RESTRICTED  WORLD  TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/TPR/S/240 
20 October 2010  
 
(10-5410) 
Trade Policy Review Body  
   
 
  
 
TRADE POLICY REVIEW 
 
Report by the Secretariat 
 
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE 
CONGO 
 
  
 
This report, prepared for the first Trade Policy Review of the Democratic 
Republic of the Congo, has been drawn up by the WTO Secretariat on its own 
responsibility.  The Secretariat has, as required by the Agreement establishing 
the Trade Policy Review Mechanism (A nnex 3 of the Marrakesh Agreement 
Establishing the World Trade Organization), sought clarification from the 
Democratic Republic of the Congo on its trade policies and practices. 
 
Any technical questions arising from this report may be addressed to Mr Jacques 
Degbelo (tel.:  022 739 55 83), Mr Faustin  Mukela Luanga (tel.:  022 739 63 28), 
Mr Michael Kolie (tel.:  022 73 9 59 31) and Mr Philippe Chauvet 
(tel.:  022 739 58 22). 
 
Document WT/TPR/G/240 contains the policy statement submitted by the 
Democratic Republic of the Congo. 
 
 
 
Note: This report is subject to restricted ci rculation and press embargo until the end of the 
first session of the meeting of the Trade Policy Review Body on the Democratic Republic of the 
Congo. Democratic Republic of the Congo WT/TPR/S/240 
 Page iii 
 
 
CONTENTS 
 
  Page 
SUMMARY OBSERVATIONS vii 
 (1) E CONOMIC ENVIRONMENT  vii 
 (2) T RADE AND INVESTMENT REGIMES  viii 
 (3) T RADE POLICY INSTRUMENTS  viii 
 (4) S ECTORAL POLICIES  ix 
I. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT 1 
 (1) M AIN FEATURES OF THE ECONOMY  1 
 (2) R ECENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS  2 
 (3) T RADE AND INVESTMENT PERFORMANCE  7 
 (i) Trade in goods and services 7  (ii) Direct investment 9 
 (4) P
ROSPECTS  10 
II. TRADE AND INVESTMENT REGIMES 12 
 (1) O VERALL FRAMEWORK  12 
 (2) P OLICY OBJECTIVES  15 
 (3) T RADE AGREEMENTS AND ARRANGEMENTS  16 
 (i) World Trade Organization 16 
 (ii) Regional and bilateral agreements 17 
 (4) I NVESTMENT REGIME  23 
III. TRADE POLICY BY MEASURE 27 
 (1) I NTRODUCTION  27 
 (2) M EASURES DIRECTLY AFFECTING IMPORTS  27 
 (i) Registration and preshipment inspection 27 
 (ii) Customs procedures 29  (iii) Customs levies 30 
 (iv) Rules of origin 37 
 (v) Import prohibition, licensing and control 37  (vi) Contingency measures 38 
 (vii) Standards and other technical regulations 38 
 (viii) Other measures 41 
 (3) M
EASURES DIRECTLY AFFECTING EXPORTS  41 
 (i) Procedures 41 
 (ii) Export taxes 42  (iii) Minimum export prices 42 
 (iv) Export prohibitions, licensing and control 42 
 (v) Export subsidies, promotion and support 43 
 (vi) Industrial free zone regime 43 
 (vii) Other provisions 43 WT/TPR/S/240 Trade Policy Review 
Page iv 
 
 
 (4) M EASURES AFFECTING PRODUCTION AND TRADE  43 
 (i) State trading, State-owned enterprises and privatization 43 
 (ii) Incentives 45 
 (iii) Competition policy and price control 47  (iv) Government procurement 48 
 (v) Intellectual property rights 50 
IV. TRADE POLICIES BY SECTOR 53 
 (1) I
NTRODUCTION  53 
 (2) A GRICULTURE , LIVESTOCK , FISHING AND FORESTRY  54 
 (i) Overview 54  (ii) Agricultural policy 56 
 (iii) Policy by subsector 58 
 (3) M
INING , ENERGY AND WATER  67 
 (i) Petroleum and gas products 68 
 (ii) Mining products 71 
 (iii) Electricity 76  (iv) Water 78 
 (4) M
ANUFACTURING SECTOR  79 
 (5) S ERVICES  83 
 (i) Overview 83 
 (ii) Telecommunications 84  (iii) Postal services 86 
 (iv) Transport 87 
 (v) Tourism 92  (vi) Financial services 93 
V. AID FOR TRADE 97 
 (1) O
VERVIEW  97 
 (2) I NTEGRATION OF TRADE INTO THE NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY  98 
 (i) National development strategy 98 
 (ii) Integrated Framework 99  (iii) Supply-side constraints 99 
 (iv) Aid for Trade needs and trad e-related technical assistance 100 
 (3) A
ID FOR TRADE ASSISTANCE  100 
 (i) Overview of development aid flows in the economy 100 
(ii) Overview of Aid for Trade 101 
 (iii) Trade-related technical assistance 102 
 (4) M ATCHING NEEDS AND ASSISTANCE  103 
 (i) National coordination mechanisms 103 
 (ii) Monitoring and evaluation 104 
 (5) O UTLOOK FOR AID FOR TRADE  105 
REFERENCES 107 
APPENDIX TABLES 109 
 Democratic Republic of the Congo WT/TPR/S/240 
 Page v 
 
