The World Bank has approved $250 million to start the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Inga 3 Development Program, the first step in what could become a $1 billion investment in the country’s biggest power project. The money will help lay the groundwork for a massive hydropower plant while making sure local communities benefit from improved services and job opportunities.
Only 21% of people in DRC have access to electricity, one of the biggest barriers to economic growth in the country. The government wants to change that through its National Energy Compact, which aims to get electricity to 62% of the population by 2030. The Inga 3 program fits into this bigger plan to attract private investors and boost power generation.
Bob Mabiala, who heads the agency managing the project, said the Inga site has some of the world’s biggest electricity potential. The first phase will focus on about 100 communities near the site, home to roughly 1.2 million people, bringing them clean water, rural roads, and renewable energy systems they’ve asked for.
The World Bank will help prepare for Inga 3, which could generate between 2 and 11 gigawatts of power when completed. The project will take about a decade to finish and will need government, private companies, and development partners to work together.
Albert Zeufack, the World Bank’s division director for the region, called it a chance to “write a new page in DRC’s development story” by turning the country’s natural resources into economic growth and jobs for millions of people living in poverty.
