to the DRC as a testament to the economic importance of the country, its potential and its geographic size.