World Bank ready to spend $5 billion in Congo in five years, with conditions

Bloomberg

The World Bank could provide as much as $5 billion to Democratic Republic of Congo over the next five years if its new government commits to raising more revenue, fighting corruption and opening up its economy.
The financing would be a welcome boost for Congo’s new president, Felix Tshisekedi, who has promised a bold series of costly social programs, including free primary-school education for more than 20 million children. Last month, the International Monetary Fund said it’s considering resuming lending to the country after a seven-year hiatus.
The World Bank is offering to support parts of the government’s agenda, “but not at any price,” Jean-Christophe Carret, the World Bank country director for Congo, said in an Octobe 30 interview in Kinshasa, the capital.
“We will help if they are credible in their will to reform a lot of things in the economy.”
Aid from the Washington-based lender will be conditioned on government commitments to increase revenue and improve management of everything from health and education to Congo’s
burgeoning mining industry, Carret said.
The World Bank is also pushing the government to reduce the number of tax exemptions it gives to various businesses, he said.
Congo is world’s largest cobalt producer and Africa’s biggest miner of copper and tin.