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Chinese contract, the IGF report paves the way for the rebalancing of interests between the two parties
It all started with the damning revelations of the General Inspectorate of Finance (IGF) in its final conclusions of the audit report commissioned by President Félix Tshisekedi on the agreement signed in 2008 between Gécamines and the Group of Chinese companies (GEC), which gave rise to the creation of the Sicomines joint venture.
This report has identified several imbalances that have left no one indifferent on the low income collected by the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo while the country is the main actor of this collaboration agreement.
According to the IGF, the Congolese state has only benefited from 800 million dollars out of revenues estimated at 10 billion dollars in the operation of SICOMINES.
The IGF also noted several irregularities in this Chinese contract, in particular what it describes as the arbitrary, discriminatory and illegal nature of the fixing as well as the distribution of the share capital undervalued at 100 million USD at the rate of 68% of the shares for the GEC and 32% for the Gécamines group, while article 2 of law n°77/027 of 11/11/1977 specifies that foreign natural or legal persons cannot hold more than 60% of the share capital .
To this end, the IGF pleaded with the competent authorities, in particular the President of the Republic, Félix Tshisekedi, to obtain the revisitation of this contract which caused losses of several million USD for the Congolese Public Treasury.
During the 91ᵉ meeting of the Council of Ministers held on Friday March 17, 2023 in Kinshasa, the President of the Republic, Félix Tshisekedi, had responded favorably to the request of the General Inspectorate of Finance on the revisitation of the collaboration agreement between the Chinese companies and the Congolese government.
Among the motivations that led to this position, Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi mentions cases of non-compliance with the provisions of the contract, non-performance of contractual commitments and subjectivity in certain acts taken by the parties.
To reach this decision, the experts of the Congolese Government, led by the Chief of Staff of the President of the Republic, the sectoral Ministers and the non-governmental organizations and the Chinese party, found themselves around a table on March 22, 2023. Objective: to shed light on this question.
The communication services of the General Inspectorate of Finance had informed that this meeting between the two parties was an opportunity for the IGF to present the conclusions of its investigations and the Chinese party to present its means of defence.
For his first State visit to the People's Republic of China, the President of the Republic, Félix Tshisekedi, and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping have agreed to further promote and carefully preserve the partnership.
"They announced the elevation of Sino-Congolese relations to the level of comprehensive cooperation and strategic partnership, in order to further consolidate political mutual trust, deepen and expand cooperation in various fields", informs the final communiqué sanctioning the meeting between the two Heads of State.
With regard to the discussions initiated, the two parties decided to "maintain consultation and revitalize the China-DRC Joint Economic and Trade Cooperation Commission, an appropriate framework for defining, monitoring and guiding bilateral cooperation, to move forward together global cooperation and strategic partnership”.
It should be recognized that China is an essential economic partner of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In the first quarter of 2022, the trade balance between China and the DRC was valued at 5.6 billion USD.
For all these reasons, the two States preferred to preserve the achievements of their cooperation and work on adjusting what needs to be improved.
mediacongo
It all started with the damning revelations of the General Inspectorate of Finance (IGF) in its final conclusions of the audit report commissioned by President Félix Tshisekedi on the agreement signed in 2008 between Gécamines and the Group of Chinese companies (GEC), which gave rise to the creation of the Sicomines joint venture.
This report has identified several imbalances that have left no one indifferent on the low income collected by the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo while the country is the main actor of this collaboration agreement.
According to the IGF, the Congolese state has only benefited from 800 million dollars out of revenues estimated at 10 billion dollars in the operation of SICOMINES.
The IGF also noted several irregularities in this Chinese contract, in particular what it describes as the arbitrary, discriminatory and illegal nature of the fixing as well as the distribution of the share capital undervalued at 100 million USD at the rate of 68% of the shares for the GEC and 32% for the Gécamines group, while article 2 of law n°77/027 of 11/11/1977 specifies that foreign natural or legal persons cannot hold more than 60% of the share capital .
To this end, the IGF pleaded with the competent authorities, in particular the President of the Republic, Félix Tshisekedi, to obtain the revisitation of this contract which caused losses of several million USD for the Congolese Public Treasury.
During the 91ᵉ meeting of the Council of Ministers held on Friday March 17, 2023 in Kinshasa, the President of the Republic, Félix Tshisekedi, had responded favorably to the request of the General Inspectorate of Finance on the revisitation of the collaboration agreement between the Chinese companies and the Congolese government.
Among the motivations that led to this position, Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi mentions cases of non-compliance with the provisions of the contract, non-performance of contractual commitments and subjectivity in certain acts taken by the parties.
To reach this decision, the experts of the Congolese Government, led by the Chief of Staff of the President of the Republic, the sectoral Ministers and the non-governmental organizations and the Chinese party, found themselves around a table on March 22, 2023. Objective: to shed light on this question.
The communication services of the General Inspectorate of Finance had informed that this meeting between the two parties was an opportunity for the IGF to present the conclusions of its investigations and the Chinese party to present its means of defence.
For his first State visit to the People's Republic of China, the President of the Republic, Félix Tshisekedi, and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping have agreed to further promote and carefully preserve the partnership.
"They announced the elevation of Sino-Congolese relations to the level of comprehensive cooperation and strategic partnership, in order to further consolidate political mutual trust, deepen and expand cooperation in various fields", informs the final communiqué sanctioning the meeting between the two Heads of State.
With regard to the discussions initiated, the two parties decided to "maintain consultation and revitalize the China-DRC Joint Economic and Trade Cooperation Commission, an appropriate framework for defining, monitoring and guiding bilateral cooperation, to move forward together global cooperation and strategic partnership”.
It should be recognized that China is an essential economic partner of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In the first quarter of 2022, the trade balance between China and the DRC was valued at 5.6 billion USD.
For all these reasons, the two States preferred to preserve the achievements of their cooperation and work on adjusting what needs to be improved.
mediacongo
