Kinshasa, the sprawling capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, expands each day into an urban chaos that has become the norm. This disorder is not simply the result of limited resources or population pressure. It is carefully maintained by an opaque system in which the very institutions meant to protect the territory — land title conservators, cadastre services, urban planning and land affairs — have become the primary architects of anarchy.
Everywhere, illegal buildings are springing up: in flood-prone areas, on green spaces, on road easements, and even on sites reserved for public infrastructure. Behind this proliferation of non-compliant construction lies a well-oiled mechanism: corruption, multiple sales of plots, issuance of fake certificates, and complicit administrative silence.
Yet Congolese land law clearly outlines the rules. Article 223, paragraph 2 of the land law states that “the State is responsible for the mistakes of the conservator.” This means that victims of administrative errors can hold the State civilly liable. However, this responsibility is considered subsidiary: when there is personal fault on the part of the conservator — such as fraud, abuse of power, or document falsification — their individual criminal liability can also be engaged.
Conservators issue titles without verification, cadastre chiefs validate documents for disputed plots, and urban planning offices grant permits in bulk — often in exchange for bribes. Everyone knows. No one speaks. Until floods wash away homes or land disputes erupt into violent conflict.
This system will not collapse on its own. A moral and institutional awakening is essential. The laws exist. They must now be enforced. It is time to dismiss corrupt officials, cancel fraudulent titles, and demolish illegal structures — even those belonging to powerful individuals. In Kinshasa, illegal real estate has become a sport for the elite.
By refusing to clean house, the State not only becomes complicit in the disorder, but also the guarantor of future collapse. Kinshasa is not just a growing capital — it is a city gasping for air, betrayed from within.
