Kinshasa may have just realised that its commodity economy rests on a strong currency that can also be its own kind of sickness. The Congolese franc (CDF) has strengthened markedly against the dollar. Meanwhile, the fiscal deficit has widened under security pressures, even if still contained at roughly 2-3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). The public debt is also low, prompting analysts to wonder whether the giant of Central Africa is finally turning a corner, or whether we are seeing just another false dawn amid persistent risks.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has long epitomised the resource curse of vast mineral wealth overshadowed by conflict, mismanagement and macroeconomic volatility. However, recent data suggest a surprising, if tentative, stabilisation. Despite these macroeconomic plaudits, analyst still sees a Congolese paradox, that is, an economy transformed by a global resource rush, but governed by a state struggling to project authority and
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