 
CHARTS 
 
I. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT 
 I.1 Structure of merchandise trade, 2000-2008 3 
I.2 Direction of merchandise trade, 2000-2008 8 
 III. TRADE POLICY BY MEASURE 
 
III.1 Escalation of tariffs by two-digit ISIC, 2010 32 III.2 Distribution of tariff rates, 2010 34 
 
IV. TRADE POLICIES BY SECTOR  
IV.1 Tariff protection in the industrial sector, 2010 81 
 
TABLES 
 
I. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT 
 
I.1 Basic social data, 1990, 2000, and 2005-2008 1 I.2 Basic economic indicators, 1996 and 2000-2009 4 
I.3 Supply of and demand for foreign currency and implications for the exchange rate, 2001-2009 6 
I.4 Balance-of-payments developments, 2000-2008 9  
II. TRADE AND INVESTMENT REGIMES 
 II.1 Main trade and investment-related legislation 13 
II.2 Identification of the economic regions and the du ration of the benefits afforded to investors 25 
 III. TRADE POLICY BY MEASURE 
 
III.1 Structure of customs duties, 2010 31 III.2 Summary of customs duties, 2010 32 
III.3 List of State-owned enterprises that have been reformed 44 
III.4 Some incentives under the Mining Code 46 III.5 Statistics on procurement carried out, 2005-2010 49 
 
IV. TRADE POLICIES BY SECTOR 
 
IV.1 Main agricultural products, 1990-2008 54 IV.2 Forest products, 1998-2000, 2002, 2004-2005, and 2007 65 
IV.3 Organization of upstream petroleum activities in the DRC 69 
IV.4 Electrical energy, 2010 77 IV.5 The postal market in the DRC, 2006-2008 86 
IV.6 Some banking system performance data, 2007-2009 94 
 V. AID FOR TRADE 
 
V.1 Grants and official development assistance, 2005-2010 100 V.2 Aid for Trade flows:  CRS auxiliary data, 2002-2005, and 2006 and 2007 101 
V.3 Summary of activities by the major donors in terms of Aid for Trade 102 
 WT/TPR/S/240 Trade Policy Review 
Page vi 
 
 
APPENDIX TABLES 
 
I. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT 
 AI.1 Structure of imports, 1980, 1995, 2000, and 2005-2008 111 
AI.2 Structure of exports, 1980, 1990, 1995, 2000, and 2005-2008 112 
AI.3 Origin of imports, 1980, 1995, 2000, and 2005-2008 113 AI.4 Destination of exports, 1980, 1990, 1995, 2000, and 2005-2008 114 
 
III. TRADE POLICY BY MEASURE  
AIII.1 Average tariffs by HS Chapter, 2010 115 
AIII.2 List of merchandise import and export levies 118  
IV. TRADE POLICIES BY SECTOR 
 AIV.1 Tariff statistics by ISIC Rev.2 category, 2010 126 
 
