Pascal Agboyibor Appointed to Lead Legal Oversight in DRC–US Critical Minerals Partnership
Franco-Togolese business lawyer Pascal Agboyibor has been appointed as a key member of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) strategic coordination unit tasked with managing mining partnership negotiations with the United States.
His appointment was formalized on May 12, 2025, by Decision No. 25/020, which established the unit to oversee implementation of the bilateral critical minerals agreement.
The coordination unit is composed of three components: a management team, a technical secretariat, and a panel of experts.
Agboyibor is the only lawyer appointed to the management team, joining high-ranking officials such as Anthony Nkinzo Kamole, Chief of Staff to the President; Foreign Affairs Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner; Mines Minister Kizito Pakabomba; and the heads of major state-owned mining entities Gécamines and Arecoms—Guy-Robert Lukama and Patrick Mpoyi Luabeya, respectively.
Founder of the pan-African law firm Asafo & Co., Agboyibor is widely regarded as one of the continent’s most influential legal advisors in mining, energy, and infrastructure.
He is known for his work on sovereign financing, public-private partnerships, and complex transactions involving multilateral institutions.
In the DRC, he notably advised the government during the high-profile renegotiation of the Gécamines–CMOC partnership over the Tenke Fungurume mine, which led to an $800 million settlement in favor of the Congolese state.
In 2024, Agboyibor was named the most influential lawyer in the French-speaking world for the fourth time by Africa Business+, in recognition of the complexity and strategic importance of his legal work.
The publication highlighted his efforts in defending the interests of the Congolese government and Gécamines in disputes with foreign operators.
The strategic coordination unit, led by Anthony Nkinzo Kamole, is responsible for aligning the positions of various Congolese institutions, managing negotiation logistics, and ensuring adherence to commitments outlined in the DRC–US critical minerals partnership.
The agreement seeks to guarantee U.S. access to vital Congolese resources such as cobalt, lithium, and coltan—materials essential for clean energy technologies—in exchange for increased American political support in resolving the conflict in eastern DRC.
SOURCE:bankable.africa
According to The Financial Times, the agreement could be signed as early as the end of June 2025.
