"Chinese Contract: An Amendment for 6,000 km of Roads in DRC," headlines THE CONGOLESE PRESS AGENCY (ACP).

In the presence of President Félix Tshisekedi, the government signed on Thursday with the Chinese Enterprise Consortium (GEC), the 5th amendment of the Chinese Contract, allowing the Democratic Republic of Congo to equip itself with 6,000 km of roads for its unlocking, announces this media.

Presented as the contract of the century when it was signed in 2008, the "Chinese Contract" has never kept its promises, due to inexplicable inequalities that surprised even novice observers, notes our colleague who continues: "It took about fifteen years for the President of the Republic to order the revisiting of this unbalanced contract, following the denunciation by the Inspectorate General of Finance (IGF). Initially planned for more than 9 billion U.S. dollars, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had detected signs of an unsustainable debt for the DRC.

For the Congolese, writes the ACP, it was a refusal to see China extend its influence. But on the ground, there were evidences that led to negotiations for a rebalancing in favor of the DRC, beneficiary of a meager share of the revenue generated by this initially unbalanced financial arrangement. Just 800 million for the Republic out of billions produced, according to the IGF, which alerted on the imbalance.

This news agency considers that: "The 5th amendment thus restores the balance in this partnership by making it win-win between the two parties," also emphasizing: "Among the agreement points is the increase in the investment amount for infrastructures (from 3.2 to 7 billion USD)."

Still on the subject of the signing of the renegotiated mining contract with the Chinese Enterprise Consortium (GEC), NEW CONGO headlines: "Chinese Contract: Fatshi seals a 7 billion USD deal." This revised contract comes after President Tshisekedi expressed in 2023 his reservations about the fairness of the original agreement, which gave China access to significant deposits of cobalt and copper in the DRC, in exchange for infrastructure development.

FORUM DES AS, which headlines: "Revision of the Sino-Congolese contract: 7 billion USD for roads thanks to IGF's vigilance." For this newspaper, the signing of the renegotiated mining contract with the Chinese Enterprise Consortium (GEC) is due to the work done by the Inspectorate General of Finance. In addition to the Head of State's desire to put the interests of the DRC at the center of all conventions signed with third parties, the Inspector General of Finance is the author of the report that led to the revisiting of said contract, this journal emphasizes. Jules Alingete and his team have revealed a significant "imbalance" in this convention concluded in 2008 between the Congolese and Chinese governments.

FORUM DES AS further points out: "This fifth amendment allows the DRC to have 7 billion U.S. dollars to build 6,000 kilometers of roads across the country in 15 years, at the rate of 400 kilometers per year."

Boni Tsala