The government of Congo, led by President Felix Tshisekedi, unveiled an ambitious green corridor project in the Congo Basin on Wednesday.
Stretching over 2,400 kilometers, this corridor connects Kinshasa to the eastern Kivu region, including Virunga National Park and the Congo River.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum, Tshisekedi described the initiative as transformative, aiming to boost the economy, empower communities, and foster peace in conflict-ridden eastern provinces.
The Congo Basin, the world’s largest tropical rainforest, faces mounting threats from deforestation and armed conflicts.
The green corridor seeks to mitigate these challenges by prioritizing renewable energy and sustainable development.
Covering an area equivalent to France, the corridor spans over 500,000 square kilometers and is home to 31 million people. It aims to preserve more than 100,000 square kilometers of natural forest.
Projections suggest the project could generate nearly 500,000 jobs and produce 1 million tons of food annually for Kinshasa, Africa’s largest city.
EU Commissioner Jozef Sikela announced an immediate €42 million grant, pledging to double it soon to support agriculture, renewable energy, and biodiversity protection in the region.
“We aim to transform the sustainable agriculture value chain while safeguarding this iconic biodiversity,” Sikela stated.
Tshisekedi praised the EU’s backing of the Virunga Alliance, which has created 21,000 jobs and clean energy over four decades.
“This success inspires our vision for the Kivu-Kinshasa green corridor,” he emphasized, heralding a new era of development and preservation.
