DRC Critical Minerals & Industrialisation Forum – Webinar Series 2026

The DRC Critical Minerals & Industrialisation Forum, organised by VUKA Group (formerly Clarion Events Africa), has moved its in-person edition to 2027 in Kinshasa, with dates still to be announced. Until then, the organiser is running an online webinar series through the end of 2026. Three sessions remain, on 21 October, 11 November and 25 November 2026, each scheduled from 10:30 to 12:00 according to the organiser's programme. The opening session of 23 September is available as a replay. The series follows the forum's central question: how the Democratic Republic of the Congo moves from exporting copper and cobalt concentrates to building domestic industrial value chains. The 21 October session covers infrastructure and industrialisation development, 11 November looks at energy-transition technologies, and 25 November focuses on strategic partnerships along the critical minerals value chain. The first session set out an A-to-Z strategy for unlocking the country's industrial potential. The forum itself combines a two-day conference with project showcases, a deal room for bilateral meetings, B2B matchmaking, an invitation-only CEO roundtable and an exhibition. It grew out of the DRC-Africa Battery Metals Forum, held in Kinshasa in 2024 and in Kolwezi in 2025, and the organiser reports more than 190 delegates, 30 speakers and 21 sponsors and exhibitors at its latest in-person edition. Its advisory board includes representatives of the Presidency, the Ministry of Mines (CTCPM), the Cobalt Institute and the University of Lubumbashi. Who should attend: project developers and operators in the Copperbelt, processing and refining engineers, investors and lenders, energy, logistics and equipment suppliers, government officials, and legal, ESG and trade advisers working on DRC value-chain projects.