In the copper-red dust of Kolwezi, where the world’s battery future is dug from the ground, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is preparing to make a bigger play: turning mineral dominance into industrial power.
Organisers of the DRC-Africa Battery Metals Forum have unveiled a new co-located event, the DRC Critical Minerals & Industrialisation Forum, designed to move the country beyond extraction and into refining, manufacturing and full-scale industrial value chains. The announcement came in a press release distributed by APO Group on behalf of VUKA Group.
Reflecting on the success of last year’s event, Samukelo Madlabane, Event Director of the VUKA Group, said the forum highlighted the country’s industrialisation potential. He noted: “The successful 2025 edition of DRC-Africa Battery Metals Forum reaffirmed that industrialisation is the key to transforming the DRC’s mineral wealth into sustainable prosperity.”
He added that engagement from both private and public sectors had reinforced this mission: “We received incredible engagement and collaboration from private and public sectors alike, and this reinforced the forum’s mission to accelerate the industrialisation of the DRC through value addition, beneficiation, and local participation in the global supply chain. We thank the Government of the DRC for its continued leadership and support in driving this national industrial vision.”
The new forum aims to move discussions from ideas to action. Madlabane described the vision for turning dialogue into tangible results: “We are heeding this call by launching the DRC Critical Minerals & Industrialisation Forum, providing that much-needed momentum to take this vision to the next level and to reality.”
Scheduled for 7–9 October 2026 in Kolwezi, the twin events will bring together miners, refiners, manufacturers, financiers, EPC contractors, logistics providers, telecom operators, and policymakers, all focused on one central challenge: how to build industry where the minerals are mined.
Momentum is already building. Last year’s battery metals forum drew support from companies including Kamoa Copper, MMG Kinsevere, Equity BCDC and Liquid Intelligent Technologies, signalling strong private-sector interest in downstream industrialisation, local content, and supply-chain integration.
Looking ahead, Madlabane emphasised the government’s commitment to industrialisation, framing the forum as a key vehicle for action: “In particular, the DRC government is on an action-oriented drive to industrialise the country off the back of its mineral wealth and this Forum is the vehicle to do just that.”
If the vision holds, Kolwezi may soon be known not only for what comes out of the ground, but for what gets built above it.
