WHAT ABOUT A CONGOLESE OWNED BANK IN THE DRC ?

Has anyone thought about the reason why there is currently no one single Congolese-owned bank in the DRC? In such a large country with an important amount

of youth inside and outside the borders of the country, a Congolese-owned bank should arise to proudly serve the population.

While the continent offers business opportunities, approximately 50% of the Sub Saharan African population was unbanked.

Many international institutions acknowledge the effective economic growth on the African continent. Though, a study conducted by Ngongang (2015) showed

that there is a disconnect between financial development and economic growth potentially due to an under-developed financial system or an instable growth

rate of GDP that hinders the correlation between finance and economic growth.

Hence, regardless of the current economic growth, improvement in financial systems of Sub-Saharan countries will allow a financial development and eventually

further economic growth. This brings us to think that the low level of income and presence of bank branches are not the only factors influencing financial

inclusion. The required financial intermediation to guarantee a qualitative and quantifiable development is also significantly lacking in African countries.

But, when taking the example of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the lack of financial intermediation is significant. For a population of over 70 million people,

in 2019 the Congolese Central Bank acknowledged in its annual report 17 commercial banks, 60 financial cooperatives, 19 microfinance institutions and more

than 50 other types of financial structures advocating a savings culture while providing basic financial services to low income individuals.

This being said, while investments and savings are fundamental for: (1) the creation of employment, (2) the reduction of poverty and (3) boosting the economic

growth, especially with a growing population, the development of an institutional framework of the financial market is crucial for the implementation and

effectiveness of monetary policies. Yet, the implementation of policy measures must be put in place without neglecting the access to financial services (financial

inclusion) and the financial needs of the less fortunate in a country as they depend on the services of financial co-operatives and institutions such as credit

unions.

Thus, coming back to the case of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the lack of financial intermediation, the recent separation between the government and the

central bank as well as the current level of financial inclusion triggers the curiosity to find out whether sound policies and regulations put in place by the central

bank can impact financial inclusion in the country. BUT, most importantly, it raises the question why there is not currently one single Congolese- owned bank in

the DRC – Food for thought!

When thinking about what the youth (local and/or abroad) can achieve, Komala wants to play a role in connecting young professionals and key stakeholders in

the sector with the aim and hope of seeing and using a Congolese-owned bank in the foreseeable future.

Rety Lubala Lulando