V. AID FOR TRADE 
 
AV.1 Aid-for-trade priority areas, 2010 129 
 
 Democratic Republic of the Congo WT/TPR/S/240 
 Page vii 
 
 
SUMMARY OBSERVATIONS 
 
(1) ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT  
1. The structural reforms implemented 
by the Democratic Republic of the Congo 
(DRC) have enabled the country to begin recovering from economic stagnation brought on by its numerous armed conflicts during the 1990s.  Its economy has grown steadily at an 
average rate of 6 per cent per annum over the 
period 2001-2009, largely outpacing population growth (3 per cent).  The globally restrictive monetary policy pursued by the Central Bank of the Congo made it possible to reduce inflation from 511.2 per cent in 2000 to 
4.3 per cent in 2003, though by 2009 it had 
again edged up to 46.3 per cent.  As to the budget, increased government revenue has made it possible to reduce the public deficit, even surpluses being recorded in some years in 
spite of the increase in expenditure, for the 
most part current spending. 
2. The DRC finally reached the 
completion point under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative in July 2010 and has consequently been able to obtain debt 
relief worth some US$12.3 billion, of which 
11.1 billion under the Enhanced HIPC Initiative and 1.2 billion under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI).  The financing of social projects with the funds 
thus freed up and the building of road and rail 
infrastructure now in progress should help to revitalize the economy and generate employment. 
3. In spite of the country's numerous 
strong points, such as its vast territory, 
favourable climate and fertile soil, and abundant forest, lake and mining resources, including petroleum, the DRC remains a least developed country, with a per capita GDP of US$182 in 2008.  The limited development of 
its potential is bound up, inter alia , with a 
business climate hardly conducive to investment because of serious infrastructure problems of all kinds;  corruption, and complex and overpriced administrative 
procedures;  the vast number of uncoordinated taxes the overall level of which remains very 
high;  the high cost of and difficult access to credit;  and a poorly functioning judicial system.  According to the World Bank's Doing 
Business 2010 rankings, the DRC stands 182
nd 
amongst 183 countries and according to Transparency Intern ational's Corruption 
Perceptions Index 2008 ranks 171
st amongst 
180 countries. 
4. Agriculture is still the leading 
economic activity in the DRC (75 per cent of the economically active population and over 40 per cent of GDP in 2009), followed by services (30 per cent of GDP), mining, and a largely underdeveloped manufacturing sector.  
The DRC still has a very large informal sector 
(some 20 per cent of GDP), chiefly owing to a relatively unattractive business climate and very high unemployment.  This appreciable share of informal activity partly accounts for 
the discrepancy between formal per capita 
income and the observed standard of living of the population, chiefly in urban centres. 
5. With a goods and services trade to 
GDP ratio of almost 130 per cent, the DRC is highly dependent on the outside world.  Its 
principal imports include foodstuffs, fuels, 
transport equipment and electrical and non-electrical machinery, and come mainly from the European Union (EU), South Africa, China and Zambia.  Its exports are poorly 
diversified and are still confined to primary 
(mining) products, chiefly cobalt, copper, diamonds and petroleum.  In 2008, mining accounted for 78 per cent of total exports in value terms as against 28 per cent in 2000.  
The DRC's main export markets are the EU 
(chiefly Belgium) China, Zambia and the United States.  Apart from Zambia and South Africa, official trade with other African countries is still neglig ible, despite regional 
preferential agreements to which the DRC is a 
signatory.  Informal cross-border trade is 
nonetheless substantial.  The DRC is a net importer of services and has recorded a spectacular increase in imports and less remarkable growth in exports. WT/TPR/S/240 Trade Policy Review 
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(2) TRADE AND INVESTMENT REGIMES  
6. The Constitution of the DRC adopted 
on 18 February 2006 enshrines the primacy of international treaties and agreements over 
domestic law.  The Constitution prevails over 
all other domestic legal instruments.  Government policies, including trade policy, are formulated and implemented by means of these instruments.  The direction and 
formulation of trade policy falls within the 
purview of the Ministry responsible for trade, in conjunction with the ministries in charge of finance (for customs matters amongst others) and those responsible for sectoral policies.  The private sector participates on an ad hoc 
basis through the Foreign Trade Facilitation 
Committee. 
7. Having been pinpointed as a key 
sector in the country's economic orientation, trade is intended to play a major role in the 
DRC's Growth and Poverty Reduction 
Strategy.  Accordingly, trade policy aims to promote trade, in particular by diversifying manufacturing exports, increasing domestic food production in order to reduce food imports, and consolidating the traditional 
markets of the DRC and its participation in the 
multilateral trading system.  Measures are being taken or are planned to improve the business climate and attract the investment needed to boost domestic production. 
8. The DRC is an original Member of the 
WTO and grants at least Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) treatment to all its trading partners.  It does not participate in any WTO plurilateral agreement but does have 
observer status in the Committee on 
Government Procurement.  The DRC's participation in the multilateral trading system remains limited, having submitted only eight notifications or communications to the WTO between 2004 and April 2010.  The 
DRC has received technical assistance from 
the WTO and other international organizations.  Yet owing to social and political conflicts, technical assistance activities have declined markedly.  Therefore 
the country still has considerable needs in that regard, including under the Aid-for-Trade 
initiative. 
9. The DRC also participates in several 
regional agreements, namely the African 
Union (AU), the Economic Community of 
Central African States (ECCAS), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and the 
Economic Community of the Great Lakes 
Countries (CEPGL).  Over and above the costs involved, participation in numerous agreements could lead to a lack of coherence in the conduct of the DRC's trade policy. 
10. A new code was adopted in 2002 to 
facilitate and encourag e domestic and foreign 
investment in spheres of activity which are key to the country's economic development, namely infrastructure improvement, economic utilization of natural resources, and the 
establishment of a sound industrial base.  The 
Code provides for a single regime the scope of which excludes mining and hydrocarbons, banking, insurance and reinsurance, defence and arms, as well as certain commercial activities, these sectors being governed by 
specific laws.  The Ministry in charge of 
planning is responsible for public and private investment policy and promotion, through the National Investment Promotion Agency (ANAPI) in particular.  As a single window, 
ANAPI is expected to help remove 
administrative barriers and facilitate investment approval procedures.  The Code grants tax, parafiscal and customs benefits to investors. 
(3) T
RADE POLICY INSTRUMENTS  
11. The DRC's applied MFN tariff is 
entirely ad valorem  and comprises four rates 
(zero, 5 per cent, 10 per cent, and 20 per cent).  The simple average tariff is 11.3 per cent.  Agricultural and non-agricultural products 
(WTO definition) are subject to virtually the 
same average levels of nominal protection, which are 11.2 and 11.3 per cent respectively.  The overall positive tariff escalation masks disparities at a more disaggregated level.  Democratic Republic of the Congo WT/TPR/S/240 
 Page ix 
 
