Félix Tshisekedi: “We must exploit our natural resources so that they contribute to improving the living conditions of our populations”
The Head of State of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Félix Tshisekedi, proceeded, this Thursday July 28, 2022, in Kinshasa, to the official launch of the calls for tenders for the acquisition and the exploitation of 27 blocks oil and 3 gas blocks located in Lake Kivu as selected by the Congolese Government.
In his speech, President Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi spoke of the need to eliminate the gap that exists between the natural potential available to the country and the conditions in which the Congolese population lives.
To this end, the Congolese President has indicated that it is imperative to exploit natural resources so that they contribute to the improvement of the living conditions of the Congolese population.
“We should no longer be content to endlessly celebrate the potential natural resources with which our country is endowed. It is up to us to exploit them so that they contribute to the achievement of the primary objective, which is to improve the living conditions of our populations, while remaining aware and responsible with regard to the ecological and environmental implications that the exploitation of these resources generate. said President Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi.
For him, the launch of calls for tenders is “the witness of the will to put the potentialities at the service of the development of the country, this in a context where fossil resources, in what we say crude oil and gas, are placed back at the center of global issues of peace and stability because of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
With regard to environmental constraints, Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi underlines “the need to use the provisions of the 2015 Law as well as the 2016 Decree which govern the Hydrocarbons sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo which define the conditions for granting permits required for the exploration, exploitation of our oil and gas resources. »
In addition, the Congolese Head of State reassured the international community of his Government’s willingness to carry out mining and exploration work using tools that protect the environment, ecosystems and ecological balance.
“These invitations to tender in no way constitute a renunciation of commitments made internationally. I reassure the international partners of my Government’s determination to carry out mining and exploration work using tools that protect the environment, ecosystems and ecological balance. “, did he declare.
This activity took place in a particularly turbulent context between the Congolese Government and several international organizations which campaign for the protection of the environment.
These international organizations, including Greenpeace Africa, denounce what they call the “auctioning” of oil and gas blocks, which risks endangering ecosystems since the project could affect protected areas, among other things. A thesis which was swept away by the Congolese Government, through the Minister of Hydrocarbons, Didier Budimbu, who had indicated, during a press conference held on July 26, 2022, that the Government is not “seller”. It grants, he said, the right to exploit hydrocarbons as provided for by the laws of the Republic.
