DRC’s new President an ‘unknown factor’ as far as mining is concerned

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), lying pretty much in the centre of Africa, is geographically the 11th biggest country in the world and is well-known for its mineral riches. In its most recent (2014) report “The Mineral Industry of Congo (Kinshasa)”, the US Geological Survey (USGS) noted that the country “played a globally significant role in the world’s production of cobalt, copper, diamonds, tantalum, and tin. In 2014, the country’s share of the world’s mined cobalt production amounted to 51%; tantalum, 17%; diamond, 13%; copper, 6%; refined cobalt, nearly 4%, and tin, 2%. … [It] accounted for about 47% of the world’s cobalt reserves.” It is also believed to have rich deposits of gold, potash and zinc.