DRC Launches RN1 Upgrade to Boost Trade Corridor with Angola and Open Up Kasai Region
DRC Starts $175M RN1 Road Upgrade to Boost DRC–Angola Trade Corridor and Improve Infrastructure Across Kasai Region
The Minister of Infrastructure and Public Works, John Banza Lunda, officially launched paving works on National Road 1 (RN1) on April 5, 2026, marking a major step in upgrading a key transport artery in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The works cover the stretch between Kananga and the Kakangayi River in Kabeya-Kamwanga territory, forming part of the broader DRC–Angola transnational economic corridor designed to enhance trade between the Kasai region and Angola.
The RN1 section under construction spans approximately 137.5 kilometres and has been divided into three lots for implementation.
The first lot runs 45 km from Kananga to Kasingi/Kashindi. The second covers another 45 km between Kasingi/Kashindi and Bena Mulongo, while the third extends 47.5 km from Bena Mulongo to the Kakangayi River.
Construction contracts have been awarded to Sino-Hydro Sokol, the GGPI Group, and CFHEC respectively.
According to technical documentation from the Kasai Oriental provincial authorities, the upgraded road will include a 15-metre right-of-way and a 7-metre carriageway, with a planned construction period of 30 months.
Beyond the main highway works, the programme includes a wide range of associated infrastructure investments.
These comprise approximately 10 km of urban road rehabilitation across Kananga, Kabeya-Kamwanga, and Munkamba, as well as the development of the Kalamba-Mbuji border market and weighbridge stations at Kalamba-Mbuji and Munkamba.
Additional socio-economic components include the construction of schools, health centres, vocational training facilities, warehouses, and boreholes, alongside improvements to rural roads.
The project also integrates public awareness campaigns on road safety, gender-based violence prevention, HIV/AIDS, and COVID-19, as well as a 100-hectare reforestation initiative along the Kananga–Kabeya-Kamwanga corridor.
The project’s Phase 1 financing amounts to approximately $175 million, consisting of a $69.8 million grant and a $105.2 million loan from the African Development Bank and the African Development Fund, as part of a wider $650 million infrastructure programme.
Authorities say the upgraded corridor linking Mbuji-Mayi, Kananga, Kalamba-Mbuji in the DRC to Shikolondo and Dundo in Angola will significantly improve logistics efficiency, reduce transport costs, and facilitate cross-border trade.
Officials also emphasized that RN1 serves as a strategic national backbone, connecting multiple economic regions, including Kongo Central and the Katanga mining belt, and playing a central role in national integration and economic development.
SOURCE:bankable.africa
