DRC: Civil society and legal experts mobilize around a draft law to recognize ecocide as a criminal offense, aiming to prosecute environmental crimes—particularly in the country’s east—and strengthen ecological justice

March 10, 2026 – Kinshasa – The recognition of ecocide in Congolese legislation was the focus of in-depth discussions during an information workshop held on Tuesday, March 10, in Kinshasa. The initiative, led by the Coalition for the Ecocide Law in the DRC in collaboration with the Congo Basin Conservation Society, brought together legal experts, representatives of environmental organizations, students, and several civil society actors around a central question: how to strengthen legal protection for the environment in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

At the center of the discussions was a draft law submitted to the Senate on December 15, 2025, by Senator Cedric Ngindu Biduaya. The text proposes introducing ecocide as an autonomous criminal offense in Congolese legislation through an amendment to Law No. 15/022 of December 31, 2015, relating to the Penal Code. For its proponents, the objective is to equip the country with a legal instrument capable of more effectively sanctioning serious and lasting damage to ecosystems.