DRC Ambassador Urges British Parliamentarians to Back Investment in Congolese Mining Industry

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• Publié par: drc-london-embassy
• Nombre de lectures: 25
• Langue: English

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DRC Ambassador Urges British

Parliamentarians to Back Investment in

Congolese Mining Industry

PR Newswire

LONDON, June 27, 2012

LONDON

,

June 27, 2012

/PRNewswire/ --

Addressing a meeting for the All Party Parliamentary Group on the Great Lakes

Region of

Africa

, Ambassador Barnabe Kikaya bin Karubi urged British

Parliamentarians to recognise the positive steps that have been taken to

safeguard and secure the

Democratic Republic of the Congo's

mining industry

for the benefit of its people.

In recent years, British Parliamentarians have become increasingly concerned

at who is benefiting from the mining industry in the DRC and the subject has

been debated heavily in both Houses of Parliament. The Congolese

Ambassador took this opportunity to reassure members of the APPG about the

partnership approach taken by the DRC Ministry of Mines towards extraction of

natural resources in the DRC.

Seeking to address the UK Government's concerns, the Ambassador assured

the Parliamentarians that the DRC government wants a strong and well

regulated mining industry, actively encourages transparency and continues to

encourage a strong, ethical and pro-business culture.

Members from both Houses of Parliament were informed by His Excellency

Barnabe Kikaya bin Karubi that the mining industry is rigorously regulated. The

Ambassador took the opportunity to explain the Mining Code that the DRC

operates, impressing that it offers a transparent framework for the exploration,

development and mining of mineral resources.

Parliamentarians were informed that there is significant competition between

international investors for the natural resources in the DRC and that Mining

companies are subjected to high levels of due diligence.

The Ambassador laid the blame for inaccurate speculation over the

beneficiaries of asset transfers on over-enthusiastic NGOs who occasionally

found themselves injecting unnecessary controversy to gain publicity for their

work. He insisted that at no point have friends, business partners or

acquaintances of the President benefited from secret sales. The discussion

focused on how far the DRC has come in recent years from a war zone to

operating a profitable industry and a country that has been applauded by the

IMF and the World Bank.

To close the meeting Ambassador Barnabe Kikaya bin Karubi reassured those

present that he would continue to engage with the UK Government to ensure

that rumours put about by critics of the current Government were dispelled.

He left pledging to remain in dialogue with British Parliamentarians so that they

could work together to increase their understanding of the mining industry in

the DRC.