AI Mineral Hunt: US miner KoBold Metals is using AI-directed exploration in the DRC, setting up operations in Manono as it targets critical minerals like lithium and aims to cut China’s dominance in copper and cobalt. Energy Finance: The DRC may join the African Energy Bank, with talks in Kinshasa pointing to a planned $5bn capital base and new funding pathways for oil, gas and power projects. Mining Governance: Kinshasa is preparing a one-stop agency for major mining investments to centralize registration, licensing, taxation and compliance—aimed at speeding approvals and attracting more Western capital. Power Supply Pressure: Kinshasa’s chronic electricity shortages are pushing lawmakers to summon SNEL’s CEO before the National Assembly, as businesses and households keep facing long outages. Trade Links: Tanzania and the DRC signed a trade cooperation agreement in Dar es Salaam, focusing on transport, exports, investment and using the Port of Dar es Salaam to reduce trade friction. Ebola & Women: UN Women highlights how the DRC’s Ebola outbreak is hitting women and girls hardest, with many providing care at home and in communities despite high risk. Eastern Mining Abuses: Amnesty reports M23 abuses at artisanal mines in North and South Kivu, including killings, torture, forced labor and trafficking of gold and coltan toward Rwanda. Digital Payments Push: Visa Pay names Fally Ipupa brand ambassador in the DRC, tying the campaign to the central bank’s 2027 cashless agenda. Labour Enforcement: Congo’s labour minister says sanctions are coming for firms violating work laws after Kinshasa inspections found illegal employment practices. Health Trial Start: NanoViricides begins a Phase II mpox trial (NV-387) with first patients enrolled in the DRC.