The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have reached a staff-level agreement on the fourth review of the country’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF) and the third review under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).
Subject to final approval by IMF management and the Executive Board in December 2026, the agreement paves the way for additional financial support as Kinshasa faces compounding security, economic, and public health pressures.
The IMF mission, led by Calixte Ahokpossi following discussions from October 22 to November 4, 2026, noted that real GDP growth in the DRC is expected to remain above 5% this year and over the medium term. However, economic activity has experienced a slight slowdown due to a ongoing Ebola outbreak and operational disruptions at two major mining facilities.
Concurrently, year-on-year inflation is projected to reach nearly 9% by the end of December 2026, driven primarily by rising international energy and food costs. In response, the Central Bank of Congo (BCC) maintained its benchmark interest rate at 12.5% in October, though the Fund advised monetary authorities to remain ready to tighten policy should inflationary pressures escalate.
Budget execution faces severe strains from the lingering armed conflict in eastern DRC alongside emergency spending required for the Ebola response. While the domestic fiscal deficit remained within programmed targets through June 2026, revenue collection shortfalls and expenditure pressures have created challenges for the remainder of the year.
To manage these shocks, Congolese authorities have formally requested:
On structural reforms, the IMF highlighted the DRC’s official removal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) “grey list,” commending key advancements in anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) frameworks. Under the RSF, the government has advanced critical policy steps, including the adoption of a revised draft Forest Code, updated public-private partnership laws incorporating climate risk management, and the completion of a performance audit for the National Forest Fund.
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