Kinshasa, July 25, 2025 – The Democratic Republic of Congo has just taken a decisive step in modernizing its business environment. At the 53rd meeting of the Council of Ministers, the government adopted a decree establishing the single window for Special Economic Zones (SEZ), a reform presented by Louis Watum Kabamba, Minister of Industry and SME Development.
A central device to simplify the life of companies
Placed under the authority of the Agency for Special Economic Zones (AZES), this new administrative structure will bring together in a single point – physical or virtual – all the necessary formalities:
• Registration of developers;
• Installation of companies in the ZES;
• Management of worker-related procedures.
Only authorizations requiring specific technical expertise will remain outside the single window.
First field of experimentation: the Maluku pilot ZES, where the concrete implementation will make it possible to measure the real impact of this administrative simplification.
A reform rooted in the law
The new decree is part of the continuity of Framework Law No. 14/022 of July 7, 2014, which established the ZES, and Decree No. 18/060 of December 29, 2018, governing the participation of developers. It complements Decree No. 20/004 of March 5, 2020, which defined the principle of the single window, now entrusted to the operational management of AZES.
Objective: efficiency, transparency and attractiveness
In a context where administrative reliability is one of the keys to attracting investors, this one-stop shop aims to:
• Reduce business installation times;
• Increase the transparency of procedures;
• Offer regulatory predictability essential to secure industrial investments.
In other words, it is a matter of boosting the attractiveness of the Congolese ZEs in the face of regional competition.
Next step: application texts
If the legal framework is now in place, its effectiveness will depend on the rapid publication of the implementing texts, which will have to specify:
• Filing procedures;
• Official deadlines and costs;
• The operation of the digital interface;
• The training of AZES agents;
• Coordination with sectoral ministries.
Without these details, the reform could lose impact and create a gap between ambition and reality.
A strategic turning point for the Congolese economy
By launching this one-stop shop, the DRC is aligning itself with international best practices to boost its SEZs and create a competitive business climate. The success of this transformation will now depend on the fluidity and speed of the device, a real showcase of the government’s desire to attract foreign capital and promote national industrialization.
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