Augustin Kibassa Maliba, Minister of Posts, Telecommunications and Digital Affairs of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), signed a memorandum of understanding on Friday, November 8 in Warsaw, Poland, with Krzysztof Gawkowski, Polish Minister of Digitalization. The aim is to develop digital infrastructure in the DRC.

“The Internet penetration rate is 30% and the mobile phone penetration rate is around 50%. There are a huge number of Congolese that we need to reach out to, which is why we are making this an important issue because we also know the impact of the development of this sector [digital, Editor’s note] in relation to GDP growth,” explains Augustin Kibassa Maliba.

The signing of this agreement follows the meeting last September between Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi and his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda at the 79th United Nations General Assembly in New York, United States. At the end of this meeting, they announced future collaboration in several areas, including digital. This partnership is part of the National Digital Plan “Horizon 2025”, where the development of digital infrastructure is one of the four strategic pillars.

According to the United Nations’ “E-Government Survey 2024: Accelerating Digital Transformation for Sustainable Development” report, published in September 2024, the DRC has a telecommunications infrastructure development index of 0.1591 out of 1. This figure remains well below the African average of 0.4534, which has increased by 27.8% compared to 2022, when it reached 0.3546. The stakes for the government are all the more crucial since in June 2023, the former advisor to the Congolese Minister of Digital Affairs, Freddy Mpinda, recalled in We Are Tech Africa that “more than 40 million Congolese out of 100 million are not connected to anything.”

The choice of Poland as a partner in this field is not insignificant. In 2024, the country will reach a score of 0.9603 out of 1 in the telecommunications infrastructure development index, according to the United Nations report mentioned above. This agreement could help the DRC to strengthen connectivity on its territory, boost sectors such as e-commerce, e-learning, telemedicine and digital financial services, and stimulate the development of its start-up ecosystem.

Source: Agency EcoFin