Kinshasa, November 3, 2025 — Under the morning sun, hundreds of civil society activists, grouped within the Réseau sur le Changement Climatique de la RDC (RCC-RDC), took to the streets of Kinshasa on Monday, November 3. Starting from the “Place des Évolués” roundabout and marching to the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, the demonstrators chanted slogans for climate justice and held placards calling for “1% for a Responsible Mining Future.”
This mobilization was part of the “1% for a Responsible Mining Future” campaign launched by RCC-RDC. The goal: to advocate for a global 1% tax on finished products containing strategic minerals—such as cobalt, lithium, copper, or nickel—in order to feed a compensation fund for local communities affected by mining activities. According to the memorandum submitted to the Ministry, this tax would finance environmental restoration projects, strengthen governance in the mining sector, and support the energy transition in Central Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“It is time for climate justice to take its rightful place in the DRC,” said Julia Kusola, RCC’s Communications Officer. “We are calling for a share of the profits generated from strategic minerals to be reinvested to improve the living conditions of local communities who, paradoxically, remain the poorest despite the wealth beneath their feet.”
Upon arriving at the Ministry headquarters, representatives of the movement officially handed over their advocacy memorandum to the environmental authorities. This document, which the RCC also plans to present at COP30 in Brazil, outlines several key recommendations:
The creation of a global 1% fund on products containing strategic minerals;
The redistribution of mining royalties to local communities;
The restoration of polluted mining sites and rehabilitation of degraded lands;
Greater corporate accountability in the mining sector and a stronger fight against illegal exploitation of natural resources.
For Alexis Mbum Kazembe, coordinator of the Association des Agriculteurs Sans Frontières and a member of the RCCRDC network, this initiative is first and foremost a matter of justice.
“We are demanding the return of the 1% to benefit communities, but also better management of the existing 3% mining royalties that companies are required to pay. Too often, these funds disappear without any tangible impact on the ground.”
Present across all 26 provinces and 145 territories of the DRC, the RCC-RDC relies on a vast network of partner organizations committed to climate justice and transparency in the extractive sector. The coalition also collaborates with other African movements, including the PACJA network, to advance the recognition of community rights in the face of mining industry expansion.
“We protect the forests, we safeguard the Congo Basin, we preserve global water and biodiversity,” continued Mr. Kazembe. “It is only fair that the DRC receives just compensation for the environmental services it provides to humanity.”
Just weeks ahead of COP30, this citizen march sends a strong signal: Congolese civil society intends to make its voice heard in the global debate on energy transition and to remind the world that such a transition cannot come at the expense of local populations. By submitting this memorandum, RCC members reaffirm their commitment to representing communities often excluded from international negotiations.
“We speak for those who do not have the privilege of being heard,” concluded Julia Kusola, adding, “Without social and environmental justice, the energy transition will remain incomplete.”