 
Indeed, tariff escalation is positive in the 
textiles and clothing, paper, articles of paper, printing and publishing, and chemical industries, which denotes a fairly high level of 
effective protection that is unlikely to boost 
international market competitiveness.  In contrast, tariff escalation is mixed in the other industries, an indication that the tariff structure is pushing up production costs. 
12. The DRC has bound all its tariff lines 
at ceiling rates, the simple average of which is 96.2 per cent, or 98.1 per cent for agricultural products and 95.9 per cent for non-agricultural products.  Other duties and taxes are bound at zero, but imports are subject to a large number 
of taxes that are unrequited or whose 
proportions far exceed the utility of the services rendered.  However, in keeping with the principle of national treatment, the main internal taxes are levied on imports and 
domestic products alike.  Moreover, despite 
the creation of single windows for imports and exports, several other institutions are still operating outside that framework, thereby prolonging the time required for administrative formalities and increasing their cost.  
Preshipment inspection is mandatory for 
imports of US$2,500 or more, and the corresponding fees (0.75 per cent of the c.i.f. value, with a minimum charge of US$100) are borne by the importer.  The DRC 
has never made use of contingency measures, 
for which it has no legislation. 
13. The DRC is finding it difficult to 
implement its 2003 legislation based on the WTO Customs Valuation Agreement and 
utilizes reference values provided by BIVAC.  
Setting up the national system of standardization, technical regulations and accreditation is proving problematic, and this raises questions about the validity and relevance of the various control procedures 
being conducted, including at the border, by a 
myriad of institutions with overlapping activities;  all imports and exports as well as domestic market products are subject to systematic checks.  Imported vegetables and 
vegetable products must be accompanied by a 
phytosanitary certificate and imported animal and animal products by a sanitary certificate, 
both issued in the country of origin. 
14. Export duties are levied on green 
coffee;  minerals and mineral concentrates;  
mineral oils;  electric power;  logs;  edged 
timber;  fresh water;  and scrap metal.  In principle, these duties are applied to certain products in order to encourage the local processing of natural resources.  Nevertheless, 
a large quantity of mineral ores and logs is 
being exported with no prior processing of any kind.  The DRC has no government structure responsible for export promotion, nor does it have any export financing mechanism. 
15. The new 2010 code on government 
procurement promotes transparency and 
favours the use of bidding, but provides for national and regional preferences.  The DRC has just launched a programme to reform State-owned enterprises, which initially covers 
restructuring alone, with privatization 
expected to take place in the next phase.  The DRC has no system of competition.  The prices of some goods and services deemed to be "strategic" are subject to regulation.  Intellectual property is in principle regulated 
by laws but their enforcement is still limited, 
and this gives rise to numerous infringements.  A new law is reportedly being prepared in order to bring domestic legislation into line with the relevant WTO and WIPO provisions. 
(4) S
ECTORAL POLICIES  
16. The DRC has the potential for 
diversification needed for its various economic sectors to make a fairly substantial contribution to GDP.  Agriculture is favoured 
by a variety of natural advantages such as vast 
areas of very fertile land and a climate that lends itself to a diverse range of crops.  Agriculture is still the leading sector in the poverty reduction strate gy owing to its labour 
intensity and its role  in food security 
(subsistence farming) and as a supplier of 
inputs to local industries.  However, development of the sector remains hampered by the numerous factors mentioned above as WT/TPR/S/240 Trade Policy Review 
Page x 
 
