DRC’s sovereign satellite acquisition: José Mpanda’s resolute pursuit

„Musuminyina katu wabula“, a Luba proverb meaning „the one who perseveres always gets what they want.“ Me José Mpanda Kabangu, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications, lives by this saying. He is determined to succeed where his first term as Minister of Scientific Research in September 2019 fell short: giving the Democratic Republic of the Congo its own sovereign satellite.

On Friday, June 5, Minister Mpanda held a working meeting with a Chinese delegation from China Unicom and Genew Technologies. The talks focused on building the satellite and expanding fiber optic coverage across the nation. This meeting follows his official mission to China last April.

Alongside the Chinese guests, the session brought together experts from the General Secretariat of PTNTIC, the Regulatory Authority for Posts and Telecommunications of Congo (ARPTC), the Congolese Fiber Company (SOCOF), the National Satellite Telecommunications Network (RENATELSAT), the National Remote Sensing Center (CNT), and senior advisors to the President and Prime Minister on PTNTIC matters.

Minister Mpanda stressed that his trip to China was a political effort to find solutions for the country, but the real technical talks had to involve specialists. That is why the Chinese firms have come to Kinshasa, where they will stay until June 19. Their mission is to work with Congolese experts on two key projects: the sovereign satellite, for which a memorandum of understanding was signed in April, and the national fiber optic backbone, whose terms were revised in 2025.

The discussions, which began on Monday, June 8, pursue three main goals:

1. Technical and financial structuring — validating the architecture of both projects, estimating costs, and finalizing financing arrangements with the ministries of Planning and Finance.

2. Institutional consultation and alignment — the Chinese firms will formally present the projects to all stakeholders, including RENATELSAT, SCPT, SOCOF, CNC, CNT, the General Secretariat of PTNTIC, ARPTC, the Presidency, and the Prime Minister’s office.

3. Preparing the due diligence mission in China — defining its scope and schedule, identifying Congolese delegates and sites to visit, producing deliverables before departure, and outlining follow-up steps.

Minister Mpanda expects four concrete results from these exchanges:

• Validated technical solutions;
• A finalized financing approach;
• Alignment among all stakeholders;
• A planned due diligence mission.

The institutions involved span the Presidency, Prime Minister’s office, Ministries of Posts and Telecommunications, Planning, Finance, Infrastructure, Mines, and the National Cyberdefense Council (CNC). Technical entities include the General Secretariat of PTNTIC, ARPTC, FDSU, SOCOF, SCPT, RENATELSAT, and CNT.