Washington, DC: An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team led by Calixte Ahokpossi held discussions during October 22-November 4, 2026, on the fourth review under the DRC's program supported by the IMF's Extended Credit Facility (ECF), and the third review under the DRC's program supported by the IMF's Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).
At the end of the visit, Mr. Ahokpossi issued the following statement:
"The DRC authorities and the IMF staff team have reached a staff-level agreement on the fourth review of the DRC's three-year program under the ECF, and the third review of the DRC's three-year program under the RSF, subject to approval by IMF management and the Executive Board, with Board consideration tentatively scheduled for December 2026.
"Economic growth slowed somewhat in 2026, as economic activity is starting to be affected by the Ebola outbreak and challenges in two large mines. However, real GDP growth is expected to stay above 5 percent in 2026 and over the medium term. Year-on-year inflation is projected to rise to close to 9 percent by end-December 2026-driven by rising costs for petroleum products and food items. Against this backdrop, the Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Congo (BCC) kept the policy rate unchanged at 12.5 percent in October 2026. Given uncertainties surrounding Ebola and the Middle East war, the mission encouraged the BCC to remain vigilant and stand ready to tighten monetary policy should inflation expectations become unanchored.
"The persistence of the armed conflict in eastern DRC and the Ebola response are weighing on the budget. The domestic fiscal deficit was contained below the programmed ceiling at end-June 2026, but budget implementation challenges have emerged for the rest of the year. In this context, it is important to swiftly address delays in implementing revenue-enhancing measures approved in the 2026 budget and take measures to control the wage bill and rationalize lower-priority spending. With support from multilateral and bilateral partners, the authorities are stepping up efforts to eradicate the Ebola epidemic. To address additional related costs and external financing needs, the government has requested a relaxation of the fiscal deficit ceilings for 2026 and 2027, as well as higher access to IMF resources under the ECF. It also requested higher access under the RSF, to mitigate macro-fiscal risks posed by health shocks, through a strengthening of its epidemic preparedness and response framework. These requests will be submitted to the IMF Executive Board for consideration and approval. The mission welcomed the additional support from other development partners.
"Further progress in modernizing public financial management is needed to enhance transparency and efficiency in the use of public resources. In particular, it is important to limit the use of emergency spending procedures, further extend the decentralization of spending authorization to other ministries, complete the rollout of the Treasury Single Account, and rationalize special funds and public entities, while aligning their management with the general regulations on public accounting.
"The mission welcomed the DRC's removal from the Financial Action Task Force's "grey list", which attests to the significant progress made in strengthening the anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) framework. These gains should be consolidated and sustained. The authorities should intensify efforts to strengthen governance, combat corruption, and improve the business climate.
"Regarding the RSF, the mission welcomed the adoption by the government of the draft revised Forest Code and the draft revised public-private partnership law accounting for climate dimensions, as well as the publication of the National Forest Fund's performance audit. It encouraged the authorities to strengthen the legal framework to ensure stricter compliance with environmental and social standards in the mining sector and to maintain the momentum for the timely implementation of other reform measures.
"The IMF staff team would like to thank the authorities, senior officials, technical staff, and various stakeholders-including representatives of civil society and the private sector-and development partners, for their close collaboration and constructive engagement throughout the mission."