 
constraints on investment in the DRC, where 
farming practices are generally still outdated. 
17. Following the removal of subsidies 
and price support measures in 2002, border 
measures became the main trade policy 
instruments applied to Congolese agriculture.  The average tariff in the sector (ISIC Rev.2 definition) is 10 per cent.  However, agricultural imports are subject to a 
multitude of other levi es and taxes and to 
cumbersome formalities, all of which encourages fraud and reduces the level of protection that the authorities believe they are providing for domestic producers. 
18. The chief manufacturing branches 
consist of a few small agrifood, chemical, 
beverage, tobacco, textile , forestry product and 
capital equipment industries.  The manufacturing sector's low level of competitiveness is attributable, inter alia , to 
outdated means and methods of production 
and high factor costs.  The principal trade measures applied to the sector consist of protective rates that vary somewhat irregularly from one branch of produc tion to another, with 
an average rate of 11.4 per cent and rates 
ranging from 10 to 20 per cent in the more 
important industries - food products, beverages, tobacco, w ood and wood products - 
not to mention other levies and taxes, as well as various import and export controls.  
Moreover, the tariff structure does very little 
to boost product competitiveness or attract investment in the sector. 
19. The DRC has several types of mineral 
and energy resources.  Mining and quarrying 
products (copper, c obalt, gold, diamonds, 
coltan, etc.) constitute the main source of government revenue and the bulk of exports in value terms.  The adoption of the Mining Code in 2002 and the DRC's 2008 application to join the Extractive Industries Transparency 
Initiative (EITI) are some of the actions taken 
to attract new investors to the sector.  Mining permits are subject to a fixed issuing fee;  royalties based on the surface area being worked;  a variable-rate extraction tax 
depending on the nature of the substances being mined;  an ad valorem  tax;  and a 
multitude of other taxes and charges.  The tax burden on the mining sector is around 56 per cent of earnings, to which must generally be 
added 15 to 25 percentage points in the form 
of informal payments, i.e. an overall rate of taxation of close to 80 per cent.  Mining imports are subject to duty at an average rate of 7.1 per cent for the extractive industries and 
15.6 per cent for non-metallic mineral 
products, with a 5 per cent floor and a 20 per cent ceiling, not to mention other import duties and taxes.  These different factors, coupled with export taxes and the various forms of red tape, are limiting the competitiveness of these 
export products.  The aim of boosting exports 
of processed mineral products is thus being frustrated, the more so since there is no structure or organization for this purpose in the DRC. 
20. The share of services in GDP has been 
increasing steadily since 2000, reflecting a measure of dynamism in the sector.  Most of the restrictions on trade in services have been abolished.  However, the State monopoly is being maintained in the provision of 
services such as water and electricity, fixed 
telephony and some postal services.  Telecommunications services, including mobile telephony, have vastly expanded since they were liberalized in the DRC, and this has 
benefited the entire economy.  In addition to 
the difficulties associated with the provision of services such as transport, where costs remain high, and electricity, which is subject to power cuts (though with declining frequency), 
constraints on access to credit are hampering 
the performance of the rest of the economy, including tourism, where the DRC's potential remains largely untapped. 
21. The DRC's banking system is 
relatively small compared to the size of the 
country and its population.  Most banking 
operations consist of deposit taking and short-term financing, an d this represents one 
of the greatest obstacles to the development of small and medium-size enterprises in 
particular.  The number of bank accounts is 
still very low - some 300,000 for an estimated Democratic Republic of the Congo WT/TPR/S/240 
 Page xi 
 
 
population of around 70 million.  The banking 
subsector is still well below par, which partly impedes its capacity to help finance the country's development.  Furthermore, the 
National Insurance Company (SONAS) holds 
a monopoly on the insurance market.  With an annual turnover of US$45 million in 2009 and some 2,222 employees, the performance of SONAS is far from encouraging, despite its 
monopoly.  Opening the market to 
competition, as in the case of the banking subsector, would provide incentive to develop competitiveness and improve performance in the provision of insurance services in the DRC. 22. The DRC has undertaken 
GATS commitments in a number of services branches - construction and related engineering services, communications 
services, business services, education services, 
tourism and travel-related services, and recreational, cultural and sporting services.  Some of these branches are being opened up almost completely and others only partially.  
The extension of the DRC's multilateral 
commitments to all services categories that have already been liberalized should shore up the credibility of the reforms introduced, improve the predictability and transparency of the systems concerned and help attract the 
much needed capital for the DRC to realize its 
immense potential.