The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the United States are preparing for the next meeting of the Joint Steering Committee overseeing their strategic partnership, as both sides seek to turn bilateral commitments into investment and economic projects.
Congolese Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Daniel Mukoko Samba discussed preparations for the meeting on September 16 with Ian J. McCary, the US Embassy’s chargé d’affaires ad interim in Kinshasa, according to Beto.cd.
The discussions focused on accelerating strategic projects, attracting investment, improving the business environment and making the country’s regulatory and tax frameworks more predictable.
The two officials also addressed ways to facilitate investment and increase local participation in projects developed under the partnership.
The Joint Steering Committee was established in December 2025 and includes five representatives from each country. It is jointly chaired by the US State Department and the Congolese government, with decisions taken by consensus. The body is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the partnership and reviewing progress on agreed commitments.
The meeting comes as Kinshasa moves to strengthen the implementation of its minerals agreement with Washington. On September 11, the Congolese government approved the creation of a “DRC-USA Task Force” to accelerate the execution of the partnership.
The task force is intended to translate the agreement into what Mukoko Samba described as concrete economic and security results for Congolese citizens. Its creation reflects Kinshasa’s efforts to attract more Western investment into its copper and cobalt sectors and reduce reliance on Chinese financing and markets.
In December, the US and DR Congo signed a strategic minerals partnership. The agreement has already led to a US-backed mining investment through Virtus Minerals, which acquired Chemaf's Congolese copper and cobalt assets for $30 million in March and agreed to assume roughly $900 million in debt, marking the first physical mining investment under the pact. Additionally, the partnership has driven expanded copper offtake arrangements involving state mining company Gécamines alongside commodity traders Mercuria and Glencore.
The forthcoming committee meeting is expected to assess progress on existing commitments, with particular attention to investment, job creation, local processing and broader economic benefits. For Kinshasa, the central challenge will be ensuring that increased cooperation over critical minerals produces tangible gains for the Congolese economy and local communities.
